2005 words (8 minute read)

Imaginary Friends

“Let's eat lunch outside today.” I tell my friend as we walk toward the cafeteria.


“We aren’t allowed to eat outside, Lucee. You know that. Why don’t we eat with your other friends?” She says. I nod with a pout on my face.


“Wait, other friends? I have other friends?” I ask her with wide eyes. She rolls her eyes with a smirk on her face.


“No, why would you?” She asks. I block her out and turn back to walk into the cafeteria. I hold my head up with a smile as I walk through the doors. I see people look at me and then start whispering and laughing, I just keep walking with a smile. They’re just jealous because they don’t have a best friend like mine. I get in line for food and while I’m waiting I turn back to my friend and unblock her. “How dare you ignore me! I am the only person who ever talks to you and you block me?!” She yells at me. I smile and nod.


“Yeah, because you’re mean to me.” I tell her. She nods with a yawn and then looks at her nails.


“Yeah, well, I’m the only person you have.” She tells me. I suddenly feel a tap on my shoulder. I whirl on the person.


“What?” I ask the girl. She points ahead of her and I turn to find that the line was way ahead of me. “Oh. Sorry.” I tell her and start walking forward.


“Heh. Idiot.” My friend mumbles just loud enough for me to hear it. Once I reach the line I turn on her.


“Just shut up. I would have been paying attention if you hadn’t been talking.” I snap at her. She just smiles but keeps her mouth shut. I turn back toward the line and grab a tray for food. The lunch lady looks at me weird and slops food on my tray. I walk away and out into the cafeteria only to have someone come and push me down causing me to drop my food all over myself and the floor. I feel tears stinging my eyes as everyone starts laughing at me.


“Freak! Aren’t you a little old for imaginary friends, Lucee?” Some of the other kids jeer at me. I look around and see all of them laughing at me still.


“Let me through. What is with all of this ruckus?” The principal makes her way to the middle of the crowd. She takes one look at me sprawled on the floor and bites back her laughter too. She turns to the crowd. “This is unacceptable. Who pushed this girl down?” She asks. One of the boys at the front of the group steps up.


“I did Madame. She was talking to herself and not paying any attention. She would have run into someone eventually carrying on like that.” He tells her.

“You will apologize to her at once and I will never see you do this again.” She commands him. He nods and walks up to me.


“I’m sorry that I pushed you.” He says. He holds his hand out and helps me up.


“It’s alright.” I tell him quietly. I turn to the principal. “I would like to go home.” I tell her. She nods and holds a hand out to me. I walk ahead of her toward her office.


“Let me call your mother and then you can go home.” She tells me. I nod and sit down in the chair in front of her desk. She picks up the phone and calls my mother. “Yes, hello, is this Lucee’s mother?” She asks. Her face twists in confusion. “No, she hasn’t done anything. She got pushed around in the cafeteria and she wishes to go home.” She nods a few times listening to my mother on the line. “Okay, well she will be here waiting.” She puts the receiver down and turns to me. “She will be here soon, why don’t you just sit here until she gets here.” She tells me. I nod and lean back in the chair, it will be nice to go home.


“Your mom isn’t coming.” My friend tells me. I look at her questioningly.


“What do you mean? Of course she’s coming. My mom loves me and she will always come for me.” I tell her. She nods with pursed lips which means that she’s hiding something from me. “What are you hiding?” I question her.


“She’s not coming. There are bad people coming here to take you away.” She tells me. I shake my head hard.


“No, no, no, there’s no way. My mom loves me. She would never let bad people take me away.” I tell her. She nods but stays quiet and steps back just as the principal comes back looking upset. She looks back at someone and then points at me.


“She’s right here. Please don’t hurt her, she’s really just a child and she didn’t do anything wrong.” She tells them. I stand up and start walking toward the far corner of the office. “Sweetheart, you need to cooperate. These people are going to take you someplace with people like you so that you can live a normal life with them.” She tells me. I relax almost immediately when she says people like me and I turn to my friend.


“I thought you said they were bad people? What’s so bad about being around people that are like me? I think that would be fun.” I tell her. She just rolls her eyes. I walk out the door of the office and see two men standing there waiting for me. I smile at them and they smile tightly at me. One of them bends down to my eye level.


“Hello sweetheart, are you Lucee?” He asks nicely. I nod enthusiastically.


“Yes. Are you here to take me somewhere where I will be with people that are like me?” I ask. The man chuckles and nods.


“Yes we are but you need to sleep first. Will you allow us to put you to sleep?” He asks me. I get confused and look at the other man who has a giant syringe in his hand. My eyes widen and I start to back away but the principal grabs me. I look up at her and her face is set in stone as she looks down at me.


“No,” I say as the man comes toward me with the syringe, “NO!” I scream as he jabs the needle into my arm and immediately my world starts spinning. The nice man picks me up and starts walking.


“Just go to sleep sweetheart. You’ll wake up once we get there.” He tells me and I let my eyes close.



“She’s such a young girl. That’s so sad.” A male voice says. I feel someone brush hair out of my face and I feel myself flinch. “Are you awake?” the male voice asks me. I slowly open my eyes but close them quickly once the bright light hits them.


“Yes. Is this the place where I get to meet other people like me?” I ask. I hear a female chuckle. I open my eyes again and look around to find myself in a brown room with the paint peeling in the corners. The bed is uncomfortable and the mattress is very thin. Everything in the room is old and gross.


“Who are people like you?” A male voice asks. I turn to the man and see him smiling kindly at me. He has shaggy brown hair and brown eyes.


“People who have friends.” I tell him. He raises an eyebrow and nods.


“He doesn’t understand. That’s because he’s not like you.” My friend tells me. I breathe a sigh of relief.


“I’m so glad that you came with me. I was so scared when that man had that syringe.” I tell her. I look back at the man and his face looks confused. “What?” I ask. He just shakes his head.


“Nothing.” He says. He holds out his hand to me with a smile. “I’m Xavier.” He introduces himself. I eagerly shake his hand.


“I’m Lucee. Where is this place? It’s kind of gross and not somewhere that I want to stay for long.” I say. He just nods and looks thoughtfully at the other person in the room. I turn and see a girl with a grim expression on her face. “What? Don’t hide things from me, I don’t like it.”


“Well, this is a home for special people. We all have something special about us. You have your friend, I have my art, and everyone else here has something that makes them different from other normal people.” She tells me.


“You draw? Can you draw me? Oh that would be so cool to have a portrait.” I say excitedly. She just smiles and shakes her head.


“Sure, but not today. You have your first meeting with the doctor and you might be upset afterwards so it might be better for you to just stay in here and I can draw you tomorrow.” She tells me. A knock sounds on the door and both Xavier and the girl rise from their chairs.


“We were just keeping her company.” Xavier tells him. The man at the door nods and they both quickly walk out of the room. The man walks in and sits in the chair that Xavier had been sitting in.


“Hello, I’m Doctor Callahan. What is your name?” He asks me.


“I’m Lucee.” I tell him. He nods and writes it down.


“Okay. Now can you tell me why you’re here?” He asks. I nod enthusiastically.


“Yes. I’m here to meet people that are like me. People that have friends like I do.” I tell him. He nods and writes a few words down.


“Way to make yourself look completely insane.” My friend comments.


“I’m not insane.” I tell her. The doctor looks up at me and then off to the side where I had been talking to. He slowly nods his head and takes down a few more notes.


“Right, well, that’s it for this meeting. I will decide a therapy for you and you will go once a week and then you will meet with me once a month.” I nod. He smiles and nods.


“He doesn’t like you. You scare him because he can’t tell what you might be thinking. I guess it’s a good thing that you never think about anything.” My friend says. I gasp and look at her.


“That’s really mean. I always think about stuff. I don’t need you to do all of my thinking for me you know.” I tell her.


“Alright, have a good night and I hope you work along well with the other patients.” He mumbles before quickly walking out the door. I glare at my friend and roll to my other side so that I don’t have to look at her.


“I’m going back to sleep.” I say and then I close my eyes.

Next Chapter: The Child