70. thousand. reads.

I'm sufficiently speechless, so in celebration, I'm posting a favourite of mine. I hope y'all like the 'Nurse' chapters as much as I do.
(Also, in case you want to know, I'm almost done writing the second lady to The Boy In The Tree!
Any guesses for what they could possibly be up to? ;)
Comment your guess... it'll probably be true based on the last sentence lol.)

I love y'all!

***

***

"So, Scott, would you say you've improved at all in the last month?"

Scott shrugged, but gave a small nod.

"I... I guess, yeah." He replied softly, refusing to make eyecontact with the man in front of him. Ian frowned, writing down in his journal.
"And are you okay with your roommate?" He asked.

Scott looked up at him then, nodding.
Ian raised his eyebrows questioningly. He glanced down at his journal and flipped a few pages over.
"You're roomed with... Mitchell Grassi, correct?" Ian asked. Scott, smiling slightly, nodded again.

Ian's eyed widened slightly as he continued reading.
"Histrionic personality disorder, Peter Pan syndrome... Intermittent explosive disorder..."Ian mumbled. Scott pressed his lips together, playing with the stress ball in his hands.

Ian eye'd Scott nervously.
"And you're positive you don't need a roommate change?" Ian asked. Scot quickly shook his head.

"Yes! I mean... yes. I like him, he's... he's okay. He's good." Scott quickly defended. Ian nodded and hummed quietly.

"Alright... and is your new prescription in yet?" Scott huffed, trying not to roll his eyes; and yet continued answering his questions.

***

"No! I'm not taking them unless Scott kisses my forehead!" Mitch yelled. Nancy let out a soft sigh, anxiously looking at Mitch.

"Mitch, I'm not sure how much longer Scott has his consoling for. You can't just refuse medicine unless he's here!" Mitch whined loudly, stomping the ground once with his foot.

"You're so mean to me! Nancy, why are you being so mean to me!?" He cried. Nancy shook her head slightly, gently placing her hands on either one of his shoulders.

"Mitch, I'm trying to help you. You trust me, don't you?" Mitch huffed loudly, frowning.
"I did until you tried positing me! I don't want it! I want Scott, he wouldn't poison me! I'll take them if Scott is here and kisses my forehead, he promised!"
Mitch exclaimed angrily.

Nancy opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off.
"Hey! Sorry, it ran a little too long." Scott apologized as he approached them. Mitch smiled widely.

"Yay! Hi Scott! Nancy, Scotts here! He promised me and he's here! Yay!" Mitch cheered. Scott smiled at him, before leaning frohead and kissing his forehead.

Mitch took the pills from Nancy and without hesitation took them, smiling widely.
Nancy sighed before looked at Scott.

"A word?" Scott narrowed his eyes, but followed her as she took a few steps away from Mitch. Mitch began talking to another nurse, and he didn't seem to notice.

"You need to tell Mitch to take his medicine even if you're not there." Scott tilted his head slightly, crossing his arms.
"But he just took it with whining?" Nancy shook her heard slightly.

"I've been trying to make him take them for ten minutes. He's only taking them when you kiss him. Scott, I understand that you and Mitch have a solid connection, but he cannot depend on you all the time. That's one of the reasons he's here, he needs to learn to function by himself." Nancy explained.

Scott stared at her confusedly.
"What are you saying? What am I supposed to do about that?"
Nancy sighed, glancing back at Mitch before turning back toward Scott.

"I'm going to room him by himself. He shouldn't need--"

"No, Nancy! You can't do that, he's can't be on his own. He needs attention, he needs me." Scott frantically said. Nancy pressed her lips together in a tight line.

"Exactly. He needs to learn how to--"

"Nancy, I need him too. Don't take him away from me." Scott begged. Nancy took in a deep breath.
"Okay. Fine. But I want you two to be less dependent, okay? Sleep in different beds, maybe sit at different tables at meals..." Nancy suggested.

Scott shifted uncomfortably.
"We do sleep in different beds." Nancy scoffed quietly, shaking her head.
"I have to check in on you guys during the night, you two sleep in the same bed. Don't worry, I didn't say anything... just, do what I said, alright?" Scott nodded sadly, and Nancy walked away.

"Scott!" Mitch whined. Scott quickly walked over to him, sitting down.
"Oh, there you are!" Mitch cheered. Scott smiled, but didn't say a word.

Mitch took notice in that, and was quick to frown.
"Why are you mad at me? Did I do something wrong? You're not even talking to me, I thought you liked me. I didn't even--"
"Mitch, I'm not mad at you. Calm down a little, okay?" Scott gently assured. Mitch smiled and relaxed a little.
"Okay." He replied back. Mitch began eating his toast, humming a random, disoriented tune.

Scott decided he wasn't hungry anymore, and just decided to stare at Mitch with his chin resting on his hand.
"Hey Mitch?" He mumbled. Mitch looked at him curiously, waiting for him to continue as he chewed his toast.

"How would you feel if... if we slept in different beds tonight?"
Mitch didn't reply, but his eyes narrowed slightly and Scott could see them filling with tears.

"W-why? Is-is it because you don't like me anymore? You... you j-just said that you did a-and--?"
Scott set his hands down on Mitch's, and with a small frown, interrupted.

"Mitch, breathe for a sec..." Mitch obeyed.

"That's just what Nancy was suggesting... we're here to get help and be able to function on our own. How are we supposed to function alone if we're always doing everything together?"

Mitch still didn't understand, at least not completely.
"But... I don't want to function without you."

***

"Nancy!"

She walked into Scott and Mitch's room quickly with an expecting expression. She waited for Mitch to talk, but he just sat on his bed and glared at her.

"Yes, Mitch?" She asked carefully.

"I'm cross with you." He stated as he proceeded to glare at her. Nancy glance at Scott, who was sitting on his bed, and he gave her a shrug.

"You are?" Nancy questioned, standing up a little straighter as she kept her hand on the doorknob.

Mitch nodded slightly, crossing his arms.
"Yes. And I refuse to sleep tonight." Nancy furrowed her eyebrows, shifting the weight in her feet.
"You what?"

"I'm not sleeping tonight. Or ever again if I can't sleep next to Scott." This was news to Scott, so as Nancy looked over at him with a sharp glance, he simply shook his head slightly.

"I hate you so much." Mitch said, not taking his eyes away from Nancy. Nancy opened her mouth to speak, but Mitch didn't let her.
"I love Scott, why are you trying to make him not like me anymore?" He asked, not genuinely or wanting a reply, but angrily.
His eyebrows furrowed slightly, and his neck was tinted red.
He was slightly biting his inner cheeks.

He stood up.

"I think you hate me which doesn't make any sense." He continued, and Nancy narrowed her eyes, stepping back slightly as he stood up.

"Mitch, you're thinking too much about this. Give yourself a second to relax--"
And before Nancy could finish her sentence, Mitch stepped forward and punched her square in the face.

A shriek fell from her lips as her head was forced backwards. She immediately brought her hands to her face, quick breaths releasing from her mouth.

Scott was in shock and stood up quickly to yank Mitch back.
Nancy was also quick to react, and pulled her pager out.

"I need the 210 in here now, patient Mitchell Grassi!"

***

Scott hadn't talked since they took Mitch out of their room that night he punched Nancy.

Scott began worrying. Worrying excessively to the point of throwing up, but only once. Nancy was no longer checking up on Scott, a girl named Esther was.
Scott was vaguely familiar with her, only seeing her around a few times.

"How are you doing today, Scott?" She said as she handed him his morning medication. He gave her a small shrug, taking it without complaining.
"How's Mitch?" He asked, like he did every morning. With a small frown, Esther replied like she always did every morning too.
"I'm not his nurse... I don't know."

And the other question he always asks.
"When will I see him again?"

With the same reply.
"I'm not sure, Scott."

Scott sighed.

***

He knew he was thinking too harshly about this. But it had been a month since he last saw him.
A full month.

His days felt more dull, he felt more sad. He felt more tired then usual. And he knew why, everybody knew why. He finally learned that Mitch was taken to another floor for a different practice by himself.

That made Scott scared. When they told him Mitch was alone, only at night, he felt like crying.

So Scott thought of ways to see him again. I didn't like violence, so he quickly ruled off punching a nurse in the face off the list of ideas.

Scott laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling with tears falling down the side of his face every once in awhile. His new roommate, Kevin, never asked him why, probably because he knew of Mitch and Scott. And now it was just Scott.

"Kevin?" Scott asked, still staring up at the ceiling. Kevin felt his heart race a little faster, considering Scott hadn't really talked to him in the few days he'd been living in that room.

A brief moment, and Kevin replied.
"Yes, Scott?" Scott then turned his head just slightly to the side to make eye contact with his roommate.

Although, Kevin was rather surprised by his question.
"Do you have anything sharp?"

Kevin hesitated before replying.
"Are you going to stab a nurse?" Scott laughed at that, and it made Kevin smile. First time he heard him laugh without Mitch being around.

"No, no... I promise I won't. But do you?" He racked his brain briefly.

"Yeah, um... yeah, I have a pencil sharpener? It's not sharp on the outside, it's just plastic... but there's a blade inside of it. What do you need something sharp for?" Kevin asked wearily. Scott smiled slightly and sat up, not bothering to wipe the tears that were now on his neck away.

"So I can be with him."

***

It had been two years since he was in this position. Two years. And now his prideful streak was going to break, but at this point he didn't care.

Kevin allowed him to break his plastic pencil sharpener and get the blade out. Shaking breaths released from his mouth as he slide the blade with pressure down his leg.

The phrase repeatedly going through his mind, "the things we do for love, the things we do for love."

***

"Nurse! Nurse, get in here!" Kevin yelled frantically. Quickly, Esther walked in with a worried expression.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Kevin pointed to the bathroom, "Scott's hurt." Esther was quick to react when opening the bathroom door, expecting the unexpected in full force.

She quickly used her pager to request medical help, and they arrived shortly after.

They took him to the higher floor, the one where Mitch was. And the dreadful pain he felt from his leg didn't seem that bad anymore. Well, that was before they began pouring disinfectants on it. But still... he was happy in a weird, mental hospital kind of way.

***

They changed his status from "green" to "purple" that night. Which essentially translates to "yeah, they're chill" to "WTF DID THEY JUST DO!?"

He was roomed by himself, and he felt even more alone then ever. He couldn't imagine what Mitch thought about this, he hated being alone. He needed attention and constant reassurance from others--more specifically Scott.

A few minutes went by with Scott's mind racing, and then a nurse walked into his room.
"Hello Scott. I'm Bethany, how are you doing?"
He hesitated before speaking.

"Mitch Grassi... I need Mitch Grassi." He croaked.

It was quite funny to other nurses.

People thought, when they met the two of them, that Mitch had attached himself to Scott, and Scott just let the poor kid follow him around and hold his hand.

Well, half of that is true. Mitch did do those things. But Scott needed him just as Mitch needed him. He just didn't say it as much as Mitch did.

He needed him, he couldn't explain it. Mitch made him feel important and loved, and without Mitch, he felt just like he did when he first got out in the hospital. Mitch is like a drug, his happiness is enough for them both, and that's what Scott needs.

The nurse bit her lower lip, "I'm sorry, Scott..." she said apologetically, "but patient visiting ends at bedtime. Ten." She informed him.

Scott squeezed his eyes shut and released a breath. He needed Mitch, even if they didn't speak. Or touch.
He needed to see him, that's all he wanted.

"Please let me see Mitch Grassi... I don't know what I'll do if you don't."

Bethany sighed and crossed her arms.
"I'll go ask his nurse if it'll be okay... I'll be right back." She said softly. Scott opened his eyes as she left and prayed repeatedly that he would be able to see Mitch Grassi again.

***

"Nancy said it would be okay, we're going to bring you in there. Apparently you two were going to be roomed together anyways." Bethany told Scott when she returned back to his bedroom.

His heart raced, and he felt strings pool at his soul. He only nodded, unable to think of words to express how he was feeling in that moment.
Minutes went by quickly with his manic mind.

When he got taken to Mitch's room, he had just left to go brush his teeth. Scott waited, slightly impatiently, on his bed. He fidgeted with his hands a tapped along to a beat he remembers vaguely from his childhood.

And when he heard the door handle shake and then open, he allowed his eyes to stare at the door. Nancy walked in first, and Mitch then after.

Mitch stopped when he spotted Scott sat on his bed.

He didn't say anything, nor did Scott.
Although seconds later, Mitch walked over to him hesitantly, almost as if he wasn't actually there and he was hallucinating.

Mitch lifted his hand up slowly to Scott's face before poking his forehead.
Scott didn't do anything, just simply allowed Mitch to do as he pleased in the moment.

Mitch then dropped both of his arms to his sides and made eye contact with Scott.

"Duck."

Scott narrowed his eyes.

"Duck?"

Mitch smiled.

"Goose."

***