“My parents made me join a support group through school before I graduated,” whispered Andrew, so quietly he was barely heard.
“Good Andrew, that’s really good. Support groups through organizations, like school, are also a great way to find like-minded people, or at least people who can empathize with what it’s like to be different,” Jessica responded encouragingly, since Andrew rarely spoke in our group therapy sessions.
“When each of you is discharged, you’ll be provided with a list of support groups in our area that are geared towards your individual needs as well as a therapist outside of the hospital to help you navigate life outside of a controlled environment,” said Daxton. I couldn’t help but admire his rugged beauty and how, even though his face was cast into dark shadows from the sun being behind him, he was still the only thing catching my eyes.
A silence descended upon our group, the only sounds coming from the gentle forest behind us. The trees groaned as they swayed in the gentle breeze, branches long since fallen to theforest floor snapping under the gentle weight of the wildlife that lingered just out of sight.
“We thought you might enjoy staying outside since it’s such a nice day before we take you back to lunch,” announced Jessica. “Those who wish to remain in the courtyard are welcome to stay with me and Cindy. Anyone wanting to take another walk through a few of the trails in the woods is able to do so with Daxton. Just please return your blankets to the bench where Cindy is sitting before you do so.”
I felt Kendi's grin before I saw it. Everyone was rising from their spots on the ground, Daxton being kind enough to help Thelma up, and not paying a bit of attention to us.
“I’d love to know why you’re smiling like the Joker who just caught Batman in his trap,” I hissed, folding my blanket as she bounced up and down on her feet.
“Go on the walk,” She urged, her smile never faltering.
“Okay, we can go if you want, though I think Thelma’s arthritis is bothering her with the weather changing,” I indicated her slight limp as she headed over to the benches with Tyson and Andrew.
“Not with us Rae. Go by yourself,” She said, and that’s when it struck me what she was hinting at. I wanted to argue. Before I could voice anything against what she suggested, she continued. “Girl, step outside of your comfort zone. It may be nothing, but take a risk, nothing epic ever happened from sitting on the sidelines.”
Without waiting for me to respond, or completely decide if I was going on the walk or not, she grabbed my half-folded blanket out of my hands, turned, and took off after everyone else, leaving me alone with Daxton standing at the beginning of a trail. His arms hung loosely at his sides, his muscled shoulders relaxed along with the rest of his body.
“No one else wants to join us for a walk?” He asked the group as I walked to his side. Jessica shook her head and gave him the go-ahead, agreeing to meet up in an hour to go back inside for lunch.
“I guess it’s just you and me, Rae,” he mused, inviting me to walk beside him as we entered the woods alone.
Fall was in full swing, the colors bursting through the canopy above us as we walked deeper into the surrounding trees. The Appalachian Mountains were beautiful year-round, but in the autumn, they were breathtaking. Their allure did nothing to distract me from the parade of panic trying to overtake me from being alone with him.
“You look happy today,” he observed as we walked beside each other at a leisurely pace. The space between us seemed both too far and too close if that was possible.
“I love the woods,” I remarked, keeping my eyes on the path ahead. My shoes weren’t exactly meant to be taking a trip through the rougher terrain, but being outside the confines of the unpigmented walls of the clinic made the temporary suffering worth it.
“I thought your family lived in town. Did your parents take you hiking or camping?”
“No, you’re right, I did grow up in town. My parents were too strung out most of the time. My grandmother lived in the woods, a good way off any beaten path.”
“Your dad’s mom?”
“Yeah. She’s the one they’d drop us off with most of the time. She had a small ranch house out a little farther than here. My grandfather built it for her when they first got married. It was small, but she always made it comfortable.”
“Did you make a lot of happy memories there?”
“She did her best. She was old-fashioned, though. In the warmer months, if it was nice outside, the only times we were allowed indoors were to use the bathroom or to eat, so we explored the woods around her house a lot. She didn’t have any neighbors for miles, so we had free rein, our own little mountain paradise.”
“That sounds peaceful,” He commented, leading us farther into the deeper part of the woods.
The trail we took today was much less traveled than the one we took on our nature walk before. The overgrowth wasn’t as trimmed back, narrowing the trail in places, forcing us to walk closer beside each other to the point where we were almost touching.
“It was.” His proximity to me made it difficult for me to concentrate. The memory of his knee brushing up against mine made me curious as to whether he would do something again, somethingthat pushed the boundaries of what was appropriate between a patient and therapist. “I really need to go back there with Michelle sometime. Since she died, we couldn’t part with any of her belongings so we just left the house as she left it.”
“Why didn’t either of you move into her house?” He asked as our walk started down a gentle slope.
“It didn’t seem right. She had always pushed us to be ourselves, no matter how independent we became. We’ve maintained the property over the years, but I just can’t see the house as anything other than her house. Maybe one day that will change, but for now it’s how we honor her memory, with a shrine to both her and our past.”
“I was just thinking if you had a different place to stay after you left here, since the situation with Craig hasn’t been solved yet.” He mused, his arm brushing against mine gently, the contact nearly making me lose my train of thought.
“He knows the house is empty. He’s been with Michelle and me a few times to do maintenance on it. The utilities are cut off, but we still try to keep the yard in check so it doesn’t get overgrown. I didn’t think the police were taking anything I said seriously about what he did, though.”
“I have a buddy that works for the police department, he’s just a deputy, but he’s been keeping me in the loop on a few things about that abusive piece of shit,” he growled. Outside of the clinic, where we weren’t in danger of the walls talking, bits of his truepersonality had started to filter through the careful mask he kept in place. His obvious distaste for men like Craig is no longer caged by professional standards.
