The Hallucinations of the Insane

     "In a mad world, only the  mad are sane." -Akira Kurosawa

   The bus stop on a Tuesday evening was terribly dull, and to make matters worse, it was pouring rain. Idiot. If you had only gone home with your b***h of a friend like you were supposed to...I thought, but shook it away. I wouldn't have been able to stand that tension in the long car ride home. Besides, a little rain won't kill me. Though it was starting to soak through my favorite pair of converse. I sighed, and took out my yellow umbrella. Opening it up, it provided cover for my ruined hair. This was turning out to be a terrible evening.
    I sighed and sat down on the hard bench. That's when it happened.

           I was still on the same bench. But this wasn't the same as before. It stopped raining, and nighttime. No one was around, except for a dirty bum sucking on a cigar. I looked up at the shop his was leaning against. The Flying Bird Bookstore. I didn't want to be out here in the dark, so I decided to go inside. The handle was made of brass, and in the shape of a dragon. I tugged on it, and went inside.
        At the counter there was an old looking Chinese man. I nodded hello at him, then went exploring in the shop. There was rows and rows of bookcases, all stuffed with all shapes and sizes of books I had never even heard of. I pulled one at random. The Hallucinations of the Insane, the title read. How charming. I put it back. I began walking again, but I stopped when I saw a man at the end of the aisle. He looked around 20, a stubble beard, and a large cloak. His black hair partly covered his brown eyes. He had glittering white teeth. He put a finger to his lips, then disappeared. Then I woke up. 

      My eyes fluttered open, and I sat up straight. I was laying on the bench. I must've fallen asleep. I looked behind me. There was no bum, and the bookstore was now a chinese restaurant. Huh. That was weird. The bus pulled up to the stop. In a daze, I fumbled for my ticket, presented it to him, then climbed on. There was only two other people on it. A scary looking dude with a green mohawk, lip piercing, and black fingernails. And an old lady who looked like she couldn't even walk onto a bus. I tentatively sat down in the back.  I rested my head against the window, and felt the coldness on my forehead.
      I glanced at the bus driver. I saw his finger twitch on the wheel. Then his arm had a spasm. I raised an eyebrow. Soon, his whole body was convulsing. Fluid leaked from his mouth, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head.
      "Hey! I think he's having a seizure!" I shouted, and the passengers looked. The bus driver fell to the floor, unconscious. No one could react, before the bus crashed into a nearby limousine.  The windows shattered, and both vehicles slammed into a brick building. I was jerked forward. The bus flipped, and everyone was thrown upside down. I was screaming for my life, and hung on to the top bars. My fingers were slipping. The scary punk guy reached his hand out, and I gripped it tightly. It was a bit sweaty, but it kept me from falling to my death. The old lady was thrown out of the bus, and she landed on the hard road. I did a desperate cry for her.
         The bus finally turned right side-up. I landed on the floor with a thump. A heard an ambulance wail in the distance. But all I wanted to do was sleep. So, tired....

        I was in a restaurant this time. A fancy one. People in dresses and monocles were chatting, like a flock of birds. I watched at they sipped their wine in the candlelight. I was in a waitress outfit. I untied the apron, and put down the pile of menus on a nearby counter. I went into the lobby, were eager costumers were patiently waiting to be seated. I looked at the glass coffee table to the side of the room. It had a book on it. I went over to read the title. The Hallucinations of the Insane, it read. Okay....the same book. Odd. I picked it up and cracked open the cover. On the first page, in big black letters, it read:
             You are insane.
     Curious, I flipped the page. This time, it read:
            This is a hallucination.
     The next page:
                  wake up.
      and I did.


       I heard the sound of beeping monitors, and I felt pressure in my lungs. I cracked open my eyelid, then the other. I was in a hospital, that was obvious. I had tubes coming out of everywhere. My leg was being held up by some lever thing, and it felt numb.
       "Hello?" I called out, and my voice sounded cracked and swollen. A doctor appeared out of nowhere, with a clipboard in hand. He seemed pretty young for a doctor, around 20, a stubble beard, and his black hair partly covered his brown eyes. He smiled, showing glittering white teeth.
       "Hello, Lisa. How are you feeling?" he asked.
       "How did you know my name?" I asked curiously.
       "Your wallet had a student I.D. in it." he explained.
       "You looked through my wallet?" I asked, embarressed.
       "Well, yes. We do need a name to put on your hospital form." he explained again.
        "Oh."
        "Mhm. So, how are you feeling?" he asked. I payed attention to how my body felt, but I didn't feel anything.
        "Okay I guess. Why is my leg up?" I asked.
        "You broke it." he said, almost apologetically.
        "Oh. What happened?" I asked.
        "You were in a bus crash." he said quietly. Then it all came back. The bus stop, the bus driver's seizure, the limo, the old lady being thrown, the punk guy saving me, and.....the hallucinations. That restaurant, and bookstore. The book. I remembered it all.
         "Oh my, god. The bus driver? Is he okay? And the old lady?" I asked.
         "They're all fine. The bus driver suffered minor injuries, and the senior lady has to have her hip replaced, but other than that, she's fine." He said, smiling. I sighed with relief.
         "Oh. But I have to get home. My mom will be worried, and I have so much homework to do, and, and, and-" I rambled. the doctor put his finger to his lips. And I remembered.
         "You must rest now." He said. But I wasn't listening.
         "You." I whispered.
         "Me?" He asked, suprised.
         "Yes, you, Your the guy in my hallucination. Who disappeared. Why didn't I see it before? What are you doing here?" I demanded, my voice getting louder and raw.
          "I didn't do anything." He said,  but I could see fear glint in his eyes. y teeth ground together. My hands fumbled around, until I found a book. It would have to do. I chucked it at his head. But before it could hit him, he put his fingers to his lips, and disappeared. I swore. Then I saw the book's title. the Hallucinations of the Insane. I screamed. And I woke up once again.




       "LEAVE ME ALONE, LEAVE ME ALONE!" I yelled. The nurse shook my shoulders.
       "Honey, wake up! Your having a nightmare!" She said into my ear. I opened my eyes. In front of my was a nurse with bright pink hair. I blinked. My leg was up, and tubes were attached to me.
       "What happened?"
       "You were in a bus crash, and-" the nurse began, but I rudely cut her off.
       "Yeah, yeah. I know. But the doctor, and the book-"I said, but my tongue twisted and I couldn't speak. The nurse started humming.
       "Rest, sweat-heart. Your mother is picking you up, and you can go home." she said, and I obeyed.



       I woke up in my room, with a candle lit. My foot was elevated on a pillow, and tied in a cast. I looked at the clock. 2:04 am. What a weird night this had been. I looked on my nightstand. There was a book, with a sticky note on it. The Hallucinations of the Insane. The note read:


        Lisa-

    They found this with your things in the crash. It was from the Flying Bird Bookstore. I didn't know you went there with your friend. Rest, feel better.
                   Love, Mom.

         My head swirled with questions on what happened that night. But I didn't care. I blew out the candle, and dreamed, knowing fully well that I was completely insane.
       
      

Author's Note

Yeah, if you'd ever watched House, you'd know where the inspiration came from. Was the whole thing confusing? Don't ponder it. It is what it is.

Reviews

[The_Dreamer]

Confusing, but nice!

[Emily]

I could definitly see the inspiration from House and I didnt find it confusing at all. Lol I wonder if that means I'm insane? Either way it was a great story and the only mistake I saw was that the paragragh that starts "I didnt do anything" theres a my missing an m.
-Emily

[♪GetUse2MyMelodie..]

My head is spinning and all I can do is gap at this page...the end was so creepy...I was so confused while reading and the whole time I was thinking I wouldn't be towards the end but really I'm even more confused then before...haha whoa

[Bella-Marie]

Quite confusing. But I did like it a lot! Interesting storyline, I liked the way everything seemed to flow but stop at the same tme... excellento!

[Hannah]

Heh, that made me feel almost sane in comparison. Fun reading, I've seen this kind of thing before but I like how you pulled it off. The jerky, uneven turn of events creates a dreamlike feel, and your descriptions make the world seems less solid and reliable. All in all, nice piece ^-^