Merge

1 - Never Going Back

The voices were all fuzzy, like I was trying to listen to them through water. I opened my eyes and immediately shut them again as they were pummeled by a sharp, fluorescent light.

           I attempted to roll over, but my arm was stuck on something. I yanked to pull it free, A sharp pain shot up my arm, and I cried out.

            "Woah! Hang on there, missy!" Warm hands grasped my elbow and rolled me back. A man pressed something to my arm that burned slightly, and I reopened my eyes, more slowly this time.

           I was lying in a hospital room, surrounded by three doctors. The one on my right had his fingers on my arm, pressing an alcohol pad to whatever wound I had managed to give myself.

           "What...?" I croaked out.

          "You'll be fine. A lot of people tend to pull out their I.V. when they first wake up," He gave me a warm smile, his teeth a shiny white. Blonde hair stuck out from his hospital cap, and his eyes were a warm, friendly brown. He seemed too young to be a doctor.

           "What happened?" My voice was still weak, and the doctor gave me a sympathetic look. I squinted at his name tag, "Dr. Jones," it read.

          "You were attacked. Michael here saved you," Dr Jones nodded to the older doctor standing to my left, whose name tag read "Dr. Reynolds". His beard was gray and a pair of square glasses sat at the tip of his nose.

         "I saw you just after you passed out. Those boys almost had you. But the sight of an adult scared them away,” he chuckled, his eyes glittering as if he were laughing at his own personal joke.

           "Well, uh...thanks," I muttered.

          "You must be tired, Ms. Richards," the voice came from the doctor at the foot of my bed. His round glasses were the one-way, reflective kind, and I could see a perfect image of my scraggly self in them. His mouth and nose were covered by a mask. "We shall leave you to you rest." Even though I couldn't see his eyes, I could feel their piercing stare, and I had to stifle a shudder.

           The three doctors left the room, Dr. Jones and Reynolds excitedly chattering about something as they walked out.

           A few seconds later, a puffy nurse came in with a tray of food, "It's time for dinner!" she chirped.

          She lifted the lid, and it was only then that I realized just how hungry I was. I was vaguely aware that I was wolfing down some type of sandwich as I muttered my thanks around the chewed up food in my mouth. Her expression flashed into...guilt? Her face was back into a smile before I could be sure.

         I sat back, pleasantly full, as I closed my eyes. I could feel the nurse pat my head before leaving, and I fell asleep.

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         I awoke to a night sky outside my window. I yawned and stretched my arms over my head. There was no tug. I looked and saw that the I.V. and monitors had been removed.

          Good. Maybe I'd be going home soon.  I wondered what my parents were thinking right now. Had they been notified that I was in the hospital? Were they frantically wondering where I had gone? I'd have to ask one of the doctors.

           I then realized that I had to pee, and I got out of bed, my legs stiff. Standing, I made my way to the bathroom. I saw that the door leading from my room to the outside hallway was closed, and I paused. Voices were coming from the hall outside.

           Curiosity getting the better of me, I pressed my ear to the door, bladder momentarily forgotten.

         "....perfect subject for the experiment," a deep voice was saying. It was the voice of the man with the round glasses. What was he talking about?

          "When will we begin the transfer?" asked another voice.  Dr. Jones, she remembered.

          "As soon as she recoveres," a low chuckle, "She will not be going home."

          "What about her parents? They filed a missing persons report yesterday morning."

        Who are they talking about? I wondered, my eyebrows furrowing. A sense of dread crept over me.

          "They will..forget about her," the deep voice replied.

            Suddenly, the doorknob began to turn, and the door opened. I straightened just in time for the two doctors to find me standing there.

              "Um...hi..." I said, slapping on my best quirky smile, slowly backing away.

          Dr. Jones's face contorted into shock and anger, and he grabbed my arm, "What did you hear?" he hissed.

             If I were awesome, I would have played it cool and been the picture of innocence, saying that I hadn’t the slightest idea what they were talking about.

           So, I, of course, bluster out, "I just heard something about an experiment and a transfer! I didn't know what you were talking about!" I pulled to get my arm free, but Dr. Jones held my arm firmly.

           "Relax, Mr. Jones. It is almost time, anyways," the other man looked at me, and I swore I could see snake eyes behind those round glasses.

         Dr. Jones grunted and turned me around. He pushed me against the wall and pulled my wrists together behind my back. I struggled and thrashed, but it was no good. Dr. Jones's grip was like cold iron.

           I felt rope being tied around my wrists, and, in my periphery, I saw Dr. Reynolds and the nurse from earlier bring in a gurney. I was thrown onto it and belted down. I kept kicking and screaming until they tied my ankles to the gurney and gagged me with a towel.

          I tried to move, but the thick leather belts were tight enough to prevent any kind of resistance.

          The final touch was a blindfold. As my vision went dark, I went haywire, and the gurney began tilting. I could hear the doctors and nurse fighting to keep it from tipping over.

          There was a prick in my arm, and I could feel my heartbeat slow and my thoughts become fuzzy. I tried moving, but my legs didn't respond.

          I couldn't think even though some voice in the back of my head screamed at me to fight it.

          I spent the next few minutes - or hours, I couldn't tell - in my own little euphoria until they removed the blindfold. Everything was blurry, and I couldn't tell who it was that came up beside me and stuck a needle in my arm.

              "Don't worry, it will all be over soon, " an echoing voice said.

          My vision began to clear, and my thought began to make sense again. I had been released from the gurney, and I jumped up, but I was immediately grabbed by the shoulders from behind.

          "You're not going anywhere," that deep voice said.

          "Who are you?!" I screeched, my mind clawing through the fogginess.

          A low chuckle, "Please, Lisa. Just call me...the Doctor."