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He was laying in the bed, as still as he possibly could. Nick decided this was his best defense in escaping the demons that were haunting him. He had pulled the blankets up close to his neck; the top cover stretched over his head. Although he was covered up, he could still monitor who or what would be in his room through the holes in the loose weave of the pale blue thermal blanket.

The door to the room hissed open and Nick stared at the door through his peephole, holding his breath so that whoever or whatever would be entering the room wouldn’t see him.

A young woman with chestnut colored shoulder length hair pushing a small typewriter sized device entered the room. She was dressed in blue scrubs and long lab coat. The glasses that were perched on her nose dictated that this person had a business only air about her.

Through the safety of underneath the blankets, Nick watched her look around the room. Maybe she didn’t see him!

“Mr. Carter, I know you’re awake under there.”

White spots were floating in front of his eyes, compliments of his brain being deprived of life giving oxygen and Nick let his breath out in a loud gasp. The woman reached up for the blanket, trying to pull it from his face, but he maintained his grip and it became a tug of war.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of Mr. Carter,” the young woman coaxed as he took a stronger pull and finally managed to get the blanket away from Nicks hold. “I’m Alicia from Neuro. Your doctor has ordered an EEG---“

“EEG?” Nick questioned as his eyes went from the woman to the cart that was beside her.

“Don’t worry, its nothing that’s going to hurt you.”

“What’s an EEG?”

“It’s a test to measure your brain waves—“

Folding his arms across his chest, Nick sighed. “I’m not crazy.”

“I didn’t say you were.”

He watched as Alicia pulled wires from a compartment on the box. “They seem to think I am. “

“Who is they?”

“Everyone.”

“Oh.”

“You think that too, don’t you?”

Alicia stopped her task for a moment. “I’m not here to make any assumptions on your mental status Mr. Carter, I’m just trying to do my job.”

“So you think I’m psycho then.”

When Nick saw the woman’s shoulders sag, he knew he had pushed her too far and probably pissed her off. She held the same body language that Kevin had when he got tired of answering his endless questions about anything and everything.

“I need you to hold still so I can put the electrodes onto your scalp,” she stated in a crisp voice.

Gritting his teeth, Nick sat still for the woman, wishing he could jump out of the bed and put distance from her and this place, where ever the hell he was. “Where am I again?”

“Sh-h-h, just hold still wouldja?” As he reached up to touch one of the wires, the woman swatted Nick’s hand away. “Don’t touch! You’ll mess everything up!”

As Alicia turned on the machine, Nick watched with mild interest as she typed in his name and birthdate and patient number. Paper slowly spewed out as deep black lines danced over the graph. She quickly adjusted the shades on the window to block out the street lights that filtered into the room and walked across the room and turned off the lights.

The room was dark, the only light was a soft blue glow from the screen on the EEG machine. I want you to close your eyes and rest. “Don’t speak, keep your mind clear and try not to move. This test needs to be accurate, she directed in a soft whisper.”

“Great,” Nick thought to himself. “Now she tells me to stay still, this is gonna be--"

“I said to close your eyes and rest! Don’t let your mind wander!”

Nick jerked at her harsh words and quickly squeezed his eyes shut. He didn’t want to risk pissing the woman off more than he already had.


*~*~*~*~*~*
“Brian, you’re gonna wear the carpet out,” Kevin sighed as he watched his cousin pace the floor in the private waiting room.

As Howie shifted his frame on the vinyl couch, all eyes quickly focused on red faced Latino.

“It was the couch... I swear!”

AJ cocked a sly grin. “Sure it was.”

“It was!” Howie defended, trying to make the sound again but failing in his attempts, different octaves singing out with each move he made.

“Knock it off! You’re making me sick!” Kevin hissed as he rubbed his temples.

Using Howie’s shoulder as a lever, AJ pushed his body off the couch, feeling his shirt pockets. “I’m going out for a smoke.”

“Why don’t you quit smoking? It’s a disgusting habit,” Howie mumbled.

AJ lowered the shades from his eyes. “And why don’t you stop shitting your pants? That’s a sick---“

“I said it wasn’t me!”

“SHUT UP!”

Howie, Kevin and AJ jumped when Brian shouted, directing their attention to the young man whose face look like it had aged ten years in the last twenty-four hours. “Our little brother is down the hall and no one knows what’s happening to him and all you guys can do is bicker and insult each other!”

No one spoke; the silence hung in the air like a thick blanket.


*~*~*~*~*
Alicia tried to find a comfortable position in the hard, plastic chair as she watched the EEG monitor. Her patient had finally fallen asleep and up to this point the waves were symmetrical and typical for a man of twenty-two. His breathing pattern was slow, even and soft snores broke into the silence of the room.

Her own thoughts started to wander as she watched the soft peaks fall and then rise on the graph. Suddenly her patient’s cries shook her from the peacefulness of her self absorbed thoughts.

“GET AWAY FROM ME..... GET OFF OF ME..... LET GO!”

The peaks were rising sharply on the paper and the machine sounded like it was going to overheat with the activity from his brain waves. Her job was to observe and not intervene during the test but when the heart monitors started ringing, a flood of nurses dressed in scrubs raced into the room.

Alicia could only watch as Nick thrashed restlessly in bed, his eyes wild with fear. His screams sounded like they were coming from the depths of his soul.

Something was out there, something had him in its grip and wasn't releasing him.