The Reckless and the Brave.

And then he accused me of hooking up with someone in rehab! He hasn’t taken his eyes off of her since he walked through the doors.

It was Saturday again, marking my fifth week in rehab. I was doing okay, I guess. Maybe not okay, but… managing. Yeah, I was managing.

I was in the music room, again, softly strumming one of the acoustics. Absentmindedly playing one of my own songs. Pretty sure it was “Jasey Rae”, but I was too lost in thought to really notice. Jack was here too, but he was sitting on the floor next to the piano. His plan, of course, was to come visit me. Unfortunately for me Jack gets distracted quit easily, especially when the distraction is in the form of a pretty girl.

“Alex? Hello!?” Mandy’s voice snapped my out of my trance. I looked up at the happy couple sitting on the floor. ‘Oh they’ve realized I’m still here too’, I thought sarcastically. “Hmm.” I made a vague sound letting her know I heard her. Mandy laughed. “Sometimes I really wonder what goes on in that head of yours.” “Probably just sex and music.” Jack piped in, causing Mandy to giggle. “Like it’s any different with you.” She joked back and with that they were back into their own little world again.

I sighed and put the guitar down. “I’m gonna go back to my room.” I said, not waiting for an answer or even expecting one. I looked at the clock and saw it was a little after 4. I didn’t feeling like just sitting in my room until dinner and decided maybe a walk outside would be a good idea, the weather was nice enough to do so.

The garden was, next to the music room, one of my favorite places to pass the time. It was big and looked more like a small park rather than a garden. I simply walked around a bit and let my thoughts wander.

I wondered if Jack and Mandy had realized I’d left by now. Jack had come over for a visit, but when Mandy walked in he’d forgotten why he came here in the first place. I didn’t really mind though, I was glad the like each other, and maybe even more than just ‘like’ each other, but it annoyed me that now I didn’t have a chance to talk to my best friend.

But I couldn’t ignore the fact Jack and Mandy would make a good couple, her drug problem aside of course. Jack was immature as fuck, but could be very serious when needed. Mandy was a little more mature and down-to-earth enough to handle Jack’s crazy behavior. He need someone to keep calm him down from time to time and she could use someone as crazy as Jack in her life.

I sat down on one of the benches with my back towards to the door. That way I had a great view of the garden. But instead of looking at it my gaze was fixed on the wall to my right. I know it is part of the forbidden South wing. There are a couple of windows, but the curtains are always closed. Or… not? I suddenly realized what looked so different today.

The curtains of one of the windows were open. I couldn’t see inside because the sun was reflecting of the glass. I slowly got up and walked towards it. Once I saw what was inside I froze.

She was just standing there, staring up at the sky. She looked to be my age, maybe a little younger. Her simple, light green sundress clung perfectly to her small frame. Her long, curly brown hair was pulled back in a low ponytail. She was bare feet and clutching a notebook and a pen to her chest. Suddenly she blinked and her big, brown eyes shifted from the sky to me and went wide in surprise.

She seemed to be completely in shock, like she didn’t even know there were other people here too. I lifted my hand and waved, fully realizing I probably looked like a complete idiot. Her arms tightened around her notebook for a second, but then seemed to relax a little. One of her arms twitched a little, like she was hesitating to return the gesture. But before she could make a decision. A woman appeared behind her, she wasn’t dressed like the nurses here so I figured it must be a family member who’d come to visit. Judging on the woman’s hair and eyes I figured it must be her mother.

The woman was saying something to the girl, but a couldn’t hear her through the glass. She didn’t seem happy though, there was a frown on her face and her mouth was pressed into a thin line. She practically yanked the girl away from the window, before quickly shutting the curtains again.

I don’t know why, but I was intrigued. Who was this girl? And why was she here? Or, even better, why was she in the South wing? She’d looked so sad when she was staring at the sky and almost terrified when she saw me. What had happened to her that made her react like that?

Then the doors opened and Mandy and Jack came outside. “Aaaaalex!” Mandy yelled in a sing-sang voice. “Ah, there you are. We’ve been looking all over the place for you. You suddenly disappeared on us.” She said in an accusing tone, poking my chest. “I didn’t think you’d notice.” I chuckled. Mandy blushed heavily and Jack was staring awkwardly at the ground. “Uhm.. was it really that obvious?” Jack mumbled. “What? That you two were acting like a couple of newlyweds back in the music room?” I asked sarcastically. Now both of them were staring at the ground, looking a little embarrassed. I laughed at their reactions. “Guys, it’s fine. I don’t care.” “So…. You’re okay with this?” Mandy asked carefully. “Sure why not?” I said truthfully. “Besides, you two would make a pretty cute couple.” I teased, causing Mandy to blush even more.

“So what were you doing here?” Mandy asked. “Uhm…” I mumbled, glancing at the now closed window. “Nothing.” I shrugged. Mandy gave me a looked that told me she knew I wasn’t being honest about this. ‘You’re gonna tell me later’ she mouthed and I nodded. “Let’s go back inside.” I suggested. “Maybe now I can talk to Jack too before he leaves.” I wrapped an arm around my best friend and led both of them back inside.

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Jack had to leave eventually and Mandy was getting quite impatient. The second Jack was out the door she very nearly attacked me. “Okay, what happened? Obviously something happened when you were in the garden. Tell me.” She demanded. “Tell what?” I asked casually, knowing it would drive her crazy. “Alex…” There was a warning tone in her voice. “Alright, Alright.” I laughed. “I… I saw a girl.” “A girl?” Mandy sounded confused. I laughed at the disappointed tone of her voice. “Yes, Mandy, a girl. What did you expect? Creepy doctors, with blood soaked coats and big needles?” I teased. Mandy shrugged. “I know it’s not a horror movie Alex, but I did expect something a little more exciting than a girl!” She sighed dramatically. I shook my head. “You are so weird.” Mandy shrugged again. “Whatever, I’m just excited. In case you haven’t noticed there doesn’t really happen a lot in here. So, a girl. What happened? What did she do?” Mandy was practically bouncing with anticipation.

I closed my eyes for a second, picturing the girl again. “She was looking at the sky.” I said, opening my eyes. Mandy gave me a ‘are you fucking kidding me’ look. I ignored it and continued. “She looked so… desperate to get out of there.” “Aren’t we all.” Mandy mumbled, but made no other comment and let me continue. “When she saw me she looked shocked, terrified almost. But she was pulled away by her mom, at least I think it was her mom, I don’t think she’s allowed to look or be outside.”

Mandy patted my arm. “You shouldn’t worry too much about her Alex. There’s a reason she’s in here and there’s a reason she’s not allowed to go outside.” “I know, I know, I just…” I trailed off. I what? What could I do? What did I want to do? I didn’t know, I didn’t know what I wanted. “You just what?” Mandy asked. “I don’t know.” I sighed, burring my face in my hand. Mandy nodded and got up.

“Let go eat, I’m starving.” She said and left. I followed and we sat down at the table looked out over the garden. I didn’t eat much that evening, I was too busy focusing on that one window of the South Wing. I knew the curtains wouldn’t open again, so I dropped my gaze to the plate in front of me.

Suddenly a flash of light outside caught my eye. My head snapped up and I swear that flash of light had come from the mystery girl’s window…. Or maybe I was finally going insane.