by Micah Lally
The buzzer for the washers sounded and Cat moved to transfer the wet fabric into the dryers they had already emptied.
Tulip made an annoyed sound in his throat. “What is with you people? You tell me not to listen to Hyde, but he’s the only one helping any.”
Cat turned to retort, but the words caught in her throat as she looked past him. His back to the door, Tulip felt the familiar prickle of his instincts pulling at his attention. He looked over his shoulder to find Od leaning against the doorframe.
A muscular boy with black hair and a pale face, Od’s mere presence tensed up Tulip’s muscles. Tulip thought he would pass out from the burning stench of bleach as Od stepped up behind him and placed his hands on Tulip’s shoulders. In slow, tight, painful circles, Od dug his thumbs into Tulip’s back as a sort of massage. “Oh, Tulip. So tense. So stressed. Must be having a rough time adjusting, hm?”
Cat’s mouth shut with an audible snap and she turned towards the machines, her movements more robotic and deliberate.
Tulip exhaled in relief when Od pulled away from him. The older kid moved around the table towards Cat. “C’mon, Kitty Cat. Your turn.”
Her eyes trained on the linoleum floor, Cat pressed herself against the giant dryer and raised her arms in defense against his approach. “Od, just leave me alone.”
“Are you always going to be so mean to me? I’m a decent guy, babe. Just ask Star.”
“Star’s an ex-prostitute, so of course she’d find you… appealing.”
“And you?” Od reached a hand out for her face.
Tulip caught his wrist from behind. “I’m pretty sure she’s wondering what venereal disease you have that makes you bathe in bleach each day. I think you should do as she says and leave her alone.”
The two boys stared at each other over a long pause. Tulip sent a silent prayer to whatever god that damned him to this hellhole that Od wouldn’t be able to feel his racing pulse. He could feel that Od’s was as steady as a drum and Tulip fought the urge to swallow.
Brows raised, Od looked at Cat and ran his tongue over his teeth. He pulled his arm from Tulip’s grip and stepped away from the pair. “We’ll talk when we have more privacy, Cat. I feel like we still have a few feelings to sort through.” His gaze fell on Tulip. “Best get to the doctor, Tulip. You’re far too stressed for your own good. Must be all those nightmares about your sister.”
Tulip didn’t breathe until he couldn’t hear Od’s footsteps, and the first breath was a bit too shaky for his liking.
“What did he mean by nightmares?” Cat’s voice was as small as he felt.
He shrugged. “That’s an extremely personal question.”
She pursed her lips and scratched the back of her head. “Listen. Don’t make a habit of doing that. Caring can get you killed here. Stick to yourself, ‘kay?”
Glancing at their finished work, Cat stuck her hands into the pockets of her sweatpants and walked out into the hall.
“You’re welcome,” Tulip called after her. He clenched his fists and felt his jaw moving.
Everyone is so obnoxious. Why can’t anyone just be helpful?
Part Four
Dr. Uno shook his head. “It has been three weeks and you have made no progress, Tulip. I do not understand your resistance. I am trying to help.”
“You’re trying to get me to confess to being a monster,” Tulip said through clenched teeth.
“I want you to accept your true self.”
“Why? What does that do? I’ve already been sentenced to this freaking place for God knows how long. Why should I start admitting things now?”
“I could ask you the same thing. You’re already here. Why not come to terms with being a killer, for the sake of your own sanity?”
“Because I am sane!” Tulip’s voice was a hiss.
Dr. Uno scribbled some notes on his clipboard while Tulip’s face grew hot. The couch was a mess of peelings and open upholstery, so all he could do was dig his cleanly trimmed nails into the cushion. “Who do you even send those to?”
“Red, please join us.”
Tulip blinked at the door with surprise as the thin, blond boy strolled into the office, his hands in his pockets and his eyes on the ceiling.
“Clearly, you refuse to talk to me reasonably. So, perhaps, you will talk to a fellow delinquent. One who has accepted his true self,” Dr. Uno said. He adjusted his thin-framed glasses and moved to a chair in the corner of the room.
Red took his place in the armchair, sighing, and leveled his gaze on Tulip. “Won’t you just admit to wanting to kill?”
“Did you admit to being a sociopath?” Tulip spat back, the betrayal heavy in his voice.
“I am one, so yes.” Red scratched his chin.
Tulip ground his teeth together, searching the other boy’s face for any signs of sympathy. His shoulders wilted after a minute of investigation passed. “What happened to you, Red? I thought you were Hyde’s friend. My friend.”
“I don’t have friends, Tulip. Hyde annoys me the least. You stick to Hyde like glue. Nothing happened to me. You just read into it.”
“You seriously expect me to believe that you haven’t spent the past couple of weeks bonding with me?”
“Why would I bond with a killer?”
Tulip flinched as if Red had stood up and smacked him. “I thought there was no judgment.”
“I also told you that some kids deserve to be sent to Pleasure Island.”
“And I’m one of them?”
“That’s for you to admit.”
Tulip pointed a finger at Dr. Uno. “Why are you playing his puppet, Red? Aren’t you pissed about what he’s doing to us?”
Red sighed and shook his head. “He hasn’t done anything to me. At home, I didn’t care. I got in trouble for being manipulative. Now I know why. And I’m not bothered by being a socio. Here, of all places, it doesn’t matter what I say I am, so long as I say it.”
Lying down across the sofa, Tulip shut his eyes tight enough to see spots. “I don’t understand. Why do I have to lie?”
“You’re not lying. You did kill your sister. That is a fact.”
Tulip shivered, pulling his arms to his chest, a hand clenched at the neck of his shirt.
I did. I killed her.
“But I’m not a murderer,” Tulip whimpered.
The sound of Dr. Uno’s pants ruffling made Tulip peek between his lashes. The man placed a hand on Red, who stood without a word and left the room, hands in his pockets and his eyes on the ceiling.
“I was hoping it wouldn’t have come to this, but you’re forcing my hand,” Dr. Uno said, walking to the wall and pressing a button. “We have to put you back into isolation.”
Adrenaline lit Tulip on fire as he rushed for the exit, a shout of panic and defiance roaring from his throat. When he opened the door, two guards snatched his arms. He fought and flailed, but he was still only fourteen.
“Maybe some time alone will help you reflect, and therefore accept, who you are.” Dr. Uno’s voice faded behind them as the two men dragged Tulip down the hall. The boy dug his heels into the floor, but the sleek surface provided no traction for his escape. Young faces appeared around corners and doorframes to watch the procession, but no one offered any assistance.
By the time he was thrown into the white, sterile, tiny room, Tulip felt dehydrated from the amount of tears he had shed. Though his throat was hoarse, he still had enough air in his lungs to scream like an animal as he threw himself against the locked door.
Part Five
Tulip sensed the activity outside of the room, but after six days without talking to anyone he was having trouble finding any interest in it. It was the sweat rolling down his neck that held his attention. The thin layer of grime on his unwashed arms. The dirt and blood under his nails, ragged from scratching at his knees and head during his not so lucid states.
Even when the door opened and the current of cooled air swallowed him, he just sat on the floor with h
is arms around his legs.
“Get up, bro. Get up!” A dark hand shook him and a brown face appeared before him. “Now’s our chance. I’ve got the keys.”
As if waking up, Tulip’s senses came back to him one by one. His eyes focused on the person before him and he recognized Hyde. Then the blaring screams of alarms attacked his ears. Letting out a moan of shock, Tulip curled tighter into himself.
“Tulip. Get. Up!” Hyde shoved his hands under Tulip’s arms and hoisted him to his feet.
A bit more sober, Tulip squinted outside his prison. “What’s going on?” His voice cracked and he winced.
“Od lost it, man. Went and killed Cat ‘cause she tried to report him for harrassment! Now he’s on a freaking spree. It’s freaking crazy out there.” Hyde pulled a jingling ring from his pocket. “I managed to snag a pair of keys when it first went insane.”
Tulip stared at him with his brows furrowed.
Hyde groaned. “We are getting off this island, bro. Just come on.”
Grabbing Tulip by the hand, Hyde pulled him into the hall. After a second to look both ways, they sprinted down a series of halls.
Panting, Tulip found his own footing and ran on his own. “What if we run into someone?”
“We have this,” Hyde called over his shoulder, patting an aerosol can tied to his waist.
Tulip noticed a kitchen lighter attached to the nozzle and frowned. “You made a flamethrower?”
“Desperate times, bro.”
The pair skidded to a stop at a corner, where Hyde peeked around the corner. “Down this hall and around that second corner leads to the docks. But guess who’s just down that way.”
Tulip shrugged, his eyes tight as the sirens continued to harass him.
“Alright. He’s looking the other way, so I think we should just charge him.” Hyde loosened his weapon and shook the can in preparation. “I’m going to flare this thing the whole way down, so stay right behind me. If he’s smart, he’ll give us enough space to squeeze past him and out.”
Tulip couldn’t answer around his heart in his throat.
Hyde gave him a thumbs up and then threw himself into the open. “Hey, Doc! I think I had a breakthrough!”
A spray of flames blew in front of them, but Tulip was able to see around their barrier. Dr. Uno stood just a few feet in front of the side hall that they were headed for. The man appeared surprised, but he displayed no signs of concern.
“Yeah, man. You were right. I really like fire. I’m such a pyro,” Hyde screamed. He was walking at a fast pace, but Tulip stayed a few steps behind him and the heat. And when an ax-head swung out from the first hall, embedding itself in Hyde’s skull, Tulip leapt back a couple of more paces.
The boy dropped the canister and crumpled to his knees. Od walked out, holding onto the other end of the handle, smiling, and shoved Hyde to the floor. He wrenched the blade from his skull with a sickening squish.
Tulip felt a scream bubble up his throat, but it refused to exit out his open mouth. He swayed, staring at his friend’s lifeless body, and his knees almost gave out. But, as his eyes met Dr. Uno’s cold ones, a jolt of adrenaline shot through his system.
He’s doing nothing. He just watched a boy get cut down, and he’s doing nothing.
The scream of horror in his throat transformed into a roar of outrage before it launched into the open air. Od, still grinning down at Hyde, gave a start in surprise. Before he could react, Tulip launched himself at the boy, tackling him to the floor. The impact loosened Od’s grip of the ax, and Tulip wasted no time seizing it. Without a moment of hesitation, he hefted it above him.
“Die, scum bag!” Tulip’s expression contorted into one of pure rage as he brought the blade down on Od’s face. Blood splattered onto his own and Tulip’s arms shook around his grip of the handle, his breathing ragged and his face hot.
Tulip watched the light die from Od’s eyes. His heart beat against his chest painfully and tears pooled in his eyes. His body burned from adrenaline and energy, and his vision blurred from the euphoria.
This feels… amazing. I’m… free!
Pulling in deep breaths through his nose, he squinted up at Dr. Uno.
The man had not moved from his place. He watched Tulip as if he were a particularly interesting specimen.
Tulip pulled the ax free. “You win. I absolutely, positively, with every fiber of being, want to kill. You.”
The boy stood and stepped towards the doctor before the man pulled his gun from his coat. Tulip froze, his gaze shifting from Dr. Uno to the gun and back.
“Was that so hard?” Dr. Uno asked, his tone flat.
“Not as easy as this.” Red appeared behind the man and stuck a needle in his neck. After two heartbeats, Dr. Uno collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
Tulip stared at Red as the blond boy picked up the handgun. “Where did you—”
“Come on. I’ll need another person to help me get a boat into the water.” Red turned back down the hall. “And leave that.”
His heart still pounding, Tulip dropped the ax and jogged after Red. The two didn’t speak, making it out the facility and to the docks. Only one guard had stayed behind during the lockdown and Red dispatched him with a quick pull of the trigger. Tulip got a warm feeling from stepping on the man’s face. They shoved a small dingy into the choppy, gray waves, and climbed in it wordlessly.
After they had rowed out a good distance, Tulip allowed himself the luxury of looking back at Pleasure Island. Lights glowed from every window of the one story, white building sitting on top of black, wet rocks. He couldn’t tell if the sound of sirens was real or just an echo from his escape.
“You know,” Red said, side eying Tulip. “You’re a really troubled kid.”
Tulip smiled at him.
Red blinked, raised the tranquilizer gun and shot Tulip twice in the chest. “You really do belong on Pleasure Island.”
The End
About the Author
A student at Full Sail University in the Creative Writing for Entertainment program, Micah is a pretty lazy writer. She won't lie about that fact. But when she does write, she dedicates her attention to character development and complete arcs. Her strengths lie within Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Action/Adventure, but you'll probably see a bit of every genre from her. A hardcore fangirl on the low, she reads avidly due to her own obsessions with other people's works. She's a bit of a psychopath with some serious masochistic tendencies, but she'll definitely freak out with you over the latest MCU news or the new season of Supernatural and etc, etc.