WALKAWAY

Blackness. The fuzzy return to consciousness after being asleep. The darkness which should go away when you open your eyes. That quasi darkness when you don’t want to open your eyes. The room must be bright. You open your eyes and the shock of bright lights. Shock. The shocks!

Mark bolted upright. He looked around. He was in a bed. Sterile plain surroundings must mean hospital. “Where am I?”

A woman was there. Momma Robin. Stupid name. She tried to be reassuring. He didn’t hear the words, just the tone. She kept talking. Words broke through as she touched his arm. He flinched away and then stopped flinching. He was sore. Every muscle was sore.

“You’re going to be ok.”

“What the hell happened?” He finally got the words out.

“There was a malfunction with your capsule.”

He shuddered again. It was painful. Her light stroking of his arm felt good, but it didn’t counteract the soreness. It didn’t counteract the memory. He flinched again as he remembered the shocks.

Again he looked around. A nurse was there. Or was she a doctor? No lab coat, just scrubs, it must be a nurse. She was writing stuff down on a tablet.

“A lot of people want to see you,” Momma Robin said.

“I don’t want to see them.” He spied what he was looking for- his pants.

Momma Robin’s voice was soothing. No wonder they call her “Momma”. She spoke again, “Everybody was worried about you.”

Mark snorted in reply.

“Really, they are.”

“If anybody was worried about me they would have gotten me the hell out of there sooner.” He looked her in the eyes. “Or not put me in a dam broken capsule to start with.”

The nurse spoke for the first time. “It’s my understanding it broke while you were in it.”

Both Momma Robin and Mark looked at her. Momma Robin was not happy. The nurse looked back down to her tablet. Mark answered. “I suppose that’s a plus.”

He swung his legs down out of the sheets and off the bed. “Wait!” Momma Robin said, gently trying to keep him from turning. He put his legs down on the other side of the bed, away from her. Momma Robin glared over to the nurse like she expected the nurse to do something. The nurse had been looking at her tablet. She started to move towards Mark once she saw what was going on.

“I want to put some pants on. I’m tired of being half naked,” he looked down, “or fully naked.” Momma Robin and the nurse were both next to him.

“Mark, you might not be strong enough to get up. Let’s get your strength up a bit first.”

“you said people were coming to see me.” He tilted his head to the side slightly. “And I see you’re not in your underwear.”

Momma Robin gave him a wry smile. “I was, they were cute too. I bought them special for this, but wandering around the complex,” her voice trailed off and she smiled at him. “I get it.”

Momma Robin grabbed his pants. Between the three of them they got him dressed. He spasamed a couple of times. The pain and soreness were real, this was not a game. He was stiff as a board. Finally he was standing on his own two feet. The women were closeby. His eyes were closed as he breathed away the pain.

“Mark, are you ok?” That’s Angie’s voice. A voice I never want to hear again.

“I’m out!” He wasn’t loud, but he was firm. He opened his eyes and started for the door. It would mean he had to pass her, but it was better than being trapped like a rat.

“You can’t” it was the nurse.

“Mark, no” it was Momma Robin.

“I’m sorry,” it was Angie.

“I’m out,” Mark said again. He strided as best he could. Each step was agony, but the fires of hell won’t stop me. I guess the devil himself could.

As he reached the door another man started to come into the room. Mark strode right past him without saying a word.

Mark didn’t see the look on Angie’s face. He didn’t see the man put up a hand to stop her as she tried to follow him. HE just went down the corridor to find the exit of the hospital. As he followed the exit signs he realized he wasn’t in a hospital. That f’n devil center. The devil himself wouldn’t stop me.

Mark left the building.