Status: Completed.
An Awakening.
In a room, I awoke.
I awoke in a room, the floor was tiled, chips and cracks caught my bloodied clothing as I slowly sat up. The walls were tiles, there wasn’t a single window in the room but a door sat at the edge of the room, lights were above it, red and green both sending out little light. I looked at the door as it creaked open. I was expecting the little blonde girl to come in, but it wasn’t her.
“Oh good, you’re awake.” The voice of the nurse wafted eerily through the room.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“ I’m Patricia, and you are?”
“I don’t know.” I replied, honestly.
“Oh, you don’t know who you are, but we all do!” Once she said that the room filled with children, nurses, babies, patients and distorted figures. All of them cackling manically.
“What’s going on?!” I had begun to panic. I tried to sit up but couldn’t. I tried to crawl away but the tiles caught my legs, shredding the skin.
“Stop moving dear.” Whispered Patricia. I stopped, frozen in fear, what could I do?
“That’s good dear, breathe now.” She lay her hand on my shoulder as I convulsed from sobs while everyone in the room looked on.
“What’s her problem?” Sarcasm wafted off the lips of the little blonde girl.
“Lucinda, be quiet, she just doesn’t know!” Snapped Patricia.
“W-what don’t I know?” I managed through my sobs.
“The truth.” Replied Patricia.
“He’s here.” The blonde girl who I now knew was Lucida pointed fearfully to the corner.
“Who’s here? I’m so confused.” I sobbed.
“We’ll see you another time dear.” Replied Patricia while ushering everyone out of the room.
I turned around to see who was there; I still saw nothing, except the dark shadow slowly enveloping the rest of the room. I sat frozen with fear, until a familiar figure exposed itself from the darkness.
“Lovely to see you m’dear, you’ve been suffering for far too long, time to take you away from it all.”
The dark cloaked figure came closer, his scythe on full view, and his tormented face hidden as always.
“You have no idea what’s happening, do you child?” His voice was silky, he knew more than one would prefer.
“I return to this hospital weekly, new deaths always need to be refurbished in a new place.”
“I’m dead then?” I asked.
“Somewhat, until you admit it to yourself, you can still be seen by those around you. Those babies can’t convince themselves they’re deceased, infants don’t have that thinking power, the nurses think they’re living a regular life, helping the sick and dying. Those bodies you saw burnt and crippled were results of the fires in the west wing. They’re so isolated within their own writhing minds that there’s no possible way they could find the sanity to admit defeat. The little blonde girl, Lucinda, well now, her death was unexpected; she’s a sarcastic one isn’t she? Child abuse is horrific, shame that was done by Patricia. I come by now and then, see how things are doing, claim a soul now and then.”
“So, you’re claiming me then?” I asked.
“If you wish it, this death business can be pretty lenient.”
“I have no life here; I don’t even know how I got here.”
“You don’t recall your past life? You don’t recall anything?”
“What’s there to recall?”
“I ask you now my dear, would you like to know? Truly, it’s not all too pleasing.”
“I do.”
“You were a sick girl, you were here for ages, it was sad to watch really, you left the hospital multiple times, and there was that one day my dear, the one day where it happened. You tripped, didn’t you, tripped and hit your head, pretty hard too, hit your cerebellum. Horrific on your behalf, everyone thought they lost you. You came in and out of life, was delightful on my behalf to watch. Then your dear parents turned off your life support, you were left brain dead my dear, they chose to end it –“
“Can my parents still see me?” I asked, rubbing the back of my head, feeling the lump.
“Only if they believe you’re not gone and only if you believe that you are.”
“I believe.” I responded.
“Good, come now my dear, let us leave this place, and let me take you to a new world.” He held out his arm, I threaded mine through his, we walked towards the wall as darkness enveloped our surroundings.
“Oh, my dear, you know you can never go back?”
“I have nothing to go back for.” I replied.
We walked arm in arm towards the wall, towards the final stage of death.
“Oh good, you’re awake.” The voice of the nurse wafted eerily through the room.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“ I’m Patricia, and you are?”
“I don’t know.” I replied, honestly.
“Oh, you don’t know who you are, but we all do!” Once she said that the room filled with children, nurses, babies, patients and distorted figures. All of them cackling manically.
“What’s going on?!” I had begun to panic. I tried to sit up but couldn’t. I tried to crawl away but the tiles caught my legs, shredding the skin.
“Stop moving dear.” Whispered Patricia. I stopped, frozen in fear, what could I do?
“That’s good dear, breathe now.” She lay her hand on my shoulder as I convulsed from sobs while everyone in the room looked on.
“What’s her problem?” Sarcasm wafted off the lips of the little blonde girl.
“Lucinda, be quiet, she just doesn’t know!” Snapped Patricia.
“W-what don’t I know?” I managed through my sobs.
“The truth.” Replied Patricia.
“He’s here.” The blonde girl who I now knew was Lucida pointed fearfully to the corner.
“Who’s here? I’m so confused.” I sobbed.
“We’ll see you another time dear.” Replied Patricia while ushering everyone out of the room.
I turned around to see who was there; I still saw nothing, except the dark shadow slowly enveloping the rest of the room. I sat frozen with fear, until a familiar figure exposed itself from the darkness.
“Lovely to see you m’dear, you’ve been suffering for far too long, time to take you away from it all.”
The dark cloaked figure came closer, his scythe on full view, and his tormented face hidden as always.
“You have no idea what’s happening, do you child?” His voice was silky, he knew more than one would prefer.
“I return to this hospital weekly, new deaths always need to be refurbished in a new place.”
“I’m dead then?” I asked.
“Somewhat, until you admit it to yourself, you can still be seen by those around you. Those babies can’t convince themselves they’re deceased, infants don’t have that thinking power, the nurses think they’re living a regular life, helping the sick and dying. Those bodies you saw burnt and crippled were results of the fires in the west wing. They’re so isolated within their own writhing minds that there’s no possible way they could find the sanity to admit defeat. The little blonde girl, Lucinda, well now, her death was unexpected; she’s a sarcastic one isn’t she? Child abuse is horrific, shame that was done by Patricia. I come by now and then, see how things are doing, claim a soul now and then.”
“So, you’re claiming me then?” I asked.
“If you wish it, this death business can be pretty lenient.”
“I have no life here; I don’t even know how I got here.”
“You don’t recall your past life? You don’t recall anything?”
“What’s there to recall?”
“I ask you now my dear, would you like to know? Truly, it’s not all too pleasing.”
“I do.”
“You were a sick girl, you were here for ages, it was sad to watch really, you left the hospital multiple times, and there was that one day my dear, the one day where it happened. You tripped, didn’t you, tripped and hit your head, pretty hard too, hit your cerebellum. Horrific on your behalf, everyone thought they lost you. You came in and out of life, was delightful on my behalf to watch. Then your dear parents turned off your life support, you were left brain dead my dear, they chose to end it –“
“Can my parents still see me?” I asked, rubbing the back of my head, feeling the lump.
“Only if they believe you’re not gone and only if you believe that you are.”
“I believe.” I responded.
“Good, come now my dear, let us leave this place, and let me take you to a new world.” He held out his arm, I threaded mine through his, we walked towards the wall as darkness enveloped our surroundings.
“Oh, my dear, you know you can never go back?”
“I have nothing to go back for.” I replied.
We walked arm in arm towards the wall, towards the final stage of death.