Awake

Chapter 1

Dr. Finkle walked quickly for a man his age.

His white coat flapped behind him as we moved down the rows of cryogenic chambers. I inhaled deeply. I loved it. The faint scent of antiseptic and cold metal. I matched his pace, my tablet tucked neatly under my arm.

“This one’s special,” he said without looking at me.

We stopped in front of a reinforced glass chamber. Thin veins of frost rimmed the edges, curling across the surface. Inside, suspended in translucent blue liquid, was Specimen #67589.

I smiled. I loved seeing the specimens in their chambers.

My name is Nova Saintclair. I'm a scientist at Cryo Futures, where thousands of people lay frozen in cryogenic sleep, caught between the lives they left behind and the cures that might one day let them wake up again.

I love what I do, more than anything else in the world. And when I'm not in the lab, I'm home with my cat, Meatball. I'm not the most social person around and prefer my alone time.

The day started as it always did, with Dr. Finkle giving me a rundown on the specimen assigned for awakening. My job was to wake them. Very carefully and very gently. We did this once we believed medical science could finally save them.

I gazed at Specimen #67589.

He was… intact. More than intact. His body was perfect. And what a body it was.

Broad shoulders, defined muscular arms, one of those perfectly chiseled faces you only ever saw on magazine covers. His features were relaxed in stasis, his lashes dark against his pale skin. His dark brown hair floated gracefully in the liquid, creating a halo above his head.

He looked like a model.

I reminded myself to stay professional when my eyes drifted lower.

I had never thought much about the fact that the specimens were naked. But for some reason, my gaze betrayed me and I found myself looking at his penis.

It was… impressive.

“Male,” Dr. Finkle said, tapping the glass with one finger.

No shit.

“Frozen forty years ago. Voluntary cryostasis following diagnosis of a congenital heart defect. Prognosis at the time was terminal.”

I nodded, pulling up the file as he spoke. I wasn’t allowed to know all the personal details about the specimens I awakened. Only what I needed to do my job. Complete confidentiality was part of the process. In fact, I didn't even now the names of my specimens.

I glanced back at the man in the chamber.

“Are we bringing in any family for his awakening?” I asked. It was protocol. Familiar faces could help ease the shock, though it didn’t always work. Forty years changed a face. Sometimes it caused panic, but we were armed and ready, with sedatives in hand.

“His brother is still alive,” Dr. Finkle said. “Managed his interests while he was gone.”

I nodded.

“A cure was finalized last year,” he continued. “Surgical correction combined with regenerative therapy. We notified the brother immediately.”

“And?” I asked. Timing mattered. I wanted his awakening to be perfect, with a family member at his side.

Dr. Finkle snorted. “He said there was no rush.”

I raised a brow. “No rush?”

“Precisely.” He studied the specimen for a moment. “Strange thing to say.”

Oddities mattered in this line of work. And that… was very odd.

“But,” he went on, “the specimen’s wishes were explicit. Full revival upon the availability of a cure. He'll have surgery immediately following his thaw.”

He turned to me. “I’d like you to handle the awakening by yourself this time.”

My stomach dropped.

“M—me?” I croaked.

“You’re more than qualified,” Dr. Finkle said with a smile. “You don’t need supervision anymore.”

His eyes lit up. “Congratulations, Nova.”

Before I could respond, he turned and walked away.

“Wow,” I murmured under my breath. I had never done one alone before, but I had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

I stepped closer, scanning his body again. Up close, I noticed a faint scar near his hairline. I wondered what had caused it. Here he was, a man who went to sleep forty years ago believing the world would wait for him.

“I’m not sure that it did,” I whispered, though he couldn’t hear me.

Not yet.

The specimen’s vault was transferred overnight into Awakening Lab Three. His chamber was now lying horizontal and flat on the floor. The specimens always looked like futuristic aliens lying in their caskets.

I scrubbed in by putting on gloves, a gown, and a mask. My movements were careful but well-practiced. I had done this a hundred times.

I smiled down at him, as he floated in the cold liquid. “You’re the first patient that I will complete this procedure on without supervision.”

I was about to awaken a man who had been frozen since before my parents even met. The thrill of it was what had made me love my job so much.

I initiated the sequence. It usually took five days to fully awaken someone and bring them back to full consciousness.

Day one began.

The thaw was gradual. Preserving tissue integrity required patience. I had to lower the temperature by fractions, then raise it just enough to induce circulation without shocking his system.

I checked on him every few hours. Day one passed smoothly. So did day two. By day three, the ice and water was gone.

What remained was only him.

He lay naked on the examination bed in the temperature-controlled chamber. His skin was no longer blue and was slowly regaining color. Oxygen fed gently into his lungs, his chest rising and falling at a steady pace. Wires monitored his heart rhythm, neural activity, and muscle response.

He looked more human now.

More… vulnerable.

I lingered longer than necessary that evening. I wasn’t sure why. But I examined him carefully. I saw the typical aftereffects of preservation. He had slight muscle loss, though he was still undeniably strong. He must have been incredibly fit before he was frozen.

“I might go home and make lasagna,” I told him quietly. “Not that anyone will be there to eat it with me. Except my cat, Meatball.”

Somehow, over the past few days, I took it upon myself to tell him everything. My life, my routines, even my weekly dinner menu.

Maybe I was lonely.

I lowered the temperature by another degree before sealing the chamber for the night. His vitals were exactly where they should be.

As I stepped away, I thought I saw movement.

A flicker of his finger.

“No way,” I whispered. “It’s too early.”

I turned toward the door.

But the feeling didn’t leave me. I was certain that I had seen it.

Or maybe I was just really tired.

The next morning, I was in the lab again. I'd woken up in an exceptionally good mood today.

I started by putting on my favorite lab coat. Then I'd swept my blonde hair into a neat bun and popped a pair of black glasses over my blue eyes.

It was time to begin day four. The specimen was on the examination table now and no longer required his chamber. He was looking exceptionally well today.

“Hmm,” I shook my head. “You look like you are thawing much faster than you are meant to. In fact… you could almost wake up.”

I circled him, walking around the exam table as I observed him. “Surely not. But I can run some tests to see. You look… very thawed. Too thawed.”

I turned away from the table. My tablet was already in my hands, my thumb hovering over the call button. I needed to let Dr. Finkle know what had happened. I sent a quick message to let him know that I wanted a second opinion on the specimen’s current status, as it appeared that he might wake up earlier than expected.

A hand settled on my shoulder.

Heavy. Icy cold.

I screamed and spun around, the room blurring as my back slammed against the wall.

He was standing.

Right in front of me.

What the fuck?

Perfectly upright. Close enough that I could feel the cold radiating from his skin.

And he was naked.

My eyes flicked downward.

And fully erect.

They always woke up like that.

“You,” he said, his voice cracking.

My body was so tense I felt the room spin.

“You shouldn’t be out of the chamber,” I managed.

He didn’t answer, just stared, his eyes slowly tracing my body. That’s when I noticed his breathing, it was choppy and uneven.

“I’m cold,” he stuttered.

Of course he was. His mind was awake, but his body hadn’t caught up. I forced myself to breathe, to think like a scientist. “You’re not supposed to be mobile yet.”

He didn’t move.

“How long?” he asked.

I hesitated.

“Tell me,” he said.

“Forty years.” I croaked.

He blinked, then stepped closer.

“Cold,” he murmured. "Hungry."

I reached for his wrist instinctively. His skin was frozen against mine. “Come on,” I said softly. “Let’s get you warmed up. I'll also grab some food for you.”

But instead, he pressed closer, his cold body flush against mine.

Then I felt it. His cold, hard erection, pressing into my hip bone.

“Oh,” I laughed nervously.

“Sex,” he muttered.

Then he lowered his mouth to my neck.

And for reasons I didn’t understand yet…

I let him.