7 days

DAY SEVEN (Part One)

DAY SEVEN

POV: Shubman Gill.

Shubman woke up slowly and uneasily. He looked around at his surroundings, and tried to make sense of where he was. It took him a while to figure out that he was in a hospital room. He looked down at his arm, and saw two IV lines. He shifted uncomfortably thinking of the needles. Shubman lifted his head up slightly and let his eyes wander in the dimly lit room. His sister was asleep on the sofa. No sign of Ibrahim. He lied back down, eyes closed.

No matter how much he tried, he couldn't fall asleep. He shifted uncomfortably in the bed. He felt restless, his limbs stiffening, feeling numb. He didn't know if the room was getting cold, or if the coldness was seeping through his veins. He felt breathless, as though his lungs weren't taking up enough oxygen. It hurt him to breath, it hurt to move. His entire body ached, the pain of a thousand needles piercing through his entire body.

Shubman felt something crawl up his back and onto his chest, a piercing pain settled in his chest. He sat up and felt completely disoriented. He blinked rapidly trying to clear his vision, but nothing changed. He was watching himself in third person, as though trapped in his own body.

‘ SIMRAN DI!’ he screamed, but his voice was muffled and could only be heard in his head.

His body was not in his control anymore.

‘ IBRAHIM, HELP ME!’ his mouth refused to open, his tongues refused to let the words escape.

He watched as his hands reached the IV and pulled it down. Blood slowly drips onto the white sheets and stains it. He felt his body get off the bed and put on his coat.

‘ Where am I going?’ he thought to himself.

Shubman tried to stop himself, it was his body, why was he not being able to control it. What was happening to him? Why was he trapped in his own head, watching himself from another point of view?

His body stealthy moved out of the room and exited through a fire escape. He kept his hood on, and moved fast, unaware of the ache in his body , the piercing, pulsating pain still in his chest. Shubman watched himself as he reached the parking lot.

‘ SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!’ he kept crying out, hoping someone would hear him.

He found his car towards the end of the line. He got in and adjusted the rearview mirror. It looked like his face, but it wasn't him. His eyes had a menacing look in them. Shubman watched as his reflection smiled mischievously, and licked the blood off the back of his hands.

‘ Who??? Who the fuck are you?’ he screamed at his reflection, but his lips didn't move.

‘ I'm you, just for tonight. But don't worry, I won't leave you alone. Ever …’ he heard a voice whisper within himself.

Next thing he knew, the car was out of the parking lot and on the streets of Mumbai.

‘ Please….please just leave me alone.’ he pleaded to his reflection.

Whatever that had answered him back then, refused to talk again. Shubman cried and wailed in panic. He thought of praying, but couldn't remember anything holy. He couldn't remember the name of the god he prayed to. Who was going to help him?

The car slowed down near a bar. Shubman watched as the employees closed and made their way to their homes.

‘ Why am I here?’ he thought to himself.

A few moments later, he saw someone walk in the direction of the car. He was tall, lean with big brown eyes and dark hair. As he passed near the car, Shubman saw his arms move to lower the window.