For your own good

There was nothing but darkness in Dimitry's mind. It was vast and heavy. The sedative they gave him had lasted for a couple of hours now. With his spirit broken the resistance he had shown before that cut short the effects was gone.

A few hours have passed since then. The heaviness in his eyes was weakening, letting Dimitry open them slowly. Everything was a blur. But he knew he was on a bed because of the hard, spongy feeling on his back. It wasn't a comfortable bed since his back hurt.

Dimitry tried to stand up, but his body was still feeling the effects of the sedatives. His head throbbed, he was dizzy all over and felt the breakfast from this morning wanted to leave his stomach.

As it was custom by now anxiety started to grab hold of his mind and heart. But he would not let it happen. Not this time. Not now.

Instead of standing up he sat down on the bed. Took short, slow, deep breaths to control his heavy breathing. It worked. His heart rate that felt like it was racing finally slowed down. The blur of his vision cleared like a morning fog. The clearing image told him what was going on. He was in a small, white room. The only other thing aside from the bed was a simple metal desk.

Was this a hospital room? No. There were no machines or monitors. He had seen this kind of room in movies and television. It was for crazy people!

Why was he here in the first place? This is a place for crazy people, was he crazy? It couldn't be, he was sane. Right? Flashbacks flew through his mind as he remembered what had happened. Beating up that kid at the park. Stabbing his brother. Throwing a pair of scissors at Dr. Bartlett. Being drugged. He was sent here, by his own family! That is what happened.

Last time you were this close to be sent to a mental hospital. But now I think there is no other choice.

He remembered those cold, harsh words from his father. He was the one who wanted to send him here. And his mother agreed to it. He didn't want to but she still did it. He snapped at the constant bullying from his brother, but it was him not Sean that was caged here. His own family betrayed him. And the worst part, they separated him from his little brother Cody. How could they do this? He needed to get out of here.

What if they said things to Cody that will put him against Dimitry? Or hate him!

Dimitry couldn't stay here, he had to escape.

In a panic he stood up, but nearly slipped because of the floor. He noticed he didn't have any shoes on, only a pair of socks. That's when his eyes caught a glimpse of a pair of slippers next to the bed. He put them on. When he noticed the door, and the small glass window on it he started to scream.

"Let me out! I don't want to stay here! Let me out!" In a futile attempt he shouted at it, knowing deep inside no one would let him out no matter how loud he shouted.

"LET ME OUT!"

Furious, Dimitry slammed his body against the door, but the force bounced him back and he fell on his butt. "Ouch!" He looked at the door, but he knew there was no way his small 12 year old body would take down that. Not unless he was willing to break his shoulder.

And he was about to give it another try when a voice stopped him.

"Dimitry, stop or you'll injure yourself." Standing outside of the room was Doctor Richard Bartlett. The 45 year old doctor had a look of concern all over his face. He had known Dimitry would react violently, just not this much. "You need not be afraid, Dimitry. You are here to get better. You are here for your own good." He spoke using a small slide compartment just under the window.

"Oh fuck off with that! If you really care then let me go!" At this point Dimitry would not listen to any more lies.

Richard shook his head. "I can't do that, Dimitry. Right now you are not stable, emotionally. You could harm others. Yourself included."

"Open the bloody door and I'll show you what I can do." The boy gave the doctor a smug smile.

"Well, I see you brought us a feisty one, Richard."

"Hello, Dr. Hawkings. This is the director of Saint Paul's Mental Institute, Dimitry. He will personally supervise you while I'm not here," Richard said.

Dr. Hawkings looked around five to ten years older than Richard. He had a well trimmed graying beard. A full set of gray hair, and glasses smaller than his fellow professional. He wore a white coat over his gray shirt and khaki pants.

"Dimitry, I know mental institutes get a bad reputation. But I can assure you this is not a prison. We are here to help you overcome the problems currently plaguing your mind," he said. "If you work with us I am sure you will recover, and you'll be promptly on your way home."

"Liar." Dimitry was not swallowing any of this. "I'm not some little twit you can buy with pretty words. Now get me out of here before things get ugly."

Hawkings and Bartlett looked at each other. Without having to utter a word they knew what the other was thinking. This was going to be a hard case.

"Well, it seems you need your space to think. Tomorrow we'll talk, just you and I, Dimitry," Hawkings said. "It is getting late. Please make sure to get some sleep. It will do wonders to the mind." With that said he slid shut the little door. It was thick enough Dimitry would not hear them talk behind it.

"Wait! Don't you dare leave me here, you bastards!" He started to kick and pound the door.

Hawkings looked behind him. "I can see why you brought him here, Richard. This boy is disturbed. You said he stabbed his own brother?"

Richard nodded. "I've been working with him for months now. But I've made no progress. The only time he was honest with me he showed me a side of him that scared me, Martin."

The older doctor placed a hand on the right shoulder of his comrade, over the dark brown coat he wore. He led him down the long hallway of the building. "Go home, my friend. Take a rest. Let your fiance cuddle you tonight."

Richard chuckled. "Honestly, I've spent more time with this boy than with Stephanie. I think she's getting jealous." Laughing relaxed him. Even in this situation. "Take care of him, Martin. Call me after you talk to him."

"Of course."

Dimitry fumed as he had been ignored by these two. But nothing could be done about it. Not like he could break the door or anything. He got back onto his bed. His head hurt and he was still drowsy. Rest would help him.

And by god did he sleep like a log. He slept during the entire night. By the time he woke up it was already morning.

When Dimitry opened his eyes the next morning he hoped to be back in his room. But the sight of the white walls of the room made him curse at everything. He wanted to throw something and break it. But the only thing he could find to throw were the two pillows he had. But that didn't feel good to do.

He passed a frustrated hand through his hair. He looked at the door, walked up to it, touched the knob a few times, and sighed. Why did he think it would be unlocked?

He went back to bed, but he sat down, with knees bent, hiding his face behind them. Silent as a statue.

He remained like that for over an hour.

The silence was interrupted by a male nurse opening the door to Dmitry's room. He was carrying a tray with food on it. It was breakfast time. "Hey kid, I brought you something to eat. We don't need you to starve here." The nurse chuckled. He was a young man, probably early twenties. Not too tall. But with a face free of facial hair. And bright green eyes. He wore a dark red uniform.

The sight of Dimitry sitting silently, hiding his face, made the nurse feel sorry for the kid. The nurse had been working at the institute for over two years, but it was the first time he saw someone so young. A kid like him should be out playing in the park with his friends, or wasting the afternoon away playing video games.

"Are you fine?" The nurse placed the tray on Dimitry's bed. "Look, I know this is hard on you. It's hard on the adults, so I think it would be much harder on a kid. But I assure you if you work with the doctors you'll get to leave soon enough. Of course you can count on me to help you."

Dimitry lifted his head only to give the kind nurse a scornful look. He didn't want or care for this pity. "Get out. Leave me alone."

The nurse answered with a kind smile. "Hey don't be like that. Just trying to be your friend. I'm Mike, by the way," he said. "Besides, your breakfast is getting cold. A pair of eggs sunny side up and some sausages." Mike took out the cover to show him the breakfast. "Eat it before it gets cold or I'll eat it."

"Be my guest." Dimitry's arm moved fast. Before the nurse could react he had the metal tray in his hand and slammed the edge hard against the nurse's temple.

The nurse was on the floor before he noticed what happened. He had a long opening on the left side of his upper head. It was bleeding a lot. He groaned in pain.

Dimitry sat on top of his chest, with a spork in hand. "Shove your pity up your arse!" He lifted his arm with the sporke and brought it down to stab the nurse. He went right for the eye. "Stop me before I reach your eye, or I'll take it," Dimitry said, in a mockery of the nurse's earlier joke.

The nurse grabbed hold of Dimitry's hand before he reached the eye, only barely. But he couldn't push the arm back. "Help! Help me! God. Stop, kid!"

The screams of pain alerted other nurses.

Three nurses came in. Two males and a female. The scene in front of them surprised them. None of them expected to see one of their own on the floor, trying to fend off a kid. The two guys grabbed Dimitry by the arms and pushed him back.

The female nurse used a tissue to put pressure on the wound of her fellow.

"Fuck you! You get near me again and I'll take that eye!"

The other nurses quickly discovered how hard it was to restrain this boy. Having no other choice they held him so that the female nurse could sedate him. She injected him right on the neck.

It took effect fast enough that Dimitry lost strength in his hands, releasing the spork. "Fuck… Not this shit…again"

The nurses pulled him away from their wounded friend.

As those two forced him to the bed, the female nurse helped Mark get back on his feet. She took him out of the room to check on him for any damages.

When Dimitry was back on his bed the nurses quickly left the room, locking the door behind them. For now they left him be.

It was not until two days later that Dimitry was allowed to leave his room.

The young Hart boy sat outside in the garden area. It was a nice, quiet place. The other patients remained calm most of the time. Except for those that require closer attention.

Dimitry sulked while sitting on a stair step. Despite the quietness he did not want to be surrounded by so many people. Nothing but a bunch of freaks, broken people. He was not like them. He did not deserve to be here.

Doing what he did best, Dimitry bit his nails as he waited to be forced back into the loneliness of his room.

That is until another patient got close to him. A younger man, probably mid twenties. His black hair was a mess. He carried with him a bright, blue ball. And was happy about it. "Wanna play with me?" Sadly the young man had development problems. His manner of thinking would be no different from Cody's.

"Sod off," Dimitry said.

"No fun. Play with me." He presented his ball to Dimitry to encourage him to join him.

Dimitry turned to look at him, but dismissed him with a scoff. The only person he would play ball with was Cody. Cody… How much he missed his little brother. It's been a few days since he last saw him. Looking at the sky he wondered how Cody was doing. He imagined that boy's unmatched smile. The brightness that set alight his heart.

Meanwhile, the goofy smile of this guy was gross. How dare he smile at him like that? Was this big guy trying to replace Cody?

"P-Play with me, Dimitry! Play with me," the older patient said.

Dimitry's breathing grew faster as he heard that phrase. The same phrase Cody used to get him to play with him. "Shut up." His voice was barely more audible than a whisper.

"Play with me." The man bounced the ball a few times.

"S-Shut up."

"Play with me!" The older patient bounced the ball harder this time. After bouncing off the ground it hit Dimitry's face, then bounced to the ground again. It had been amusing for him that he laughed and clapped his hands.

Dimitry didn't find it as funny. He stood up fast as lightning. Fuming from his nose. "I said SHUT UP!" He tackled the older guy to the ground. He sat on his chest and started to hammer his face with his hands. "Shut up! Shut up! You are not Cody you fucking piece of garbage! You are not him!"

After a few punches his hands were red.

The other guy was beat up. His face was swollen, covered in red and purple. Tears flooding out of his eyes. When Dimitry stopped he used his hands to cover his face. The guy's body shook in fear.

Everybody stopped to see what was going on.

A female nurse wanted to intervene but she was afraid. If this boy could tackle a grown man she could not stop him. "Help!"

After a few more punches, and more blood spilled, Dimitry stood back up. He looked relaxed, satisfied with his actions. It's as if all of the anger that had been swelling inside of him just vanished. "That felt good."

He headed for his room. He walked with a confidence he had never had before. All five feet and two inches of him felt incredible. And the smug look on his face was the icing on the cake.

Why he felt that sense of power and raw strength that flowed through his veins whenever he got angry was still a mystery. But damn it, he liked the feeling.

The door of his room slammed behind him. He stood in the center of his room. He knew they were not going to sit idly and let him get away with what he did. But Dimitry didn't care. If he was going to stay he would make the lives of everyone here a living hell.

Until they let him go, or they broke him.

And judging by the 3 nurses standing outside of his door, plus doctor Hawkings, it was obvious they were not going to let him go.

One of the nurses opened the door of his room.

"Dimitry, what you did was horrendous," the doctor said. "I cannot believe I am doing this but for the safety of the staff and patients I have to." He nodded to the nurses to walk inside.

One of them had with him a straightjacket.

"Bloody hell are you going to do to me?" Dimitry took a step back. The confidence he had moments ago was vanishing.

"Something I have not done in more than ten years. Forcefully restrain a patient."

The three nurses tried to restrain him to put the jacket on. Dimitry fought, but these guys were bigger.

"Fuck! Get away from me you cunts!" His eyes, burning with a powerful hatred, were locked on the director. He wanted to dash at him and rip that throat off. But he couldn't because of the nurses. And even if by some miracle he could there was another person standing behind the director. Not a nurse, but a man wearing a security uniform. He noticed as the man was ready to grab his taser at any moment. "Fucking bullies! You need three guys to take on a kid. Cowards!"

After a few moments that felt like an eternity the nurses managed to put the straightjacket on.

Dimitry shook and flailed to get it off. To be restrained like this felt horrible. He felt the need to bite his nails. That feeling was driving him mad.

The nurses dragged him out of his room. They, Dimitry, Director Hawkings and the security guy walked down the white hallway. They took a turn left.

"I can't believe I am being forced to use such an antiquated form of restraining." Martin felt horrible about it. But the safety of those around him was his responsibility.

There was a large, metal door at the end of the hallway. Standing was another security guard. He and a nurse opened the door.

There was shock in Dimitry's eyes when he finally realized where he was being taken. He had seen that kind of room before in horror movies. The white, padded inside said it all. Two nurses shoved him into the windowless room.

It was a padded cell, the place they put completely insane people in.

"No no no no! Don't leave me here!"

"I am sorry for doing this. But you left me with no other choice. If you work with me after this, you'll never see the inside of this place again. I promise."

The door to the room was closed. The old hinges made a creaky, high-pitched sound. But it was the sound of the heavy door closing that echoed throughout the hall.

It drowned the faint curses and screams coming from within.