Challenges

Ivan’s Wife is in the final editing stage. The story is diverse and covers a range of emotions. The protagonist faces a lot of challenges—and with challenges comes growth. In this scene, Dimitri is in a mental hospital, considering the inevitability of mental illness. Witnessing such pain propels him to finally seek help in understanding his illness.

I glanced around the circle of mostly scared patients and spotted a familiar face. It was Billy, the young pimple-faced kid I’d met months ago. He appeared younger than I remembered and twice as nervous. He shrugged his shoulders, blinked constantly, and released odd hiccups. I nodded hello with a curt wave, but he didn’t seem to recognize me. He pushed his glasses up his nose every few seconds and kept looking over his shoulders, clicking his tongue. 

“KGB!” he cried out extemporaneously. 

No one appeared to notice; even the nurses were oblivious. The staff was used to it, and the ‘no talking’ rule apparently didn’t apply to spontaneous utterances. Seeing Billy reminded me of the futility of it all. Some, like Billy, would never get better. The best they could hope for was compassion; finding it at a mental hospital was about as possible as returning to yesterday.