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Post by Erica Raines on Nov 9, 2008 0:30:46 GMT -5
Erica had been brought in to help the students deal with the death of one of their own. As she knew it, or from what she could gather Gia was the best friend of the girl who had died, and therefore Gia was the first one Erica called to her "office".
Office was a loose term for what the room was instead it looked like an aviary/ botanical garden. There was even a stream.
It was the closest image of serenity that Erica could think of. She had a room exactly like it at the estates, and she offered to pay for whatever modifications needed so long as the student felt peaceful there, that was all that mattered.
Gia would be getting out of her classes today for a visit. Erica was nervous, but calm at the same time. She realized that she didn't care if she did her Job right, what mattered was that Gia would learn to be okay herself.
Sitting back on the pillows she placed together she waited for Gia to come in.
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Post by Gia Campbell on Nov 9, 2008 3:18:54 GMT -5
Not only had Gia not been to class since Katie died, she also hadn't been out of the common room. She wasn't all that crazy about leaving it now, either. She received the notice that she was to report for counseling and was tempted to ignore it. But Marlene had talked her into it, and even walked her down to the counselor's office.
She took a deep breath and knocked on the door, then turned to see that Marlene had already gone. She was tempted to make a run for it...
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Post by Erica Raines on Nov 9, 2008 4:24:31 GMT -5
Erica opened the door before the girl could escape, "Come on in." she said softly, opening the door wider. She tried to assess the girl in front of her as best as she could and could already see the pain written all over puffy red rimmed eyes.
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Post by Gia Campbell on Nov 9, 2008 13:43:17 GMT -5
Gia reluctantly followed the woman into her office. She didn't want to talk about this. Even though she couldn't really think about anything but Katie, she sincerely doubted that anything this woman had to say was going to make her feel any better. She felt empty and hollow inside.
"So, what? Am I supposed to lay on the couch or something?" she said, a bitter tone to her voice.
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Post by Erica Raines on Nov 9, 2008 17:15:29 GMT -5
"No." she said gently, " You can sit, stand, lay, wherever you like. Or you can turn around and walk away if that's what you want." she offered, "And ...If you leave...you're always welcome to come back Gia."
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Post by Gia Campbell on Nov 11, 2008 0:34:06 GMT -5
Gia was suspicious. "You mean I can leave whenever I want? Then why was I summoned here? I thought I was being ordered to be here, because I haven't been going to classes. Like any of that matters now. How am I supposed to care about my classes when my best friend is dead and the maniac who killed her is still running around out there?" She stood in the middle of the room, not even bothering to look around.
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Post by Erica Raines on Nov 11, 2008 16:06:44 GMT -5
"It must be terribly frustrating, the reminder that we have so little control in matters of life and death. As people it's our natural instincts to crave some form of control, over our lives, but then death comes and we realize that we don't have any choice at all really, fate's already decided each and every one of our ends." Erica spoke softly. She knew what it was like to lose a best friend, an only friend really and she had spent much time cursing the gods for taking away her husband.
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Post by Gia Campbell on Dec 21, 2008 16:49:26 GMT -5
"Well, what's the point of it all?" Gia burst out. "Why are we even here? We're born just to die! It's like the only thing we can count on. We can't count on other people, or even on ourselves... at any given moment, everything can fail you, and you're left alone, with nothing and no hope."
This was where Gia was now, on the edge of a cliff alone and hanging. All hope, anything positive, was gone. The horrible empty pointlessness of life now seemed like the only truth left. People all around her had been talking about the stupid tournament or the stupid dance, but really, it was just an empty distraction from this truth.
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Post by Erica Raines on Dec 22, 2008 23:44:54 GMT -5
"I once asked someone that very question." she told Gia, though her look grew soft and almost distant as she remembered what her husband told her, when she had bemoaned fate's cruelty, she swallowed, " He told me that we're here to live. That death is only a part of life, but the journey is what's important." her distant look disappeared and she was clearly talking to Gia again, "You lost someone you loved. Someone very close to you, but thinking of all the time that you've spent with that person. If you knew in advance that they were going to leave you...would you rather have never known them at all? Would you give up all the memories you have of Katie because you know now what it's like to have lost her?" she asked.
She pulled back and assessed Gia from a different angle, " Would you have denied Katie the memories she's had of you? You're right when you say that we all die Gia, but it's important to live first. Katie's life may have been a short one, but she had something that is more precious than ninety years of longevity. She had you. She had your friendship. And you Gia, you had Katie. You were loved and cherished for who you are, and death cannot take that away. Death can never take away the memories that you have, but instead it can prevent you from living. A life half lived in fear is no life at all, you cannot fear when death comes, or who it may take from you, you can only be blessed by each moment that you allow yourself to live, and allow others to touch your life."
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Post by Gia Campbell on Dec 23, 2008 0:01:33 GMT -5
Gia listened to the woman talk, skeptical at first. But as the counselor's speech went on, it started to get to her. Her eyes filled with tears, and she began to rock back and forth in her chair. Towards the end, she burst into tears, drowning out the rest of what Ms. Raines had to say. She began to cry bitterly, letting out all the pain and sorrow that had been building up inside her since the moment she first learned of Katie's death.
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Post by Erica Raines on Dec 23, 2008 0:32:54 GMT -5
Erica moved towards the girl and set her arms around her knowing that Gia would need to anchor somewhere and just bear down on something to get the bitterness out. Crying was good, it was cathartic, it was necessary to most in order to break through that bottle of emotions. Erica wasn't about to stop Gia from crying but rather encouraged the girl to do what she needed to do.
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Post by Gia Campbell on Jan 13, 2009 14:36:51 GMT -5
Gia just let it out, crying heavily in the woman's arms until she had no strength left. Eventually, she just slumped over, feeling drained of everything--energy, emotion, and life. She felt hollow inside, like the chocolate Easter bunny she got every year in her basket until she was fifteen.
Yes, she was glad she'd had Katie in her life. That she had maybe made a difference to her in her short time on earth. But the fact remained that now Gia was alone, no friends, no one to understand her.
Silently, she'd made up her mind. She wanted to join Katie.
Finally, she pulled away and wiped at her eyes. "Um, thanks... I think that helped," she said, her voice unnaturally bright.
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Post by Erica Raines on Jan 13, 2009 17:33:11 GMT -5
Erica grieved silently with the girl, knowing what she had been through. It was still hard to let go of her husband and he had been dead for quite a while. He had taught her so much and given her such strength she didn't know how she was to live without him, but she managed. She tried simply living, one day at a time. It was hard, but she was pushing forward. There was still so much to live for.
"I'm here any time you need me."
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