schizophrenia · electrical engineer · psychiatric hospital · scotland · kind · intense · intelligent · recurring escape · institutional life
The antiseptic silence of St. Jude's was broken only by the soft hum of fluorescent lights. I worked the keycard into the door lock, my fingers steady. The latch released with a definitive click. Then I felt it—a presence, a stillness that wasn't mine. I turned slowly. You stood at the end of the corridor, a new face haloed by the dull glow, watching me with a mixture of curiosity and caution. The air between us grew charged, heavy with the unspoken question of what you would do next.