“Hey, be nice,” Sandy tells him and gives the drawing to the nurse.
“Sandy bitch. Sandy bitch.” He repeats over and over. I notice that when James speaks fast his words come out more clearly but when he slows down to sound things out, he stutters and gets confused.
“Okay, James. That’s enough. I brought your daughter here to see you. There is no reason for your bad behavior.”
“Hate it here. Hate it. Hate you. H-hate you all,” he says, and my heart sinks to the pit of my stomach. He makes a fist and starts punching the side of his head knocking his hat to the floor revealing his bald spot.
“He used to have great hair,” Sandy tells Killian as the nurse does her best to stop him. “He started pulling it out, so we put hats on him to stop the impulse.” He tries to bite the nurse and grabs her boob and pinches her.
“I’m sorry but we are going to have to sedate him.”
I nod and she gives me a sympathetic smile.
“We’ll try again some other time,” Sandy assures me.
It may make me sound like a horrible person, but I don’t know if I will be back. Seeing him has broken my heart. When I was younger, I used to fantasize often that he was going to get better and show up at my birthday party or on some holiday like Easter and he’d be so wonderful. Today that illusion has been shattered.
Sandy stays around to speak with the doctor, and I say a quick goodbye needing to get out of that place.
We get outside and Killian hugs me tight. “It’s okay, baby. You did great.” His lips touch mine as I cry.
“That was terrible,” I tell him. “I’m a horrible daughter because I don’t think I can do that ever again.”
“You’re not terrible. You’re the best person I know.”
“No, I’m not but thank you for saying it and thinking it.” I inhale his scent and dry my tears.
“You ready to get out of here?”
I nod once and close my eyes. Then I take a deep breath and look back at the facility one last time.
Killian buckles me in the passenger side of his car, and we drive away.
Chapter 33
Liri
“It doesn’t matter what you wear. You look beautiful in everything,” I assure Hayley as she tosses another outfit to the floor of our dorm.
“I don’t know why I am trying so hard. It isn’t like Liam will care,” she huffs and pulls on a long-sleeved tee.
“Do you want to talk about stuff? What happened at the hotel?”
“Oh, he says that I am a liar and he can’t trust me. Which is fucking hilarious considering he lied about taking Jackie to the abortion clinic. So, I told him maybe he fucked Jackie just like everyone else and he left the room.”
“That sucks. Maybe tonight will be different.”
“I doubt that.” She rolls her eyes and sits cross-legged at the mirror.
Killian went to meet up with Liam and convince him to come because when he spoke to him earlier, he had said he changed his mind and he was no longer going out with us.
I get Liam is hurt but he is taking this too far with how cold he is treating Hayley.
I trade my leggings for jeans and a black v neck top with a pair of leopard print flats. My hair is swept up in a high ponytail. Hayley is wearing her signature braid over her left shoulder that she reserves for lazy days.
Killian knocks on the door, and I look around him for Liam.
“He’s in the car and he’s drunk,” Killian murmurs to me in explanation.