Paper Hearts

Chapter 5: Escape?

"So...now what?"

Dr. Newton leaned back into his chair like he always did. He tapped on his chin.

If I could use one word to explain what he said next, it would be infuriating.

"What do you think?" He said.

I was left in a shocked state, what did I just hear? After the words finally registered themselves into my head, I slammed the table in fury. "What do I think? You just told me that my own girlfriend tried to set me up, and that she's an ex-patient from here, and that she wants me to become the same as her? WHAT DO I THINK? What do you think I think?" I looked at him with a burning gaze, "Dr. Newton, with the utmost respect because of your profession as a counselor, I trust that you know basic psychology," the words just flew out of my mouth without passing through my mind, "so please do not ask nonsensical questions, you are the one who is supposed to give me advice here." I sat back down into my seat, trying to catch a breath.

He nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, indeed. I do have to reconsider my actions. However, Mr. Simon, you too should also recollect your thoughts and your emotions. That emotional outburst was quite the rage indeed."

Now, he leaned forward, placing his hand on the table. "Now, for me to voice my thoughts. What I would normally suggest for you to do is to be normal, behave as if you have recovered from your mental illness, partially if not completely. Then, they might consider the possibility of an early release." My eyes lit up. "However, Mr. Simon, yours is quite the special case indeed, as you do not have enough time. I have no choice but to propose an alternative."

He opened his mouth to speak, hesitated and looked around, then spoke again, "Mr. Simon, I am going to propose an asylum escape."

I literally could not believe my ears. What insane plan did he just propose? I stared at him, blinked twice, then leaned forward such that both of our hands are on the same table. "Are you serious about this?"

"Yes, Mr. Simon."

"Hundred percent serious?"

"Yes, Mr. Simon."

I then whispered to him, "How are we going to do this?"

He smiled then said, "I knew you would be keen on this." He stood up from his chair, walked over to a cabinet near the corner of the room. He then used a key to unlock one of the drawers and took out a leather-bound notebook.

Dr. Newton then placed it on the table and flipped it open. "Now, Mr. Simon. What I am proposing now is completely risky, and may or may not put your life in total danger. Are you sure you want to partake in this?"

I nodded.

Dr. Newton gleamed with pride, and said, "Awesome! Now, I am going to start explaining the plan."

He flipped to the first page, and there was a sketch of the asylum floor plan. Firstly, this is the floor plan for this current asylum, they gave it to me when I first registered as a medical staff here, in case of emergencies they said. Well, this is an emergency, so why not use it?" He chuckled at his own joke, while I stared at him with the gaze that said that his joke is completely lame.

He cleared his throat, then continued, "As you can see, on our current floor now, there are many cells, and each cell houses one mental asylum patient. So what do you think we can do?"

I reflected back to all the fighting games and strategy games I have played, then said, "Create a distraction?"

He snapped his fingers, "Indeed. We are going to create a distraction by freeing the mental asylum patients out. So while they are distracted, we make a run of it by this door." I stared at him as if he was dumb, "Well Dr. Newton, I have a question. Won't they question you when you run as if you are escaping, they may suspect you for hatching this plan."

He chuckled again, "Do not worry. I will make it as if I am chasing you down, but in actual fact, I am aiding in your escape."

"Why? Why would you help me like this?"

Dr. Newton then stared at me straight in the eye and said, "I am a medical professional. I cure, counsel, and treat patients. This also means that I do not stand by one side when I see someone innocent being locked up in a hellhole like this."

I was impressed, "Then what are we waiting for? Let us put this plan in motion already."

Dr. Newton instructed the guards to escort me back to my cell, and I sat there, not moving. One of the guards noticed me and peered in, "Are you alright, Mr. Simon?" I looked at him and said, "Can you come over here? I seem to be feeling unwell, can you escort me to the nurse's office?"

He came over with a sigh, unlocked the door with his keys, and offered a hand to me. "Come on, Mr. Simon. You just came back from the counselor's office and now you are heading to the nurse's office? Not the luckiest one on the block, are you?" I pretended to chuckle along with him, and when he wasn't noticing, I nabbed the key from behind his back. He turned around and noticed that his key was missing, then he looked at me.

I swung at him and managed to catch him across his chin. He landed on the ground out cold. I then looked around me, no guards. However, there was a small corner that I can store him in. I lugged his body across the hallway and leaned his body against the wall of the small corner.

I slowly made my way to the nearest prisoner cell, fumbled with the keys as I tried to figure out which was the correct one. Then I inserted the key into the keyhole, with a small twist, the door was opened. The prisoner looked at me in surprise and confusion and dragged his feet out of the cell. I did it for the remaining cells without the guards noticing.

Then, I ran to the counselor's office, frantically knocking. In the distance, I could hear the guards shouting, "Someone has freed the patients! Someone is attempting to make an escape! Sound the alarms!"

Dr. Newton opened the door, caught slightly off guard by how swiftly I executed the plan, and smiled. "Great job, Mr. Simon. This has always how it should be."

He then pushed me along to the direction of the exit, and shouted, "One of the prisoners is escaping! I am chasing after him!" One of the guards heard him, and replied back, "Go ahead, Dr Newton! Help us catch them!" He then looked at me with a cocky look, "See what I mean? Human psychology."

I ran as fast as I could towards the direction of the exit. The situation was pure chaos. The patients were taking whatever they could find and whamming it into the sides of the guard's heads. The guards staggered back, only to find themselves repeatedly hammered by the relentless attacks of the patients. We ran and ran until we reached the exit. The counselor then used his pass to unlock the door, and with a small push, it swung right open.

We ran and ran down the staircase, each step resonating our footsteps by tenfold. Once we reached the ground floor, we burst right out into the open. Ah, finally I can breathe fresh air.

"Not for long now," Dr. Newton said behind me.

"For what?" I looked back at Dr. Newton, "We have escaped! We are free!" Dr. Newton looked at me after he heard what I said, and he said this that made my blood run cold.

"Mr. Simon, you seem to have gotten one small little fact wrong. It is not that WE are free, it is that I am free."

I blinked my eyes, unable to register the words that he spoke. "Wait, what? I thought we escaped together!" He laughed maniacally, "No, no, no. How naive can you be, Mr. Simon."

Before he could finish his sentence, a black colored van pulled up in front of us. Black figures stepped out of the van, wearing black masks. One seized me by the upper, and one seized me by the lower. The other used chloroform to gag me, and my vision started to fade.

The last words I heard from Dr. Newton was this,

"Now, this is where the true fun begins."