11/19 Instance: Anger Mismanagement

[Ferguson]

Anger Mismanagement

Timelined Before the game.


<Darren> Darren sat behind the desk, three piles of paperwork sat in front of him.

<Darren> "Do you think this counts as a class? Could I put Jessica in detention for being tardy?" He asked out loud.

<Hope> "I would say so. I mean, I managed to be on time..." That was a huge deal in and of itself. Hope was bored with waiting. She swung her feet over the side of her chair, getting comfortable.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia sighed and checked her watch. She didn't like being late or kept waiting by others that couldn't be bothered to be on time. "Should we just start without her? It's been fifteen minutes, if she was going to come she would've by now."

<Darren> "She was told this was compulsory," Darren tapped on the desk with his pen, "she could be kicked out if she doesn't turn up."

<Hope> Hope silently crossed her fingers and dug through her coat pocket. She was sure she had snuck a drink in there.

<Jessica> Jess hurried to the door, worried she'd be in trouble for being so late. "Sorry I'm late, I got slowed dow-" she started as she rounded the door-frame but then she saw who was in there and came to a dead stop, "Oh you have got to be fucking kidding me!"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia turned and gave Jess a dirty look. "You're late," she said impatiently.

<Hope> Hope rolled her eyes. Apparently somebody couldn't read. She took a sip of her drink.

<Darren> "You gotta be fucking kidding me, what?"

<Jessica> "With them? No way." She shook her head, backing up into the hall again.

<@Cecilia> "Have fun on the streets then," snorted Cecilia.

<Darren> "You were told it was a group session for the first time," Darren sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

<Hope> "She doesn't listen." Hope pointed out. Had she brought snacks? She looked.

<Jessica> "I'm not doing this with them here. They'll make it worse!"

<Darren> "Tough, you're just going to have to put on your big girl panties and deal," Darren shrugged, "we're all adults here."

<Hope> Hope snorted a bit on her drink, coughing as she recovered. This wouldn't be so bad.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia snorted at the 'big girl panties' comment. "Heh, that reminds me of Fabian."

<Jessica> "Who thought it would be a good idea to put me in an anger management group with the two people that happen to make me angry?"

<Darren> "The professionals," Darren shrugged, "now sit down and let's just get this over and done with."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia raised an eyebrow. "The point of anger management is to learn how to deal with your anger. Not to avoid it. Seriously, did you think we're all here to have our hands held and have a good cry?" Cecilia snorted. "Please."

<Hope> "Oh oh, can we sing Kumbaya?" Hope sat up again, hopeful.

<Jessica> Jess glared at Darren and Cecilia before going to a seat as far as possible from the other two girls and sitting down with her arms crossed over her chest. She slid down into a slouch and glared at a patch of floor.

<@Cecilia> "Let's keep the touchy-feely crap to a minimum, please," said Cecilia a bit shortly. "This is embarrassing enough as it is."

<Darren> "Hope, shush, it's not your turn to speak," Darren sighed, leaning back in his seat and putting his booted feet up on the table, "Right, you aren't kindergartners, you all know why you're here, and what the consequences are if you don't make improvements. So, this is how it's gonna go."

<Hope> "Oh so I get shushed and Cecilia doesn't?"

<Darren> He picked up a hacky sack, "You're only allowed to speak if you're holding the hacky sack, okay? To stop anyone from being interrupted so they can air their issues without having to defend themselves and stop this descending into anarchy, okay?"

<Darren> "And you can all shush, I have the hacky sack, okay? Them's the rules."

<Darren> "So, who wants to go first? Raise your hand," he tossed the sack from hand to hand.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia raised a hand. "Sure, I wanna get better. Might as well be me."

<Jessica> Jess continued to scowl at her patch of floor.

<Darren> "You don't have the saaaaaack," Darren chided, "but obviously I'm still allowed to talk when I don't have it since I'm running this joint, so here you go," he tossed the sack to Cee.

<Darren> "So, Cecilia, why're you so angry?"

<Hope> Hope took another drink. She was going to need much more to drink, considering she didn't even need to be there.

<Darren> "Oh, one more thing," a tendril snapped out from his wrist, grabbed the drink off Hope and yanked it across to his table, "no boozing in session. You can have it back when we're done."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia took the hackysack and frowned. "I'm... not sure. A lot of reasons. Right now I'm angry because I got beaten up. But I'm probably angry for other reasons that go back... further..."

<Darren> "Do you wanna elaborate, or is it too personal?"

<Hope> Hope rolled her eyes. This was the most idiotic waste of her time.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia thought a moment. "It's...not personal...if it'll help I can talk a bit about it..."

<Darren> "Alright then," Darren nodded, swinging his feet off the table and looking attentive.

<Hope> Sighing a bit, Hope went for her candy. What was the point of group therapy if it was individual talking?

<@Cecilia> Cecilia thought a moment. "I've been angry...for a long time...probably pretty consistently for almost seven years, which was after...my father was killed..."

<Darren> "So that was probably the trigger, he was murdered right?"

<@Cecilia> "Looking back I realize I was somewhat angry as a kid, too. Institutionalized racism, poverty, bullying and the like. But the problem really got out of control after my father died." She nodded, "Yeah. Botched mugging. They never caught the guy..."

<Darren> "And how're you trying to cope with it, do you have any mechanisms in place for controlling it?"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia shrugged. "Not really. I don't bring it up unless I think it's relevant. I don't presume to think anyone actually wants to hear it."

<@Cecilia> "I suppose I had religion when I was young...but I sorta fell out with the church after that whole shitstorm...I've tried looking into some eastern religions recently. Clarice actually inspired that funnily enough. But they don't always help."

<@Cecilia> "I've got family too...but they worry about me enough as it is."

<@Cecilia> "And it certainly doesn't help when I try to cope by walking away and people don't let me escape," she shot at Jessica.

<Hope> Hope bit down hard on her candy to keep from laughing at that one. Craaaazy!

<Darren> "Woooah, okay, no accusations here. Is there anything else you wanna add before passing the sack back?"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia contemplated the hacky sack. "I've said my piece. I'm trying to change. I hope that helps someone else open up a bit." Don't you dare judge me, she thought uncharitably to the other girls.

<@Cecilia> She back Darren the hackysack back. "Here, Boss."

<Hope> Hope raised her hand for the hacky sack next.

<Darren> "Thanks ... oookaaaaay, Hope, you're up," he tossed it over.

<Hope> Hope caught it. "First of all, I think it's... pointless for me to be here. I don't have anger issues."

<Darren> Darren shrugged, he didn't make the rules there.

<Jessica> Jess sighed and turned her scowl on the ceiling.

<Hope> "So I don't know what you want me to talk about. I'm not mad at anyone."

<Jessica> At that she lifted her head and raised an eyebrow at Hope. Yeah right.

<Hope> "AND I already apologized to Jess and she turned it into another fight, so... there's that."

<Darren> "You sure? Nothing pissing you off at all apart from being here and me stealing your drink?"

<Hope> "Not really. I'm even over my shadows. Apparently I dealt with issues the same way my dad does, so maybe you should tell your boss to go to some counseling too, huh?" She grinned at Darren.

<Jessica> Or alcoholics anonymous... Jess rolled her eyes.

<Darren> Darren rolled his eyes, "Alright, anything else you wanna add before passing it back?"

<Hope> "I would like to put out there that when somebody apologizes, it's generally a good idea to acknowledge it... not start the fight all over again." She tossed the hacky sack back to Darren.

<Jessica> "I thought there weren't supposed to be accusations?" Jess couldn't not talk any longer.

<Darren> "There aren't, and shush!" Darren told Jess, "You don't have the sack."

<Jessica> "Then tell them!"

<Hope> "I didn't make an accusation. I made a suggestion." Hope went back to her candy.

<Darren> "I'm getting to it! Jeeze! Shut up Hope, you don't have the sack anymore."

<Hope> "Aye aye sir."

<Darren> "Hope, no accusations, okay, and now it's Jess' turn to speak," he tossed her the sack.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia sighed. Was no-one but her willing to change? "Y'know you two wouldn't be here if someone didn't think your anger was disproportionate. So obviously, yes, there is a problem and the sooner you realize this the easier things will be for you."

<Darren> "Cee! Shush!"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia clamped her mouth shut. "Sorry."

<Hope> Hope laughed at somebody else getting in trouble. Fucking finally.

<Darren> "You don't have the sack!" Damnit, could no one follow simple rules.

<Jessica> Jess caught it and held it between her hands, frowning. This was stupid. "I'm angry... for a lot of reasons... Right now, because I'm stuck in this stupid therapy session with the two people whose fault it is I'm in here." She slouched in her seat again and sighed heavily.

<Hope> Hope rolled her eyes. Victim! Victim!

<Jessica> "The reason I was angry with Cecilia is because I felt like she was judging something and someone she had absolutely not enough knowledge or understanding of and all I wanted at the time was for her to acknowledge that maybe, sometimes the things she says really hurt people and she should apologise for that."

<Hope> Accusations! Accusations! Hope gave Darren a look.

<Darren> "Jess, no accusations, remember?"

<Hope> Pleased, Hope sat back in her seat again with a smug look. She quickly hid it with candy.

<Jessica> "As for Hope... someone who was apparently my best friend before I got abducted off to Circle Pines... Since I got back here... everyone's been telling me that I get a fresh start now... a clean slate... and I can be anyone I want to be... but they don't mean it... Because if that was true people would stop judging me on mistakes I made before I was gone." She rolled her eyes at Darren.

<Jessica> "You want to know why I'm angry, this is why. I said it was stupid that they were here."

<@Cecilia> "The fuck I did!" Snapped Cecilia, her temper slipping. "You're the one who attacked ME. Not the other way around! Christ are you smoking CRACK?!"

<Jessica> Jess just blinked at Cecilia for her outburst.

<Hope> Hope was glad she brought candy now. "And that is why the rules said no accusations." She took another bite of candy.

<Jessica> "You know, you two really aren't helping me manage my anger so shut the hell up."

<Darren> "Cecilia! Hope! You don't have the sack!" Darren snapped at the other two before turning to Jess, "Jess-"

<Hope> Hope just rolled her eyes. At least now Darren could see for himself that Jess was nuts.

<@Cecilia> "I expressed an opinion. An opinion that you didn't like! I wasn't deliberately trying to hurt you, you egomaniac!" She cried. "And no, it's not my job to help you manage your anger by catering to YOU. If I have an opinion you'll damn well hear about it and if you don't like it that's too bad!"

<Darren> "Oh for fuck's sake," Darren groaned, covering his eyes.

<Hope> Hope passed Darren the candy.

<@Cecilia> "And the things you say hurt too! What about when you told me I was a misery to everyone around me? That my patients would commit suicide because of me! You called me a PSYCHOPATH. But you need to look in the mirror, sister! Because you were the one who was going to cave my head in!"

<Hope> Hope winced at that. Ouch, Jess. Way to be crazy.

<Jessica> "I didn't say you hurt me, you idiot! I asked you to apologise to Kevin! That was all I wanted you to do! And you went off about how if it was a court of law he'd be guilty! I don't fucking care what a court of law would say! I JUST WANTED YOU TO SAY SORRY! FUCK! If you couldn't see how much you hurt people you obviously can't empathise. Neither can psychopaths. I call 'em as I see 'em." She folded her arms again.

<Jessica> "And, FYI. I wasn't going to fucking kill you so you can stop telling people that."

<Hope> Hope had to bite her hand to keep her laughing to herself.

<Darren> I knew I should have brought the ball gags... Darren sighed inwardly, before standing up and heading to the supplies cupboard.

<@Cecilia> "This coming from the girl who shocked me, shocked my friend when he was holding a metal rod in water and beat me to a pulp?!" Cecilia shouted. "Oh fuck off. If Kevin was upset he would've come and dealt with me like a man instead of hiding behind you! So don't try to act like you're in the right here!"

<Jessica> "Oh, you know what. Fuck you. I'm done." She got up and put the hacky sack on her seat before heading to the door."

<@Cecilia> "Good riddance!" Shouted Cecilia.

<Darren> Darren whistled under his breath as he unlocked the cupboard, then intercepted Jess on the way to the door.

<Jessica> Jess stopped but only briefly, she tried to duck around Darren instead.

<Hope> Hope went back to her candy. Damn Darren taking her booze.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia eyed Hope. "I don't see what's so funny," she said churlishly.

<Hope> Hope grabbed the hacky sack. "That she calls you crazy when she's crazy."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia scowled. "You're just happy when she's having trouble. Don't lie to me either, I know it's true."

<Hope> "I'd be happier if she stopped playing the victim and actually listened to the people trying to help her." She tossed the sack to Cecilia.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia caught the sack. "I don't care for Jess much, but you're no saint either. You stir up shit. Back at the pool, you just tried to use me as a weapon to get back at Jess. I'm not stupid you know," she remarked.

<Darren> Darren grabbed her, "Is there no other way you think you can face your issues other then throw a toddler temper tantrum?"

<Hope> Hope waited patiently for the hacky sack again.

<@Cecilia> "I don't appreciate being used," said Cecilia. Tossing the sack back.

<Jessica> "I can't get a word in between those two so why bother? It's not like they'll listen anyway."

<Darren> "You're not giving them a chance, they have legitimate problems that they're airing and you're refusing to listen."

<Hope> Hope caught it. "I can see why you would feel that way and I'm sorry. I really do like you. You're hilarious! And Fabian was my friend before all this crazy bullshit." She tossed the sack back to Cecilia.

<Jessica> "Because they're screaming them at me! I have hyper sensitive hearing and it fucking hurts! Plus, I'm not fucking done airing my own issues."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia caught the sack. "Thanks...and I don't know much about you to form an opinion. Unfortunately, we didn't have the best first meeting." She frowned. "Fab's got a lot of friends, he's a nice guy...well, to me anyways."

<@Cecilia> "You do realize though that your anger is disproportionate to the situation, right? A venom blast to the back over a disagreement isn't exactly proportional. The only time that's okay is if...I dunno, your life is in danger. You could kill someone that way."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia gave the sack back.

<Darren> "Cecilia has a point, you do have a tendency to over-react," Darren tried to soothe, "and using the 'my ears hurt' as an excuse is rather unfair. So only you're are allowed to shout at people?"

<Jessica> "I wasn't shouting until she did!" she pointed at Cecilia, "And they're managing fine without me. Just let me go..."

<Hope> "She shocks people all the time and nobody thinks anything of it. It fucking hurts and it's not ok. Nobody likes it. They tolerate it because she wouldn't listen even if they tried. She never listens. I believe people have told her it hurts and she just shrugs them off. It sucks." Hope tossed it back to Cee.

<Darren> "The fact that they're managing fine doesn't tell you something?" Darren sighed gently, "You're refusing to acknowledge that you may have made any mistakes here."

<@Cecilia> "I know what you mean. It upsets me too. She did it to Fabian back at the pool and she did it twice before that. But is it really such a good idea to respond to childishness with more childishness?" She asked. "And yes, I'm aware I'm hypocritical. I pushed Jess down the stairs when I should've walked. I'm working on it."

<@Cecilia> She passed the sack back.

<Jessica> "I know I've made mistakes. Everyone keeps telling me."

<Darren> "But you refuse to acknowledge them. Did you even apologise for attacking Cee?"

<Jessica> "Yes I did. And she didn't accept it."

<Hope> "I'm dealing with that too. I like to show her what it feels like since she seems to think it doesn't hurt. I feel it's fair." She tossed the sack back.

<Darren> "Right, Cecilia!?"

<Darren> "Why didn't you accept Jessica's apology for attacking you?´"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia eyed Darren. "Other than the fact that it was the most backhanded apology I ever heard?"

<Jessica> "It was not!"

<Darren> "How was it backhanded?"

<@Cecilia> Cecilia leaned back in her chair and quoted, "You should be sorry, that damn well hurt. You could try being sorry for how you expressed your opinion. There's a thing called tact and another thing called moderation. You need to know when to stop and when to not say something. Then people won't punch you in the face."

<@Cecilia> "And yes, I have a very good memory," remarked Cecilia.

<Darren> "... Yeah, I wouldn't really call that an appology, that's an attack, Cee had a right to express her opinion without being threatened with being punched in the face, like anyone else there."

<Jessica> "That wasn't me apologising, Cecilia. That was me making a point. When I apologised I meant it and you ignored it." She took a deep breath and tried to manage her temper.

<Jessica> "I said I was sorry for losing my temper and that I was sorry for scaring you and you just carried on telling me what a bitch I am."

<@Cecilia> "She did apologize for scaring me," remarked Cecilia, shrugging. "After the fact."

<Hope> "Huh, sounds like what you did to me." Hope covered her mouth with her hand again.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia raised an eyebrow. "I never called you bitch. I got upset because you claimed to know what I was thinking but did I call you a bitch? No, never."

<@Cecilia> "Not that day."

<Jessica> "Fine! Fine! I'm a bitch. I'm hitting on all your boyfriends and trying to sleep with them behind your backs! Is that what you want to hear? I'm a horrible person and they should just kick me back to the whorehouse in Amsterdam! Happy?!"

<Darren> "Right, gimmie a sec, I need to check how old you girls are again, since you're acting like three year olds."

<Hope> "All of her problems are my fault. I'm that amazing. I can ruin an entire life!" Hope rolled her eyes.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia raised an eyebrow. "I never said you were hitting on my boyfriend. I know you slept with him though. But if I shed tears over every woman he slept with before me I'd die of dehydration." She shrugged.

<@Cecilia> "Besides if Fabian left me for you, he wasn't worth having," she said, confidently. "I'm not going to beg someone to stay. That's pathetic."

<Jessica> "Well how charitable of you." Jess folded her arms.

<Darren> "Right!" Darren said suddenly.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia sighed irritably. "I'm not charitable, I'm honest. If you want someone to cry on go to Kevin or Bobby. You want an honest opinion? Come to me."

<Darren> "This is obviously not going to work, however I did manage to learn exactly how I'm meant to ... deal with all this," Lobotomize them aaaaaaaaaall.

<Hope> "Well, Cecilia and I managed to have a civil conversation." Hope pointed out.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia frowned. "Sorry, Boss..." she said, sheepishly. "I guess group therapy wasn't such a good idea after all."

<Jessica> "I said it was stupid." Jess pointed out.

<Hope> Hope just shook her head. Some people didn't play well with others.

<Darren> "Indeed, and I'm proud of you both," Darren gave them a smile, "So this wasn't a total failure."

<Hope> "I don't fail at anything." Hope frowned. She was out of candy.

<Jessica> "Of course they managed. They're not angry at each other."

<Hope> "Cecilia was angry at me."

<Darren> "They had issues with each other and they were able to work them out in a mature, responsible way with communication."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia eyed Hope. "Well, you've still got a ways to go. Try not shocking other people, even if you're mad. Unless, y'know, you like having heart to hearts with me on a weekly basis." She snorted.

<Jessica> "Communication only works when one isn't yelling at the other. Which is why it's never going to work with me here. Can I go now?"

<Hope> "I think we should have heart to hearts over dessert. And I only shock Jess. Hardly multiple people."

<Jessica> "Which you're going to have to stop doing."

<@Cecilia> "And I wasn't particularly fond of Hope after the huge temper tantrum you both had at the pool," said Cecilia. "She's actually doing the hackysack thing though. So I'm warming a little to her...at least she recognizes on some level she has a problem, if she's doing this."

<Darren> "I think it would be best to dissolve the session. I'll be seeing you all separately now."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia sighed. "Well, dessert sounds decent. So long as it's not ice cream," she snorted.

<Jessica> "Great. I'm leaving." Jess pulled her arm from Darren's grip and slipped past him to the door.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia facepalmed. "Ah for fuck's sake...I hope the individual therapy goes okay because she's in a lot of trouble. Apparently denial isn't just a river in Eygpt," she snorted.

<Hope> "I guess does not play well with others will go on her record now."

<Jessica> "I CAN HEAR YOU!" Jess yelled back at them. "FUCK YOU BOTH!"

<@Cecilia> "Well, don't get ahead of yourself just yet," said Cecilia to Hope. "We're not the best either."

<Darren> "Girls, rules still apply," Darren gave them both a small smile, "I'm glad you were both able to sort your issues out."

<Darren> "Hope, Cee, be the bigger person and ignore her."

<Hope> "I have been... for days. She still blames me for her life sucking."

<@Cecilia> Cecilia shrugged. "I'll try. I did apologize, perhaps not so nicely but I tried..." She looked at Hope. "Well, how about you? Are you wanting to change, or am I on my own?"

<Hope> "I don't have a problem..." Hope restated.

<@Cecilia> Cecilia sighed. "We'll work on that..."

[Slarti]

All three of them still need their asses kicked.

[Chaos]

<Darren> "And you can all shush, I have the hacky sack, okay? Them's the rules."

Possibly the greatest line ever. <3 Guai's out of a job!

[Ult_Sm86]

"Tough, you're just going to have to put on your big girl panties and deal,"

I think she left those with Danny.