1st chapter continued

My arm was bandaged, and I could see a few needle marks in my arm, where the IV must have flowed. I remove the bandages and give my arm an experimental move. It seems to be fine, but there is minor scarring along the inside of my hand and along the inside of my forearm. A bizarre feeling in my upper arm prompts me to examine the skin. A large number 16 is tattooed into the skin, and a small blinking light from underneath my skin releases a red glow. On my other arm is tattooed a small angel. It carries a banner, written in flowing script, what looks like a woman’s hand, is written Two Minds, One Purpose Looking at the script, and a calming sensation flows over me, and I find myself up in the clouds. I stay there for a few seconds, then through the fog comes the life support system, beeping louder than anything I’ve ever heard. When I’m back on earth, I shake my head. Whatever that is, I don’t want to do it again.

I rise into a sitting position. My head seems to be fine, I run through some basic math. 2+2-1=3, pi is 3.1415926535. Math and motor skills seem to work, but my mind is a blank for memories. Well, not an exact blank. I remember one thing, a small vase, containing flowers. Someone picks me up; I grab a flower and give them to someone. I see a smile, exposing slightly crooked teeth. They’re not exactly white, and not perfect, but it’s good enough. Then I come back. That’s all I have. I cling to it, for this may be the only connection I have to my past.

I move my legs over the bed, and wiggle my toes. They seem to work, but when I put them down, a surge of pain comes up from my left leg. A series of rusty half-in staples line my legs, and the movement jostles them into my flesh. I reach down to remove them, but they’re stuck. I get up, and start limping towards the door. Then, I realize that I have no clothing on, except the hospital robes. There is a bundle of clothing on the table next to a small wrapper of complimentary crackers. A rumble moves through my stomach, and I realize that I haven’t eaten in days. I surge forward, and the first problem occurs. My left leg isn’t ready for such fast movements, and I stumble forward into the table, and knock it over. After a few moments where I was getting crushed by the table, I finally get it off me, and try to open the package. There, the second problem comes into effect. My fingers are stiff, and instead of opening the package, I crush it. When it’s finally open, all that awaits me is crumbs. I hungrily eat them, and then regret it. When one is hungry, it suppresses hunger. The moment food is added, It lets go of its’ restraints. The other problem is stale crackers. So, I ended up with a mouthful of stale crackers which made me gag, then my stomach started burning, telling me either I feed it, or it’s bursting out of my ribcage and going out to town.

When I fully compose myself, I take a few limping steps out the door. When I make it outside, I’m met with an empty hall of a hospital. My room is marked 63a, and the clipboard attached to the door informs the reader that “patient number: 16, name: Matthew, gender: Male. Dosage: q6”

I take it that my name is Matthew. Well, it’s better than nothing at all. But all that is irrelevant unless I can find someone to tell it. I listen very carefully for sounds of human life, but other than that infernal life support system…. “That is!” I exclaim. Rushing towards the sound, my mind racing. Life support system is active, so it needs life. As I reach the door, I stop to catch my breath. My left food sting me, but I ignore the pain. As I open the door, my heart falls. The machine lies broken, its screen cracked. It emits the beep through system failure. I turn around, disappointed.

As I move through the halls, I begin to piece together my surroundings. I’m on the 5^th floor of the West Street Hospital. The sector I’m in currently is the emergency ward. As I made my way to the staircase, a brochure caught my eye. I flip through it. It tells of “Revolutionary increases in the science of cells” I skim through the rest. “Dr. Lionel will be leading this research lab….new treatments on the way……titled “Red” this will…” then, my vision swarms and I put it down, unable to read. I begin to walk away but something tells me to take the brochure. Maybe when I’m not so groggy, it can tell me something about this hospital, or maybe where I am.