Just Me, Him, and Ten Others - (Ruth Harris Series)

Chapter 2

'Ah. So you're Ruth.' Sally said as I edged into my room curiously.
               Her expression was underwhelmed, to say the least, and her eyes held more scorn than a sibling's. I remember she had short blonde hair and freckled skin that I immediately envied. Her eyes were brown, like mine, but much rounder and younger. She couldn't have been much older than eighteen.
               'That's me. You must be Sally.' I stuck out my hand but she didn't look at it.
'It's Salieri. Sally's a name for two year olds.'
'Sorry...?'
'She insists we call her Salieri.' Nurse Annie hissed to me from my the new girl's side.
'I'm right here. Don't talk to Ruth about me when I'm RIGHT HERE.' Salieri spat.
               She threw her suitcase down on my bed and unzipped it.
'Oh, er, sorry, but, that's my bed, Salieri. Yours is over there.'
'Yeah I see it.' Salieri groaned, picked her case up again and tossed it onto the other bed just as resentfully. 'You can go, Annie.'
'That's Nurse Annie to you, Salieri.' Nurse Annie said.
                She rummaged through Salieri's suitcase thoroughly before leaving the two of us alone. Salieri's underwear, toiletries and belts left with her.
               'This place is ridiculous.' my new roommate tutted as she sat on her bed, her back turned to me. 'They took the laces out of my frickin shoes. Shoelaces. Seriously?'
'Yeah, they're pretty thorough here.' I said. 'My first day, they confiscated a necklace from me. I would never hurt myself with it.' Salieri sighed.
'So stupid.'
'Well,' I shrugged, 'I guess some people will find anything to use.'
'Yeah. In my last ward, someone used a lunch tray to break her own arm.'
               Salieri glanced at me, an indecent grin on her face.
'That's terrible!' I gasped. 'Maybe some people on the other side of the hospital might do that, but on this side, it's not really like that. We're more...'
'Sane?'
'Yeah.'
'Pff. If you think that, you must be the most deluded out of all of us!' Salieri chuckled, standing up again and tipping her belongings out onto the bed. Stuff went everywhere. As it did, the normally silent January - an OCD personality living in my head - sent a high pitched, harrowing cry through my brain. I think I hid my wince well enough.
               'Why did you do that? - I mean, er, say that?'
'Because,' Salieri replied shortly, 'if you think anyone is sane in these places, you're the craziest of them all. The nurses, the therapists, the patients, they're all lunatics. And if they seem sane, then they're just better at hiding it. Or you're oblivious to it.'
'You've been here for five minutes.' I said, slightly irritated by her know-it-all attitude. 'You don't know what we're like.'
'This isn't my first time in a loony bin. You haven't seen the things I have.' she snapped.
'That's what you think? Salieri, my roommate killed herself last night. And this isn't my first time either. I went to a bad hospital before this, and I saw things no sixteen year old kid should have to see, no matter how crazy you think I am.'
               With that I turned on my heel and started for the door. Before I had reached it though, Salieri had gotten under my skin again:
'I got into the system at sixteen too. I bet my experience was worse.'
               I froze in place, angry now.
'Who do you think you are? Is this all a competition to you?'
'Everything in life is a competition. Survival of the fittest, and all that.'
               Salieri's smug smile was driving Hailey crazy, but I couldn't let her out. She'd escalate this and I would end up with a black eye right before my hospital date with Hunter. Or worse, Hailey could show up to the visiting room and either bully my sweet, unsuspecting boyfriend, or bust up his lip as he unknowingly tried to kiss me.
               So, eager to keep my head, I took a few deep breaths (like Westone had taught me to) and distanced myself from the annoying roommate. 'There's more to life than how much pain you have, Salieri.' I said. 'For example, making relationships, which I can see you're not a natural at.'
'Oh, shut up. You don't know what I've been through, so forgive me if I'm not all sunshine and rainbows.' Salieri's eyes grew dark and bitter.
'You don't know what I've been through either, so why don't we stop comparing ourselves to each other and just get along?'
               Salieri bit her tongue and sat back down on her bed.
'Not one for reconciliation either, apparently.'