HEARING DAMAGE
ADULT NOLA - CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE !

            ANNIE MARCH LIVED QUITE the odd life. Her first ever memory involved her walking down a lone stretch of highway, her feet bare and scraped up, and her head empty of her entire life before that. Her pockets had been filled with wads of cash which initially left the woman believing she had robbed a liquor store or something but when no bottles of alcohol were found on her person, she came to the conclusion that the money must have been hers.

Whenever she had been from, she had managed to walk all the way to the state of Albany. She'd been carrying two fully packed gym bags. They carried no form of identification, no photos of friends or family. Nothing that would have helped her figure out the truth behind who she really was or where she had been going. So with no knowledge of who she truly was and no destination marked down, the then young woman wandered around aimlessly for much longer than she cared to admit. At first she had stayed in motels, not wanting to waste the money she had. Only when she got her first job as the baker in a cute little cafe, did the woman feel secure financially.

Her name had come to her randomly. Very quickly she realised that a name would be needed in order to get by in the world. She had been standing in line at the first little motel she had happened across, bags growing heavier by the minute as she waited for the motel receptionist to come back and check her in. A row of worn down, aged and dog-eared books had been scattered atop the counter which she had thankfully used to distract herself until the daunting realisation that she would need a name to check in had dawned upon her.

            While in a slight panic and with no other choice, Annie had chosen the first thing that had popped out to her. The first name of the antagonist of the novel Misery by Stephen King and the last name of the March sisters from the novel Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Two books that had been carelessly thrown around the countertop for god knows how long at the point of her entry.

           She had lived her weird, full of blank spaces life from that moment forward, unaware of who she truly was and feeling lost. This wasn't to say that Annie had experienced some truly amazing moments in life since then but when your own mind had cut away your past life, it's scary to wonder what had happened.

"You don't look so good." Her co-worker Rachel had said to the then forty-one year old Annie March, who hadn't taken the comment lightly and had assumed it was a dig at her aging appearance.

When Rachel had clocked the offence expressed sourly upon Annie's face, she had chuckled heartily as she shook her head. "No, that's not what I mean. You just look..." her voice trailed off for a moment while her bottom lip became captured between her teeth. "You look lost."

"Have you ever considered a spiritual retreat?"

That next question had led the March woman to where she was now. Now aged forty-three and feeling more fulfilled than ever before. She was glad that she'd actually listened to Rachel that day. That she had taken her advice and sought out some solace for her empty and lonely soul.

Camp Green Pine had welcomed her with open arms. Treated her like one of them instantly. An intentional community they called themselves. The camp's owner and figure head, Charlotte Matthews, had all but beamed the light of a thousand suns at her the very moment their eyes had met.

            As if she knew that this place was where she belonged, when Charlotte suggested she come and work at the camp, Annie jumped at the chance. She became one of the camp's main chefs almost immediately. The experience of feeding a large group of people just resonated so strongly with the March woman. It felt so familiar, so comforting.

            "Welcome home." Charlotte had uttered.

            Home. The one thing that she didn't know she had been yearning for, that she truly needed until it was right in front of her.

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           CHARLOTTE HAD RECOGNISED HER in an instant. It would take a serious blow to the head to ever forget that face. It had been so many years since Lottie had laid eyes upon anyone from her past, in person that is. Last she had heard, Nola had vanished without a trace. She was there one minute, gone the next.

            She hadn't even been classed as a missing person, mostly due to the fact that she had been an adult at the time, had packed up most of her clothes and had taken out a huge lump sum of cash from the bank beforehand. For all intents and purposes, it looked as though Nola had simply ran away and gone off the grid. Many that knew her believed that one day she would return home. Never once had it occurred to anyone that she'd become lost, both literally and figuratively.

           Lost in her own mind. Trapped by the lack of memories.

           Lottie had been ecstatic to see Nola again after all these years though it soon became clear to her, as the lack of recognition on Nola's face became apparent, that Nola had forgotten everything and everyone. Including herself. The Matthews woman had considered her time spent in Switzerland as not the best experience but Nola's dissociative fugue took the cake.

For a while, she had considered being honest with Nola. Telling her the truth about who she was and what she had gone through but as Lottie watched her walk around free of any weight from the past on her shoulders, she just couldn't bring herself to burst Nola's bubble, to ruin all that she had accomplished.

It would all come back to her in due time. This Lottie was sure of.

            "Annie, if you would be so kind as to cook some food for our newest arrival." Charlotte kindly inquired of the March woman as she strode confidently into the large community kitchen. "Her name's Natalie and she's gonna be hungry when she awakes."

When Lottie had first heard of Natalie's return from rehab, she'd taken it upon herself to keep a close eye on the woman. The capture of her mid suicide attempt had been a hasty, spur of the moment decision that she now found herself on edge about. Not about saving Natalie from herself, that wasn't it. It was knowing that Natalie and Nola both resided on the same grounds.

          The two women would at some point run into one another. Nola wouldn't recognise Natalie but without a shadow of a doubt, Natalie would recognise Nola. To spite her, to get one up on Lottie for bringing her to their intentional community, Natalie might reveal everything that Nola had blocked out. The very thought caused a great mass to weigh heavily upon Lottie's chest.

"Of course I will, Charlotte." Annie uttered in return, oblivious to the fear that plagued the woman behind her. Already her mind was racing with potential foods she could make for the newest arrival to Camp Green Pine. As she began to fret about the kitchen, she found herself wondering about the troubles that had brought this Natalie to the camp.

            As she gathered up some ingredients such as berries to add into a quick pancake mix for a breakfast dish, she spoke up, her curiosity piqued. "Can I ask—this Natalie, what caused her to come here? What happened to her?"

            Lottie sighed. "Natalie has been through something life-altering though unfortunately she doesn't see it that way."

"That's a shame." Annie responded with a frown. She continued to incorporate all of the dry ingredients into a large bowl as rush of sympathy for this woman washed over her. Annie knew she was lucky to properly appreciate the life altering experience she'd had courtesy of Charlotte and the friends she had made while at the camp. She felt sorry that this Natalie was t able to do that.

The Matthews woman nodded. "It is." She stated sadly before plastering a smile upon her lips. As she brushed aside a small strand of hair from her eyes, she looked expectantly at Annie. "I'll see you later tonight, yes?"

A grin tugged at the corners of Annie's lips as she stopped what she was doing to turn and look back at the woman. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."
           

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THE RHYTHMIC BEAT OF drums echoed through the air. The sky had shifted from the bright of day to the dark of night. Their pathway was lit up by the glow of torches that lined the camp grounds. Masks that resembled animals were worn by the great folks who had sought out the comfort Camp Green Pine could provide. It was time to welcome someone new, someone else in need of guidance.

That very man, clad only in a white robe, stepped forward, nearing closer to the large hole in the dirt. The drums continued to be heard as the man shed the robe, baring all, as naked as the day he was born and entered the hole, lying flat on the ground.

Many grabbed hold of shovels before beginning to sprinkle in the dirt atop the man, while others watched on as the man grew closer to be born anew.

Charlotte emerged from the nearby woods, her hands lilting in the air. As she came to a stop, she allowed a series of calm, soothing breaths to work through her body.

"Lottie!" Someone suddenly cried out causing Charlotte's eyes which had been closed to spring open and her jaw to slacken.

Curiously everyone halted in place while turning their gaze to the black haired woman who appeared out of nowhere, wielding a large branch as a slightly crazed, pissed off glint appeared in her eyes. She shuffled forward towards Charlotte, who remained standing in place. Before anyone could comprehend what was truly happening, this strange woman pressed on, raising up the branch and swinging it at those who stood close to her.

The man she hit let out a pained groan as the chunk of wood connected with his head. "Ow! Hey!" He exclaimed as he then attempted to wrangle the branch from her grasp.

Charlotte quickly stepped in. "It's okay, it's okay." She calmly uttered, holding a hand to quell the confrontation before it could truly start. Her gaze flitted over to the woman who knew her name with a sad smile. "She's my friend."

A smirk filled with derision and contempt appeared upon the black haired woman's face as she stared up at Charlotte. "Is that what we are?" She cynically inquired.

It was clear these two had a past that only they could understood. One consumed by every emotion under the sun, one that seemed to still grip the pair all these years later.

Charlotte's hands stretched out, ready to embrace her old friend. "Natalie."

The movement from the Matthews woman caused this Natalie to raise the branch yet again, holding it close to her body as she snarled at the brunette before her. "You give me one good reason I shouldn't cave your head in and put it in that hole."

"Because I have a message for you." Charlotte informed as her hands fell to her sides, fingertips brushing along the fabric of her long while cardigan. When Natalie appeared unwilling to trust her, Charlotte then stated, "From Travis."

Those who had gathered around had begun to free themselves of their masks. Annie had done the same as she watched the two women interact. From where she stood, not that far behind Charlotte, she was able to get a good look at this woman who she now knew was thee Natalie she'd been asked to cook for.

Just as she could see Natalie, Natalie could also see her. For only a second, Natalie looked as though she'd seen a ghost and in some ways, she had. Terror swam violently in her eyes as she looked back and forth between Charlotte and Annie. Her lips curled in irritation as she sneered, "What the fuck?"

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jamielee's thoughts.
chapter twenty-five. not proofread.
first chapter of adult nola or annie should I say. so she has entered a dissociative fugue state which I'll go into more once she remembers who she is. There's a feeling of familiarity that she gets at Lottie's compound since it's so similar to the wilderness. anyway i hope you enjoyed!