It was finally my lunch break and I was more than happy to leave my office. It was too gloomy and had this low mood to it. I mentally reminded myself that I needed to pick up some things to brighten it up.

It was in need of a make over.

I stood in the staff room, holding the note book close to my chest. I was waiting for Daniel to arrive from his shift. We both had breaks at the same time and I was happy about that, if not, I'm sure I'd looked like a loner all by myself.

I awkwardly stood by the coffee machine, watching as some guards sat down around the large table, chatting away with one another. There were a few female guards here and there, but they were mostly men. They all seemed to get a long from what I could tell.

My thoughts were interrupted when feeling a hand being placed on my shoulder. I jumped from the contact, snapping my body in the direction it came from. Daniel stood with an amused expression, looking as if he was trying to hold in a laugh.

"Oh God, you scared me!" I breathed, placing a hand on my rapidly beating heart. He finally cracked, allowing a low ripple of laughter to leave his lips.

"It's not funny! Don't do that again." I sternly told him, but found myself grinning lightly.

"My bad." He innocently said, raising his hands up in the air. I rolled my eyes, pushing up my glasses. My contact lenses still hadn't arrived and it had been more than a week. I was slowly giving up on them.

I would have to email the company.

Again, I added it onto my mental 'To Do' list.

"Well, let's go." Daniel said, making me shake off my thoughts. I nodded, following behind him. But I never failed to notice the way Daniel glared at a few of the guard members. Yet, it went unnoticed by them as they were too busy eating the pizza in-front of them. I frowned in confusion.

"What was that about?" I asked him as we stepped outside.

"What?" He asked, lost. Both of used walked side by side, the sound of our heels clinking against the ground, echoing in my ears.

"You know...that little look you gave them. Well, glare." I slowly said. He glanced over at me, before he shrugged.

"I don't like them." He simply said and the frown on my lips deepened.

"W-What? Why?" Surprise and shock laced onto my words. I didn't know much about who got along with one another and who didn't, since it was only my real proper day working here - but I would have thought that the guards would get along.

"Because...they take their tittle to their head. Just because they're guards around here and have some power over the inmates, they take advantage of it." He explained to me.

"Yeah, I've noticed the guards are really rough with the inmates." I thought aloud. Daniel shot me a look, nodding along with me.

"Trust me, they don't. I'd understand them if they thought like me; only handle the inmate with disrespect if they try something. But if they haven't, at least try act mutual." He trailed off, as we neared towards the inmate cafeteria. I wasn't sure why, but I followed along.

"Why are we headed to the inmate cafeteria?" I blurted out.

"You're just full of questions, aren't you?" He sarcastically asked. I opened my mouth to reply, but clamped it shut and went with a shrug. He rolled his eyes jokingly as we stepped inside.

"We're here because this where the food is served. And I know, you're thinking this probably just for the inmates, but it's for staff too." He told me, as we walked inside the room. Instantly, I felt eyes dart over to us, lingering on me. I swallowed, trying my hardest not to blush from all the unwanted eyes.

"Just try and keep calm...they won't try anything." Daniel reassuringly said. I just nodded, bowing my head slightly as we walked towards the line. I tried my hardest to block out all the absurd comments directed towards me. I sighed, hoping it would die out soon.

I followed Daniel's lead, watching as he politely smiled, excusing himself as pushed into the front. I bit down on my bottom lip, feeling a hint of guilt from doing this. I never liked to push in lines; it felt like breaking the rules.

Swallowing, I stood behind him, my head bowed slightly.

"Hey there, what can I get you?" A chirpy voice entered my ears. My head snapped up, slightly startled. It was an elder woman, her hair dark brown with few grey streaks gliding through, covered by a hair neat. Her eyes were a beaming brown, a happy smile on her lips.

It was strange...sort of like an oxymoron. A happy woman inside of a dull prison - it wasn't something you'd expect.

Strange.

"Uh...hi...I...anything that's on the menu." I stuttered like a fool.

"Will chicken pie and for dessert; apple tart, do?" She asked, still widely smiling. I nodded, returning the smile.

"Yes, thank you. That'd be perfect."

She happily placed a slice of pie on a white plate, before picking up another small white plate with a apple tart slice on it. She placed them on a tray together, handing it over.

"Thank you." I whispered, taking it from her.

"That's okay," She beamed. I found myself smiling, the old woman's happiness was a little contagious. I walked towards Daniel, who already had his tray in his hands.

"I'm guessing you've met Silva, by the smile on your face." He commented, motioning his head to follow him.

"Silva? You mean the nice lunch lady?" I asked, mimicking his footsteps.

"Yep. She's the only ball of sunshine around here," He chuckled and I presumed at the thought of her. I smiled along.

"She seems really nice." I shrugged, still walking beside him. It was then I realized he was leading us over to the far end of the cafeteria, where less inmates sat. I saw an empty table and like a sheep, I copied Daniel as he pulled out a seat and slumped down in it. I hesitantly sat across from him.

"What? Why do you look so uncomfortable?" He asked. I shifted on my seat.

"I...I'm not...just I thought we'd be eating somewhere else." I cleared my throat. Daniel arched a brow, before lowly sighing.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked if you wanted to eat here. Just I normally eat here - but we can eat somewhere else if you'd like?" He rambled. I shook my head.

"No, no, it's fine. I-I just feel a little awkward with everyone staring...but it's fine." I reassuringly said. Daniel relaxed, slowly nodding his head. It was true, I could feel a few eyes on me - but I'd just try my hardest not to pay any attention towards it.

That's what they wanted.

"Great, then let's eat."

And eat we did. I ate small bites of the pie, savouring it. It was surprisingly, by far the best plate of pie I had tasted. And Jesus, the tart was heavenly. I was shocked that it was all made in the prison kitchen and not secretly being ordered from a restaurant.

Yet, I still had my sneaky suspicion...

As I swallowed a bite of the tart, I eyed Daniel. He was chewing down on his large portion of pie, which I could tell he was enjoying. It was then a lingering thought flashed across my mind.

"Hey, Daniel...can I ask you something?" I reluctantly started. He glanced at me, nodding.

"Sure," He said with a mouth full. Shifting slightly on my seat, I pushed my glasses up, oddly feeling nervous to ask him.

"Who's Rachel?" I blurted out. I watched as he stilled for a second, almost choking on his bite of pie, before hurriedly swallowing it. He looked at me with widen eyes.

"How do you know Rachel?" He asked, sounding confused and curious. I blushed slightly, thinking back to last night. My very first session with Sam and the way his intense eyes were on me. I shook off my thoughts.

"Uh...I heard about her from one of my patients. They wanted to know where she was." I trailed off, not naming Sam. Daniel sighed, picking up his fork, before stabbing a piece of the innocent pie.

"She was the old nurse. Got fired about a week ago."

My eyes widened and my mouth parted slightly in shock.

"Fired? What happened?" I continued to ask. I waited for a second as Daniel swallowed down his bite of pie, before chugging down some juice.

"She was caught drug dealing. Turns out during her 'therapy sessions' and whatever you nurses do - she was handing out drugs to the inmates." He announced and I gasped.

"Yep. The little bitch was damaging all the inmates body just so she could try and seem like a good nurse." He paused for a second.

"But it doesn't matter anymore. She's serving at least twenty years of prison or more. I'm sure by the time she comes out, she'll be sixty something." He shuddered slightly. I frowned a little, pushing my glasses up.

"How did you find out?" I asked, after swallowing another bite of my apple tart.

"I'm not sure, but I think someone snitched." He shrugged. I pursed my lips, a few thoughts dancing in my mind. I was a little confused and definitely intrigued about the new found information. My mind grew heavy with thoughts.

For the remainder of lunch, Daniel and I talked to one another, getting to know each other better. I had learnt he was Italian, his wife was called 'Sherry' and the two of them had two kids; one girl and one boy. They seemed like a cute family.

After we both felt full, we decided to go on a little stroll around the prison. The cafeteria was getting cleaned up, a few more inmates stepping inside while others left. I had also learnt there was a rotation system going on.

When some inmates worked, others took breaks. I found it a little odd, but nonetheless, it worked. It was the same with the guards system; some took breaks whilst others worked. I wondered if my schedule would change when the new nurse arrived.

Currently, the two of us walked side by side, strolling around the prison ground. Daniel was a nice guy, funny and very easy to get along with. I couldn't understand why the other guards never liked him.

We entered the courtyard, the January wind blowing around. My hair danced a little in the air, making me try pat it down. I should have never left it out, but when I was given a white lab coat (which was my uniform) I thought my hair would look nicer out.

Sighing, I let go off my hair and pushed up my glasses.

There was no point anyway.

"Your hair's a mess." Daniel commented. I glanced at him, rolling my eyes.

"Why are we outside here? It's so cold." I shivered a little, noticing the empty field. Not many inmates were outside.

Smart people.

"Because..." He trailed off. I frowned in confusion, following him as he walked towards a group of people. I squinted my eyes a little, trying to get a better view. It was a group of inmates, some dressed in jumpsuits and others in sweats.

"W-Wait... Why are we?" I frowned, not finishing my sentence. Daniel said nothing, glancing at me with a sheepish smirk. And then I realized.

"You're making me drop you off to where you're working!" I gasped.

"Bingo," He laughed, making me throw a punch on his meaty shoulder.

"I can't believe you." I tried to be serious, but laughed a little myself. He simply shrugged, striding towards the inmates. I didn't know what to do, so I followed behind him, all of their faces growing less distant as we got closer.

"You're just lucky I don't have any patients for an hour or so...they're still trying to work it out." I muttered lowly to him. He grinned at me over his shoulder, earning a roll of the eyes from me.

Their chatter grew silent as we approached them. I cleared my throat, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

"Good afternoon, Inmates." Daniel greeted, earning a few drowsy responses. I peaked beside Daniel, where another female guard stood with a male guard. They both rolled their eyes, making me frown.

"You already know your tasks; digging large holes...I expect..." I tuned him out, feeling a few pair of eyes on me. I swallowed, my eyes raking over the large group of people. It was when my eyes landed on him, I felt my heart pause.

He was wearing his usual beanie, his hood on top. His eyes were locked on me, fresh stubble growing on his chin. I swallowed, pushing up my glasses and found myself smiling small at him. He simply stared, the corner of his lips etching into a small smile. Yet, it didn't reach his eyes.

I broke our gaze, thinking back to our conversation last night, his words replaying in my mind.

"It doesn't matter. You won't be able to fix me anyway. Nobody has."

I found myself frowning just at the thought of his words. He wasn't being serious - was he? But the look of hurt playing on his face, tugged my heart.

There was something about him which intrigued me and it wasn't only because of my job...I was just curious to know about him better.

It was strange.

"Belle," A familiar voice called, snapping me out of my thoughts. I glanced up, seeing the inmates clear off. Slumped bodies as they walked away, dragging a shovel with them. My head snapped over towards Daniel.

"You can go to your shift, if you like? I'll ask the others to excuse me, while I drop you off -"

"- No, it's fine. I...I want to stay. It's not like I have anything to do anyways." I told him. He slowly nodded.

"Well, be my guest." He shrugged. My hair danced in the wind as I glanced back at the inmates. I searched through them all, looking for one in particular. I couldn't find the strength to look way, the way his arm muscles clenched with his every movement. Small beads of sweat growing on his face as he shovelled the ground.

There was just something about him...

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