chapter 2

I rattled the door hoping it would magically open but I had no luck. I peeked through the windows on the side but all I could see was a tiny sliver of the white hallway. I could hear people walking around making noise but no one seemed to pass my door. 

Defeated, I sat back on the bed, hoping the mysterious yet confident boy would come back. My stomach grumbled and I realized I was hungry. I peered out the window to the other side of me but I could see was a couple trees. Gauging from the direction of the sun, it seemed like it was around lunch time? 

Wow, it had been so long since I had seen my parents. That thought made the rest of my memories from the night come flooding back to me. My dad, I had seen my dad. And he was going along with what the other scientists were doing? Maybe this was what he had been doing every time he had to “work late”. 

Why had they chosen me for some procedure that probably wasn’t even safe? I mean sure, I was on the varsity cross country and basketball teams, but that wasn’t that hard to accomplish. Whoever these people were could’ve picked anyone else on my team- or anyone else in the state for that matter. 

I played down and put my head on the pillow, day dreaming about what was to come after the “procedure”. I might be faster and stronger and finally become the team captain. 

This might not be so bad after all…

My thoughts were interrupted by the door quickly being opened. In came the young scientist. He had a tray of food in his hands which did not look appealing at all. On it was too-smashed mashed potatoes, uber liquid-y green beans and pink chicken. Gross. He slipped a bar out of his lab coat and handed it to me. 

“Here, we can split this. The food is disgusting here and I didn’t have a chance to leave and grab some decent food.”

Oh, what I would do for a sandwich from Arby’s, I thought.

He sat down on the other side of the bed and gave me half of the Nutrigrain bar. We silently munched on it and I realized he might be my only friend in this place. Just as I was going to introduce myself, the door swung open again and the familiar woman scientist came through. This time, she was wearing a name tag which said Dr. Walker. 

“Will! Get out of here! I told you not to come in here unless you have permission. And she needs to rest. And Layla is going to have a big day tomorrow.”

Will, I thought. I like that name. 

“Bye,” he mumbled. “See you later.”

Will didn’t seem so confident anymore. He half-stumbled to the door where the doctor led him out, her hand on his back. What was his connection with her? His mom? Aunt?

All of these questions were draining my mental health and I was becoming more exhausted by the minute. Wait a second, I stood up and yanked out the bobby pin in my hair, annoyed that I had just thought of this idea. I sauntered over to the plain white door and examined the lock. It looked exactly alike the doors I used to pick at my house. 

My sister Callie had taught me how to pick locks at a young age so we could sneak into rooms. It was especially helpful the day before Christmas when we wanted to see what presents there were She always made me do it because my parents would be less mad if I was the one who got in trouble.

A couple years later I took my acquired skills outside the home. I became an introvert in middle school and snuck into different buildings around town- generally run down and unnoticeable. My parents never cared; though it was probably because they didn't realize I was gone. They were always too busy at work to come home and see I wasn’t there. 

Until… someone else starting taking over my secret hiding place. I remember distinctly in eighth grade I was reading Atlas Shrugged, sitting on the steps to the bell tower. I had started to shiver from the bitter wind but I had just gotten to a good part in my book. The sun was starting set, about 6 o’clock. The cement beneath me started to feel chilly and it was making my skirt dirty from all the rocks but I didn’t care. I was content in my own little bubble reading my favorite classic. 

All of a sudden I heard a rustle next to me and I whipped my head around. I couldn’t see anyone or anything so I continued looking down at my book, listening intently for more sounds. A muffled “shoot” came from behind the bushes and a tripping boy. He corrected himself and stood up straight. He coughed and muttered, “Hey.” 

“Um, what are you d-doing here?” I stuttered. “How do you know about this place?”

“You don’t own this place,” he said, seeming less shy than before.

“Okay, uh, do whatever you want I guess.” I glanced down and pretended to read while I forced my face to go back to its normal color from beet red. 

His face softened at my genuine timidness and sat down right next to me. “What’cha reading?” he asked. 

I shut the book and showed him the cover, daring not to say anything else. Confrontation wasn’t really my thing, especially when I was in middle school.

“Huh, never heard of that,” he said, with authentic interest.

“I can lend it to you when I’m finished,” I half-whispered. 

“I guess that means I have to let you read on of MY books…,” he thought for a second. “I’ve got it! My favorite book right now is The Princess Bride.”

Well that caught my attention. A boy… liking The Princess Bride?? Not that there was anything wrong with it- I’d just never heard of it before. 

I think his taste in books was the reason we had a connection in the first place. I had no idea why, but it drew me toward him on the steps of the bell tower that very Monday.

His phone rang right before I could answer him and his face fell. 

“It’s my mom,” he sighed. He picked up the phone, a rusty flip phone I noticed, and not an iPhone like the rest of the world. “I gotta go. See you later Layla.” He winked and then walked off with his book bag on one shoulder. I wondered why he knew mine if we hadn’t even met. 

“Wait, I didn’t even catch your name, “ I called out. But it was no use; he was gone.

I willed my mind to come back to the present and looked down at the skinny bobby pin in my hand. Hopefully I could use it to break out of this lab room and go back to my normal life- one that didn’t feel like it was straight out of a science fiction film.

I jiggled it into the lock but it held firm against me. I twisted it around, willing it to catch on the inside and unlock. Finally, I felt the doorknob turning and it swung open. 

All of the hard work with Callie finally paid off. I glanced down both sides of the hallway, checked the hanging clock (it was 2:30 p.m. by then), and sprinted out of the room toward the exit sign on the right.

Author's Note

i'm accepting all criticism
how are the descriptions? especially of the characters?
do you like the flashbacks? too long?
should I incorporate more of the boy she meets by the bell tower?

Reviews

[matrixmark]

Tense opening - always another good hook to get the reader involved in this story. I'm loving the build up twards finding out about these scientists - its most certainly gotten me intrigued. Its's good that you just hint about them and keep the reader guessing of what they are all really about.
Will definately seems to have a blood connection to the doctor...but what conneciton? more intrigue.
When you wrote about her thoughts, I rally thought you executed it with style and it worked really well. It was good to see the girls background being put in here -becuase you mentioned her reading Atlas shrugged, it does make me think whether we will see her love of books come into play at a later chapter or it might be just me over thinking it - either way it was an intresting addition to the chapter.
I can't really fault you grammar wise, and this chapter has a solid structure to it.
The scientists are playing on my mind as I want to know what is ging to happen next - BUT that is always a good sign of a good writer- keep them waiting on for more.

Regarding the boy at the bell tower - only you can answer that question as only you know what other part he is going to play in the book if any at all. Personally I thought the passage was just enough for it to stick in the mind of the reader without writing anymore.
Mark.