We All Have Our Demons
It was only half past 10 o'clock am and it seemed that everything under the sun had gone
wrong. This morning at home, there had been no coffee in the house, his kids were both in bad moods
and missed the bus, therefore he had to drive them in, once there and preparing to leave, his car broke
down, the tow-truck he called was also running late and he had to take a cab in to work. But it didn't
stop there, oh no, it just got even better. The cab got caught in a traffic jam and was forced into a
detour around an accident. Now he was late to top it all off.
"Good morning, Dr. Newnan."
"Alice, you've got to be kidding me." he responded to the secretary.
"Bad morning, doctor?" she asked.
"The worst."
"Well, in any event, you have a new patient."
He walked into his office with Alice in tow. He threw his coat and briefcase into a leather backed chair
and sank into his own behind his desk.
"Really? Who, and from where?"
Alice handed him a thick file, he glanced at the name typed on the cover: Eliza Petterson.
"Well, she's been transferred from Holy Name Mental Health Hospital across town."
Peter Newnan, holding the file in his hands, opened it. Scanning the information he found that young
Eliza was 17 and was recorded as being schizophrenic and slightly insane. He raised his eyebrows,
intrigued. Looking up at Alice he asked:
"Why was she transferred?"
"Well, doctor, it was on the parents request that she be brought here."
"And where is she now?"
Alice conferred with the schedule book that she forever had with her.
"She's in OB-room F. They're expecting you as soon as you come in."
Peter new exactly what she meant by they. His two closest friends Dr. Ian Long and Dr. Efram
Dancey always came in for what they called the interesting' ones. Well, by the look of things, this one
certainly seemed interesting enough to qualify.
"Thank you Alice, hold any calls for me will ya." she nodded and he headed out of his office.
Down the hall from his office were the OB rooms, or observation rooms. Small double rooms
with a one way mirror separating the two, obviously, one was used for observing whoever was in the
second. OB-room F. Here it is. Peter walked in on both Ian and Efram, who were both doing nothing
but staring through the mirror.
"Well you peeping-toms." he mockingly scoffed, a smile curving his lips. At that the two men turned
around, startled slightly.
"So, is it the new girl in there?"
"Uh, yes Peter, it is." Efram answered. He was on older looking man, in his late fifties, but loved his
work for reasons only God new. He kept speaking. "She seems to be, um, well," he paused.
"She's fucking the air, Pete." Ian interjected, a sly grin taking over his face.
Efram, being an old-world gentlemanly sort, blushed at this blunt and crude comment, but non the lest
nodded in affirmation.
Peter's right eyebrow lifted as it was caused to do when he was told something surprising. He walked
past the two other men to the mirror and saw the sole occupant in the other room. It was a young
teenage girl, lying on her back on the single cot-like bed, thrusting her hips furiously toward the ceiling.
Peter looked back at his colleagues, surprised only a little, and then back at the girl on the other side of
the glass.
"We were waiting for you, we didn't know, rather, we didn't think it appropriate to go in and. . ." his
tongue failed him as his bared witness to the girls erotic movements. Poor old bastard, he's probably
going to have a heart attack from excitement before he gets a hard on.
Peter didn't bother to say anything to either of his friends. He left the OB-room for the patients.
Wanting to get right to work on this one. The brief look at the profile promised an interesting day, and it
was a welcome retreat from the previous hell of this morning. He opened the door to find the young girl
sitting cross-legged on the bed facing the door. She looked at him and smiled.
"Bad morning, doc." she said happily. He squinted his eyes, silently questioning her of her comment,
but for once, not able to find the words.
"You had a bad morning therefore what would be the point in saying good morning to you if it was in
fact, not true?" she smiled again.
He closed the door behind him and took a few steps towards this strange, smiling girl.
"What makes you think I had a bad morning, Eliza?" he asked of her.
"Oh, so we're using first names now, I see. OK Peter, start you psycho mumbo-jumbo." she laughed.
It seemed an infectious laugh that bounced off of the walls. Peter closed his mouth, a seemingly neurotic
impulse, not wanting to laugh at the moment.
"How do you know my name?"
She cocked her head to the left, smiling still, and said:
"I know a great many things, Peter, but the real question in, what do you think you know."
"And why is that?" So many questions he couldn't begin to vocalize piled up in his brain. How did she
know his name? Nonsense. She must have just heard it from one of the nurses or another doctor. Ya,
that was it. She heard his name from her former doctor.
"Well Peter, you see, in actually coming in to work today and coming to see me, you have changed
everything," Eliza fell over on her side. It was at that time that he noticed that she had a narrow waist,
and her long wavy brown hair spilled all over the place. Her smile shone through the mess of dark hair.
"What have I changed, Eliza?" he couldn't help but humor her in her little game. Well, what he thought
to be a game.
"Well, for starters, you've changed the course of your life, and in doing that, Peter, you have stumbled
upon a real problem."
"And what is that?"
At this she laughed and rolled onto her back again. Her head lolled to the side, looking straight into his
eyes.
"Me."
It was only half past 10 o'clock am and it seemed that everything under the sun had gone
wrong. This morning at home, there had been no coffee in the house, his kids were both in bad moods
and missed the bus, therefore he had to drive them in, once there and preparing to leave, his car broke
down, the tow-truck he called was also running late and he had to take a cab in to work. But it didn't
stop there, oh no, it just got even better. The cab got caught in a traffic jam and was forced into a
detour around an accident. Now he was late to top it all off.
"Good morning, Dr. Newnan."
"Alice, you've got to be kidding me." he responded to the secretary.
"Bad morning, doctor?" she asked.
"The worst."
"Well, in any event, you have a new patient."
He walked into his office with Alice in tow. He threw his coat and briefcase into a leather backed chair
and sank into his own behind his desk.
"Really? Who, and from where?"
Alice handed him a thick file, he glanced at the name typed on the cover: Eliza Petterson.
"Well, she's been transferred from Holy Name Mental Health Hospital across town."
Peter Newnan, holding the file in his hands, opened it. Scanning the information he found that young
Eliza was 17 and was recorded as being schizophrenic and slightly insane. He raised his eyebrows,
intrigued. Looking up at Alice he asked:
"Why was she transferred?"
"Well, doctor, it was on the parents request that she be brought here."
"And where is she now?"
Alice conferred with the schedule book that she forever had with her.
"She's in OB-room F. They're expecting you as soon as you come in."
Peter new exactly what she meant by they. His two closest friends Dr. Ian Long and Dr. Efram
Dancey always came in for what they called the interesting' ones. Well, by the look of things, this one
certainly seemed interesting enough to qualify.
"Thank you Alice, hold any calls for me will ya." she nodded and he headed out of his office.
Down the hall from his office were the OB rooms, or observation rooms. Small double rooms
with a one way mirror separating the two, obviously, one was used for observing whoever was in the
second. OB-room F. Here it is. Peter walked in on both Ian and Efram, who were both doing nothing
but staring through the mirror.
"Well you peeping-toms." he mockingly scoffed, a smile curving his lips. At that the two men turned
around, startled slightly.
"So, is it the new girl in there?"
"Uh, yes Peter, it is." Efram answered. He was on older looking man, in his late fifties, but loved his
work for reasons only God new. He kept speaking. "She seems to be, um, well," he paused.
"She's fucking the air, Pete." Ian interjected, a sly grin taking over his face.
Efram, being an old-world gentlemanly sort, blushed at this blunt and crude comment, but non the lest
nodded in affirmation.
Peter's right eyebrow lifted as it was caused to do when he was told something surprising. He walked
past the two other men to the mirror and saw the sole occupant in the other room. It was a young
teenage girl, lying on her back on the single cot-like bed, thrusting her hips furiously toward the ceiling.
Peter looked back at his colleagues, surprised only a little, and then back at the girl on the other side of
the glass.
"We were waiting for you, we didn't know, rather, we didn't think it appropriate to go in and. . ." his
tongue failed him as his bared witness to the girls erotic movements. Poor old bastard, he's probably
going to have a heart attack from excitement before he gets a hard on.
Peter didn't bother to say anything to either of his friends. He left the OB-room for the patients.
Wanting to get right to work on this one. The brief look at the profile promised an interesting day, and it
was a welcome retreat from the previous hell of this morning. He opened the door to find the young girl
sitting cross-legged on the bed facing the door. She looked at him and smiled.
"Bad morning, doc." she said happily. He squinted his eyes, silently questioning her of her comment,
but for once, not able to find the words.
"You had a bad morning therefore what would be the point in saying good morning to you if it was in
fact, not true?" she smiled again.
He closed the door behind him and took a few steps towards this strange, smiling girl.
"What makes you think I had a bad morning, Eliza?" he asked of her.
"Oh, so we're using first names now, I see. OK Peter, start you psycho mumbo-jumbo." she laughed.
It seemed an infectious laugh that bounced off of the walls. Peter closed his mouth, a seemingly neurotic
impulse, not wanting to laugh at the moment.
"How do you know my name?"
She cocked her head to the left, smiling still, and said:
"I know a great many things, Peter, but the real question in, what do you think you know."
"And why is that?" So many questions he couldn't begin to vocalize piled up in his brain. How did she
know his name? Nonsense. She must have just heard it from one of the nurses or another doctor. Ya,
that was it. She heard his name from her former doctor.
"Well Peter, you see, in actually coming in to work today and coming to see me, you have changed
everything," Eliza fell over on her side. It was at that time that he noticed that she had a narrow waist,
and her long wavy brown hair spilled all over the place. Her smile shone through the mess of dark hair.
"What have I changed, Eliza?" he couldn't help but humor her in her little game. Well, what he thought
to be a game.
"Well, for starters, you've changed the course of your life, and in doing that, Peter, you have stumbled
upon a real problem."
"And what is that?"
At this she laughed and rolled onto her back again. Her head lolled to the side, looking straight into his
eyes.
"Me."