I'm Not Insane

Chapter 8 - Appointment with the Doctor

11 November 2022

Dr Vencifer's POV

"Come in," I called out as a gentle knock distracted me from my thoughts. I looked up and saw Rebecca standing at the doorway of my office.

"Good Morning Dr Vencifer," she spoke softly, "I was speaking to Marianna's night nurse during handover and she said that Marianna didn't get much sleep last night. She told me that Marianna mentioned having a bad dream so I thought it'd be best to let you know."

"Thank you Rebecca," I began calmly, "I'll make a note of that in her patient files. For today, I'd like if you could keep a close eye on her. I've assigned Michael to stay with her for the day. I've also scheduled an appointment for Marianna at 9:30am just to discuss some things."

I watched as Rebecca nodded at me in agreement. "Are you happy for me to just give her the 50mg of Sertraline for today or would you like me to give her a benzodiazepine to help keep her manageable?"

"I'm happy for you to just give her the Sertraline for now," I continued. "If she starts acting up, give her some Diazepam to help her relax."

"No problem, Dr Vencifer," Rebecca said, nodding down at me before quietly exiting my office.

Marianna's POV

I looked up slowly as my bedroom door opened and a nurse and security guard entered. I noticed that the nurse was holding a cup of water and a pill.

"Here is your Citalopram," she said softly, handing me the cup of water and pill. I quickly took the pill from her and placed it in my mouth, downing it with the cup of water. I opened my mouth, allowing the nurse to check that I had actually taken the medication. She smiled down at me approvingly.

"Now I don't think I've introduced myself yet but my name is Rebecca. I work closely with Dr Vencifer and he's assigned me to be your primary nurse. This is Michael," she said, gesturing towards the security guard, "he's one of the security guards here at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Dr Vencifer has asked him to keep a close eye on you for today." I looked up at Michael as he offered me a gentle smile.

"I'm not a child," I began angrily, "I don't need to be fucking supervised."

"Marianna, it's just a precaution," Michael stated calmly. "Dr Vencifer isn't comfortable leaving you unattended after what happened yesterday. Now come along, it's time for breakfast."

I glared up at Rebecca as Michael beckoned for me to follow him towards the cafeteria.

----- 5 minutes later -----

After arriving at the cafeteria with Michael, I quietly made my way over to a staff member who was handing out food trays to patients. The staff member glanced down at me before handing me a tray of food. It had two pancakes, some syrup, a cup of water and some cutlery. I sighed before following Michael to the table located in the far corner of the cafeteria.

I took a seat across from Michael and slowly began picking at my food.

"Not hungry, hey?" Michael asked softly.

I shook my head no and glared down at the table.

"That's alright, I'll let Dr Vencifer know. Just eat what you can okay?" he continued calmly.

"You know Dr Vencifer doesn't need to know about every little thing I do, right?" I asked sarcastically.

"I know, but he needs to know whether or not you're eating," he responded. "Speaking of which, you've got an appointment with him at 9:30am. I'll take you there after breakfast."

I continued glaring down at the table while picking at my food.

Dr Vencifer's POV

I had just finished preparing for Marianna's appointment when I heard the door unlock. I looked up as Michael entered the Sensory Room and noticed that Marianna was standing in front of him. She had an angry glare swept across her face. "Marianna's here to see you," Michael stated calmly, pushing her into the Sensory Room. "Before I leave, I'd just like to let you know that Marianna didn't have much of an appetite during breakfast."

"Thank you, Michael. I'll take it from here," I responded clearly, watching as he closed the door behind him. "Come have a seat, Marianna."

Marianna cautiously walked towards the corner of the room. She slowly sat on the floor with her back to the wall and looked at the ground.

I sighed softly before clearing my throat. "The nurses told me you didn't sleep well last night. Said you were mumbling a lot and tossing and turning. Did you have a nightmare?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," she mumbled, her voice laced with a hint of irritation.

"That's alright, Marianna," I continued calmly, "we can discuss that another time when you're feeling more comfortable. I do, however, need to talk to you about your escape attempt that happened yesterday. I need to know how you got the key card and why you were trying to escape."

Marianna sighed softly. "I found the key card on the floor..." she whispered.

"Okay, and why were you trying to escape?" I questioned calmly.

"I just wanted to go home..." she began crying softly, "I hate my family but I miss my old bedroom... it was my only safe place and now I'm locked up in this prison."

"Marianna, I'm sorry but you won't be able to go home..." I began cautiously. "Your pare-"

"I just told you I don't give a fuck about my parents," she cut me off angrily.

"You will NOT use that tone with me," I continued, "as I was saying, your parents have surrendered you to the care of Royal Prince Alfred Hospital... you won't be going back to that house." I calmly observed Marianna as she began sobbing uncontrollably, burying her head in her knees.

----- 10 minutes later -----

"Marianna, we still have 45 minutes left of our session. Would you like for a nurse to give you some medication to help you calm down, or would you like to just sit in here with me until you calm down?"

"N... no medication..." she stuttered softly while continuing to sob into her knees, "I d... don't like how it m... makes me feel."

"That's alright Marianna, you can stay here. Would you like some water?" I asked softly, watching as Marianna nodded her head gently.

Marianna's POV

"Here you go, Marianna," I heard Dr Vencifer's soft tone as his footsteps slowly made their way over to me.

I suddenly felt myself panicking as I began hearing a loud ringing sound. I closed my eyes tightly and covered my ears as I continued sobbing uncontrollably, but the ringing continued. "This isn't really happening... it's not real... it's not real... it's not real..." I whispered softly, trying to calm myself down. I opened my eyes and began scanning the room for something to focus on.

"Marianna..." Dr Vencifer began softly as he crouched down in front of me, "drink some water please."

I shook my head no and continued whispering to myself. "Shut up... its not real... it's not real... shut up..."

Dr Vencifer looked down at me, a look of concern was plastered across his face. "Marianna... I need you tell me what's happening at the moment."

"I... it won't stop... the ringing... I want it to stop Dr Vencifer... make it stop..." I sobbed as I redirected my gaze to the cup of water Dr Vencifer was holding.

"I think you need to drink some water, Marianna," he said calmly before carefully handing me the cup of water. I cautiously began sipping at the water. "You're safe here, Marianna," Dr Vencifer continued, "you just need to try to breathe for me."