The Cell

He rushed home after he got the call. Something urgent had happened, but his mind was a blur. Things hadn't been the same since that dream of running, hiding from the monster... and that had been a few weeks ago.

He watched in the mirror as the bag was packed. He had to do something this time, it was serious. There were threats made that could change the course of people's lives and he had to make sure that didn't happen. The bags were packed, showers taken and he drove to the emergency room. After waiting for an hour and a half they took him back to the room where his girlfriend would be evaluated.

After the nurse came in to take her to get changed he laid there and looked around. The room was a controlled room for flight risks, which made sense because she definitely was a risk. The statements she'd made, the letters, all of it was far too clear. Time passed, as time only can in a white room with no clocks. He looked around to take it in.

The first thing he noticed was the lack of anything on the walls, and the way the screws which held the panels in place were spackled over to prevent anyone from getting to them. There was a plaque which indicated what her (his?) civil rights were. That he was protected from electroshock therapy, that anything he (she?) said could be used in a court to determine mental stability.

The walls were flush with the floor, and there were a great number of steel panels screwed into it. Behind a locked panel was a camera, for observation, and there were only two small windows, one on each door. The doors had no handles, so there was no way out. In the center of the room was a wooden and metal platform which held a thin uncomfortable mattress. He laid down on it.

The ceiling was dotted with flourscent fixtures and one air vent, as well as something which appeared to be a fire extinguisher... however it also looked different. It had a nipple instead of the usual piece of plastic which burns away to release the water. He wondered if this was a method of control but didn't notice any drains on the floors.

He looked at the door and could only imagine who had scraped the paint away. It was dirty near the bottom, as if many people had been here and tried to get out by peeling the door away. Some of the spackel had been removed from the bolts on the wall as well, as if it was believed people without any metal implements could remove the bolts. He closed his eyes to wait for the doctors to bring her back.

Suddenly he opened his eyes and found himself in a pair of scrubs. His clothes had been changed, but he didn't know by whom. The door opened and a doctor came in... The doctor was saying something about how he was here to evaluate his condition and that he'd been through a very traumatic time. He didn't understand, he was here for his girlfriend. He asked the doctor about this, and the doctor looked confused.

"What is your girlfriend's name?"
"Sarah", he said glumly.

The doctor stared back at him and told him that a social worker would be in soon to talk to him. This time when the doctor left he heard the electromagnetic locks engage. He heard muffled words about Sarah. He could hear her voice. He felt his whole world go into freefall. When would he see her again? What was going on here?

As he peered out the window he thought he saw her walking away, but could he be sure?

... to be continued.