Purple Romance

Lisa sat in front of the psychiatric doctor with her arms clasped against each other. This was her first time meeting the doctor since she left the hospital. As she sat down, looking at the woman who was smiling at her, she had a lot of thoughts going through her head.

She had tried to tell herself that she was alright, that everything was okay but now that she was sitting in front of the doctor, everything seemed to be playing in her head now. How she was manhandled by that monster, the thought of it still scared her.

Lisa's body instinctively started quivering and her breathing became hoarse. she looked at the doctor and her tears started falling down. she took her notepad and wrote on it.

''I don't know, I don't know why I am crying, doctor'' she showed the notepad to the doctor and she could feel the desperation behind Lisa's words. She smiled at her and got up from her seat.

''Lisa…'' she pulled a chair closer to her and sat down, facing Lisa, ''do you sleep at night?'' she asked and Lisa shook her head.

''I can't sleep. Anytime I close my eyes, I feel myself getting back to that moment. It's always clear in my head and is all I see'' Lisa bit her lips, trying to calm herself down. This was her nightmare, the nightmare that no one else knew about. Because she doesn't want anyone to get worried about her, she pretends that everything is alright with her. But, only she knew that she hardly gets sleep. She is always living in fear. Even though she knew that man was already in prison, she couldn't shake off the feeling of her helplessness. It was like, she wanted assurance of her own safety on a daily basis and that was her fear.

She feared that if she continued to be vulnerable or showcase her vulnerability, the people around her would treat her delicately.

She just wanted everything to be normal. Was that too hard to ask for?

''Would you like to get some sleep?'' the doctor asked her.

''Here… this place?''

''En, I've been told that the lazy chair in my office works like magic. Once you lay on it, you wouldn't be able to help but want to sleep. Do you want to try it out? I promise to be here when you wake up''

''Then, wake me up after 5 minutes. Leslie is waiting for me outside; I don't want to keep him waiting''

''Mr. Bassey is your guardian, is he that important to you?''

''Yes, he is… though I don't know much about my own feelings yet'' Lisa said and went to sit on the lazy bed.

''Now, close your eyes and don't think about anything else and just try to relax. Right now, you are in your own space and nothing else matters but you'' the doctor said as she turned the hour glass down for it to start again.

A while after Lisa closed her eyes and had drifted into sleep, the doctor stood up and went to a sliding glass window at the side and opened it. She invited Leslie who was at the other side inside the office.

''You really studied her very well these past few days, right? I was surprise you pointed that out first'' the doctor said to Leslie who was staring at Lisa with a worried gaze.

''How is she, doctor?''

''As you suspected, she had been pretending to be fine all this while. She has been having sleep problem. We need to first of all solve that problem first. If she continues to have nightmares or hallucinations of what happened, it will affect her sleep which will affect her focus. This will go a rather short than long way to affect her daily life. I looked at her test that she did yesterday and found that she had been taking a lot of coffee and the caffeine can affect her health''

''Is there anything that I need to do to help her?'' Leslie asked.

''Yes, your presence in her life I think is a strong factor. She seems to trust you a lot and is very comfortable around you. We can take advantage of that and help build her trust in herself. Her lack of trust and confidence in herself is making her shut her eyes to any possibility of finding herself and healing from the pain. I have a proposed plan outlines in this file. If you follow it with her at home, it will help her a lot. I have used this on a few patients and the response has been great''

''Involving the five senses?'' Leslie asked as he looked at the title of the file.

''Yes, involving the five senses is a method of treatment that is used to gauged the moods of the patients without irritating them. they will respond to you without even realising their own actions''

''I will do everything possible to help Lisa get better. Doctor, can I get a detailed written document of her health condition. It is for a court case that will be coming up soon''

''I will do that. Since I contacted the doctor that treated her when she was a teenager, I can write detailed report of her health condition and mental state in the last ten years for you as well. I wish you all the luck during this time. I understand how these things work since I have a patient who went through the same thing and also considering that it involves such a big and influential family, it is going to be a little messier. You need to be mentally prepared for it''

''Yes, I am mentally prepared for it but… I am worried about Lisa. Even though I have her permission to go on, I still don't want this to end up worsening her condition''

''Compared to other patients, I think that Lisa has quite a strong mental capacity. Since she hasn't attempted to harm herself, it is a good sign that she is willing to go through the pain and find her own healing. She is finding her own way of healing, so we just need to do everything at her own pace. Mr. Bassey, let's be hopeful''

''Alright, thank you, doctor. Let her sleep for some more. I want to run a few errands. I will come back for her or you can give me a call as soon as she is awake. I will come for her''

''Sure, see you later''

Leslie smiled and looked at Lisa for a while before going out. He took the file from the table and left with it.

…..

Mali's apartment.

''What? Andy… told you to leave? Then, does he know that I sent you?'' Mali asked Felix as she downed her wine.

''He already knew that you put me up to it and told me to relay the message to you''

Mali clenched her fingers tightly around the glass as her lips curved into a sneer, ''Paula, just what did that girl do to Andy? Is it because she is younger? I am prettier and more mature than her. I came back to him after 10 years. Shouldn't this be enough proof that I love him?''

''Mali, I think that you should let go. The love Andy has for your sister is very strong. Even if he breaks up with her, I doubt if he will return to you'' Felix said. His words were his sincerity after watching both Paula and Andy closely. They seem to love and care about each other. He didn't want to get between them after what Andy said to him.

''He loves her dearly? Who gave him that right to love Paula? He was with me first; I was his first love. If anything, the one coming between us is Paula. If anything, the one who should leave him is Paula. She is doing this to spite me. She doesn't love Andy… no, she can't love him. She has always had poor taste in men, how could she suddenly be head over heels in love with Andy, a man who is out of her league? She is not his type; Andy is only with her because he sees me inside her. She is my sister; we look alike in some ways except that I am prettier''

''Mali, you look scary. The way you talk is scary. What are you planning to do? I hope you don't hurt your sister because of that man?'' Felix said as he looked at Mali's eyes. Her gaze scared him.

''You can leave now. I will get you a new job at another hotel. Don't concern yourself with what plans anymore''

''Mali, don't take a step that will lead you to regret sooner than later. No matter what happens, Paula is your younger sister and family''

''I said don't concern yourself with my business, leave me alone'' she shouted at Felix and he sighed before standing up to leave. At the door, he turned and looked at her once more and shook his head.