Monsters Are Human

Alex had shyly turned his back as the two got dressed before breakfast. He was given a shirt and a pair of pants. They allowed him a pair of white socks and bedroom slippers, too. The bleak whiteness of the clothing made Alex somehow miss the stuffy green sweaters and khakis his mother would order for him from the JC Penney’s catalog.

As the two walked into the dining hall, Alex could not figure out where to look first. There were so many boys and girls his age. It was like being the new student at school, except with more yelling and crying. Alex sat down shyly next to his roommate at one of the brown wooden tables. He couldn’t pull his eyes away from the colorless oatmeal on his plate. Next to it, there was a bowl of discolored peaches and a piece of jellied toast.

“Are you going to eat that? Because I’ll take your food.”

Alex looked up and locked eyes with a boy about his age. He had brown eyes and the brightest smile of anyone in the entire population of Darlinghurst.

“Yes, I’m going to eat it. I just…does it taste good?”

“I think it tastes fine. I’m very hungry today. Let me know if you don’t want it, okay? My name is Rian, by the way,” the boy with the bright smile said. Alex noticed he wasn’t eating off of his own tray, though. He was just pushing the oatmeal around and talking to the boy next to him.

Jack leaned over and whispered to Alex, “He’s here because he doesn’t like to eat. Sometimes, when they do get him to have something, they sedate him so he can’t throw it back up. He asks for food so people think he’s really eating a lot.”

Alex didn’t understand. He figured it was best for him to just keep to himself. He lifted up his spoon and shoved a large bit of his oatmeal into his mouth. He chewed contently and Rian gave him a dirty look.

“Are you trying to show off? Fucking eat it then!” His eyes filled with tears and he shook. “Eat it, you fucking pig, eat it!”

Alex sat back stunned. He’d never heard anyone use that language before, especially toward him. It was then that a tall, muscular boy came running over.

“Rian! Calm down,” The tall boy whispered, sitting next to Rian. He grabbed his hand and stroked it. “Why are you yelling?”

“This…this pig is eating and showing off that he eats.”

Jack grabbed Alex by the arm and pulled him away from the table. The two stole off down the hallway, dodging the nurses and guards at the door. The taller boy pulled him into the bathroom. Alex was panting from the run and Jack looked concerned.

“I should have explained everything from the very start I suppose,” Jack looked around the room, gazing up at the ceiling and smiling. “Well, would you look at the roses growing all the way up the walls to the top there? How charming,”

Alex looked up then too, confused. He didn’t see anything there, but he decided to humor Jack and commented on how it was nice to see flowers this time of year.

“Rian doesn’t take well to the new people here. He thinks when people eat, they’re trying to prove something to him. He really will warm up though. Oh, and the boy that ran over…,” Jack was pacing the room, reaching for the invisible roses and plucking them from the stems in his mind. “You also met Zack in there too. He’s nice. I don’t really know why he’s here but only female nurses take care of him. Him and Rian sometimes kiss when the guards aren’t working.”

Alex nodded. “Maybe Zack is here because he’s a homosexual.”

Jack’s face hardened, “It doesn’t matter what he is. Here we’re all a family...,” His face suddenly turned to a smile, “Which reminds me! Rian’s mother always makes him chocholate chip cookies at Christmastime.”

“I don’t intend to be here at Christmastime.”

Jack started to laugh. It was the kind of laugh that echoed off the walls and made Alex’s stomach turn.

“You will be.”