I Know

Chapter One

I counted the trees as they passed by! Seventy four, seventy five. I don't deserve this! One minute I was living in happiness and joy I was popular and pretty! Now I'm just a girl with a broken leg, a scar that will permanently posses my body which stretches from the palm to my hand to half way before reaching my elbow. The only thing I wonder the most is why me?

Why did I have to survive and not Leah? She is the youngest she had so much to look forward to! I was just a college graduate going of to Brown College in Rhode Island! I was going to major in english, become an author, but now that "mental pacient" has been added to my record they will never let me go!

Not talking is a choice not a "mental issue" as Aunt Liz calls it behind my back. While we drive for another twenty minutes and just when I was fading to a deep sleep I sign caughts my eye "Dickinson Sanitarium". A.K.A "The Looney Bin"

As we arrive I see that the place itself isn't as bad. I excepted metal bars not guards and a black and white prison not a friendly light blue color friendly placed upon the hunting building.

Aunt Liz parks on the street in front of Dickinson's. Huge letters posses upon the big building right in the middle "Dickinson Sanitarium" is placed in a neutral metallic and strong light blue, darker than the building itself.
"Em, Em... Emma!" Aunt Liz calls interrupting my thoughts.

As we try to walk in a guard stops us.
"Emma Moore." Aunt Liz says to the unfriendly guard and opens the door for us. Aunt Liz gives him a "thank you" look and I just ignore him and stare straight ahead and wake in.

"Emma Moore." My Aunt repeats my name for what seems the 20th time today to a fat middle aged woman with a name tag that says "Betty".

Betty does some typing in her computer, writing on an old wooden clipboard, and finally she writes something down "Emma" it reads and she hands it to me along with a notebook and a white pencil case. I place the name tag with my name.

I look at the cover of my note book. It is white and has my name written down in the middle top of the cover. I open it and what seems as a calendar lies in my hands.

"Its your schedule, doll." Betty says with a rusty voice.

"You better hurry if you want to unpack cause you first meting stars in about an hour. And no parents aloud in the rooms so she must do it on her own." The old women stays looking and admiring her red ugly nails.

"Ok, then." Aunt Liz responds for me because she know I won't. And looks at me.

I look around the place white couches are everywhere crying and scare children fill the room along with consoling parents. I focus my wondering eyes back to my Aunt.

"This is it, then?" She states the obvious even though I have only spend less than two weeks in her house while she was doing all the planing to send me here.
My aunt finally gives me one of her famous pity smiles that I have been getting for the past two weeks and hugs me tight and leaves. She has never been good with "good byes" you should have seen her at the funeral. Not one tear shed for her niece, brother in-law, or worst of all for her sister.

Beside me a sign that says "ROOMS" is my cue to get going and follow up the stairs with my bags. After that I realize I have no clue of where to go. The hall divides itself into three sections. A, B, C.

I open my notebook in search for answers and the name "Emma Moore" along with 102B beside my name. I remember that if the first number was one you were on the first floor and two indicating your on the second floor. I also recall that the first floor is for girls.

Section A was for kids 5-12. Section B 13-21 then you are released. And finally Section C is for all the workers, following the same rules when it comes do dividing the floors.

As I get going a young doctor pushes me on the shoulder and my bags drop to the floor. I want to scream at him but the words don't come out so I give him a warning glance. Both of us go down to pick up my bags. He removes his mask covering part of his face and a charming smile appears on his face.

"Sorry!" Says the clumsy doctor and hands me my back pack. I give him my warning glance again and roll my eyes at the doctor. He chuckles and smiles. He quickly puts his mask over his face and leaves with a very... strange first impression of him.

Maybe he is my support group mentor. Which I will meet after unpacking.

Maybe just maybe.