2 | 2315

【 Zack's POV 】

A door slams open. "He still moaning like an idiot?"

"Shhh! I think he opened his eyes again!" That girl's voice again.

To hell with this. I don't care how much it hurts, I'm going to figure out what's going on.

My eyes snap open. I immediately rip my IV out. My head swims and my vision is disoriented.

"Welcome back!" The girl's voice chirps through that horrible creature's face.

"Mae, take your mask off. You're freaking him out," someone says.

"Oh, right!"

She pulls the apparent mask off, revealing a girl. I flinch. My eyes are created by long, brown hair with purple at the ends. Her hair falls primarily straight, but it's quite... stunning. Her eyes are... different colors. One bright green and one red.

I begin to laugh nervously. "I'm dreaming. Just a dream."

The girl offers her hand. "I'm Mae. Mae Revigne. And you?"

I think hard. When I first woke up, I didn't know anything. But foggy memories are clearing up.

Hospital. Disease. Frozen.

"I- it worked," I murmur, smiling. I say it a bit louder, "it worked!"

Mae clears her throat awkwardly. "Hah, uhh... what worked, exactly?"

"The cure. D- do you guys have the cure?"

Her eyes go blank for a moment, but light up in recognition. "Oh! It took a few days to take effect when you were asleep, but we just gave you a little shot for that and there! Good as new!"

Just a small shot?

I ignore my head's protests, begging for me to lay down. "Say, what year is it?"

"2315," Mae confirms.

I roll my eyes. "Har, har. Very funny. What actual year is it? 2017? 2019?"

She shakes her head. My breathing becomes rapid. A hoarse laugh mixed with some kind of wheeze bursts from my mouth. They're lying. They're trying to trick me out of their amusement. They think I'm stupid enough to fall for it.

"I want to call my family," I order.

"What's your name?" She asks.

"Zack. Zack London."

"Haven't heard of anyone by the names of that around here. What year do you last remember?"

"2015! You're lying! I couldn't have survived this long! I'll just find them myself," I snap furiously.

I stumble out of the bed. I have to support myself on the wall. My vision blacks out for a few startling moments. A masculine figure holds me back with ease. He seems to take no effect to my struggling.

"You're gonna take a nice little snooze, okay?" Mae says.

"Get off of me! Let me go! This isn't legal!" I shout. I feel the sharp pinch of a syringe plunge itself into my neck. Everything hazes into darkness once more.

I don't know how long I'm kept helpless and immobile. I wake up every now and then, feeling stronger each time. I'm in a smaller incubator now, where they're either bringing me back to health or studying me. Probably both.

I want to get out. I want to see my family, my friends. I want to see my girlfriend, Adaline. I wonder how much she's changed, and if she's moved on. They're probably graduated by now, all grown up and in college while I'm still a sophomore, left behind. A pang of sadness throbs in my chest.