The Mechanic
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"See, there was this guy. He was sort of in charge of all of us. I called him the Mechanic. His clothes were smeared with oil, I'm not sure why. He would just look at us, every day. Didn't even say a word. I couldn't move at all, just wait for something to happen, but nothing ever did. It was impossible to stand it, so one day I snapped. He took us out of stasis once a week for what felt like an hour, maybe two. There were no windows, it was hard to tell. It was so our muscles didn't atrophy completely. I made my escape then, but I don't think anyone else survived. I don't know. I just ran, and I heard guns behind me. There were explosions. Everything after that is blank." I sighed, staring at my lunch. My body was shaking, every inch of me begging my head to stop the memory. My skin was drenched in sweat, and I felt like vomiting, but I swallowed the bile and took a bite of my sandwich.
"Jesus, what's with you? It was just a dream. Don't be such a baby, you're fine!" My friend Polly said on my left.
"Yeah, man. Just shut up about it and eat your food. I had a dream I drowned in quicksand in the middle of the mall, but you don't see me having a goddamn panic attack about it." Another friend, Gina, agreed with her. "Every day it's the same story, we've heard it a billion times."
"What do you mean? This happened last night." I questioned. I was fine yesterday, what happened?
"Yeah, and the night before that, and the night before that, and the night before that... what are you even paying the shrink for? He's clearly not doing the greatest job trying to get to the root of your head problems." Polly replied.
"How'd you find out about that? I just made an appointment today, for the first time."
"First time? You've been going to this guy for at least a month! Man, maybe you should try someone else." Gina corrected me. Tears started streaming down my face when I checked the calendar on my phone. It wasn't late February, it was early April. How could I have been that off? What was even wrong with me?
My friends decided to pay and leave before I could make a bigger scene than I already had. I was led out leaning on Polly's shoulder along a cobblestone path through our favorite park. There was a large gust of wind and a bang from somewhere behind us. I didn't catch a glimpse of whatever caused it, all I know is that it made them run. I sprinted from whatever it was, regardless of my lack of knowledge. I saw Polly freeze behind me, and turned to discover what occurred. It was a man in blue jeans an a tight white shirt, black hair hanging to his shoulders, eyes a piercing blue. Oil was splattered across him. This man was the Mechanic. He had her by the shoulder. I wanted to be a hero, I wanted to save her, but I couldn't go back. I turned again and ran, to find Gina was no longer in from of me. Still, I ran as fast and as far as my legs could carry me. I stopped when I thought I was safe, when every muscle in my body ached with effort and I was near collapse. The cobblestones beneath me disappeared. There never was a path, there never was a chance for escape. White lights invaded the scenery. Someone, somewhere whispered "test complete".
My eyes opened in my stasis chamber, staring into his. The smile on his face made me want to vomit. He pointed to my left and right before pulling them in front of me. There were my friends. They were replaced, and he waved goodbye. My eyes were held shut by a machine. I could feel my arms being shoved against my body, and my legs were bound together. It was as though I had never left.
"Jesus, what's with you? It was just a dream. Don't be such a baby, you're fine!" My friend Polly said on my left.
"Yeah, man. Just shut up about it and eat your food. I had a dream I drowned in quicksand in the middle of the mall, but you don't see me having a goddamn panic attack about it." Another friend, Gina, agreed with her. "Every day it's the same story, we've heard it a billion times."
"What do you mean? This happened last night." I questioned. I was fine yesterday, what happened?
"Yeah, and the night before that, and the night before that, and the night before that... what are you even paying the shrink for? He's clearly not doing the greatest job trying to get to the root of your head problems." Polly replied.
"How'd you find out about that? I just made an appointment today, for the first time."
"First time? You've been going to this guy for at least a month! Man, maybe you should try someone else." Gina corrected me. Tears started streaming down my face when I checked the calendar on my phone. It wasn't late February, it was early April. How could I have been that off? What was even wrong with me?
My friends decided to pay and leave before I could make a bigger scene than I already had. I was led out leaning on Polly's shoulder along a cobblestone path through our favorite park. There was a large gust of wind and a bang from somewhere behind us. I didn't catch a glimpse of whatever caused it, all I know is that it made them run. I sprinted from whatever it was, regardless of my lack of knowledge. I saw Polly freeze behind me, and turned to discover what occurred. It was a man in blue jeans an a tight white shirt, black hair hanging to his shoulders, eyes a piercing blue. Oil was splattered across him. This man was the Mechanic. He had her by the shoulder. I wanted to be a hero, I wanted to save her, but I couldn't go back. I turned again and ran, to find Gina was no longer in from of me. Still, I ran as fast and as far as my legs could carry me. I stopped when I thought I was safe, when every muscle in my body ached with effort and I was near collapse. The cobblestones beneath me disappeared. There never was a path, there never was a chance for escape. White lights invaded the scenery. Someone, somewhere whispered "test complete".
My eyes opened in my stasis chamber, staring into his. The smile on his face made me want to vomit. He pointed to my left and right before pulling them in front of me. There were my friends. They were replaced, and he waved goodbye. My eyes were held shut by a machine. I could feel my arms being shoved against my body, and my legs were bound together. It was as though I had never left.