Rescue Me

I calm down and walk back out and look for Zachary. There's the idiot of the hospital, James, in the corner crouched down babbling to Amy about something like aliens attacking and how the zombies ate his brains.

The aide is scolding him so I sneak into Zachary's room.

"Zachary, I need to talk to you. I'm sorry about earlier," I say.

"Shhh, it's ok, but you aren't allowed in here, remember?" he whispers.

"Right. Let's go back out," I say and walk out with him down to the end of the oval-like ward. The way the ward is set up, it's one long oval with a perpendicular smaller oval intersecting the middle. One side of the smaller oval is a dining area with a sink and refrigerator with a locked door, and a separate office, where the nurse and bigwigs stay. The other side has chairs, a TV, and some cheesy children's books about emotions, controlling anger, and sharing. Almost everyone on the ward is over 10 though, so it doesn't really make sense. There are bedrooms along the longer oval. Each bedroom has a nameplate beside the door.

We sit in the TV area an I start the conversation by saying, "I'm really sorry about earlier."

He shakes his head. "No, it's fine, really. I promise," he says with a weak smile.

"So what music do you like?" I ask.

"I like a lot. I like country, classical, and acoustic indie pop, but I also love pop-punk, classic rock, and post-hardcore," he says.

"Me too, minus country!" I exclaim, happy to know of someone else with the same musical tastes as me.

Anna taps me on the shoulder. "Sissy?" she calls softly.

"Yes?" I respond.

"Mickey told me he wants to shoot you and I both. He's on his way. You need to get out. I'll help you," she alerts.

Zachary interrupts, "Are you ok? You're pale as a ghost."

I ignore him, unable to think clearly. I stand up and in a trance, go over to the nearest window and grab one of the books of an encyclopedia and try busting the window with it. It doesn't work, so I let out an ear-shattering scream. I turn to see Mickey coming with a pistol. I dart out of his way and he pulls the trigger. I run into my room, slam the door, and move our of the way of the door. He comes in though. I make a lunge for his ankles. The bullet grazes my left shoulder. I scream in pain and knock him over. I fight for the gun. Somehow though, he shoots me in my right arm. I look down and see that it isn't him who shot me, but Doctor Fischer. I leap off Mickey and swing at his face, my arm ripping in pain in doing so. He blocks it and soon I pass out.