Immersion

Short story.

My vision was finally coming back. It’s a weird feeling, waking up that is. Kind of reminds me of a computer rebooting. All of the data and software comes back online. I stirred around in bed trying to make something of what happened… last night. An image of my girlfriend surfaced as I rested my head on the pillow and shut my eyes.The picture was murky with little to see. But what I could see, was her long blonde hair and her sensitive empathetic gaze.

“Laura!” I shouted. “Where’s Laura?!” I jumped out of the bed and circled the room. Where was I anyway? How’d I end here? I searched the apartment to find no other signs of life.  Someone left the TV on all night. I looked in the kitchen for something to eat. My stomach felt like it had not been filled in a month. “And in today’s news…” Ugh. The news. There’s nothing positive on the news these days.

    

I slowly moved to change the channel. “Twenty-three year old Laura Strisand was involved in a hit and run that ended her life later that night. If you have any information on the perpetrator please call” And on the screen was a picture of my girlfriend smiling in content. Now she’s gone… My heart was moving so fast, I was waiting for it to come out of my chest. I sat on the couch with my hands cupped together. “Laura, no.” Warm tears began to run down my cold moist skin. Ten minutes rolled by and I got up to use the bathroom. As I went in I noticed the mirror above the sink.

A frail man in his late twenties, with stress marks and 5 o’clock shadow stared back. I closed my eyes for a second and reopened them. Looking in the mirror again I realized I wasn’t alone in the bathroom. “Eric…” I saw the same woman on the TV screen, but she looked different.

Her face was warped beyond the perception of reality. Her mouth and cheek bones extended to back of her ears revealing a horrendous smile. Laura stood behind me in the bathroom. I wanted her back, but not like this. “You said you wouldn’t drink again honey…” She spoke in a paper thin whisper. My whole body began to quake. It was me that hit her. I walked away from the mirror and when back into the bedroom. Under the pillow was a 9 mill. The muzzle rested on the tip of my tongue.

                               ****

Eric lays in a white bed with all various wires and machines rooted to his body. 3 scientists surround him and watch the heart rate monitor dip and then flat line from window behind the room. One of the males carried a clipboard, noting the time of death. “We aren’t quite there gentleman. With some more tests, we should be close to a final product.”

Reviews

[wu]

Good story. The ending seemed a bit rushed, but the twist was good. I would definitely read more from this author.