8/5/12

Emotional Wasteland

I could get accustomed to being woken up by that dim glow.
"Wakey wakey, sleepyhead"
"Yeah yeah, give me a break" I murmured, still sleepy.
I got out of bed and sat in the middle of the room next to her.
"So, any news?"
"Not much really, the usual ghost stuff"
My stomach roared fiercely. I hadnt had anything to eat in a long time, so it wasnt surprising.
She gave me a confused look.
"I havent had anything solid to eat in some time, you see, have been sleeping all day long"
"Oh, i see..."
"Would it bother you if i had breakfast while being with you?"
"No, not at all, please, i am the intruder, you shouldnt worry about me"
"But i do,mind lending me a hand?"
"How?"
"Just follow me, with your glow it will be much easier to locate the tray with food"
"So, you are imprisoned here, yet they care for you and feed you?"
"Yeah, strange, isnt it?"
"I guess..."
We searched the room for the missing tray. It was in the far end corner of the room, fruits, bread and water in it.
I took a big bite off an apple.
"Hmm, juicy"
She looked down.
Maybe i shouldnt have made that comment, she couldnt enjoy the taste of the apple and i should have known better.
"Sorry"
"There is nothing to be sorry about"
We remained silent while i finished the apple with quick bites.
"Oh, by the way, may i ask you a favor?"
"Tell me"
"Could you tell me what is happening in the outside world?"
"uhhh... i dont know..."
"Why not? Please tell me, i have been locked in the dark for months now, I need to know what is going on outside. Besides, i dont know when they will release me, so it could eventually help me to know what is happening so it wont be that much of a shock once Im free"
"You may be right... how could i put this..."
"Is it really that bad?"
"Well, i dont know, how were things right before they locked you up in here?"
"Uh" i didnt really know. I hadnt cared about what happened in the outside world when i had the chance to care about it.
I searched in the back of my mind for bits of information related to the worlds situation back when i was free.
The situation wasnt too bad, sure the world economy was going through a rough phase, but everybody was confident that, with the proper economic policies, the situation would stabilize and everything would turn to normal in no time.
There were minor wars around the globe, nothing unusual, people who were hungry, people who were suffering.
I told her what little i could remember about how i viewed the world, she listened and then remained silent for a minuto or two.
"Lets say... the world has changed..." she began "quite much actually... what year do you think it is?"
That question caught me off guard.
"What do you mean?"
"Well..." she looked down as if searching for the proper words "time may have passed... it could well be that it isnt the year you think it to be"
I couldnt really say anything...
"As far as i can tell... its either 2012 or 2013... i dont really know how much i have been kept in here, so..."
She looked up, sadness reflected in her tearing eyes.
"What is it? What year is it? I need to know now!"
"Its... 2024 already..."
The look on my face must have been quite shocking at that time.
Emotions i thought long gone came back to me.
Longing for the few people i knew, for my family, for my friends. What had happened to them?
"It cant be..." was all i said.
"But it is..." she answered, pity in her voice.
I slumped on the floor and lay still.
She lay down next to me.
Despite her condition, it conforted me to know she was with me. She couldnt touch me, but i felt as if she held my hand.
I dont exactly know when i did, but i fell asleep.
She probably left some time later, still, the thought of her kept me sane, her company, whatever she could tell me.
*Are you going to make a habit out of it?*
"What?"
*Sleeping on the floor instead of in bed*
"Who knows... better to sleep on a floor than on a barren wasteland for instance?"

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