Not Mine

Chapter X

I'm about to go into a 4 week exam period, so I thought that I would update before hand. I'll work on chapter 11 after they wrap up. Until then, enjoy chapter 10!

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The moment Carter's eyes opened, she felt both physically and emotionally drained. Gravity was pulling her down, telling her that there was no point in resisting it. She laid in bed and tried to go back to sleep for half an hour, tossing and turning until she couldn't take it anymore. Her senses were driving her insane. Her ears picked up the faintest sounds with ease and she was getting a headache from just breathing in through her nose. Not only were the scents and perfumes wafting through the circulating air of the compound assaulting her, but now Carter's whole apartment smelt of chemicals. When she first came into her room she had noticed the distinct smell, but it wasn't unbearable. However, upon opening her closet door the night before, the smell of fabrics and dyes had flooded the room and overwhelmed her senses. The stinging smell, on top of everything else, was making her feel crazy; she didn't understand what was wrong with her. Clearly her father didn't share the same issues with the smells and the sounds of the compound, so she assumed it was just her. She wanted to tell someone, a medical professional preferably, but she was worried that they would think she was crazy. She laid in bed, trying to block everything out for hours as the night turned into morning and only got up when she heard the door of her parent's room click open.

She glanced over to the closet, and winced. She didn't want to bring on another wave of fresh chemicals, but she would have to if she wanted fresh clothes. The idea of flooding the room again made her want to throw up. The smell, which lingered but had weakened, had been almost toxic, like the clothes had never been washed. Carter looked at her reflection quickly, glaring at the clothes she had been wearing since yesterday. The singlet and track pants combo looked shabby, but she quickly decided that looking dishevelled was the lesser of the two evils, and that she would just not leave the apartment until she could wash the reeking chemicals off her other clothes. Carter really did feel crazy when she yanked a blanket off of her bed and stuffed it under the door, to stop the smell from continuing to leak through from the crack. She turned and darted out of the room desperate for some fresh air and a reprieve from her thoughts. The smell was permeating into the corridor, so she kept moving. She practically sprinted into the kitchen, shocking both of her parents.

"What's the matter, Carter?" Her mother asked, standing up from the table.

"I-" Carter mumbled before she trailed off. She was going to sound crazy. She didn't want to worry them by telling them her senses were on the fritz.

"Nothing, I'm just hungry..." She lied. Her mother relaxed and smiled, the worry disappearing completely from her face.

"What can I make you?" She asked.

Carter bite her lip.

"I'll make you some bacon and eggs?" She offered. Carter nodded eagerly. Anything to get rid of the smell that was burning her nostrils and hammering her skull.

Carter lingered close by as her mother swept in and through the kitchen, throwing equipment and ingredients around deftly. She tried to focus on the smell of bacon as it popped in the pan rather than the chemical smell and the scents that lingered everywhere. It worked for a little while but lost to the clothes after it was placed in front of her with some eggs on a plate. Instead of concealing the smell, it blended with it and made her want to be sick. She no longer wanted to eat, despite her body demanding that she needed to. She tried to breathe through her mouth as she sat and just looked at the food. Her parents didn't notice. An anxiety started to set in. The scent became something more. She felt like it represented something far more sinister and she couldn't escape it. Her breathing picked up and her parents finally looked up to her.