The Pleasures of an Eternal Nightmare

Chapter 2

Terry held the mobile gaming device on her lap with uncertainty in her eyes. The device was much larger than her hands and there were little scratches along the once smooth blue surface. The air in the lobby was cold, everyone within the room had a depressing atmosphere about them and held their heads down as they waited for their turns. Terry hid her face in her hoodie and looked for a way out, a way to get to K.C. as soon as possible to get away with the grim people surrounding her.

"Terry," the secretary called.

Terry hurried to the desk, almost tripping on her way there. "Is he alright?"

The secretary shook her head. "I'm afraid you'll have to see for yourself. He'll be in room 26B. There'll be glass between you two and a phone for you to talk to him."

"Thank you," Terry said. As she started walking down the hallway, she started wishing she had asked for a room without the glass but she quickly remembered how much she hated the lobby and continued down the hallway with a brisk pace, anxious to see her friend."

"Are you Terry Durkins?" Terry turned her head and a tall slender woman in a SWAT uniform stood before her. She had curly brown hair and sharp brown eyes that seemed to know everything about Terry before she even spoke a word.

"Y-yes," Terry stuttered. "Why?"

"Follow me. I want you to see how K.C. has been the past week."

Terry followed the officer down the hallway until they reached 26B. Terry reached for the silver doorknob but the officer stopped her and pulled her hand toward a window just a few feet away from the door. When Terry took a peak into the window, she saw K.C. lying down on the floor, arms and legs tucked into his chest with a plate of food set down beside him. Another officer was inside trying to talk to him but K.C. didn't seem to respond.

"Why isn't he eating?" Terry asked.

Julie shook her head. "Who knows? He hasn't eaten since the hostage situation."

Terry looked up at the officer in shock and awe. "A whole week!?"

The officer nodded and turned away from the scene. "All he does is drink water and chew on his arm. We find blood stains all over his cell every night. Our janitors play a game to decide who has to clean his cell every night."

Terry looked back inside the window and saw the officer carefully pick up K.C.. He went limp in the officer's arms and let the man drag him out of the room, making the officer struggle. Terry hurried into room 26B and watched the guard drag K.C. into a chair.

K.C.'s eyes were empty, his face was drained of color and he seemed to struggle just to stay awake. Terry looked down at his right arm and saw teeth marks and blood stains all over it. As soon as he saw her, his eyes lit up a little bit and he gasped quietly.

Terry picked up the phone against the wall and waited for K.C. to do the same. As soon as his phone was up to his ear, she said, "Hi, K.C.."

"Hey, Terry," K.C. said with a weak voice. He swung his head to the side and rested it on his arm as he set his elbow on the table. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

Terry shook her head. "I'm fine, thanks to you. But... what about you? You look awful."

K.C. nodded and looked down at the table. "I haven't really eaten in a while... I've been feeling really guilty about killing Mr. Nair so I've been chewing on my arm when I got hungry."

Terry glanced at his arm again and shivered. She couldn't imagine how he must have felt. "K.C., you can't do that to yourself."

"I know," K.C. said as he let out a sigh. "My blood is so thin now... I feel so weak."

Terry nodded. "Look, K.C.. I need you to start eating the food they serve you here, okay?" She raised her hand and pressed it against the glass. "I want you to be healthy for when you come back, okay?"

K.C. looked up at her palm and it seemed to amaze him. He started reaching for it, almost as if he wanted to hold it in his own, but the glass that separated them stopped his hand. He stared at his hand, noticing how thin it had become, almost thinner than Terry's hand. He lowered his head and started to sob. "I... I'll start eating, Terry. I'll start, but only because you asked me to."

"Please eat well," Terry said as she leaned toward the glass, fighting the tears trying to escape her eyes. "I don't want you to leave me."

K.C. nodded and rested his head on the table, lowering his hand as he did. "I don't... want you to leave me, either..."

Terry wiped her eyes with her free hand. "Okay... I'm going to get going now." She held up the mobile gaming device in her hand. "I'm going to see if they'll give this to you so you won't get bored. It has four games that I found in your room. Is that alright?"

K.C. nodded and sat up. "Thank you... I'll get better. But... can you make me a promise?"

Terry nodded. "Anything for you."

K.C. wiped his face. "When I... If I get out... I have a question to ask you... I want you to answer honestly when I ask you... Can you do that for me? It's all I want... for when this is all over..."

Terry nodded and smiled. "Of course. Just come back to me, okay. I really miss you."

"I miss you, too," K.C. said.

The two of them hung up and the security guard helped K.C. up and walked him out of the room. Terry sat there and watched until the door shut behind them, dividing them once again.