Tuesday, August 20th

I woke up the morning after by the ringing sound of my annoying alarm clock.

Even though I only had a couple glasses of wine yesterday, I felt more tired than usual. I yawned loudly and stretched my tied up limbs before I got out of bed to get ready for work.

Today was a free day for the patients, even if it wasn't Saturday or Sunday. It was necessary to have those days sometimes so that the patients could get used to fluctuations in their normal routines and schedules.

It was a way for them to work with reality and even get some rest from every other day's sessions and appointments.

I knew that the biggest part of this shift would be to supervise the gathering room, watch the inmates playing their games, paint or read books. But for some of the patients it was a big mental challenge, and me and the other supervising nurses were aware that there was quite a big risk that something could happen in the assembly on days like this one as the patients were not all prepared for an aberration in their daily routine.

I arrived at work and after I had changed, I took the elevator up to floor 2 and walked towards the gathering hall immediately to start my supervising hours.

The security guards were positioned in each corner and some of the patients were already awake and in full motion with their activities.

These days were indeed free for the inmates, but it was not optional to attend the gathering room. Every patient had to spend at least two hours in here to socialize or activate themselves in one way or another. It was a part of the medical schedule in order to help the patients' with their different fears and difficulties.

I didn't know how Brandon felt about the room yet, since I had only seen him read the book Lolita in his loneliness ever since he arrived. He kept a distance from the other patients and they did the same towards him. I figured that I was not the only one here who had a fear of him, even the nurses kept their distance. He was followed by a personal guard every time he was in here, because of his risk of outrage, and that was a clear sign for the ambience that he was dangerous.

I sat down in my ordinary place while watching the people of different ages and appearances occupying themselves with their creative pursuits.

With every minute, the room got more crowded and now Janet and Mildred both sat beside me. We chit-chatted with each other while keeping our focus on the patients.

We did not have a limitless number of patients in this area, but many enough to be supervised only by six nurses and three security guardsmen. After barely an hour of a calm and peaceful atmosphere, the door to the assembly opened up in a rough move, and the person I had been wondering about stepped inside to make an entrance like no other.

He walked slowly through the room and his tall and attractive appearance caught everyone's attention. I tried my best not to stare him out but his dramatic, slow-motion entry couldn't keep me from doing anything else.

His dark, intense gaze inspected the room and as he reached the middle area, the brown piercing eyes of his struck my own. I inhaled deeply and adjusted my position in the armchair from the heavy physical reaction.

He lowered his eyebrows and mysteriously pursed his shaped lips. His eyes wouldn't let go of mine, and even if I wanted to look away myself, it didn't seem to be possible. My stomach twisted and turned on the inside, but by now I didn't know if it was out of fear or because of some other abnormal feeling of excitement and curiosity.

It was nothing new that my body reacted in a physical way when I was around him, and I always thought it was only because I was terrified of him. But while using my senses carefully, I noticed that I didn't feel afraid at this moment at all.

It was something completely different that I couldn't find an explanation for. But it wasn't fear, of that I was certain.

The spacious hall was completely quiet, it was just like time stopped as he walked in with his presence. I could see Janet's and Mildred's wide eyes looking at me in the corner of my eye, but I didn't care. I just followed the tall, white-dressed creature as he slowly carried through the room.

Without noticing before, I realized that he was walking in the direction of where I was seated. I didn't have enough time to further react since he was already so close to me. Still with his eyes stuck into mine, he approached me with a dirty smirk on his face. He was now standing right in front of me, almost touching my pointing knees as he was so near.

"Hi, Beverly," He quipped, still with the same grin formed by his full, pink lips. I got slightly shy, it was not just me and him now and I already knew the girls would freak out about this later.

The fact that he called me by my first name was something that made me quite peevish at this moment. He knew he wasn't allowed to do that.

"Hello there, Brandon," I replied with kindness and spared every inner emotion. The two girls by my side were still quiet and I figured it was because of the strange ongoing moment right in front of their faces.

"Can I sit here?" Brandon's dark, raspy voice really could make anyone obey him. So even if I wasn't very comfortable with it, I went along and nodded my head.

"Of course,"

I knew the smartest around Brandon was to keep it easy and normal, as long as I kept determined. Even if I didn't want him to think that he had any power over me, or that he was the one in charge, it would only be an unnecessary move for me to deny his own invitation to sit with us.

After what he said yesterday in his moment of weakness, I knew he felt some kind of comfort in my nearness, and it was important to me that I managed to earn his trust. The second Brandon sat down in the armchair before me, Janet opened her mouth.

"We should probably help over there, right Mildred?" She hinted as she looked at Mildred with wide brown eyes.

"Where are you two going?" I asked as I looked at them both rising from their chairs. The two girls secretly ogled at Brandon and then back at me.

Of course, they wanted to leave because of him. I didn't blame them though, Brandon was undeniably just the right man to be terrified of.

"They need assistance at the painting table," Mildred added as she smiled at me. I knew she probably just came up with a random reason to get away from the killer who just sat down in front of them, and that was fine with me.

I nodded my head at the girls and watched as they walked out of Brandon's perilous sphere, leaving me alone with him where we sat in our armchairs opposed to each other.

I looked around the room to ensure that the patients were still entertained and that the guards were still present. I was paranoid and I was well aware of it, but I didn't trust Brandon sitting this close to me.

"How's your arm, Brandon?" I queried, not coming up with anything else to say.

"Are you kidding me?" He disputed as he placed that usual rude grin over his fierce face. I realized it was a dumb question, but the silence embracing our loneliness made me too uncomfortable.

"Doesn't look like I haven't done it before, right?" He tilted his arms before my eyes to allow my inspection of the damaged skin and I swallowed hard by the horrific vision. The embarrassment filled my body when he spoke to me that way.

Why did I have to mention that one, red single cut beside the other, nearly hundreds of them?

"I'm sorry, Brandon. I just wanted to ask how you feel," I used my professional voice. I didn't want him to believe that he just made me feel ashamed, even if he did. After all, it was my job to ask questions like that. Brandon began to snigger and I looked back up at him as the air of mockery left through his nostrils.

"I know, Beverly. You're so kind, caring for me. You know, my arm is fine, can't feel a thing," He used his unknown power over me and with that indistinct voice and the fervor in his narrowed eyes, I couldn't help but get afraid of him again.

I knew he was trying to play me because right now he was only messing around, trying to appear rude and threatening.

I sighed out loud as I looked at him with raised eyebrows like I wasn't bothered at all by his obvious arrogance.

"That's good to hear. And please, call me Nurse Frazier," I suddenly felt a bit of annoyance due to his juvenile acting and I turned my head to the side to look away from him.

I had made a promise to treat him like a human being, but that didn't erase the fact that I could still feel annoyed with him. I wouldn't allow him to believe that he was endorsed to treat me however he liked, just because I was not like the other staff around the institution.

"I'm just joking, come on, Nurse Frazier. Relax a bit, you shouldn't take everything so seriously,"
I looked at him again as he addressed me and his words made me relieved since he was not threatening me for real. He also did as I had just told him, he called me by my professional name, which made me grateful. He should, without question, treat me with respect even if he knew my first name. I was still his nurse and his supervisor, the one in charge.

"Well Brandon, it's my job to take things seriously... Anyway, did you need something from me? Shouldn't you be reading your book right now, like you always do when you're in here?" Brandon's rudeness infected me, I just couldn't help but bite back at his haughty behavior. Suddenly he became settled as he realized I dared to spit back. His mouth straightened and his dirty eyes flickered into serenity.

"I rather sit here, where you are,"

Immediately I got flattered by his unexpected sentence, but I knew deep inside that this was just a part of his game to make me weak. He just changed strategy for it.

"That's kind of you to say," I remarked, still managing to sound decisive. Brandon was not the first of patients who flirted with me during my short time here. The easiest way to act was just to smile and say thank you, and as long as they didn't make any inappropriate approaches, they had in fact not done anything wrong.

They had every right to flirt and get attracted to another person, just like any other human being. The by now well-known addictive, gloomy gaze of Brandon's reached my own again and a scant smile formed his lips, and allowed the dimples to come through in his cheeks. He let the tip of his tongue out to hydrate his lips.

"It's true,"