Psychronic (Short Story)

Part Three

   There used to be a time when I believed in fantasy and fairytales like they were just another part of our world, but that was when I was young and gullible. Who knew one day as an adult I'd be experiencing the same feelings I once had when I also thought mermaids and witches were real?

But this wasn't fantasy, it was real. And darkness ran through my veins, emptying out the good and filling me up with evil. I was conscious, but every second that passed made me feel closer to oblivion.

Everything was quiet, the only thing I heard was the slow beating of my heart and the muffled voice of my husband as he carried me away. But in that silence was a shadow just waiting to explode like thunder.

Nick was taking me to them. Somehow, I felt like they weren't going to be able to help. I wanted to tell him I loved him, but I was too weak. The only time I opened my mouth was to reject more black liquid. Eventually it stopped, but by then I was already in too deep in the sickness to really matter.

My eyes fluttered open as he laid me on the back seat of our car. I watched the window over me as he drove away quickly. Everything was slightly blurry, lights were bubbles of colors moving by fast. It was kind of peaceful.

I loved Nick because he was fearless, no matter what kind of mystery he faced being with me, he was always strong. I knew it was hard for him sometimes, but he refused to let it get to him. Being with someone who knew what you were thinking was also a difficult thing to cope with, but it made him feel closer to me, because he was never a man of words and feelings were always hard for him to express. I could just look into his eyes and know exactly what he was feeling, and it was always unconditional love.

Thinking about our memories hurt, like the longer I did the harder it was to keep my mind on it, like slowly and painfully it was all slipping away.

I moaned and wriggled on the back seat, the darkness inside me squeezing every part of me. I felt little bugs crawling over my body but I saw nothing. It drove me to tears and I shuddered at the tickling sensation of tiny legs.

The car stopped and I saw the familiar building through the window. It was dark outside. The lights in the building were also off, something that I had never seen. For as long as I knew them, they had never shut their building off completely. I knew that was the case when Nick had gotten out and returned almost immediately yelling in frustration at his phone.

I heard a door open and close, followed by voices. Nick was arguing with someone.

"You need to help her!"

"Where is she? Let me take a look at her."

The car door I faced opened and I stared back at an old woman who crouched down to look at the black liquid drying on my mouth. She asked strange questions, but none of them about what had happened to me. I wanted to speak but I couldn't, not because I had zero energy, but something was keeping my lips sealed.

"I don't know what to do, there's something wrong with her."

The old lady slowly stood straight and looked at Nick. "I'm sorry, I can't help you. Have you heard of the term psychronic?" He shook his head. "It's a disease. She went in too far and now she's going to pay. She'll die soon."

"What? Where are you going?!"

"I can't help you, please go away."

The lady went back into the building and locked the doors. I could see Nick pounding on the door, looking through the glass screen of the door and yelling profanity at the woman.

"H-home," I stuttered as he walked back to me.

"Yeah, we'll go home."

The drive back felt slow. Nick hadn't driven with the same adrenaline he had when he tried to take me to them to help me. Now he had no hope, he was quiet the entire ride, he hadn't even looked at me. He was fearful.