White Walls

Chapter 8:

Luke stirred. His head rattled on the window of the train carriage as he heard the droning voice that told him he had reached his destination.

His hair sat in every direction, no method to his usually methodically placed ruffled hair. His shirt was covered in dirt, dried mud splattered the white material. His collar was ripped open. Luke somehow stood up and started to move off the train, against all the will of his tired and aching muscles. There was no telling how long or how far he had run.

After what felt like an age of walking unconsciously, he arrived in the street that his apartment stood tall in. This was it. He was home. Comfort. Luke's wife, Claire pottered out of his building and strode towards the car. Luke didn't think it was possible but he ran, towards his wife, towards familiarity.

"Claire!" He shouted. "Claire!"

His wife stalled her attempt at climbing into the driver's seat, trying to figure out who was calling her name. It was Luke, and frankly, she did not care and continued to climb into the seat.

"NO! Wait, please."

She hesitated. And then she climbed back out, slamming the door as hard as she could and vaguely noticing that she wished Luke's head was between the door and frame.

"What?"

"It's me. Luke," he said, fatigue getting the better of him. Yet, he couldn't understand her response. She knew who he was.

"Oh, you mean the Luke I married?" He smiled and held his arms wide. "Or do you mean the dirty, lying, cheating Luke?"

"Wha-?"

"Don't you dare deny it. Where have you been, then?"

"Claire, you've got the believe me-"

"On a business trip?"

"No- I. Claire, there's this facility. They inject you with these diseases and-"

"Oh wow, you really will say anything won't yo-"

"And they infect you with stuff that kill you and they're trying to cure them all but Claire, they had me. They were going to do it to me. They were going to kill me!"

"What is wrong with you? Tell the truth for once! Stacy called. Told me everything. You've been cheating for however long and lied to my face all this time. And now you make up some pathetic excuse and expect me to believe you, over her – who by the way has shown me all the messages exchanged. You're a joke, Luke and we're over. It's done." And with that, Claire dived into her car and drove away.

"No," Luke tried to shout, although it came out as more of a wheezing noise.

Suddenly, he could feel heavy hands on his shoulders, his arms being dragged behind his back and handcuffed and being forcibly moved into the car awaiting him. He tried with all his might to struggle free but his tired body just could not pull through this time. He turned and saw that it was not police officers holding him, but the familiar face of the doctor whose coat he had taken. Luke was heading back there.

The doctor whispered one last phrase in his ear before a cold blow knocked him unconscious. "Wrong place, wrong time."