U.S.S.A Alice

Chapter 15 Mr. Sandman

I stumbled out into the hallway, my head was killing me now with how much it was throbbing. I leaned against the lockers to keep myself stable, I felt like shit...no it was something worse. I turned to see a jogging Isaac coming toward me. - "Hey. Mr. Campbell asked me to go with you. Err you don't look so good, I mean you do but you also look like you're pretty sick, and not in a good way."  He said awkwardly. - "Uh thanks, that pretty much sums up how I feel. You know you don't have to walk me to the nurse's office or do you hate poetry so much that you'd rather walk with the weird girl?"  We both went silent, I wish I wasn't so self-deprecating. - "You're not that weird, just a little different, nothing wrong with that. Your music does make my ears bleed though."  He said sticking his finger in his ear. - "Very funny."              

We finally made it to the nurse's office, the door automatically opened when we got in front of it. - "Thank you for walking with me here, I think my head is feeling a little better now."  Isaac walked back to class, he seemed to have a bit more pep in his step, it was kinda funny. I stepped inside the office, the nurse seemed to be busy with something since I couldn't see them.  "Hello, is anyone here?"  I called out. - "Oh I'll be right there, just a moment, please."  A feminine voice responded. A humanoid figure moved in the background, it was the nurse android. She wore a white nurse's outfit that covered her sleek metallic body, it had pink and yellow lines dotting it. - "Hello, how can I help you."  I was feeling more fatigued. - "I'm not feeling well, my head hurts and I just feel gross."  Her yellow robotic eyes twitched as if processing what I told her. - "Come right this way, lay down on the bed."  I followed her then pulled the thick cover back and laid down in the bed, it wasn't super comfortable but it was better than standing. 

"Now, do you have any idea why you feel sick? Did you not properly cook your food or have you come into contact with any biological contaminants? You humans, you have such sensitive stomachs you know."  She said rubbing her belly. I sensed a hint of sass coming from her voice, who knew androids could be so cheeky? - "No, I blacked out and hit my head on my desk."  The nurse stared at my head for a few seconds, what was she looking at? - "You only have minor abrasions and a few damaged blood vessels, it should only bruise. Resting for the rest of the period is my recommendation."  She cleaned my forehead with an antibacterial wipe, which stung a bit, and then resumed doing whatever she was doing before. 

I don't know how much time went by but it felt like I had slept through the whole day, I heard rustling somewhere in the office. I looked up to see where it was coming from, the room was dark and the nurse was sitting by her desk slumped over, she'd been deactivated. Whispered voices came from behind a door in the back. The power to the door seemed to have been cut off, I slowly tried to pry the door open, my slim fingers just managing to fit in the small open crease where the door connected, I opened it enough to get a good look at what was going on in there. I saw a tall thin man standing above someone, a student...a girl? She was sobbing, lying crumpled on the ground, what was he doing to her? He held up a needle filled with a black liquid, those same needles littered the floor. I couldn't let this happen any longer, I picked up a chair and quietly slid the door open so I could sneak up on him. I shakily held the chair up as I entered the room, ensuring I avoided crunching the needles beneath my feet. As I was about to hit him with the chair, he spoke. - "Hello Alice."            

That voice sounded like Mr. Campbell's but something about it was off, very off. "I see you've found me, I can see you're the smart and inquisitive type, it's what has allowed you to survive this long."  I wasn't sure what to do, I didn't even know what was happening.- "You're not Mr. Campbell, who are you? What's going on?"  He stood up straight but still faced the wall, holding the needle in his hand. -"Right you are little Alice. Such horrible things you have witnessed in your childhood, yet you remain such a lively soul, uncorrupted by all that would dare to taint such...innocence. I do wonder how your mate will handle reliving his worst memories. Your friends have been fun but uninteresting, you, on the other hand, I have more in store for you."  He said with a sinister chuckle. I dropped the chair as he turned around, he somehow looked even taller as he towered impossibly above me. He grabbed my wrist with a massive black, clawed hand and injected the syringe into me. My vision went blurry, a demented alien face smiled at me with a wicked grin. I feel suspended, everything is black.