S. Brook Counseling & Therapy Clinic

August 28th X281

Hope Cobblestone was three months old.

Even though the baby had been born mute, her soul was flourishing. Florian could easily understand her. Whenever she was hungry, her seashell dove would stick its head outside its seashell and open its beak wide. Florian could tell just by looking.

The Cobblestone family had to bring Hope to check-ups regularly to see if there were any other impairments as she developed. The family also had no other choice but to hire two nurses to monitor the baby—one for the day and one for the night.

Thanks to the Tarot Tori City People Priority Policy, the medical center visits were completely free. The two parents also had two thousand dollars a month thanks to the residential flex spending. This covered a quarter of the salary for the nurses.

When Hope Cobblestone turned three months old, the Cobblestone family received a package from the mayor himself. It had fruit, wine, a few documents, and a handwritten note.

  Dear Hope Cobblestone,

  Welcome to Tarot Tori City.

  With much deliberation, we have concluded to waive the age requirement for the Residential Flex Spending exclusively for you, Hope Cobblestone.

  I’m genuinely heartbroken that we may never have the chance to speak to one another.

  Condolences,

  Mayor William Rite Banquet

It was an odd letter, but good news nonetheless. From then on, Hope had access to a renewable one thousand dollars every month. It went straight to the medical costs, significantly decreasing the financial burden on her parents.

The Cobblestones would have lost many opportunities if it weren’t for all of this. However, they weren’t out of the woods yet. The whole family needed to learn sign language. It would be the baseline for communicating with Hope, and exposure at an early age would allow Hope to pick up on it quickly.

Each family member took lessons whenever possible. They were told to use the hand signs as they spoke so Hope could memorize and mimic gestures as she grew up. The language relied heavily on facial expressions and interpreting them. It was very engaging for the Cobblestone family to be more expressive and open to one another.

🙠🙢

Florian’s mind would wander as the spirit animals interested her more than learning sign language.

She had trouble sitting still in general. Her grades were subpar, but her attitude started to mature as she visited her counselor, Dr. Ronaldo Von Nirvanas.

“Your drawings are so beautiful, Florian. Where do you come up with such unique creatures?” Dr. Ronaldo asked.

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Florian drew many spirit animals during her sessions with Dr. Ronaldo.

Dr. Ronaldo didn’t suspect anything from the drawings. He only saw a girl with a fantastic imagination expressing herself with therapeutic art. Florian was calmer when she drew her art. Whatever was bothering her, drawing helped her understand it.

Dr. Ronaldo interpreted her drawings. Florian’s drawing of Sergeant Nowell had a tall shadow behind him; it must have meant Florian thought the sergeant was tall. Miss Fumblehouse’s drawing had her plush turtle included with her giant parasol, nothing strange about it. Drawings of her family showed an imaginary iguana and dog. Her friends also had animals beside them, all peaceful. She drew many pictures of her sister, and Ronaldo sensed a lot of effort was put into them. Florian included a dove inside a seashell in every one.

“Do you love your baby sister?” he asked.

“Yes, I love her a lot,” Florian said.

Dr. Ronaldo already knew the answer. He was allowing her to say it herself.

Still, he was missing something big—the actual reason Florian seemed distracted. Florian wasn’t telling him something. As a counselor, all he could do was wait until Florian was ready to talk about it.

“Florian? How is everything going with Hope at home?”

“Great, I’m learning sign language now.”

“That’s great. Can you teach me a few words?”

“Yeah, this one means baby sister.” She cradled her hands. “This one means old man.” She squinted her face and made a wrinkled expression.

“Like this?” Ronaldo followed suit.

“No, like this.” Florian squinted harder.

The two laughed.

Florian paused for a moment. “The day my sister was born, I saw an old man. He was wearing a bunch of clothes that smelled. I don’t know what happened to him, but I think he died so my sister could be born.”

Dr. Ronaldo suspected this was what he was waiting for. “Died? Why do you think he died?”

“Because he disappeared. When I fell asleep, he was there; when I woke up, he was gone.”

“I’m sure the doctors called his name, and they treated him.”

“No, he disappeared. His conch crab disappeared too.”

“Conch crab? I’m sure the old man is alive and well. Why do you think your sister is here because this old man might have died?”

“Because Hope also has a shell.”

Dr. Ronaldo remembered the seashell dove. “So on the day your sister was born, you think you saw a man die, correct?”

“Yeah,” Florian said.

“How do you feel about the old man?”

“I don’t know,” Florian said.

Dr. Ronaldo reassured her and asked her for more information. Florian did not mention anything about the other creatures in the hospital or anything about the spirits.

“I see,” Dr. Ronaldo said. “I’ll do some research on my end. I’ll do my best to get answers about this individual. I’m sure the old man is alive and well.”

Florian’s eyes widened. She acted like her chair was about to eject her into the air. This was the first time Ronaldo had seen Florian so excited. His words must have meant a lot to her.

Ronaldo scheduled Florian to come back the next day. He was confident he could get answers quickly. He was incredibly excited as things were getting interesting.

Florian nodded, wide eyes affixed above Dr. Ronaldo.

“What’s the matter, Florian?”

“I trust you,” she said.

After the session, Dr. Ronaldo thought the old man might have been the underlying factor weighing Florian down.

Florian was just a kid, yet she was worried about the well-being of a stranger. Ronaldo knew her intentions were honest and sincere, but. . .

Childhood was the most influential part of an individual’s life, and this stranger was eating away at hers.

Ronaldo started investigating to see what closure he could bring to Florian.