A World Unkown

Chapter 4

            I scan over the brunet hair, deep brown eyes, I knew who this was. I was staring right at Adalyn, who has been missing for weeks now. 

She looked just as stunned as I was. She started to blink quickly seeming to clear her vision before dropping her legs into a crisscross. It dawned on me that whoever had taken her was clearly the same people who took me.

"Do you know where we are?" I wasn't sure if she would be able to hear me but it was worth a try. 

Her eyes widened a bit more, quickly holding a finger to her lips clearly shushing me. I clamped my mouth shut.

Would these people get angry if they hear talking? I paid more attention to her hand as it moved creating the sign for an A, S, and an L with a questioning look on her face. I knew that class would pay off someday.

I quickly nodded before responding with my own signs that I was in fact relatively fluent. Her whole body relaxed at this as if she just released a breath that has held in for years. 

"You have no idea how nice it is seeing another person again" she signed to me "the glass is soundproof, but they have voice recorders in these rooms" oh, I see why she didn't want me talking. Not like it would be an effective way of communicating anyway.

"you're Adalyn, right?" I signed back wanting to confirm my thought. 

(AN: From here I'm going to type this like regular dialogue since it is a little much writing signed back every single sentence except for the beginning and ending of it)

She nodded "what's your name?" as I spelled my name out to her I realized how shaky my hands were. 

I couldn't tell if maybe I was cold or not. But I did know my nerves were through the roof and felt like I was going to throw up the longer I was here.

"How long have I been gone" I almost didn't catch it when she formed that question. Does she not know how long? I looked around for a window but saw none, and neither was there any way to tell time in here. 

I looked back at her expectant gaze waiting for an answer, there was a hidden worry in her expression "a little over two weeks" I watched with concern as she dropped head back on the wall just sitting there a moment. That hit me harder than expected, I can't imagine not knowing how long I had been kept away from my friends and family.

Just when I thought I would soon lose track of the days as well, I felt a familiar band around my wrist. I looked down at it breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of my trusty watch I had since the eighth grade. Once I had Adalyn's attention again, I held it up giving a forced but thoughtful smile. 

She responded with a soft smile of her own.

            I was tired but not tired enough to sleep, there was no way in hell I was comfortable enough to sleep here. My and Adalyn's conversation continued in the hours to come keeping ourselves busy. Apparently, she was headed home two weeks ago after a late-night outing with two friends. Her car broke down just like mine did, she explained that nothing was wrong with it and it was just checked a few days before. Then when a car pulled up with the window rolled down her friends left in their car assuming she would be fine since someone else turned up. What great friends. 

Then she was talking to the person before she was grabbed from behind, she had the sense of awareness to voice activate 9-1-1 on her phone before getting slammed into the car door in response to that. That must be why I was immediately knocked unconscious with no questions asked.

"Did they ask you a bunch of questions here as well?" I wondered if maybe she knew some sort of purpose for that or not.

"Yes, they wanted to know all about my age, name, height... just everything" I nodded along taking notice of her sudden uncomfortable fiddling of her shoelace.

I hesitated in holding my hands halfway up deciding whether or not I might upset her with my next, probably most urgent question "Do you know what they want with us?"

Her whole body reacted as if she was dowsed in ice water. Now she stared down at the floor tightly holding her hands together.

When she began to answer her hands were now shaking unlike before "I think so" she stopped looking off into nothing. Suddenly she looked back at me with the most serious expression I've ever seen on a person's face "'they are not human."

I had her sign those words a couple more times before I was certain I was not misinterpreting that statement. What does that even mean? Of course these were people who took us what else could? I wasn't given much time to process this conclusion when two of the men came walking down the hall and stopping outside the glass door opposite of me. 

I was internally panicking when they opened the door motioning for her to come out, Adalyn on the other hand now displayed a stone hard face as she stood up and walked right out as if this was a routine. The only thing which gave away her nerves was the heavy rise and fall of her chest. 

I found myself having stood up watching closely as they led her back down the hall, and then into a doorway a ways down. Were they taking her away forever? Was I just here to replace her before they killed her? My mind was flooded with all the possibilities, the worst being my arrival might have been the final countdown to someone's death. I felt like the worst person on earth at that thought even though it wasn't exactly my choice.

Now that I was all alone again and there was nothing else to occupy my mind besides dread, I was admittedly internally panicking again. 

            It has been two hours since Adalyn was taken to wherever they wanted her, and two hours since I stayed in a corner resting my head on my knees reflecting on my life experiences. What did she mean by these people not being human? 

Would I ever get to come home to my dad and complain about his sweat ever again?

That was my last thought before drifting off against my own will in this strange building that was now feeling like a prison cell.

April 7, 2024, 11:00pm

Author's Note:

Thank you for reading this far if anyone is. I hope you enjoyed this chapter; I began adding the beginning of our plot. I told you the sign language would come into play; I thought it was an interesting thing to add. Also, I will add a date and time at the end or beginning from now on since Caleb has his watch, I thought it was a fun little thing. Have a nice day or night :)