Fear

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

  I wish that night would have been dreamless but it was far from that. I was back in the room damn it. I would have had to put up with replaying the night. All the feelings from every time I came here would stick to me like unbelievably painful super glue. But I wasn’t strapped to the table. Looking around I couldn’t even see a table. Where the table would have been there was a rusty bed with a dust invaded mattress. I walked to the other side of the bed where it cast a shadow. When I saw him I had to hold back a scream. I closed my eyes and when I reopened them instead of the expressionless man Aiden sat in the shadow of the bed. “Go away; it’s too early for her.” He whimpered.

“What’s going on?” I asked wondering why everything was so different.

“Get out!” He said again he wouldn’t look at me but I could sense the anger on his face.

“I don’t know how to leave.” I sounded a bit hopeless. Why did he want me out? And how could I leave the door I’d seen before was gone. He stood up and with full force slammed me against the back wall. My breathing became short and shattered. “What the hell!” I said hardly regaining my breath.

“You’re a witch.” He hissed. “You know she’s the only person I even remotely know. It’s killing me to even think about her as it is.” Now I was confused. Who did he think I was? “I will not watch her die.” He gripped my shoulders so tightly I thought he’d cut off all the circulation.

“You’re the one killing me here.” I said through gritted teeth “And stop talking to me in third person.”

“You know the real Jenna is in the real world living life peacefully!” Now he was screaming at me. I looked over at my left shoulder the cut at the top of my arm was bleeding and it was soaking the bandage.

“She’s standing right in front of you.” I said helplessly hoping he’d let go. But he only pushed me further into the wall

“You know I don’t believe you, you demon.” He was so mad now I couldn’t take it. This was another situation where crying was an option.

“Aiden, please.” I said through sobs. He let go and stepped back looking scared and confused. I didn’t move from the wall but I could breathe again.

“I never told anyone here my name but….” He cut himself off and terror flooded he’s expressions. “Oh, are you ok, I’m sorry I thought you were a….”

“A demon I heard.” I cut him off and took a step away from the wall. “But why do I look like a demon to you.” I said gesturing from my head to my toes.

“You know how I said I did this before.” He said.

“Actually I’ve meet your last victim.” He seized as I said victim.

“Well a demon comes in every once and a while and shows the people I think I care about dying in some extremely painful way.” He quickly changed the subject. I assumed me and Coal were in the feared for category. “But all of them just call me the other.” 

“Wait a minute you were here before now?” I asked.

“Been here since I was fourteen.” He said. “For a year.” He saved himself from further questioning. “So are you ok?”

“Yeah I’m ok, at least I made out alive.” He dropped his head shamefully standing beside the dusty bed. “I don’t blame you.” I said trying to be reassuring.

“It doesn’t matter I blame myself.” He dropped down on the bed. For a moment I didn’t think it would support him. “I was the one holding the knife.” I tried to say something but I couldn’t. He was right he was holding the knife. I know he said his boss wishes he do it but why couldn’t he just reject it. All I could do was sit beside him on the bed with my hand on his shoulder.

“Why couldn’t you reject the knife?” I asked in one of those soft therapist voices.

“I don’t know.” He answered. “I can’t help it; I can hardly control what I do when I’m in that room.”

“It’s a different room?” they looked identical I never would have guess there was a difference.

“That one has a door.” He said to prove his statement he pointed to the wall where the door would have been. Then he began to think. You can always tell when boys try to think.

“You’re not Jenna. She couldn’t be here no one comes here without permission.” Shit, I thought, here we go again. “You’re here to make me feel closer to her and then you’ll kill her off like you always do.” He pushed himself up off the bed and now loomed over me.

“You said it yourself, didn’t you” I said in a weak scream. “They don’t know your name.”

“Yeah but you’re a demon, you can read my mind and how did you even know I worried about that girl.” I really must have been the only spark of hope he had seen in a long time if he kept bringing me up.

 “I not I demon.” I screamed at him. Why couldn’t he believe me? Why was this so difficult for him to function with? “My name is Jenna Florence; I’ve lived with my two foster parents since I was three, until last year when I ran away from them. Then I was brought here and scared half to death by you. When I woke up I fell into a coma and then a man named Richard barns came and brought me to kill a werewolf. Now I believe in killer dreams and monsters.” I fell to the floor out of breathe. I don’t know why I said all that. It wasn’t like it would convince him. He walked over and took a hold of my right arm.

“If your who you say you are this is going to hurt.” He said and dug he fingers under the stitches on my arm. I screamed out and watched as more blood dripped out of my skin.

“Not a demon.” I said and he took his hand away from me. Then he rushed toward me and threw his arms around me. I stood shocked and as stiff as a board.

“Sorry,” He said letting me go. He had such an overwhelmingly happy smile on his face it made me laugh. “You’re the first person that has ever been here without me having to cut you to pieces.”

“So,” I said through my attempt to not laugh. “Why are you still here, after a year, can’t you just wake up?” a serious mood faded back into the room.

“I’m trapped and I don’t know how.” Aiden sat back on the bed. “Trust me I’ve tried to get out. I can’t even remember what I’d go back to.”

“Can you remember anything from the waking world?” I asked.

He didn’t answer. We sat there from a moment and seemed to just be enjoying each other’s company.

 “You said you knew the last kid that I, well you know.” Aiden asked out of the blue. “Can you tell me about him?”

“His names Coal he was eleven when he was last here.” I said. But Coal said he was thirteen. That was three years ago. “You said you’d only been here a year, Coal came here three years ago how is that even possible.” I asked.

“Time goes by slower here.” Aiden said putting the jar back under the bed and walking over to me. “To me you were here only a day ago.”

“But it’s been a week?” I looked down at my hands. They were starting to fade transparent. A blinding white light filled the room. Aiden didn’t seem to see the light but he saw me.

“I think you’re waking up.” He said as softly as he could but all I could hear worry. I put my almost clear hand on his arm.

“I’ll be back.” I didn’t believe myself.

“You better be.” He said smiling and as he let go of my arm I was drowned by white light.