Untitled chapter
“In the beginning, there was you; and in the end, there will only be you.”
I could hear the screaming from down the hall as they walked me to my new room. The walls around us seemed to shudder. My bare feet were soundless against the stone floor.
“Here we are,” the nurse said cheerily, opening the large metal door for me. It had a single double-paned glass window, and a slot in the middle that only opened from the outside; for food, I assumed. Inside was a simple cot, a small stack of books, and a pail in the corner. There were no windows to the outside. “Oh, I know it doesn’t look like much.”
I could feel my lips curling in disgust.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be able to get more things for your room over time. You just have to go through some initial evaluations; we need to know that you won’t try to hurt yourself.” She ushered me inside while the two wardens stood outside the door.
The white linen they had dressed me in was itchy. I scratched at my arm involuntarily. Though it was such a small gesture, the nurse took notice.
“Ah, no scratching, my dear. We’ll have to cover your hands if you keep that up.” She unfolded the blanket that was on the cot and laid it out, then fluffed the pillow - as best as one can fluff a limp and lifeless pillow. “Well then, we had better let you get settled. Just give a shout if you need something.”
As if on cue, someone screamed from down the hall.
“Oh! I guess duty calls.” She hurried away with a smile, shutting the heavy door.
The sudden silence was oppressive, squeezing in around me, as if to suffocate. In an effort to not immediately lose my sanity, I snatched up a book from the pile. It was a children’s book of nursery rhymes. I grabbed the next. Another children’s book, this one mainly pictures, identifying different types of animals. I looked through the rest; they were all children’s books. I sighed. Of course they wouldn’t want us reading anything that would make us think. Thinking is dangerous. Thinking is dangerous. Thinking is…
I clapped my hands over my ears and bowed my head, willing the echoes to stop. I laid down on my side, clutching my knees to my chest. Another scream filled the hall, though it was muffled by the metal box that surrounded me. It was going to be a long, sleepless night.
