Chapter Twenty-Nine

Borderline

"Are you sure she never mentioned anything about this?"

"No, Mrs. Curtis. If she had said or done anything at all that would lead me to suspect anything, of course I would've done something-"

"You girls are always so secretive and she tells you everything-"

"Mrs. Curtis, I care about Petra. She's my best friend, I love her like a sister. I would never do anything to harm her."

"I'm sure you wouldn't, I'm just saying-"

"Or let her harm herself!"

"Oh, Olivia, I'm not saying you would. Not intentionally. Never. I'm not accusing you of anything-"

"Good. Because to even think that-"

"I'm just saying, Olivia, that maybe she told you something that you thought was harmless at the time but now, looking back, might be interpreted differently."

An uncomfortable silence settled, until Olivia broke it, "Well... she had a few concerns about her building and her neighbors..."

"Concerns?"

"She was too... invested in them, too interested."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure, she thought they were weird. And then there was a crazy old woman that spooked her out... I'm sorry, Mrs. Curtis, I thought it was just Petra being Petra! I thought it was just her usual anxiety and paranoia..." Olivia's voice turned into a gentle sob. "I saw she had cut her hair and she looked ill, like paler and thinner but I thought it was just her insomnia, she told me she had a cold, I... I never thought..."

"I knew something was off. I shouldn't have let her to go live by herself so far away. But she was doing so much better, she was stable and confident and so excited."

"I thought that too. I thought, once she got used to it, once she adapted, that she would've been fine, I never thought she would-"

"I know, Olivia. It's alright. She'll be alright."

Petra had slowly regained consciousness and recognized her mother and Olivia's whispering voices. They both sounded extremely sad and hurt and she could tell her mother had been crying. It broke her heart, it was her fault. She was awake and aware, but refused to open her eyes. She wasn't ready to face them.

She could tell she was lying down on an uncomfortable bed and, by the sounds surrounding her and the characteristic smell, she concluded she was in the hospital.

Her whole body was in hell. Every muscle, every fiber and nerve hurt. She could feel ligatures wrapped around most of her body, including her neck and half of her face. Petra wouldn't dare to move even if she wanted.

In her mind, she could only see disturbing and nightmarish images, quickly passing through like the cruelest of movies. Running, darkness, long fingers and claws, sharp teeth and an evil, animalistic grin, big goat-like eyes, Kyle and Eli, blood, bone, a lock of hair, the scent of rotten flesh, unbearable pain and then she was flying and floating until everything was dark and silent and painful.

Had she really survived? Had she really escaped?

Was she safe?

She tried to put all those terrible memories and thoughts behind her before she started crying. Instead, she focused on the voices to her left, that now included an unknown, male voice.

"We are convinced it was a major crisis, a severe episode, mental breakdown, probably caused by lack of medication which, allied to stress, depression, her previous condition and probably substance abuse, would've caused this."

"Do you think she was aware or-"

"She was probably manic, hallucinating, detached from reality. She may not even know why she jumped."

"What about all the bruises?" Olivia asked. "The scratches, cuts, burns?"

"Probably self-inflicted. We can't be sure, but most likely that's the case. It could be quite common for people in her disoriented state to hurt themselves or others and not even remember they did it."

"Will she be alright?"

"Physically, no doubt, although she'll be permanently scarred in her legs, neck and face."

Her mother started crying and Petra tightened her grip on the sheet covering her.

"Regarding her mental disorder, we will prescribe new drugs and try to find the right balance," the Doctor continued. "I also suggest weekly visits to a psychiatrist specialized in these matters."

"She stopped going when she moved. We thought she was stable, plus the medication-"

"These cases... they're complicated. It's always unpredictable," he comforted her sobbing mother. "She'll be alright, Mrs. Curtis."

Her mother's sobs were too much for Petra to bear, so she decided to focus on her own thoughts again. They would never be as painful as the sound of her mother crying because of her.

So no one commented on the fire in her building? Or the fact that it had been destroyed in some areas? No one noticed her scratches were unnatural looking, shaped like claws?

No one thought it was odd that she had somehow managed to "cut herself" on her back?

That was too strange. Someone, her mother, a Doctor, a nurse, should've been able to see it, right?

Unless...

What if they were right? Did she really hallucinate the whole thing? Had she had the most violent episode ever?

Did she do that to herself?

Petra finally allowed tears to fall down her cheek.

Could she really be that dysfunctional? That destructive?

Was she really that hopelessly insane?

Maybe she'd gotten it all wrong. Maybe this wasn't worth fighting for. Maybe she shouldn't have survived.

Maybe she really was beyond salvation.

***

Dragging her heavy bag, she crossed the road towards her new home.

A new beginning. It was exciting.

She had to admit, she was pretty disappointed with how her new building looked. It was so ugly and uninviting. She hoped it would look better on the inside.

Anxious to see her new apartment, she quickly searched for her keys to get inside.

"You should not enter."

She jumped, barely holding on to her handbag.

"I'm sorry?" she asked, facing an old woman.

The woman looked fragile and harmless, she was quite elderly after all. The only thing slightly eerie about her was her malicious grin and bright green eyes that somehow looked too young to belong to her.

"You should not enter," the old woman repeated, walking a few steps closer. "As soon as you call this place home, it will be too late."

She actually chuckled, but quickly tried to disguise it. She didn't want to mock or disturb the poor woman. Poor thing, she was probably a little crazy, probably homeless too by the looks of her. She would have to remind herself to offer her a snack or a soup later.

"Alright, thank you, ma'am," she replied with a kind smile as she opened the entrance door.

The woman's grin widened. "You have been warned."

She gently closed the door behind her and sighed.

"Well, that was weird."

With effort, she carried her heavy bag across the entrance hall, towards the elevators. Before she could press the button, the elevator door was opened and out of it came two guys, probably her age. They were both attractive and looked friendly, pleasantly chatting and laughing with each other. Their eyes fell on her immediately and their smiles widened.

"Oh, you must be a new neighbor," the one with the dreadlocks said, his eyes landing on her big bag.

"Yeah, I guess I am." She returned the smile.

"Cool. I'm Eli and this is Kyle," he introduced. Kyle nodded in acknowledgement.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Savannah."

"Let us help you there, Savannah," Eli offered, grabbing her bag and putting it inside the elevator while Kyle kept the door open.

"Thank you. That's very kind of you."

"You're welcome, it's no problem."

"We're staying on the sixth floor," Kyle informed. "What about you?"

"Oh, I'm staying on the fifth. Apartment D, I think."

As soon as she said it, their smiles vanished and turned into expressions of sadness.

"Something wrong?" she asked concerned. Was there something wrong with the apartment? With her flat-mate?

"Oh no, nothing at all, it's just..." Eli tried to sooth her, scratching his head as if he was uncomfortable. "Never mind. It's nothing, don't worry." The smile returned to his face, which calmed her, although Kyle continued to look troubled and refused to meet her eyes again.

"Anyway," Eli said, "welcome to the building. If you need anything, just let us know."

"Thank you so much," she replied, waving them goodbye as she entered the elevator.

A few moments later, Savannah was walking towards her door and reaching for her keys again. She opened it, excited, and walked inside with a loud and cheery, "Hello!"

"Hey there! You must be my new flat-mate," a pretty girl replied, coming out of a room and greeting her with a huge smile and open, welcoming arms. "Welcome!"

Savannah smiled back. Her new flat-mate sounded so friendly and nice, she knew they would get along, which was a huge relief.

"I'm Natasha, your new friend, and this is our home!"

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm Savannah."

"Oh, Savannah, I'm sure we'll get along awesomely. I'm completely pro-good vibes, you know?"

"I feel the same!"

"Great! I like you already," Natasha replied and they both giggled.

"Oh, I'm so happy you're here. I was feeling so lonely... I don't like that. I hate being alone, don't you?"

"Totally get you," Savannah agreed. "Not my favorite thing at all."

"Oh, I'm so glad," Natasha said, before grabbing her arm gently and walking with her through the long hallway. "You know, the last girl wasn't very... balanced."

"Really?"

"Unfortunately... It's a shame, really, I quite liked her. But she had to leave. Poor thing, she had some serious mental issues."