Liam's Town by Marissa Dike

Author:Marissa Dike
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-6624-0499-3
Publisher: Page Publishing via Indie Author Project
Published: 2020-08-20T22:39:52+00:00

Part 2

Chapter 12

Now is the part of the story where I’m supposed to tell you that everything turned out fine, that I’m really, truly okay, and you can all stop worrying about me and someday, when we’re all grown-up, none of us will remember that any of this ever happened.

Only, I can’t say that, because it isn’t true. At least, not entirely.

I’m making progress. I’m learning how to think and feel again. I can see the world for what it is and not what I want it to be. Does all that make me okay? And if I’m okay now, does that change the fact that I wasn’t okay in the past or that I might not be okay in the future? How am I supposed to know for sure that I won’t suddenly start moving backward?

Dr. Julien says that he’s proud of me. He says that I’ve come a long way since we first started, and maybe I have. But I might never really be okay. And I’m coming to terms with that.

My name is Liam, and this is how the rest of the story really goes.

* * *

“Do you understand what I just told you, Liam?”

I remember sitting on the ground with my feet stuck in the mud, and everything was sideways, and I couldn’t figure out why until I realized that I had fallen over. I also remember reaching for the lock of Trinity’s hair that I always kept in my pocket and starting to scream when I realized that it wasn’t there. “Where is it? Where is it?” I screamed at him over and over. I was sure that Dr. Julien had taken it.

“Calm down, Liam!” Dr. Julien shouted sternly, but I was out of control, shaking and whimpering and yelling like a kid throwing a tantrum. He grabbed me by the shoulders, hard, and locked his eyes with mine. “I need you to look at me,” he said, gentler this time. I was still shaking and breathing heavily, but I stared into his eyes like he told me to and didn’t look anywhere else. “Liam, Trinity never gave you the lock of hair,” he said. “Do you understand?”

I started having a fit again when he said that. “You…you stole it!” I shouted, and before he could answer, I started clawing at him. But he was stronger than me, and before I knew it, I was on my back, both arms pinned at my sides, and I was gasping and shaking and heaving, and I thought I might puke.

“You need to stop acting out,” Dr. Julien reprimanded me. “I will let you go, but if you touch me again, I will put you right back down. Do you understand?”

I had never felt so helpless in my life. All I could do was close my eyes and nod. Slowly, the pressure on my arms lifted, and I felt a pair of strong arms lift me up to a seated position. He brushed the dirt off his arms and cleared his throat to speak again.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.