8 ○ Umbrella Academy

Stuck in Time

It was hard leaving the room and not just for me. Diego struggled with the guards the whole time and it crushed me watching him be corralled like an animal. With a light shake in my hands, I returned to the nurse at the front desk, forcing a smile to my lips at the polite expression the nurse offered. "Is there something else I can help you with?"

"Yes, actually," I breathed. Being in this place for as long as I have been was starting to make me nervous. It made me realize that if old man Hargreeves hadn't taken us in, I would've very likely ended up in a place like this. "I want to discharge my brother. Today, if possible." While the politeness remained in her face, there was a subtle sadness to it.

"I'm sorry, but we can't do that. We're legally required to hold every patient for 72 hours." I closed my eyes as I took a deep breath, shaking my head to myself. No, I can't let him stay here. Steeling my nerves, I reached for her hand once again, making quick work of influencing her after the look of confusion she bore.

"I want him discharged today," I insisted, trying as hard as I could manage.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but it's the law. All patients have a mandatory 72 hour hold." I pulled my hand back in defeat, starting to lose grip on what little control I had here.

"So I can pick him up in two days?" I checked, needing something to look forward to.

"I can't say. It all depends on if Mr. Oswald still wants to press charges. From what I've seen, nothing has changed." Her words were like a punch to the gut. I didn't want Diego to join the cluttered, hazy thoughts I was surrounded by. I wanted him to be far from this place, far from anything having to do with it, but there wasn't a whole lot I could do at this moment. At least if we were alone in the hall, I could hold her head and ensure he left after his 72 hours. However, anything like that would probably get me thrown in a cell right along side him. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Visiting days are Mondays and Fridays, you can come back as often as you'd like."

I tried not to let the weight of defeat crush me, but there wasn't any other option to leave the ward. Each step I took leaving the facility made the stone in my chest sink deeper, a heavy weight in my stomach by the time I rejoined Isaac in the car. We sat in silence for a long moment, I could hear him mentally prepare our conversation; he wanted to know, but he also had great respect for my privacy. That wasn't something you found very often in the 60's. "Go ahead and ignore me if this comes out stupid, but it didn't go well, did it?" he cautiously started.

I couldn't help a tug on my lips but it didn't stay there long, heaving a deep breath as I prepped my words as well. "There's a mandatory 72 hour hold," I informed quietly. "After that, it depends if the Oswald man presses charges; it sounds like he will." Isaac rested his elbow on the steering wheel and held his head in the same hand, using the other to offer me comfort. I closed my eyes when his hand fell on my shoulder, his attempt to calm me more effective than he could know. 

He honestly wanted to make me feel better, tapping into those emotions only made it true, at least a little bit; I still felt the stone in my stomach. "Whatever you need, I'm here for you." I offered him a grateful smile but didn't open my eyes. Isaac's help would be particularly useful, as a lawyer, but until we heard from Lee Harvey Oswald in a few days there was nothing we could do. I don't know if you can hear me or not, but there wasn't a lot I could do. I'm trying, though, and I won't stop trying. I promise. 

I didn't hear Diego at all, his presence in my mind was quiet, a slight haze between us providing a difficulty in hearing his thoughts. It slowly grew stronger and my heart broke all over again at the realization that they'd drugged him. I could no longer hold back my tears, the dam in my eyes finally bursting.