HORROR

FLORENCE BOLU
CHAPTER ONE

Lily stopped at the café on her way to work for a cup of cappuccino, her stop
by the café was a routine. Lily needed something to keep her alive,
considering where she was working. Things didn't go so well when she
moved to Manhattan seven months ago. Lily had been through a lot this
past year; she sighed deeply as she pushed open the door of the café. Lily
was hoping to make a fresh start in Manhattan, and things seemed to be
going smoothly ever since she moved to the city. Lily strolled to the counter,
and Leo was by the coffee maker brewing coffee. "Morning Leo" Lily had a
bright smile plastered on her face. "Good morning, Miss Burnett" Leo tipped
his head slightly, then looked away quickly. "Usual?" Leo was picking up a
to-go cup. "Yes, please," Betty answered as she watched the young man fill
her order.

Settling in was hard at first; Lily was miles away from her family, and at
first, she didn't think it would hurt. Considering all she had been through
last year, Lily wanted a break from everything, and she drove far away from
home in search of a fresh start. Lily walks at the mental asylum, and the
place reminds Lily of what she could have been. Every day she had to care
for this person who had slipped into another world. Most times, the patients
create a world of their own, away from reality. Getting the job at the asylum
happened coincidentally. Lily was a nurse at the community hospital in
Providence, the population wasn't too much, and she was close to most of
her patients. She met Gary at the community hospital a few years ago, and
it seemed like the best thing that ever happened to her at that time. "Here is
your order" Leo's words interrupted her train of thoughts. "Thank you" Lily
grabbed her cup for the counter and pulled out a two-dollar bill from her
purse. "Keep the change" Lily turned her back to Leo and dashed out of the
café before Leo could protest. Manhattan was totally different, the hustling
and bustling were strange at first, but she got used to it. Lily glanced at her
wristwatch and realized she was running late, and she found an empty cab
a few miles from the café. The cab was Godsent, "Where?" the cab driver
asked as Lily hopped into the cab. "St. Thomas Mental Home," Lily answered
quickly. Lily saw the cab driver staring at her from the mirror. "I work there"
Lily understood the look the driver was giving her; this was not the first time
someone raised an eyebrow when she mentioned the mental asylum.
Everyone had a bad impression about the place, but Lily didn't see the need;
the people were just like everybody else; the only difference was that they
had an illness that beguiles their minds. The inner demons were fighting,
and there was nothing they could do about it; they had to succumb to the
daily torment of their mind.

"I heard it's really crazy in there," the cab driver said as he turned into the
next street. "Aren't we all crazy?" Lily inhaled deeply. "What do you mean?"
the cab driver stared at Lily through the mirror. "What's your name?" Lily
asked with a smile. "Mitchell," the cab driver answered. "Mitchell, I'm sure
they're something you go through that want to make you flip sometimes.
The only difference between you and those people in the mental home is that
they flipped, but you haven't" the car came to a halt in front of the mental
home. Lily paid her fare and walked into the mental home, she gave Mitchell
something to think about, and the guy looked baffled when she alighted the
vehicle. Lily had been on the brink of losing her mind once, so she
understood clearly what her patients were going through, and she detested
it when people made fun of their pain. The gate buzzed open, and Andrew
was at the gate as usual, "Good morning, Andrew" Lily smiled. "Good
morning Lily" Andrew looked exhausted, and it was just 8 am in morning.
"Rough morning?" Lily poured the content of her bag on the table. "You can
say that again. One of the patients tried to escape from his room this
morning; Gab and I had a tough time restraining a ten-year-old," Andrew
sighed. Lily could see the visible scratches on his arm, "Logan?" Lily glanced
at the door. "I believe that is the one," Andrew said as he cleared her. "But
he was perfectly fine when I left yesterday," Lily said as she returned her
belongings to her bag. "They all seem okay, Lily" Andrew sighed heavily.
"Thank you" Lily stood in front of the gate and the buzzing sound signaled
the door was opening.