All Which Remains

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Arron

I step into the dorms. At first glance, everything seems normal, but the air between everyone is strained. Something happened while I was gone. No one is looking at me. I walk over to the fireplace. The only thing to do here is to stare into the fireplace.

There's a crunching noise under my feet.

I look down.

It's a hand. Ouch.

I follow the hand up to its body.

Beside me, Fadhlan is sleeping in a chair. He's upside down. His feet are on the back, and his head is hanging off the seat cushion.

"Hey. Sorry, I stepped on your hand," I tell him. His mouth twitches a bit, but he doesn't wake. I shrug and sit down in another chair.

That girl earlier...

I don't know what to do about her. Someone is holding her there.

For a reason. I can't just let her go.

I lean my head on the chair and look at Fadhlan.

What I'd give to live blissfully ignorant. I shift and look up at the ceiling. The light from the fire is reflecting off of it. I reach my hand out towards it. The light catches on my skin. I chuckle.

Abyasa

Farrah should've been home hours ago. I grip the cup of coffee I've been using to stay awake. Fatigue is grabbing my shoulders and trying to drag me down. I wonder where Farrah is?

Ramelan

The director is letting me watch our old simulations. Are all of our emotions fake? What's real anymore? It's horrifying. The trauma they put us through. I'm sure Fadhlan and Arron remember everything now, but I can barely remember anything. Everyone says that I should recollect the simulations.

I was a jerk in most of the simulations, a tenacious freak. That's basically who I am now. I guess the simulations are modeled after our real-life personalities.

I press a button on the dashboard, and it switches to another simulation. It's the one where Fadhlan dies almost immediately. I still find that funny.

In this one, I was coordinating with The director to try to get Arron out of the simulation as soon as possible. I kind of remember bits and pieces of this one.

Are-- Are all of our feelings a lie? Did- Do I actually feel that way towards Arron? It can't be. The simulations are fake, a way to mess up people's minds. I don't feel like that. I can't. There's no way.

I hit the stop button and stare up at the screen. It's blank now, filled with static. I push away from the dashboard.

I feel claustrophobic.

The room is too small. It's filled with one thing and one thing only; the TV showing me what my deepest fears are. The things I try to hide from the world.

It's pitch black in here.

All I can hear is static.

I cover my ears. No, no. Don't listen. Ignore it.

I back away from the screen and hit the door on the other side of the room. I reach for the knob and escape.

The bright fluorescent lights hit me, and I stumble. I can't see.

I squint my eyes and reach around with my hands. I can feel the ground shaking.

"Wha-?"