𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐲 [Ratched X Reader]

4 | Encounters

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Last night I hadn't been able to sleep as the thoughts of my family and my former teacher had been haunting me so I'd turned on the lamp on the nightstand and had investigated the small room with its vivid light blue tiles on the floor and the dark blue flower wallpaper. I'd soon figured out there wasn't much to investigate: The drawers of the white nightstand and the commode had been empty and the small, casual bathroom hadn't managed to surprise me either. I'd therefore drawn the curtains aside and looked out of the window, up in the night sky, counting stars. When I'd thought about my family a deep sadness had grown in me as I knew mother would never look at me the same way again. I was dead to her. In this sense, the only family left was my brother who hadn't judged me for who I was but now he was farther away than ever. Maybe he'd been looking at the sky as well that night and had thought of me...

My eyes were heavy when I made my way to the day room in the morning. The hospital was filled by voices, nurses were rushing through the corridors. I spotted Nurse Bucket pacing in front of the reception counter with a stern look on her face as she explained something to a bunch of nurses. They were standing in a row behind the counter, their bodies tense and their gazes glued to the head nurse. To my disappointment Nurse Ratched wasn't among them. Why did I feel the need to see her?

Shaking my head as if to get rid of this strange longing I was quick to walk past the lobby. When I entered the day room I let my gaze meander through the place, searching for the patient who'd talked to me two days ago but I couldn't spot him among the other patients. I still didn't feel comfortable enough to trust him, yet Ratched's 'secrets' he apparently knew about had aroused interest in me.

A young nurse pushed an old man in a wheelchair past me. The piano was playing from the music box in the background as always. A woman sitting in a green cushioned chair was rocking back and forth, her eyes were red and puffy as she stared at the floor. I felt queasy at her sight. A doctor's assistant put a hand on her shoulder and whispered something in her ear, which made her finally look up. Carefully he helped her up and guided her to the middle of the room where other patients were already gathered so I followed them and lined up, waiting for the nurses to show up.

Meanwhile, I brushed my pastel yellow dress to rid it of wrinkles but it didn't take long for Nurse Ratched to emerge with the med trolley, this time alone, so I straightened myself, feeling my heartbeat picking up for some odd reason. The woman's gaze wandered through the hall and her look didn't miss me. It was just a fleeting moment when our gazes met but enough to faze me.

Out of nowhere, I had to think of yesterday's incident with the nurse. Earlier that day I'd pondered over whether her statement had been a threat or a piece of advice but soon I'd concluded that she'd just tried to help me. She'd been right: It was probably up to me how long I had to stay here. But what's it worth fighting my true feelings? Denying who I really was?

As the woman's porcelain face appeared in front of me I shyly looked into her brown eyes. I could swear she was wearing a darker shade of red on her lips than usual today. When she handed me my medication and our fingertips touched a bolt of small lightning ran through my body, which made my heart leap.

What was wrong with me? Why did this woman intrigue me so much? Why did I want to get to know her better?

For a moment her gaze remained on me before the corners of her red, plump lips slightly twitched and she turned away. I was so paralyzed I nearly forgot about the blue pill in my mouth I had to get rid of. My God, compose yourself!

Just as Nurse Ratched had finished her distribution the head of Lucia State Hospital, Dr. Hanover, appeared with a tall man in a black suit, wearing a red tie and a black hat, and some other men. His unamused glare went through the hall as Dr. Hanover explained something to him and Nurse Bucket walked over to his side, hands clasped in front of her body. Taking a closer look at the man in the suit I realized it was the governor Dr. Hanover was talking to.

Suddenly strained coughing sounded from the other side of the room and as I let my head jolt into the sound's direction my eyes widened in shock as I caught sight of a man breaking down on the floor. He was ringing for air, his eyes wide open in fear.

With the pill still in my mouth, I observed the scene in horror: Nurse Ratched rushed to the man and kneeled, simultaneously heads bobbed apart and alarmed gazes were exchanged. Nurse Bucket raced towards Ratched and reached for her arm, muttering something when Nurse Ratched suddenly snapped, giving the older nurse a piercing glare: "Don't you ever lay a hand on me!"

"How dare you...-?", disbelieve was written on Nurse Bucket's face as she fired back with anger. I'd been right: There was some sort of war going on between them...

"Just...wait", the red-haired woman snarled and leaned over the patient, carefully placing him in lateral position. From where I was standing I couldn't exactly discern what she was doing but the man suddenly vomited before he rested his head on the floor and his harsh panting sounded. Assistants and other nurses emerged and Ratched mumbled something towards their direction before they carefully lifted the patient. „Breathe. Everything is going to be alright, Mr. Wilson"

I couldn't avert my gaze off the red-haired nurse. Even though it was every nurse's duty to save lives and care for their patents I found myself being truly impressed by her.

Shortly thereafter, the sound of clapping echoed through the hall. "Excellent", the governor praised and turned to Dr. Hanover who now suddenly had the governor's full attention.

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