The Secrets of Superbium

Chapter VII

Author's Note: This chapter is dedicated to @kackle-, thank for reading and voting! I can't believe I have an actual reader! I know how pathetic this sounds, but I'm super excited!

     Darkness. I can't see anything but darkness. It's like somewhere in the back of my mind I know that I'm going to go unconscious, but the darkness doesn't feel threatening; it feels safe. As I accept this, the blackness envelops me like a warm, cozy blanket.

     When I wake up, light dances inside my eyelids, and it is so beautiful that I am tempted to keep my eyes closed. But curiosity always gets the best of me, and I slowly opened my eyes, letting them adjust to the unusual lighting. The lights were blue, which might be a usual occurrence at a party, but not anywhere else. I look around, trying to figure out where I could possibly be. I feel I tight restraint around my waist, along with one on each of my legs and arms. Why am I being restrained? I didn't do anything terrible, did I? I don't think so, so why am I all tied up?

     After a brief moment of pondering, a dreadful thought occurs to me. Did Death capture me? I don't suppose so because when I was in that weird bubble, I felt safe from him. Also, I doubt he could even penetrate it because it seemed like it was pretty strong.

     Realizing that my head wasn't restrained in any way, I decided to look around the room. It looks like some twisted version of a hospital. The room is crammed with tons of beds, all filled with people who were restrained just like I was. Next to each bed is some weird looking machine that I assume is for taking vitals. I don't understand why everyone is restrained. What did we do?

     I feel my heart rate speed up, and I can hear every beat reverberating inside of my eardrums. I inhale sharply, gathering my courage before I continue surveying my surroundings. Every direction I look in is the same: there are rows upon rows of beds, and everyone in them seems to be asleep. Everyone except me that is. The room is rectangular, measuring about ten beds by twenty beds, however long that is. I can't see behind me, so I don't know all too much about what's there, but all the other walls are solid white. No pictures, no colors, no nothing. That doesn't surprise me though, I would assume that most hospitals have white walls.

     Is that where I am? Am I in a hospital? Maybe someone found me in the woods and brought me here, and I was just hallucinating everything. That still doesn't explain why everyone is here is tied down, or why the light is blue though. Of course, I'm sure the answer is behind me, in the one place I can't see. I try twisting my head but it doesn't work, as I already knew. My stomach is tied down, so I can't sit up, but maybe if I lifted my shoulders up the pain of the restraint digging into my stomach wouldn't be unbearable.

     I silently count down from ten in my head, working up the nerve to do something that I know will be super painful. At one, I lift up my shoulders and turn my head as far as I can behind me. The pain in my stomach is immense, and the restraint digs itself so far into my stomach that I can't breathe. I know I can't do this for much longer, so I look quickly. The wall behind me isn't like the other three. Instead of a wall, there is a dark tinted glass, which could only mean one thing. People are watching us.

     In an instant, I lower my shoulders and scream as loud as I possibly could, hoping to catch the attention of whoever it is that is watching me. I need them to help me, I probably won't survive longer than a day and a half without water, and I really don't want to die just yet. I wait for what feels like an eternity, thinking of nothing but the dryness in my mouth- the yearning for water that I so deeply possess. Is no one there? Surely there has to be someone. Otherwise, what would be the point of the tinted glass? 

     After waiting for a few more minutes, I decide to scream again, even though I know that it will use some of my precious energy and will most likely shave hours off my current lifespan. I inhale deeply and unleash the loudest scream I can muster. "Please, someone! Help! I'm," my voice cracks. "I'm dying." I feel a tear roll down my cheek. I would brush it away, but I can't move. 

     A sudden sound stops me from continuing to feel bad for myself. Footsteps. I'm gonna be okay. I feel my muscles become untensed, and I breathe a sigh of relief. As I hear the footsteps draw closer on my right, I turn my head, hoping to see my savior. I expected to see a middle-aged man or woman in a doctor's coat but instead, I see a boy about my age.  I can't fully make out his features in the unusual blue lighting, but I could clearly see that he was handsome. He has dark blond hair that is slightly curly and sticks up in that perfectly touseled way. His eyes appear to be hazel, but I don't know for sure due to the lighting. He's wearing a white t-shirt, dark blue jeans, and a green and blue plaid shirt. 

     "Can you please help me?" I ask him, but he looks confused. He says something to me but it just sounds like gibberish. I guess we don't speak the same language. I tug on my restraints, trying to nonverbally ask him to untie me. He nods and presses a button on the machine next to me that I had previously assumed was for taking vitals. My restraints instantly vanish. "How did you do that?" I inquire, incredulous. I then remember that he can't understand me. 

     Now that I am not restrained, I sit up, wincing at how much energy that simple action takes. Blackness rims my vision and I fall backward so that I am lying on the cot again. The boy looks concerned then runs back to the tinted glass wall. Is he leaving? Did he satisfy his curiosity, and now he's done? I guess thinking that he could help me was false hope. I close my eyes, wanting to preserve my strength. A couple of minutes later I hear footsteps approaching my cot. After feeling a gentle nudge on my shoulder, I open my eyes and see the boy once again, and this time he's holding a tray with food and water. Water. I muster as much strength as I can and slowly sit up. 

     "Thank you!" I tell the boy, and though he can't understand the language I am speaking, I know that the message was received.  He passes me the glass of water, which appears to be purple. Probably just the light, I guess. I bring the glass to my lips and relish in the sweet, refreshing taste of the water. I finish the entire glass in one gulp, and it is like all the strength is instantly returned to me. After a few minutes, a woman enters the room and the boy goes to greet her. The woman looks to be in her early forties and has long brown hair in a ponytail a couple of inches above the base of her neck. 

     She looks at me in bewilderment, as if I am alien to her. She walks through the maze of cots, all of them filled with sleeping bodies covered in restraints. Once she reaches me, she extends her arm and leaves her fingers hovering a few inches in front of my forehead and says something in a questioning tone. I look at the boy, and he gives a small nod. I trust his judgment, he saved my life when he could have easily just ignored me. I nod at the woman, and she places three fingers in the middle of my forehead. Everything goes black for a second, and when I am able to see again, nothing looks different. 

     "Can you understand me now?" the woman asks, and it's my turn to stare at her in bewilderment. How did she do that? Did she... switch the language in my brain somehow? No, that's not possible. But could it be? Thinking back on it, there are tons of things that I've seen in the last few days that shouldn't be possible. Death's cape and his ability to stop my movements, the glowing sphere that transported me out of the woods, the compass, the way the restraints disappeared, and now this. 

     Maybe there are factors at play here that I couldn't even begin to understand. 

Author's Note: Yay! I finally published another chapter! Sorry for the long wait, I promise I will be quicker in the future! As usual, please vote, share, follow, and comment with your ideas/feedback. If you are so inclined, it would be awesome if you guys could check out some of my other books. "The No Good Gang" is by far my best and favorite work. Also, please don't hesitate to point out any flaws, I will fix them as soon as I can. Thanks for reading! BFN!