My body shot itself awake, expecting to see even faint light protruding through the window, but there was none to be seen. When I looked around the room, I spotted that, strangely, Damien was awake too. The young boy sat up in his bed, his gaze fixated on the thin wall near my bed.

  "It won't be long until Rudolf is screaming again," He said, his voice ebbing with obvious annoyance.

  I leaned up in my bed, rubbing my eyes as I too looked towards the wall to my left. Behind the wall, I could hear the faint rustling of fabric, accompanied by indistinguishable moaning and groaning sounds, coming from what sounded like a young man. A few moments later, the quiet sounds escalated to a series of wanton shrieks that rattled the entire room, seemingly the wall to its foundation.

  "They're out to get me! They're out to get me!" Was the only thing Rudolf was repeating. After this persisted for about two minutes, I heard the door to his room open, followed by a plethora of footsteps approaching his bed. A young nurse talked with him, reassuring him that there were no monsters or beings out to get him.

  He was also given some kind of sleeping serum to ward off nightmares. But due to what Damien had said about this happening every night, I immediately doubted the usefulness of the drug. At this moment, I stood up from my stiff bed, shrugging on my slippers and heading to the door.

  "Where do you think you're going?" Damien asked. I saw his body noticeably stiffen as I made my way closer to the door, the only object sealing me from the sterile hallway outside. I paused for a short moment, my hand already wrapped around the cold metal of the handle.

  Looking back to Damien, I shrugged my shoulders. "Everyone gets midnight cravings."

  The young boy arched an eyebrow, scoffing. "They'll have you tranquilized and brought back here the moment they spot you."

  My lips twitched into a small smile as I adjusted my glasses. "And with all the shit you've been saying about me, I thought you'd love to see that happen to me."

  Upon hearing my remark, the boy crossed his arms and huffed. "Just get your food, bug-boy."

  "Don't call me that, Yeti."

  I quickly made a nickname to snap back with. Damien's white hair and matching white eyes, alongside his pale skin reminded me of the age-like creature stemming from myth. The moment Damien heard the nickname, he rolled his eyes and made a rude gesture at me.

  Without teasing him any further, I opened the door to the hallway and stepped outside. A rush of sterile, cold air brushed over my body, sending a rush of goosebumps coursing over my skin. Either end of the hallway was lined with oil lamps that reflected the bleak, light-colored walls of the corridor. Luckily, the stiff yet somewhat plush material of the slippers shielded my feet from making contact with the frigid wooden floor.

  My garments pooled around my ankles, prompting the cuff-less bottoms to collect dust as I moved, but I was too tired to roll them up or form a makeshift cuff. The sleeves draped over my wrist, almost blocking my hands entirely, but I managed to roll them up to my elbows, folding them over so they wouldn't fall back down.

  As I took my first few steps down the hallway, my breath remained lodged in my throat as I tried not to make much noise. It's not that I was scared of being seen by a nurse or someone who worked here, but I didn't want to catch the eyes of the more mentally questionable individuals in this place.

  The ambient, strobing humming that emanated from the gas lamps, which seemed to attract moths that could fly through the open windows, was the only constant sound other than my slippers silently papping against the wooden floors of the hallway. In the faint illumination, I could see the metallic door labels indicating the status of the patients within them.

  Rudolf Strober, diagnosed with schizophrenia, duration within containment: 3 months.

  Rebecca Gardon, diagnosed with Attention Hyper Deficit Disorder, duration within containment: 1 month, 2 weeks.

  Upon reading Rebecca's name tag, I felt my body freeze on the spot. She got sent here for ADHD? Back in my world, ADHD was a common diagnosis, not something worth being locked up in this place for! I shrugged my shoulders weakly, causing the loose material of my garments to slide past my shoulder, showing an admirable amount of skin that reflected the orange lights of the lamps.

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  As I rounded a few more corners, the ambiance in the environment shifted from something somewhat comfortable to something more akin to the grimey atmosphere of a cafeteria. Even if there was a lack of people in the space, the humming and clanking of food cooling and storage containers sent my memory back to much more pleasant experiences. The room gradually expanded in size, allowing me to look upon the uncountable number of benches and tables that stretched for several meters in diameter.

  In the corner of the space, I gazed upon a figure who stood a few feet taller than me. His light gray uniform could barely contain his muscles, and the only exposed skin was like a surgeon's nightmare of fibrous hooks and piercings. The man's ink-black hair had been neatly trimmed so one side draped longer, but it didn't look like it had been done messily.

  At this moment, he turned around, and the moment I caught sight of his face, I felt my body freeze as if I were looking into the eyes of Medusa herself. It was the man from the market that I scared off!

  Seeing me, his casual, half-sleepy expression instantly changed. The stubble above his burly, chipped lips curled upwards, just like his menacing smile as he recognized my figure. He was carrying a small tray of food in his meaty gloves that resembled hands, harshly slamming the condiments onto a nearby table, his gaze fixated on my form the entire time.

  What had taken me aback the most was the lack of fear in his response. If I had scared him off once, wouldn't this man be hesitant to confront me again? Before I could finish thinking, the giant-like man took a step forward into the harsh lights of a nearby lantern. The piercings and incisions running up and down his arms flickered in the lighting, alongside his polished, snow-white teeth.

  "What are you doing here?" He barked, crossing his arms over his chest.

  My body tightened as his question slashed through the air like a blade. I could feel my body temperature drop a few degrees, a palpable rush of fear and uncertainty washing over my body. When I opened my mouth to speak, the words remained lodged in my throat.

  Noticing my initial lack of response, he grinned even brighter, almost enough to outshine the lanterns.

  "You seem to have a habit of not watching where you're going, rat," The man said as he took another step forward. When his body entered more of the light, I saw his nametag clearly as day.

  Harland Gray.

  There was no other medical information aside from his name and room code. As if sensing me looking at his identification, his focus momentarily gravitated to it as well. His large hand flicked the silver plate as he began to speak again.

  "The moment you did your little trick, I reported you to the police and all that stuff. But they didn't believe me, so they shoved me in here for my 'delusions'."

  Harland looked back at me, scoffing. "Did you come here to scare me again or something?"

  The man's meaty fingers clenched into fists at his sides. "Heed my words, devil-child. You can either leave and avoid looking like a raccoon from my fists, or you can stand there like a damn idiot and let me pummel you into the floor."

  My body remained frozen in place, unable to move at all. I opened my mouth again, but I could only breathe in to ensure I wouldn't pass out at the moment. My grayish-brown eyes looked towards the counter where the food was, and I could feel the courage to speak slowly coursing through me.

  "Is it ok if I just get something to eat?"

  Harland shook his head. "Food's only for those who deserve it, kid."

  He took another step forward, then another, until he was only about a meter from me. His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, leaning down to bore into my eye-to-eye.

  "In my little cafeteria, the nurses have no jurisdiction. I allow them to give patients food..."

  He suddenly latched onto my collar, pulling me in closer. "...under my permission."

  Harland slowly lifted me into the air by my collar, the oversized gray tunic sliding up and exposing my lower abdomen. He looked at the now-exposed skin and chuckled darkly.

  "Someone doesn't seem to meet the criteria for getting their daily servings."

  He suddenly landed a heavy punch to my lower abdomen, and I felt all the air leave my lungs in an instant. My body fell from his grip, twitching and helplessly gasping on the cold floor. Harland stood over me like a giant watching its victim constrict in white-hot agony.

  Around me, the edges of my vision pulsed with inky blackness, threatening to spill over and knock me unconscious. The pain in my lower abdomen was still the main fixation of my attention, but it slowly regressed to a dull, throbbing pain that felt more manageable.

  Harland extended his left foot, which was coated in more piercings lining his inner calves and ankles, kicking me hard enough in the chest to suck the air out once more. I let out an airy, pain-stricken gasp as I clawed at the wooden floor, trying feebly to get away from this attacker.

  "Crawlin' away from your playmate is also forbidden here," Harland barked, walking back over to me and picking me up by my loose, oversized sleeve. His eyes now seemed to beam red, and his teeth sharpened to the potency of daggers ready to slice upon fresh blood.

  I could barely breathe at this point, the edges of my half-lidded vision already receding to darkness. Harland's large hands took hold of my hair, harshly pulling the locks towards himself, positioning my body so my ear was mere millimeters from his rancid, foul-smelling lips.

  "We're only getting started here, kid. My friends are already eager to hear you scream my name."

  At this moment, he let out a loud yelp as the sound of flesh reverberated in the cafeteria. I immediately looked towards the source of the attack, and I saw Damien! The boy had grabbed a knife from the culinary table, sinking it into the back of his piercing-ridden calves!

  The bulky man dropped my spasming form to the floor, letting me hit the wood with a dull clatter that shook the floorboards. He turned to face Damien, his smile receding to something more like an annoyed scowl.

  "Looks like the cafeteria has a rat infestation."

  Damien stepped back from Harland, turning around in an instant and darting to the culinary table. As quickly as he left, Damien was swept under his feet by Harland, who had ripped a plank of wood from the ground and slid it at him with frightening speed.

  The white-haired boy fell to the ground, faceplanting with enough force to draw blood from his tiny, round nose. I could only watch with wide eyes as Harland approached him like a predator with only the satisfaction of seeing his helpless prey bleed out for him. Damien was helplessly snatched from the ground, the boy squirming, kicking, and cursing the man.

  Harland took humor to this, landing a harsh flick to the boy's forehead.

  "I think it's time I get rid of the rat problem." Harland teased, looking back in my direction.