And immediately the second part of the two-part ^. ~ "

Second act

It's been three months since I started looking after Tala.

And about two months ago I had accepted this marriage proposal, which had come about through very strange circumstances, but which he had never mentioned again until then ...

Meanwhile, however, his habit of occasionally throwing something at me - even if it was one of his books, of which he didn't have very many anyway - had subsided.

A familiar atmosphere had built up between the two of us.

It seemed like it just took him a while to get used to me. He was also very open towards me, although he still came across as a bit callous.

Still, he kept telling me that Kyle, his apparition, was speaking to him.

I listened with interest and made notes of what he said to me that I reread later. However, I could not see any connection from the things he regularly told me.It just seemed to be some kind of confused story that spun together in the head of a mentally deranged person ...

~ * ~

This evening I once again spent longer in my little study than I should. It was already after seven and I had actually closed work since 6:30 p.m.

Suddenly the phone rang and my brother was on the other end of the line.

"Hello Mariah."

"Lee!"

His voice didn't sound particularly pleased. Oh no, did I have ...?!

"Don't say you just thought about your work again and forgot that we had an appointment with Ray, Max and Hilary today?"

Oh gosh! - He was right ... because of so much work I forgot that we decided to do something together today.

"...", I was silent.

Needless to say, why. I was just embarrassed to have forgotten it again.

"Mariah? ... You forgot, didn't you ?!"came the reproachful voice of Lee.

"I ... I ... I'm sorry. I had so much work and -...", but I got no further. My brother hung up and I couldn't even blame him. It was probably the third or fourth time I'd forgotten.

I didn't even know where we wanted to go today ...

Damn shit! It was clear that something like this could only happen to me ...

Out of sheer frustration and because I didn't want to go home now, I paid Tala another visit.

On the way to see him, I occasionally ran into colleagues who had taken on the night shift and who would stand in for the normal supervisors in an emergency. However, most of the cases were more active during the day and kept their well-deserved sleep at night.

I knocked on his room door when I got to room 213.

The following "Come in" told me that he wasn't asleep yet.

"Mariah."

"Yuriy."

"Isn't it a little late to visit?"As usual, it hung over one of the few books he had in his room.

"Yes. Am I bothering you?"

"Not at all. Come on, sit down," he said and pointed to the chair next to the bed.

~ * ~

I sat down and examined my patient carefully, as I often - more or less consciously - did.

The room was illuminated by the dim light from the lamp on a cupboard next to the bed.

The individual strands of red that hung across his face.

The ice-blue, concentrated eyes that stared constantly at the thick tome in front of him, which in my opinion he would soon have to know by heart, the petite figure under the white clothes.

The regular raising and lowering of the chest and how individual strands of his hair were repeatedly blown away by the air he inhaled and exhaled and fell back into their original position.

It just wasn't fair that a handsome young man like him had to sit here in one of these wise "cells" ...~ * ~

"Tell me ... Are you not tired of being locked in here in this so-called 'sanatorium'" ...? "I suddenly burst out and I clapped a hand over my mouth.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that ..." I said immediately after I had composed myself.

"Yes, for a long time ...", he answered my question anyway and I stared at him rather surprised.

I was expecting a lot of answers that would start with "Kyle told me to come here", "Kyle says I should like this here, so I like it here", and "I like being here!" stopped, but certainly not that.

"What?" I asked confused.

"I don't feel like playing crazy anymore ..."

"Playing the madman?"

"Yes, Kyle, Yuriy, these are all just figments that I spun together to mimic the madman ...", he confessed openly and without showing the slightest emotion."Why are you saying all this?"

"Because you were the first one who didn't speak to me like I was crazy ..."

"But ... why?" I asked. I think after this conversation I was ready for therapy ...

"Why? I wanted to flee my past, but staying here only gives me more time to think about it.
Bryan, the person who brought me here, suggested it as a medium-term move to get me somewhere and paid the expense, but in the barely two and a half years that I've been here, my disappearance problems have piled on and on Bryan is now trying to cope. That's why he hardly ever comes here any more. "

"... And you are really not crazy ...?" I asked again.

"No, Mariah. I am in my right mind, although I have to admit that one or the other of all the nonsense one has to utter in the role of the lunatic is retained.""And that's not a pipe dream either?"

"The pure truth and nothing but the truth."

"Then I am happy about this truth and glad that the lie did not become the truth."

"Why that, if I may ask?"

"It's not easy to justify that ... I have built up feelings about you that as a sister of this sanatorium you shouldn't develop towards a patient."

"You mean love?"

"Absolutely, yes."

"Only physical?"

"Physical and mental."

"Then I would like to mention that my application is still valid."

I looked at him a little confused, but then smiled.

"... And I say that my answer is still valid as well."

"So let's start all over again," I said.

"Yes. I am pleased to meet you; my name is Mariah."

"Very pleasant," he took my hand, which I held out to him and pressed a light kiss on it, "I'm called Tala."

And when the room key was turned in the keyhole to room 213, a new, unwritten, third act[/i]began ...~ * ~ Second Act Fin ~ * ~

Who is still interested in the "bottom line":

Mariah: "What about that ominous Bryan Kunetsov who let you admit here?"

Tala: "Bryan is an old friend ... Back when we were still in the abbey ... He successfully managed to get out of there legally - unfortunately I was deprived of this luck."

Mariah: "That means in plain language?"

Tala: "That I ran away and went into hiding with him for a while."

Mariah: "And how does the story continue?"

Tala: "Of course, he wasn't able to accommodate me in the long run either, because the BioVolt - the group that runs the abbey - also looked around at him, of course. So he put me here in this institution and pretended to be the merciful Took me off the street somewhere because he couldn't stand the suffering of others in order not to have to give any information about me. He came and still has to pay for any expenses, but now don't ask me where exactly he gets the money from because I don't know either ... "Mariah: "I see. And what problems does he have at the moment?"

Tala: "He's under a lot of pressure because the BioVolt strongly suspects that he's still in contact with me ..."

Mariah: "Ah, okay. I think I've pretty much understood everything now."

Tala: "Good, then we would have clarified everything that was still open."

* cough * Okay, state of deep mental confusion ... to sum up: it actually went way too fast, although it spanned an approximate period of about 4 months.

Of course, it's absolutely crazy to get engaged after such a time (when both parties don't really know each other ... or just more or less ... I actually didn't go into the fact of their relationship enough, but let's just leave that out of the picture and believe that they got along wonderfully v___v "), but there is still freedom of artists!

The style (sometimes rather old and then again not = ___ =) is actually not my direction either, but I just adapted myself a bit to the original drama ... but of course the nurse is not murdered for me .. . and certainly not with a floor lamp cord or a curtain cord ... that's just tasteless = ___ = "Oh yes, and no, the head nurse is not crazy either ... and no wrestlers and boxing champions are hired for caring professions. .. * cough * I digress ^^ "Maybe someone shares the opinion with me that Dürrenmatt is not necessarily the best thing you could read when you are bored v___v "

Joar, otherwise I hope for a bit of constructive criticism - but please leave death threats in place - I'm grateful for everything else * lol * ^^

So then, see ya ... ^^