Accidental Awakening

by Damien Benoit-Ledoux

  Quinn nodded, playing at remembering something. “You're right, we didn’t fall. I remember getting on the ground because I didn’t want to fall down,” Quinn clarified.

  “And I knelt down next to him to help, but when I got dizzy, I laid down.”

  Victor swirled his tongue around his mouth and took a deep breath. “You were found close to each other, and Blake you had your hand on Quinn’s arm. So, that story makes sense to me.”

  Thank goodness.

  “However,” Victor continued, “Quinn, your parents did not report any symptoms of food poisoning such as nausea, dizziness, diarrhea, or syncope.”

  “Or what?” Quinn asked, unfamiliar with the last term.

  “Passing out.”

  “Oh.”

  “I don’t know what else to tell you,” Blake said. “I do want to know why we’re both restrained and why we can’t see our parents. That seems a bit…extreme to me.”

  “You’re lying,” Quinn said sharply.

  “I am?” Victor said, astonished.

  “Yeah. The doctor told us they had to defibrillate us, twice. They also had to innovate us so we could breathe.”

  “I think you mean intubate,” Victor interjected.

  Quinn nodded. “Yeah, that. We’ve also been here three or four days which means something happened to us.”

  “Ah, yes, apologies. It’s all a matter of perspective, I suppose. You weren’t treated for anything because you were resuscitated after you both went into cardiac arrest shortly after arriving in the E.R. The defibrillators reacted strangely, which is why I was called in.”

  “And you were called in because…” Blake asked.

  “I’m a local scientist and technical expert of sorts. I also love strange phenomena. When something strange or unusual happens, I get called in as the resident paranormal expert.”

  “With the armed guards outside the room, too?” Blake said, challenging the obvious lie Victor was feeding them.

  “A precaution, to be sure. When the defibrillators fired, a bright blast of energy exploded between the two of you.” Victor put his feet down and leaned forward. “I don’t know about you, but I find that very strange and unusual.”

  “You’re not going to tell us you see dead people and this is really the plot of The Sixth Sense, right?” Quinn asked.

  Victor burst out laughing and slapped his right hand on his thigh. “No, of course not.” He clapped his hands and regained his composure. “Wow, I’ve never heard that one before. That was great. You’re funny, Quinn.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Speaking of strange and unusual, it’s time for another test.”

  Quinn and Blake looked at each other and shrugged. He walked over to the counter space across from their beds and picked up a metal box with several silver rods sticking out from—the way Victor held it—the top of it. Quinn was about to ask him what it was, but Victor cut him off.

  “So, you boys don’t remember the thunderstorm Sunday morning?”

  Quinn and Blake looked at each other again, then shook their heads.

  “What?” Quinn asked.

  “There was a crazy storm Saturday night that knocked down all those trees we were following,” Blake stated.

  “There were several storms that night,” Victor said. “You don’t remember?”

  “There was one,” Blake said.

  Victor shook his head. “There were three. Only one tracked over the campground.”

  “Wouldn’t we have heard the other thunderstorms?”

  “Do you sleep through thunderstorms at home?” Victor asked. He aimed the silver rods of the device at Blake, then swung it toward Quinn, who furled his eyebrows with concern and confusion.

  “Yeah, I do. What is that thing?” Blake asked.

  “Maybe you slept through the other storms, then. Sunday morning, a non-threatening thunderhead rolled through as the humidity increased. It was mainly heat-lightning, which is of course difficult to see in the bright morning sunlight. Still, you should have noticed the lack of sun in the woods, you know, with the cloud-cover and the natural darkness from tree shadows.” Victor stepped between their beds and pointed the device at Blake, who made a face at it.

  “I asked you what that was,” Blake said, irritated.

  “Oh, this little thing?” Victor asked, raising it a little. “This detects electrical currents in organic tissue.”

  “So, I’m electrical now?” Blake asked.

  Victor chuckled. “Of course. You were electrical before and you are electrical now. Human beings—and all animals, for that matter—are fascinating electrical organisms. Your brain sends and receives thousands of electrical signals every day. If we weren’t electrical, a Taser would be ineffective.”

  He has a point.

  Victor swung the device over to Quinn. “I think, filling in the gaps of your story and corroborating it with the unusual atmospheric conditions, you might have been close to a lightning strike that adversely affected you.”

  “We got struck by lightning?” Quinn exclaimed, trying to sit up again. The restraints held him back. Dammit, these are annoying.

  “No, not struck by, but it’s possible you were very close to one that obviously affected you.”

  Victor lowered the device and smiled. “All right, boys. I’m going to give you a little time to relax. You’ve been through a lot, so try to rest. I’m sure I won’t be the first person to tell you that today.”

  “But…” Quinn said.

  “I’ll be back, I promise,” Victor said, raising an open palm to silence Quinn. “I need to check-in right now. Rest up.” Then he set the device on the counter and headed out of the room.

  Quinn watched the door shut behind him, then he turned to his best friend. “He’s lying to us,” Quinn said.

  “We’re lying to him,” Blake countered.

  Quinn looked at his shackled wrists and the leather cuff restraints that held him them place. A similar set of cuffs held his ankles in place; each were connected by a strap that ran under his body. Any attempt to pull himself up used his own body weight against him. “We shouldn’t be restrained like this. Something doesn’t add up.”

  “No kidding,” Blake answered. “I can’t even scratch my nose.”

  “You think we’re being watched?” Quinn whispered.

  Blake nodded. “Camera over the door and another in the corner near the window.”

  Quinn looked in both spots and saw the familiar black bubble indicated a security camera was present.

  “I just assume the room is bugged, too.”

  Quinn smiled and looked at his friend. “Yup, we watch too much T.V. Still, I noticed how uptight Victor seemed when he first walked into the room. Then he relaxed and sorta had fun with us as we told him the story.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah, but he was too relaxed with us, like he was trying really hard to be cool. I don’t trust him.”

  “I don’t think he’s that bad.”

  Quinn shook his wrists in frustration. “Call me crazy but I want to go back home and go back to school. Our friends must be wondering what the heck is going on with us.”

  “If they even know we’re here. Seems pretty hush-hush to me,” Blake commended. Then he smirked at Quinn. “You just want to see Keegan again.”

  “Maybe,” Quinn said, blushing a little.

  The door popped open and Dr. Madison entered the room with Nurse Nadia, who shut the door behind them.

  “Seriously, Doc,” Quinn snapped, “where the hell are my dads?”

  Dr. Madison smiled and raised her hands in surrender. “They’re on their way. Your parents, too, Blake. We’ve just told them you’re both awake. They’ve been staying at a local hotel.”

  “You mean they haven’t been to see us yet?”

  “No, remember, I told you they weren’t allowed to see you.”

  “But we have rights. My dad’s a lawyer. How did you keep him out?”

  Dr. Madison look
ed at the closed door and grabbed the chart from the foot of Quinn’s bed. Then she stepped in between the boy’s beds and casually flipped through the chart and spoke with a low voice. “There are two cameras watching us. I don’t think they record audio, but I’m not sure. Remember what I told you before Victor walked in; strange things happened while you were unconscious. Quinn, things around you moved all by themselves. Blake, the temperature on your side of the room inexplicably fluctuated between cold and hot. A few things levitated around both of you.”

  “Okay,” Quinn whispered. “So, what is this Wilhelm Reich Museum?” he works at then.

  “It’s an old orgone energy observatory. It’s named after the famous Austrian psychoanalyst who lived there. To be honest, I’m not sure what they do, but they get involved whenever something unusual or paranormal happens around here. They have some kind of federal authority and autonomy which is how they keep your parents out.”

  Blake sighed. “I’m surprised my parents are even here.”

  “And we’re tied up because…?”

  “Because we didn’t have enough information about what happened to you. Remember, you both died and we took some serious steps to bring you back and keep you alive. When the unusual phenomena started happening…there were too many unknowns.”

  “Right,” Quinn said. “I guess that thunderstorm on Sunday morning really messed us up.”

  “Sunday morning?” Dr. Madison said, returning the medical chart to its holster on the food of Quinn’s bed. “There was no storm Sunday morning. Just that big one that came through late Saturday night.”

  “Oh, right,” Quinn said. “I thought there was another storm.”

  “Nope. Okay, I’m going to go speak with Victor again. I believe the restraints can come off, but given the situation I need to double-check with him.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Doctor?” Blake asked.

  “Yes, Blake?”

  “I need to pee.”

  7 | Organized Chaos

  Blake

  TWO MALE NURSING ASSISTANTS, IDENTIFIED as Arik and Miguel on their name tags, unshackled Blake’s wrist and ankle restraints. They lowered the bed rails and stepped aside as Blake swung his legs over the side of the bed, pulling his hospital gown down over his crotch.

  “Sorry, buddy, but you ain’t gonna like this part,” Arik said. “We have to watch you pee,” He was about five-and-a-half feet tall and spent most of his time in the gym lifting weights. He sported a buzz cut and a few tattoos.

  “What?” Blake exclaimed. You’ve got to be kidding me.

  “Trust me, it's not my choice, but orders are orders.”

  Quinn giggled in the bed next to him.

  “What are you laughing at, Sunshine?” Miguel said, the taller, bearded man with glasses and styled messy hair asked, a wide grin on his face. “You’re next.”

  “Oh,” Quinn said, his face dropping.

  Blake stood and winked at Quinn. He slipped his feet into some hospital slippers and tried to hold his gown closed behind him with his left hand as he crossed the room. When he entered the bathroom, he didn’t care about his nakedness. He fumbled with the gown because it awkwardly draped across his front and he didn’t know how to pee standing up with it in the way.

  “Just hike it up and tuck it between your left side and arm. There’s no fancy way to do this, believe me,” Arik offered.

  “You want me to stand in front of you almost naked and pee?” Blake asked, glaring at the nurse’s aide. Okay, maybe I do care about being naked now.

  “No, not at all, but my boss does, and I’d rather not get fired today. Besides, it’s not like you’re the first naked dude I’ve seen, not that I’m bragging. It just comes with the territory.” He nodded toward the toilet and pointed at it with his finger. “Just aim it well and pretend I’m not even here.” Then he stepped back and leaned against the sink, folding his arms across his chest.

  Blake sighed and closed his eyes. Running streams, babbling brooks, flowing fountains, ocean waves, dripping water… When the urge finally came, he opened his eyes and aimed.

  A minute later, he finished up and let the gown fall. Arik checked the toilet before Blake flushed it and then stepped aside so he could use the sink. “Well, at least it's the right color.”

  “Did you expect my pee to be neon pink or something? Blake asked, washing his hands.

  “Not at all, just had to make sure there was no blood in your urine.”

  “Oh. Well, I hope that was all that and more for you,” Blake quipped, glad the experience was over.

  “I can die in peace now,” Arik joked back. “Next!”

  “Wait, he doesn’t get a turn, too?” Blake asked, pointing to Miguel.

  “Nah, not today. I won Rock, Paper, Scissors before we came in.”

  “That’s how you decided who gets to watch the golden stream?” Quinn asked.

  Miguel shrugged. “I never said it was a thrilling decision.”

  Quinn, holding his gown closed behind him and shuffling along in his hospital slippers, made his way into the bathroom to do his business as Blake walked over to the window, his gown flapping open behind him, not wanting to crawl back in bed and get tied down again. Outside, trees swayed in a gentle breeze as the sun shone brightly in the sky.

  The door to their room popped open and Blake grabbed his gown and spun around, unsure of who he was mooning. Oh, it’s you.

  Victor poked his head in and stepped into the room and surveyed the situation. He winced when he saw Arik standing near Quinn in the bathroom. He looked over at Miguel, who patiently waited for Blake to lay down again so he could restrain him. He raised his hand and spoke to the Miguel and Arik. “Just spoke with Dr. Madison. Please remove the restraints from their beds.”

  “Sure thing,” Miguel said.

  “Boys, your parents are signing in downstairs. They’ll be up momentarily.”

  “Oh sure,” Quinn called out from the bathroom, “Remove the restraint things before our parents get here, right?”

  Victor smirked. “Something like that.” Then he looked at Arik. “Is he peeing green?”

  Arik frowned and shook his head. “No, of course not.”

  “He’s fine then, thank you for following orders.”

  “You’re good, champ,” Arik said, clapping Quinn on the shoulder and leaving him to do his business. He walked over to Quinn’s bed and unfastened the restraints.

  “Here’s a tip,” Miguel said, reaching into one of the closets. He tossed Blake a second hospital gown and set one on Quinn’s bed. “Put a second gown on like a bathrobe so your backside is covered. This way here you won’t give any old ladies a thrill or a heart attack if you step out of your room.”

  “Thanks.” Blake smiled and put the bathrobe on backwards, cinching it in the front.

  When Arik and Miguel finished removing the restraints from their beds, they left the room and shut the door behind them. Victor followed them out. Blake noticed the armed guards were no longer standing outside the room.

  Quinn walked out of the bathroom and pulled on the second hospital gown, covering backside from view. Then, he joined Blake at the window and looked at the scenery outside.

  “They said things were levitating around us,” Quinn said. He turned around and extended his hand toward the chart in the footboard holster. “Rise.”

  Nothing happened.

  “You try.”

  “Are you serious,” Blake asked?

  “Just do it.”

  “Fine.” Blake looked at the medical chart and extended his hand. He pictured it floating in his mind. “Go up.”

  Nothing happened for him, either.

  “Damn,” Quinn said. “Things moved around me, and the room temperature got hot and cold around you.” He whipped his head around and looked into Blake’s eyes. Then he reached out and grabbed Blake’s arms.

  “How do you feel now? Are you hot or cold?”

  “I think I’m fine, but the air condi
tioning in here is a bit on the cold side to me.”

  Quinn dropped his hands. He made pouty lips and took a deep breath. “Yeah, it’s chilly in here to me as well, and your temperature feels normal to me.”

  Blake turned and pointed to the medical whiteboards on the wall opposite their beds. “Well, according to our vitals, our temperatures are normal.”

  “True,” Quinn said. “I just thought, maybe…”

  A moment of silence passed before Blake urged him on. “Maybe what?”

  “Maybe we got super powers or something.”

  Blake burst out laughing. “Yeah, right.”

  “Rise,” Quinn exclaimed, turning quickly and extending his hand toward the medical chart once more.

  Nothing.

  Then he turned back to Blake and whispered to him. “I know we can’t talk about it here, but something definitely happened to us. All that blue swirly stuff—it’s like in us now or something. Wait…” Quinn turned and looked at the counter space opposite their beds, under the whiteboards.

  “You’re kidding,” Blake said, racing over to the counter with Quinn. Together, they stared at the device Victor had used on them. “What do you think it does?”

  Quinn picked it up and turned it right side up so the writing wasn’t upside down. “Orgone Energy Detector,” he read aloud. “What the hell is orgone energy?”

  “Beat’s me. Turn it on. See what it does.”

  “Yeah!” Quinn flipped the switch and pointed it at Blake. The digital, three-inch band of thirty or so small LEDs spread across the top of the device illuminated from left to right, from green to yellow to red. Under the LEDs, printed labels offered the words Low, Concentration, and High. A larger LED above the word High flashed red.

  “Oh, I get it. Low or high concentration,” Quinn said. He turned to the right, away from Blake, and all the LEDs turned off except the first green one.

  “That’s weird.”

  “What did it do?” Blake said, stepping next to Quinn to see the face of the meter.

  “As soon as I pointed it away from you the little lights turned off.”

  “Maybe it was booting up. Aim it at me again.”

  Quinn aimed the meter at Blake’s stomach so Blake could see the lights. As soon as the meter’s sensor pointed at Blake, all the LEDs, including the big flashing red one, switched on again.