The Bryne Runaways (Updated)

Chapter 2

Do I have friends? I think I do. I talk with numerous of campers from my station mostly asking assistance with assignments and all, but friends? Does Uncle Ben count as my friend? Well we have friendly conversations. That has to count, right? I consider Uncle Ben as my best friend. He's my only best friend and that's it but all this friend thing stopped when I started to grow up. So I don't know. I'm not very friendly I guess.

Jacob left once his station commenced. I left a couple of minutes after he did. He had to go his station trainings and I had to go learn where I'm expected and all but overall Jacob isn't a douche. He's a nice person. Not mean or anything. He's really a good guy and loyal.

I currently sit on top of the bed in the office of Dr. Meredith. My doctor. I have to be in her office once a day for check ups. I have to do these for the benefit of my health. My feet bounce around waiting for the doctor to arrive because her office is cold. I'm freezing in here and I don't know when will I stop shaking. It's really cold. I spot at the other end of the bed where my pack is and open, I catch a glimpse of green in it and pull out from the edges of the wrapper a granola bar I got from the entrance where they are distributed.

The door finally flies open suddenly and I quickly put away the granola bar I was about to take a bite into that chewy goodness until she arrived. I'm not allowed to eat in here. If we're not allowed to eat then why do they offer them? That's my question. Dr. Meredith walks in with that same original gentle wide smile across her smooth delicate face and the first thing when she enters the room I catch is the red orange hair she has up to her shoulders. It binds with her personality and sweetness, she can pull it off better than anyone here can. I think it's gotten longer since I was here, but I was here yesterday. I don't think hair can grow within a day. Well my point is she looks very nice today.

"Good morning Norman" Her voice is soft but also confident like the fierce kick in lemonade. I give her a weak smile shivering my bottom off.

"How are you doing?" She takes a seat crossing her legs, grabbing her clipboard from the sanitized table.

"Good" I say as my dangling feet rock forward and backward.

"Where's your uncle, I thought he would be here?" She says nicely not ever so rude to me. Like everyone should be.

"I don't know I didn't get to see him this morning" I tell her with a shrug as the bright lights shine this entire room, there's no inch of darkness in here.

"Well don't worry, we sent someone to fetch him for your unexpected check ups, he'll arrive any minute by now" She advises me and I nod to show my understanding. I scrunch up my toes, and my clothed body shakes unbearably from my head to my feet. I feel the air chill my warmth, as if they go in battle.

"Are you cold Norman?" Dr. Meredith finally realizes with concern and I nod my head quickly and smiley. The sweater I wear is thick but darn am I cold. Dr. Meredith opens the door from the room letting this freezer of a room lose its cool.

"Better?"

"Better, thank you" I say still shivering but it'll go away in a minute.

"No problem, it's my job to keep my clients comfortable" She says sitting in a professional manor. I wonder if she actually wanted to be a doctor. Did she have to be because they told her to? By the looks of it she probably enjoys being a doctor. So I think she actually wanted to be one and her dream became a reality because of the arrival. Good for her.

"So I've heard from your top instructor, Mr. V, that you've been doing very well in your work, that you are top of the class. He's very proud of you. I'm really happy for you"

"Thank you" I say to her and my mind goes to my instructor, he's quite the teacher who is strict to his rules. I don't believe he would ever say something like that or even talk to anyone or seem to care about his students.

Suddenly I hear the thick stomps of boots going rapid then begin to think in my head it's probably Uncle Ben. I start smiling like a mad man at the thought of Uncle Ben rushing around the offices to find me. That's something he would do. No kidding. In my head I am right, I see a figure flash by and I begin to giggle at him just missing the room Dr. Meredith and I are in. I hear the squeak of Uncle Ben's boots echo throughout meaning he stopped and I know he heard me, he recognizes my giggles already. I hear as he runs back to the previous room we're in and he slides swiftly when he meets the door then I see that memorable face entering the room. The face I will never get tired of. The person I was raised by. It is my Uncle Ben. I see as he walks in smirking, not the cocky type of smirk but the 'I'm here!' type of smirk you know, then it transforms into a friendly smug smile.

"Dr. Meredith" Uncle Ben greets her and she gives him a nod. Uncle Ben comes over to where I sit placing a kiss on top of my head then stands next to me.

"Hey, how you feeling buddy?" He asks me with his head down at me. I look into his eyes and his hand rubs my back comfortably like he would do when I would have my rough nights.

"I'm fine" I say to Uncle Ben with a shrug as I smile at him not very much caring about anything right now just at him.

"Good, did you eat like I told you to?" He asks this question because if I don't end up eating he'll get frustrated and it's very important that I eat. I don't know why?! He probably wants me to have strength for the day and if I don't eat I'll be weak. I nod yes at his question. He's very concerned about my health and everything that includes Norman Dull in it.

"Ready for your check up?" Dr. Meredith tells me and I nod at her too. Uncle Ben takes a seat on the chairs that's in the room.

Then we begin.

She starts off with some same old questions about my health and my sleep, Uncle Ben mostly answers all of the questions for me. He said that I sleep clutching his hand and that sometimes I would squeeze very hard when I sleep apparently. The doctor says its trauma but the thing is I have never seen anything bad in my life for me to be traumatized. We go on with the rest of the check up, she checks my hearing, sight, heartbeat and blood pressure then onto my actual blood, if I'm good and healthy.

"Ready?" Dr. Meredith asks me, holding a syringe in her hand. I'm not used to the shots yet, it still gets to me somehow. I nod my head at her then look over to Uncle Ben who's sitting beside me for my shot. I lay my forehead on his shoulder and wait for my shot. The good thing about Dr. Meredith taking blood out today is I won't be worrying about it the rest of the week but I'll be sore for a few hours though. I feel the needle in me and I squeeze Uncle Ben. It stays in there for a couple of seconds until Dr. Meredith takes it out having my blood in her hands.

"There we go!" She says putting a bandaid on me, then walks over to the counter putting my blood in a small container.

"Why do you have to take a lot of it?" I ask putting my sleeve down and rest my head on Uncle Ben where his head is rested on me.

"We need to analyze the blood and stuff" She rests her palms on the counter and I just nod my head at her then getting off the bed that has paper laid out on top of it.

"Norman, can you give me and your uncle time to talk?" She says and I just leave the room quietly shutting the door behind me. They always do this when I have to visit Dr. Meredith. Once we finish with my necessities they talk about things I don't know of. I have to leave the room when they do that. I just wait outside walking around looking at things or bumping into them by accident. It takes a couple of minutes for them to talk. I just stay out here and explore.

I walk further down to other rooms and I begin to hear a scratchy frizzy noise from the room in the far distance beside me but there's no sign of anyone there. Just some talking and echoing. I start to notice that the noises are released from Dr. Meredith's actual study with all the scattered paperwork on her large desk and the various vibrant books that are on the shelves. I move closer into the scene.

I walk closer to the noise realizing when I enter the study to be an old radio next to some abandoned books near the wall.

My slowly fingers reach the dial and I turn the volume up and I'm able to hear an unrecognized sound coming out the radio. The atmosphere around me feels un-normal and cold right now. It's odd and haunting. My heart is rapid at the moment and I feel the wind blow through the short hairs of my neck from the open window behind me.

The unrecognized sound begins to go quiet and quieter until a clear stern voice is finally heard from the spine chilling silence.

"This is him"