Crazy House

Chapter 3: Well This is Getting Awkward Fast

Chapter 3

Trying to find my way down to the ground level is like sticking your hand into a lake blindly and expecting to grab a fish. Every few seconds I walk into a piece of furniture or a wall. You would think that I would run out of things to run into, but evidently I seem to be drawn to anything with the potential to bruise me. At one point, I trip over what feels like a very large body, but I don't dare look back to check. I somehow find a door that leads to the main hallway and open it to see dozens of my fellow patients roaming around. Since the locks to all our rooms are electronic, all the doors must have opened the second the power went out. As if they are one unit, they all turn to stare at me simultaneously.

One girl immediately steps in front of me, appearing so quickly that I gasp and take a step backwards. As she stands there, my eyes slowly adjust to the darkness and I can just barely make out the details of her face. Her pale skin seems to glow in the dark and there are dark circles under her eyes, her dark greasy hair hangs lankly around her face. She stands so close that I can feel the split ends tickle my cheek. Ever so slowly she leans in; each second that passes seems like a life time and I fear that I might lose control of my bladder. Normally, these people don't frighten me in the slightest, but that is during the day, when there are plenty of guards to subdue them if they do anything. Now, it's every patient for themselves.

The girl takes a big sniff of me neck, and then leans back, her eyes twinkling with delight. She reaches out and lazily traces shapes on my face, her long dirty nails snagging on my skin with their ragged edges, drawing blood. Behind her, one of the other patients begins giggling with utter glee.

"We know," Girl with zero boundaries whispers in a sing-song voice, the corners of her lips tug up into devilish smile and her eyes dance wickedly; I know that they hold knowledge of unspeakable things. Her stale, fetid breath fills my nostrils, causing my eyes to water. Finally fed up with this chic's lack of personal space, I push her away from me, causing her to fall to the ground. For a few seconds, she lays unmoving on the ground and I fear I may have pushed her harder than I thought, but then her eyes fly open. With a gruff growl she launches herself at me and pins me against the wall. She holds me by the neck and her long fingernails dig into my skin.

"We know," she reiterates, this time in a snarl. The patients behind us repeat her, dozens of voices whispering the phrase in a cacophony of insanity.

"We know,"

"We know,"

"We know..."

I struggle under the girl's tight grasp, attempting to break free. "You know what?" I choke, grasping for air.

"We know," pale chic responds.

I roll my eyes, despite my compromising condition. "Yeah I got that sweetheart, but what exactly is it that you know?"

"We know," they all reply, in unison this time.

I attempt to come back with another witty response but I realize that I simply don't have enough air to do so. My vision begins to turn hazy and my grip on her arm goes slack, but just before I pass out, the strangest thing happens. I feel this ball of white hot electric energy well up inside of me, growing and growing, until finally it just releases and spreads across the room. A second later, everyone is on the ground and I am free of crazy girl's grip. I bend over for a few seconds, trying to catch my breath but leave quickly before they wake up. Just as I am slipping through the door that leads to the stairwell I hear a voice whisper right behind me.

"We know. You are not one of us." I jump and immediately turn around, but there is no one there. The hallway is empty.

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