Will and Grace

Chapter 6

Hannibal opened his door to the waiting area where Grace sat, fiddling with her fingers.

"Grace." He greeted. "Please come in."

Grace stepped through the door, Hannibal closed it behind her and motioned for her to take a seat.

"I'm very sorry about last night." She apologized as she made her way to the leather chair. "I was completely, just..."

"Please, there is no need for apologizing. We all have our off days, don't we?"

It wasn't her fault. Her reaction could not be helped. She had been pushed into a social interaction she was not ready for. It could have been prevented, Alana's appearance had been slightly last notice.

"Thank you for taking me home, and putting me to bed." She laughed awkwardly. "Really, thank you, Doctor."

"You're welcome." He smiled taking a seat. "How are you enjoying your new home?"

"I like it. It's cozy."

"And the new job?"

"It's great, I mean this was my dream job. I'll get to work on cases like I always wanted to." Grace smiled happily going on about this. "I'm excited to do more. Today it was all introductions and whatnot, but I can't wait to see what we do tomorrow. And it's all thanks to Jack."

"That's good, work should be something you enjoy. If you enjoy what you do, then you'll never work a day in your life."

She nodded in agreement and there was a pause.

"Do you want to talk about last night, Grace?"

"I suppose, yes."

"What made you upset about Dr. Bloom?" He asked resting his chin in his hand. " You seemed to not take a liking to her."

"The way she had presented herself to me. She was two-faced, pushy and stuck up."

"She was rude to you?"

"She was overstepping her boundary with me, yes." She spoke truthfully. "She is your friend, and I apologize for saying those things about her, but please don't leave her alone with me."

"No, I'm sorry she made you uncomfortable." He apologized. "Why is that? That you do not want to be alone with her."

"I don't trust her."

"You mentioned that last night you looked at her?" He asked his pen hovering over the clipboard. "What did you see?"

"She had two faces, which is why I felt she was two-faced. I see these things doctor and every person has a form and each form has meaning. That meaning tells me who they truly are, they hide their true selves behind their faces. Much like a mask."

"So when you look behind the veil, you are interpreting them?"

"Much like one would interpret a dream."

Hannibal started to wonder how much sleep Grace is getting at the mention of dreams. Though he had not paid much attention before, he noticed the dark circles around her eyes. Lack of sleep could be contributing to her delusions.

"Do you have any problems sleeping, Grace?"

"Yes."

"Going or staying asleep?"

"Both."

"Insomnia?" He asked.

"I don't know."

"Have you ever spoke to a doctor about these problems?"

"I have, but they didn't seem to care much."