Chapter 412: 2-2

Gathering courage, I turned my face back to Grant, who was sitting on my sofa in my bedroom, just at complete ease, a small one-sided smile on his face. "Do you know what I do? Or what I did back when I lived in Middleburg?" I shook my head from side to side slowly. "Well I am - was a therapist back home, I dealt with children and young adults that were survivors of various forms of abuse. Helping them deal with anxiety, depression, other difficulties that they find within themselves, whether its fear, how they see themselves, anger, the sense of betrayal, powerlessness and judgment they feel that they will encounter." I stared at him blankly, wondering just how he would help with any of those things... I had heard of the of white coats call themselves a therapist before as well, I thought fleetingly. "Sometimes... it's just about finding someone to talk too... someone you can tell what's bothering you, hurting you inside, all those wounds that no one can see on the outside, but on the inside they still hurt you, still cause you pain. So much pain that, sometimes it feels real, and it feels like you're still experiencing that abuse." Sitting back Grant sighed, "Sometimes its just finding someone you can tell all the things in your mind, so that they can help you make sense of the abuse and all the other thoughts you don't know what to do with. That is what I did back home, I was that person for different people, and someone they could trust and know that there would be no judgment." "I wasn't abused," I murmured, "I didn't listen to Carla and Tony, and so I had to learn," I said with a shrug, my stomach turning, and the memories just plain rotten. Grant nodded, "Yesterday Oakley left all her dirty clothes on the ground near her room, which is right near the stairs... Julia told her to move them, but she didn't. Oakley didn't listen, so does that mean that whatever was done to you, should be done to Oakley? Because she didn't listen yesterday Kieran." The food I had eaten earlier came up my throat as memory after memory of myself was replaced with my Oakley, the thought alone disgusting and awful, leaping from the bed I dashed into the bathroom, emptying my stomach. Retching until tears blurred my vision, until all I could do was dry heave, my stomach aching painfully in protest, "You're okay, Kieran," I heard Grant saying but not understanding why he was being so nice to me, even after I told Oakley to go away. I did what he was here to do... right? "Here it's mouth wash," I saw him slowly place a cup near my face, flushing the toilet; I reached for the cup taking it in such a way so our hands wouldn't touch. Sniffing it on reflex, I couldn't match it's scent to what white coats had given me when I had this same reaction before, I could tell it was my own mouth wash Chelsea had provided me with. Slowly I filled my mouth, letting the mint slowly erase and remove the repugnant acid bitter taste in my mouth, spiting and doing it again. "I'll wait for you out there," Grant murmured. I couldn't understand what was happening, why he was still being nice to me, though, and how he of all people could want anything to happen to Oakley, she wasn't like me. I was just defective and wrong, but she just maybe forgot to move the clothes. Should Chelsea be worried for Oakley? Did she know that Grant wanted to punish her that way? For something so small as forgetting to move her dirty clothes? Had he been pretending? I thought Grant was nice, I knew when people were being fake and putting on a forced performance. When I couldn't stay in the bathroom any longer I went back to the bedroom, sitting on my bed a good six or seven feet away from Grant. "I'm sorry," he apologized because today wasn't going crazy enough. Remaining silent since I didn't know how to even respond Grant continued. "I didn't mean to make you sick, I was just wondering if you thought a good punishment for Oakley would be what you had done to you for wanting to play outside when your m - Carla and Tony said no?" this time he remained silent while I wondered what he was drinking or had eaten that had made him lose his mind entirely. "I was bad..." I repeated again. Grant nodded finally agreeing with me, I felt slightly victorious. "I'll tell you what, how about you think about that for the day and tomorrow we can talk again? You take some time to think of how you were treated and if that is a good punishment for anyone who does something wrong?" I clenched my fists at my side. "Tomorrow? I told Oakley not to come near me anymore," wasn't that enough? Grant looked me in the eyes, no malice there, "I didn't tell you to stay away from Oakley, you told Oakley to leave you alone. I didn't - you made the decision to push her away, I was in the room because I was concerned about you. You were screaming and panting and I was worried." I listened with wide eyes, until he finishes and gave me a tight-lipped smile. "So... think about what I asked you, okay?" I nodded dumbly, just staring at the space he sat long after he stood and left the room. I stared, still not truly looking out from my window, the sun setting, the trees darkening, ignoring the sound of my stomach rumbling. Trying and still not understanding what Grant said, I wouldn't - hadn't wanted - to do to Oakley or anyone what was done to me, it wasn't right. But it was right for me. It can't be both ways Kieran, Nyx griped. White coats said your parents weren't coming because you were bad? I wasn't going to answer Nyx. So now you know that they did look for you, so you weren't bad... of course I was. That's why it all happened. So Grant is right... everything you suffered should be done to anyone who does anything wrong? That's how you think not listening to adults should be handled? If you thought that... why did you run Kieran? I shook my head, not wanting to go back to that time, not wanting to remember it, or what they wanted me to do. I would never do it. Not to anyone, I wouldn't hurt someone how they hurt me. Standing I paced back and forth, I was confused and I couldn't stop the thoughts now that Grant had put them in my head. I wasn't abused; I was punished for being bad. Right? Right. Right? . . . Chelsea POV With Gabriel and I still at a standstill in whether or not we should use the teleporting gift to help Logan scoop up all the individuals we were able to identify we were however able to come to an agreement on one thing. "You don't seem surprised to see me..." I noted observing Wolf as he sat in front of Gabriel and I; his left brow arched high, Logan sitting next to him. I used the wrong tense when talking about Rainy with him, Logan told me immediately. Shaking his head, Wolf focused his serious brown eyes on mine, "What's the plan?" he asked getting straight to the point, ready to work. His thoughts and attitude a complete change from the man that was defending Jay and Rian to no end. I smiled, "I was thinking," I said reaching for the facial composites we had completed, "these are people working with the Elders, I think we should pick them up now. Not wait for-" "We?" Both father and son said at the same time, making me blink. "You want to leave the island to pick these people up?" Wolf asked me his thick eyebrows pushed together. "Either of you?" Logan filled in after, his eyes wide already shaking his head, too dangerous, he thought but didn't voice that opinion. Blinking a few times I looked at Gabriel from the corner of my eyes, they - well Logan - thought it was dangerous for either of us to leave the island and help him do this. Not just one of us. Well it is, you two are better together, stronger when you're connected, Aria said after being silent for a while.