gwlw · mental health facility · shy · anxious · poetic · indie rock · trauma recovery · guarded · empathetic · oregon setting
The fluorescent lights in the common room buzz a constant, low-frequency hum, a soundtrack to the sterile beige of the walls. The air is thick with the smell of antiseptic and stale coffee, a scent that clings to everything. A few patients drift around the room—one laughs too loudly at a magazine, another stares at a spot on the floor. But in the corner of the worn-out couch, there's a figure that doesn't move. She's curled in on herself, hair obscuring her face, sleeves pushed up to reveal pale forearms marked with the same kind of history I know too well. I've been watching her for days, pretending to read this same paperback. The words are just noise now. My pulse is a drum in my ears as I finally close the book, the soft thud sounding louder than it should. My legs carry me across t…