The Dream Parade (Part One) - [On Hold]

Chapter 4: Block B

I sat in darkness, wondering if they were going to take the furniture out of the apartment as I watched some imaginary shadows that looked like my parents slowly float from room to room. There had been no food delivery earlier - a sure-fire sign that I was not supposed to be here. I was already dead. I absorbed the peaches, creams and rose colours that defined the apartment. 

In my mind's eye, it would always look like this: comfortable, light, airy, and warm. A true home and a source of comfort like no other. I was shivering uncontrollably as I waited for the end of my story to arrive. This was going to be it. I wanted to be calm. Resigned. There was nothing else left to do. If they got my parents they would get me. I conjured images of the past, clinging to happier moments. The memories came easily. Just be strong, I told myself. By the time the footsteps gathered outside, my body felt numb. All sounds seemed far away even though they were getting closer. I missed the hiss of the front door but knew instinctively that they had entered. Whoever they were. At least I would know. Before they took me I would see their faces. I would know them briefly and then...then there was the empty space that my imagination could not fill. Reality had to do that. 

The hand that shook my shoulder was wiry and feminine. It kept shaking unrelentingly. I hardly felt a thing. I didn't have the energy. I vaguely noticed a pair of glasses appearing in my peripheral vision. The sounds around me were a slow, mechanical humming. I could only assume that some of them were meant to be words. Were they speaking to me or to each other? Were they pronouncing my end? A part of me didn't care. Only a small flame of curiosity burned within me, almost ready to be extinguished. Almost.

"...Kimber..."

I began to shake more intensely.

"...Kimber..."

The sound of my name was beginning to get through to me.

"...Kimber..."

Still shaking and hugging my knees, I dared to bring the world back into focus. The blurry rims of glasses before me became clear and sharp. I briefly glanced at a tiny reflection of myself. I didn't look anything like I remembered. Then her face took shape. A soft, beautiful face with cold, blue eyes.

"Hey...Kimber..."

More words were getting through to me. A hand was still shaking me by the shoulder. I assumed it belonged to the woman who crouched in front of me and that it was her who spoke.

"Hey, you must be Kimber." I heard her say, realising that she was repeating the sentence over and over.

She's done this before.

I tried to nod my head but my whole body rocked forward. My back felt stiff and I became aware that my knees and elbows hurt. How long had I been sitting still? There was no way to tell.

"Kimber..."

Reluctantly I met the woman's cold eyes again.

"I am Sheila." she said, slowly and clearly.

Every syllable was pronounced with utter precision. I kept rocking gently back and forth trying to signal that I understood.

"I am Sheila." she repeated patiently.

"Sheila." I whispered through dry lips.

"That's right." she said. "That's right, Kimber. I work for the Government."

I made a point of looking down to my knees.

"Kimber, do you want to tell me how you feel? Can you get up?"

I didn't answer. Government Officials had access to Life Charts and all centrally held person files. There was nothing she needed me to tell her. Nothing at all. Sheila used her fingertips to bring my chin back up. Paralysed by fear, I didn't have the strength to resist.