Ashes

Part 59

8 months after

RoseAnn had recently turned 15, and had her hair redone to long and bright dyed red extensions, and her false lashes were thick and dark.

Her heavy makeup and smile hid the sadness on her face. Her heart still ached for her lost friend, but having being missing for over half a year - everyone had accepted the truth.

Matty had recently tried to hang himself in the very park they last saw Clarence in, and was now in a psych ward.
She was going to visit him later, and they were going out for her birthday.

Clarence's locker was now covered with flowers, cards and had pictures of her all over. When she'd first disappeared, people found it funny, or thought she'd deserved it. But after Matty and RoseAnn went on TV and gave their heartfelt interview about who Clarence really was, the tragedy of the situation had set in.

Only a month after the interview, Matty had left his house and gone to the woodland in the park, after leaving a goodbye note to his family and everyone he loved.
Only he was found just in time.

He'd cried every day in the psych ward when she'd visited, not talking, not sleeping, barely eating...
His own mother hadn't got through to him.

The details had finally been revealed, the amount of blood, the beanie ... it was clear that someone had hurt Clarence, and if she hadn't been found already, she would be very likely dead.

She ate cake, smiled, squealed in happiness at the gifts, did everything a normal teenager should.
But her heart ached.

Clarence should be here, rejoicing with her. And Matty. Their little friend group had been torn apart by all the happenings of the last year. She wanted nothing more than to retire to her room and cry.

As soon as the guests left, she got on the bus to there children's ward on the GlenDale Sunny ridge county hospital psychiatric unit.
She tapped her nails anxiously on the seat as they approached the bus stop just outside of the hospital.

Matty was once again on the young males part of the unit, "Rainlark Ward". There was usually a fight or an altercation going on between the boys in there - but this time there was a pained wailing, sobbing and screams.
RoseAnn wondered who it was at first, she had grown to know a lot of the boys on the ward - but had never heard someone howl like this.

The nurse Deborah, small, freckled, ginger and Irish, let her into the ward.
"I'm here to see Matthew O'Brien.." she requested, wincing at the cries.

"Oh.. he's not all that good at the moment." The young nurse shot an anxious look in the direction of the noise.
"What... THATS Matty?"

The nurse bit her lip. "I'm afraid so."

"Why's he like that?" She pushed past and ran in the direction of the noise, turning a corner and barging through a door.

Matty was flanked by two big security guards, tears and snot dripping off his face, screaming like a banshee.
He was flinging himself around, trying to get free from the grasp of the two men holding him.

"Matt...." RoseAnn tried to soothe him, but got pulled from the room by another nurse.

"You can't be in here, miss."

"He's my friend!"

She couldn't lose another friend, she just couldn't.

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