Forest House for the Criminally Insane

"Well, did he get what he paid for?" Pause. "I'm sorry, that was mean. I take it back."

Serenity stared at him. "Shut UP! Shut up shut up shut up! I hate you! I hate you so much! You're irresponsible and stupid and you don't even have your sandwich anymore, you're completely worthless! And you're cruel, and sexist, and you should just die!" She shouted.

The attendant, whom had stayed with them this entire time (as was their policy), spoke up. "Please don't yell..." she whispered, shooting a glare at Elroy. "Even if he is a total pig!"

Elroy did the zipped-lips sign thing, threw the imaginary key over his shoulder, and resumed trying to find a spot of open water in that painting.

"Tell me about it, you should've seen him in H-- High school." Serenity mumbled.

She clicked her tongue. "Men. They're useless... I'm sorry to pester you, but I have other patients to attend to; are you ready to leave?"

"Yeah, I think we are. Thank you very much for your time.. C'mon, Elroy. If you say another word on the ride back to your place, I'll beat you senseless with a glass of water."

"Whatever." Elroy was rubbing a mole on the back of his neck, wondering if it was infected or anything.

So they went back to the station.

Serenity, on the train, just so happened to fall asleep. She was leaning ever so slightly on Elroy's shoulder, with her hair covering her face.
And she was blowing the tiniest little spit bubble.

Elroy was trying not to look at her, for fear he'd burst out laughing again. But, he couldn't help but take a glance...

"... Not cute at all. Nah."

Serenity was having a cute little dream, in which she was just sitting in a room made out of pudding. There was one glass, and her family, mother, father, aunts, uncles, grandmothers, grandfathers, Selia, the whole lot was behind it. She walked up to it, but then the glass turned into more padding, and then the entire dream melted into melted pudding.
Back in real life, the train stopped.

Elroy pushed her off of him. "We're back."

"Don't push me..." Serenity mumbled, pulling her knees up onto the seat and hugging them. She rubbed her eyes and glared at Elroy. "I was sleeping! Why did you wake me up? No, don't answer that question. Are we there yet?"

That question was answered by Elroy getting up and joining the mass exodus from that train car onto the platform.

"Hey, wait up! I don't wanna get lost!" Serenity said, jumping up and following him.

Instead of shopping like she had told Elroy she was doing, Serenity came straight here. She went inside and checked in with the nurse, who told her where Angel's room was. She went in, forcing a smile.

[oh hell i was gon' have him write a letter. ._.]

The nurse remained outside the door, just in case. She knew the whole story, and who this girl was, and all of the worst - or even, minutely bad - scenarios.

The prisoner was seated beside a small window that allowed just enough light to come in and just enough of a view of the courtyard below. He looked the same as he always did, aside from having exchanged those hipster frames of his for some much more sensible lenses. Also, he'd received quite the haircut, but that was from when he was admitted. He was, as he'd always been, absorbed in some book. The book looked relatively new; the spine hadn't been cracked and there were no folds or tears to be seen from Serenity's angle. He didn't seem to notice exactly whom it was who'd just entered; he'd had no visitors over the past two years and he just assumed it was a nurse bringing something or cleaning or whatever it was.

Serenity smiled. She didn't know exactly what to do- should she judge him for what he'd done, or simply treat him like it had never happened? Was he really mentally unstable, or was it entirely her own fault? Whichever it was, she walked over to him.
"Hi, Angel." She said quietly, trying to not smile as much. It might seem like she was laughing at him, and that certainly wasn't the impression she wanted to make.

Those glass eyes of his - painfully impossible to read - left the page of the book and fixed on a line in the wall where one panel met the next. He held the tip of his index finger on the paragraph he had left off at. "Hello." For whatever reason, Angel couldn't bring himself to look at the girl (would she be a woman, by now?) he'd once adored so.

"What are you reading?" She asked, sitting down on the floor next to him. It felt just like old times, when she would bother him endlessly, sitting in that old classroom with all his other weird friends.

"The Music of Erich Zann." His voice was phlegmatic.

"Well, aren't you going to talk? If you won't, then I will. I've graduated law school. I think I'm going to be a prosecutor. Criminal law. Maybe a plaintiff's attorney in personal injury cases.." She blabbered on and on about her studies, neglecting to mention her home life- and Elroy.

His finger began slowly moving along the lines on the page. Apparently, he wasn't going to speak.

"Please talk to me." Serenity said. "Please. I didn't come here on Christmas to just sit here and talk to nothing. I could do that at home."

"You said you would. I figured you'd have an exposition of something ready to go."

"Well, then. I suppose I should get it out. I'm engaged, and I wanted to tell you before I went along and got married. You're not invited, obviously." That came out more cruel than she had intended.