Darn Stupid Brother You Are

(Hendrix's POV)

I finally decided to leave my room, after days of hiding away. My health had been a convenient excuse to avoid everyone, but I knew I couldn't stay hidden forever. I made my way to my therapy session, hoping to avoid any encounters with Angel. I wasn't ready to face her yet, to answer her questions about what happened at the infirmary.

As I walked out of the dorm, I ran into Eddie, one of my roommates coming into the room. Instead of getting in as intended, he followed me instead. He was a careless guy with a crude sense of humor, always making jokes and causing trouble. "Hendrix! What's up, man?" Eddie exclaimed, surprised to see me leave the room.

I didn't respond, just nodded and kept walking.

"Whoa, okay, dude, no need to be rude," Eddie said, falling into step beside me.

"I'm glad you're finally out of hibernation!" Eddie said and laughed at his own joke.

"We all thought you were going to hide in the room forever and start growing mushrooms or something."

I rolled my eyes, not responding. Eddie was trying to be funny, but his jokes were falling flat today.

"Seriously, man, what's going on?" Eddie asked, his tone a little softer. "You've been MIA for days. We've been worried about you. Well, maybe not worried, but we've noticed you're not interested in when we talk about girls anymore or even leaving the room."

I shook my head, trying to ignore him.

"Come on, Hendrix, spill the beans," Eddie said, plopping his arm down on my shoulder. I shook him off and I quickened my pace, trying to lose Eddie. But he kept following me, chattering away.

"Come on, Hendrix, talk to me. What happened at the infirmary? You've been acting weird ever since." When I remained quiet he probed, "Seriously, is that it? What's going on? You're really not still sulking about that whole infirmary thing, are you?"

I finally stopped and turned to face him. "Just leave me alone, Eddie."

Eddie raised his hands, backing off. "Okay, okay, no problem. Be that way," Eddie said. "But I'm glad you're okay, even if you are being weird."

I glared at him, but he just chuckled.

"Okay, okay, I get it. You're still not talking. But seriously, dude, you need to get out more. You're starting to smell like your socks."

I flipped my finger at him, and I hastily walked leaving him standing behind me and he laughed.

"Hey, I'm just trying to help. If you need to talk, I'm here. Even if you don't, I'm still here, and I'm going to keep bugging you until you crack." Ed shouted at my retreating back. Eddie was a good person.

But nah... he wasn't someone you told secrets to. Half the center could know by the next morning.

As I walked towards the therapy room, I couldn't help but think about Angel and how I would be able to avoid her. I knew she would have a lot of questions, and I wasn't ready to answer them yet. I needed more time to process everything that had happened.

I approached the cafeteria, expecting it to be empty. But to my surprise, I heard muffled voices coming from inside. I frowned, wondering who could be there at this time of day. Breakfast was over, and everyone should be in class or therapy. My curiosity got the better of me, and I approached the door, looking through the glass panel at the top. That's when I saw them - Angel and her roommates, cleaning the cafeteria under Miss Stefan's watchful eye. I was surprised, and a little confused. Why were they cleaning? And why was Miss Stefan supervising?

As I watched, Miss Stefan's voice rose above the others, her words muffled but her tone clear. "I told you, no talking! You're here to clean, not socialize!"

Angel's voice shot back, "This is unfair! We didn't even do anything that bad!"

Okay, that was weird.

Angel was as her name implied, an angel. She never confronted authority or spoke back to elders. Even when her mum had unfairly mistreated her, she took it with a grain of salt. What was going on?

Miss Stefan's response was swift. "Unfair? You think breaking the rules is unfair? You're lucky I don't suspend you all!"

Angel glared at Miss Stefan, her eyes flashing with anger. I could see her mouth set in a tight line, her jaw clenched.

"What's with the sloppy job? You call that cleaning? Start again, from the top!" Miss Stephan kept yelling.

I winced, feeling a pang of sympathy for Angel and her roommates. Miss Stefan was notorious for being tough, but this seemed excessive.

Just as I was observing, Angel looked up, her eyes scanning the door as if she sensed my presence. I quickly bent my head, not wanting to be seen. I heard Miss Stefan's voice again, "Angel, focus! Your eyes should be on the floor! You're not done yet!"

I sighed, trying to understand the tense scene I had just witnessed. I wondered what they had done to deserve being punished.

I didn't want to draw attention to myself, especially Angel's so I ignored them and continued walking. I wasn't ready to face Angel yet, to deal with her questions and concerns. I just hoped our paths wouldn't cross again soon.

I made my way to my therapy session, my mind preoccupied with thoughts of Angel and what had happened at the infirmary. I knew I couldn't avoid her forever, but for now, I just needed some time to myself.

....

As I walked out of the therapy room, I felt a sense of relief. The session had been tough, but I felt like I was making progress. The therapist Dr Maria was really great at her job and she was trying to get into my head to know why my outlet was always sex. I headed towards my dorm, lost in thought, when suddenly unseen hands grabbed me from behind, pulling me into an empty therapy room. I stumbled, my heart racing, as the door shut behind me.

I stared into the darkness, trying to make out who had pulled me in. The room was dimly lit, with only a sliver of light peeking through the blinds. I squinted, trying to see who was there.

It was Angel.

Shit.