Chapter 7: The Hallway
We turned a corner, and the hallway we entered almost sent my brain on its catawampus path behind my eyes. A few feet ahead, the hallway stepped a few feet to the left, the completely white walls blocking my vision of the path ahead. I followed EJ past the slight detour, only to find that the hallway ahead did the exact same thing, this time to the right. This pattern continued on for quite some time, the blank white walls, ceiling and floor creating a white tunnel of horrifying confusion. I could not look either forward or backward for more than a few feet, before another section of painfully blank wall blocked my view. My nausea increased, and I felt the floor lean to the right. I blinked, then my face met the cold brick of the wall.
“Jack? You OK?” I managed to pry my eyes open and found EJ’s deep blue irises only inches from my nose. Her sudden closeness startled me, and I stumbled backward. Thom’s hands gripped my shoulders and steadied me.
“What’s wrong with me?” I whispered, suddenly terrified. I had never felt so sick and confused in my life.
“They drugged you, sweetie.” EJ replied quietly. “Those nasty bitches drugged you to get what they wanted.”
“What?” Rose and Sharon… drugged me? I can’t believe it! In a sudden flash of memory, I recalled Rose pinning me down and forcing a cup to my lips. “They… they drugged me…”
“That’s right. But I came to save you.” EJ gave me a small smile, an incredibly gentle gesture that took me by surprise, after having seen those lips curl into a psychopathic grin.
“I – ” I hesitated. I’m so damn confused… And sick… “I don’t – I don’t even know you… I want to go back to my dorm…”
“It’s probably better that you –” Thom started, but EJ cut him off.
“OK. Go back to your dorm. We’ll lead you out of the building, then you can go back to your dorm. But first –” She pulled a simple bracelet off of her wrist and handed it to me. “ – take this.” I stared at it – it was just a simple piece of hammered metal, an incomplete circle that was pliable enough to be opened to fit my much larger wrist. I slipped it on, not entirely sure why I was keeping it. “There.” She said as she touched the bracelet with her forefinger. “Now I can always come rescue you.”
I opened my mouth to ask for an explanation, but her clear blue eyes made my confusion and worry dull enough to close it. Thom sighed.
“You asked us for an explanation. We can still give that to you.”
“I just want to go to home.”
“Alright. Follow this hallway to the first set of double doors. Go up three flights of stairs and you’ll find yourself in the ground floor of Aubrun, the South corner. Can you get out from there?”
“Yeah, I’ve had classes in the upper floors of the building before.”
“I’ll see you later, Jack.” EJ said. I nodded, at a complete loss for what else to do or say. I stumbled my way down the hallway, leaving EJ and Thom, my only thoughts to get out of this insane basement and back to my dorm. After that… well, let’s see if I can make it back to the dorm.
“He still doesn’t know. There’s an entire world about to come down on him, and he still doesn’t know.” Thom muttered. EJ stayed silent, staring after Jack, even though the jut in the wall had hidden him already.
Thom nudged EJ gently. “Let’s go.” He turned and started to walk back the way they had come. EJ stared forward for a few moments more, then walked slowly backwards.
***
Sharon finally eased Rose onto the bed. It hadn’t been easy, carrying her unconscious sister across the campus, trying to ignore the looks of confusion from passers-by. Fortunately, the Honors Dorms weren’t too far from Aubrun. She sighed and brushed a lock of hair out of Rose’s face. She looked horrible. Sharon had told her to go to bed last night, after they had given up trying, sometime around midnight. But Rose had insisted on going to see that boy… and hadn’t come home until six that morning. Sharon had to admit, their work last night had exhausted her, after a summer of relaxation and laziness. I was ready to pass out last night, but somehow she managed to stay awake this long… She shook her head. If Rose had gone to bed last night, maybe this wouldn’t have happened…
No, EJ still would have interfered, regardless of Rose’s sleeping habits. Sharon collapsed slowly to her knees, then sat with her back against her sister’s bed, her legs stuck straight out in front of her, and held her head in her hands. There was an enormous pressure behind her eyelids, as if her over-filled mind was trying to make space by evicting her eyeballs. She pushed the palms of her hands against them for a few seconds, then opened her eyes when that made them hurt worse. She stared blankly at the vanity in front of her and watched the two goldfish swimming peacefully in their bowl.
What are we going to do? Jack knows we’ve been trying to do something, but he doesn’t know what. Is KJ right? Is it just time to tell Jack what’s going on? Sharon was reluctant to do that just yet, but she might not have a choice anymore. That is, if he ever comes back… She was terrified that the psycho ballerina, and her partner, whoever he was, might have kidnapped Jack. If that’s the case, this worrying might be pointless anyways… but why does EJ want him? What’s her angle?
She rubbed her throat; it still hurt from the near-death experience earlier. She reached into her pocket and pulled the dog tags out, gently slipping them back over her head. They had almost killed her today, but she needed their strength now more than ever. What would you do, Dad?
“Sharon? Rose?”
“Jack?!” Sharon jumped to her feet, then instantly regretted her hasty action; the strain on her body during the past two days had been intense, and now her muscles were conveying their opinion on the matter. Moaning quietly, she walked slowly to the door. Jack stood outside, bent double, clutching his knees for support.
“Is Rose OK?” He muttered.
“Yeah… she’s gonna be OK…” She replied quietly. After all we’ve put him through, he’s still worried about us?
“Come in, sit down. I know you’re exhausted and confused… we’ll try to explain what’s going on.” She stepped aside and let him into the room. As she watched Jack hobble over to Rose and look down on her sister, worried, Sharon clutched the dog tags around her neck and once again, asked her father for wisdom. Help, Dad.
YOU ARE READING
Blood Is Thicker
FantasíaJack is just your average sophomore in college. He's got pretty good grades, a handful of friends, and is comfortable starting his second year of college at AU. That is, until he wakes up screaming a name he doesn't know. Things go from peacefu...
