Jay Parcher's Story

On the bright side, Daniel wasn't laying in the middle of a road where he could get run over. On the bad side, he wasn't where he remembered passing out. The second his eyes snapped open, the boy was confident that he had been killed and made his way down to hell. Where else would he be? Prison cells didn't look like blank silver boxes... unless he was in some sort of weird solitary confinement room. But even if that were the case, why?
When his sight finally came in to focus, Daniel felt an unusual sense of panic. He literally had no idea where he was or how he got there. He was supposed to be outside of the police station right on the road. Looking down at his wrists, Daniel realized his handcuffs were gone. If someone was trying to free him, they were doing on awful job.

Pushing himself to his feet, Daniel staggered toward what he assumed must have been the door. Making a run for it seemed like a good idea in his head, but the lack of a handle was enough to mess with the plan. Scowling, Daniel pounded his fist against the metal. "Hey!" He shouted, scowling at the door. "How about someone tells me where I am, huh? Is this some sort of jail or something?" He waited in silence for a reply, but no answer was given to him. Snorting, Daniel rolled his eyes and turned around. Of course no one was going to tell him anything. What did he expect?

All would have been well if the lights hadn't gone out and an explanation hadn't been given to him. After he knew what was happening, Daniel realized he hadn't wanted to know. What the hell kind of place was this? It all seemed like a game to him. A horrifying but definitely tempting game. A maze, was that what it was? He only had to find his way out and he'd be freed, simple as that. It would have been a lie to say that Daniel wasn't grinning when the door in front of him opened.
However, he must have skipped over the part where the screen explained that there would be others, because he was taken aback when a girl rushed passed him. There were people with him? Daniel frowned at the realization. Winning would be a whole lot harder if he actually had to compete, and apparently he couldn't kill.

Curiosity getting the best of him, Daniel stepped out of the room and examined the hallway. There were other rooms just like his, each holding someone completely different than the next. There were two blondes, one brunette, two men and an old guy. One room, Daniel noticed, was empty when he passed by it. The one who ran. He thought, narrowing his eyes. There was only one door opening further down the hall, so the girl must have gone in to there, but Daniel figured he could talk to her later.
At the moment, he felt like yelling.
"Somebody has to know what the fuck is going on!" He shouted, eyeing the walls for cameras or hidden microphones. Someone had to be behind it all, and to be honest Daniel was scared of not finding out who it was. Was it the police? The government?
For the first time in a rather long time, Daniel was terrified.

Parcher gazed lazily at nowhere in particular as he woke, unaware of the shift of location from where he last remembered. In fact, he couldn't remember much anyways. Not that it mattered. Memories are pointless. Or something.

He was right about to go back to sleep if it were not for the lights flickering out from above him. Before he had the chance to respond, a screen appeared and proceeded to deliver a montage of pictures of people, including himself, followed by text.

As Parcher followed the text, his thoughts immediately cringed in resentment. He didn't even notice the door opening.

Children? Deserve to be taught a lesson? Just how self-righteous and patronizing can this guy be??

But as always, there's many sides to every argument, even in only in one person's head.

Maybe it's just a game. Aren't I lucky to be chosen?
But the premises is just ...
Let it go, the premises doesn't matter.
Well, it can matter, but it doesn't have to. Yeah. Don't judge a book by its author.
Well you can of course, I mean
I mean ...

A girl passing by snapped him out of his reverie, followed by a young man. Somebody has to know what the fuck is going on! he heard him shout. It just dawned upon Parcher that they were probably trapped here, potentially forever, unless they behaved like good little sheeple. Or something.

He chuckled.

"Might as well make the most of it, shall we?" Parcher muttered to himself, making his way to the recreation room. He felt like creating something ...

Daniel had made his way into the recreation room a few moments before the old guy came wandering in. He didn't care enough to start up a conversation, nor was he concerned about where the girl had went off to, so Daniel found himself mindlessly looking through the shelves while he waited for... for anything. Directions, a better explanation... a way out would be nice. Though at the moment, he'd take whatever he could get. Normally Daniel was picky about his options unless he was growing desperate. And this, this completely foreign situation, was enough to make him lunge into desperation if he had to stay five minutes longer.

The other blonde woman came creeping into the room and headed through another doorway. Just like with the old man, Daniel didn't bother with trying to talk to her. Sure, he wanted to get out of the place probably as much as everyone else, but actually chatting with them could be saved for when it was needed. Besides, none of them looked smart enough to plan out an escape anyway.
Daniel was skimming through one of the books from the shelf when the voices from the second room became more audible, then a few seconds passed and the first girl came rushing out. She began blabbering to both Daniel and the old guy, going on about her need to sustain some stupid addiction, and Daniel scowled in disgust as he took a few steps back.
Here they were, stuck underground somewhere, and the girls main focus was getting her drugs. Pathetic junkie. Daniel thought, glaring at her as she made her way over to the couch.

The other woman came in shortly after and began trying to sooth the addict, but all Daniel could think about was what the junkie had said only seconds before.
"With the way you two are acting, no shit we're gonna die in here." He snapped, shooting each of them a glare. "How about we start trying to figure some things out before we start moping, hey? There's gotta be a way out of this." Gotta be. His thoughts echoed. There was always a solution no matter what, wasn't there?
There wasn't a good way out for those people I killed. The thoughts continued, making Daniel momentarily freeze. Why would I be an exception when it comes to death?
Daniel pushed the thought away. He didn't want to think about that.

There was definitely a time where the young man would have acted more sympathetic towards Junkie and Little Miss Coo, but that was long since gone and now he just felt anger. Old Guy wasn't complaining, Daniel didn't hear any of the others wailing about their deaths, it was just Junkie, and frankly he wanted to tell her to quit the fuss and focus on the problem. The solution might be nonexistent, but it was at least worth a shot to try to find it.

Chloe was really, really confused when suddenly she woke up on a floor of a small, silver steel room. She jumped to her feet startled, and looked around frantically to where she was. She thought, I was just at a party, now where I am?.She collected her thoughts trying to remember how she got here. She talked to a few guys who bought her a drink but she was always careful to pay attention they won't slip her anything inside the drink. However, after her second drink only she felt dizzy and everything was spinning. Than everything went black and it is blurry and she does not remember anything till now.
Suddenly the lights flickered, and when she looked around she noticed a door in the room. Running so fast she almost hit the door, trying to find the handle to open it. No handle?!. She than looked back in the room, trying to see another exit. Someone kidnapped her, she thought, they perhaps want her money. They don't know she stole it, but they know she is wealthy and perhaps now they trying to hold for ransom. Just than a screen flickered and she noticed the tv, she watched it as she saw the words popped on the screen, her head is spinning from the news. Also, there are others here, trapped just like her. It is some good news, better numbers are always good for escape.
As the words on the screen faded and the pictures of other males and females here, she pondered. A game? so it is punishment for bad people with a chance to escape by playing a game?. She smirked, Chloe was kinda always good at games, so if she can win she can go back to her wealthy and happy life.
The door opened and just when she stepped into the hallway in order to go to the room as instructed, it took her quite a while as she checked every corner and wall in the hallway, for any little thing that might help to escape or win the supposedly-called game. She reached the room right when she saw a frantic young girl crying saying they will all die here and another girl trying to sooth her.
The other young man said "How about we start trying to figure some things out before we start moping, hey? There's gotta be a way out of this." . She smiled and nodded, "Yes, you are right, crying won't help us anyway. We might as well try to look around, I mean, the guy did say we have a chance of getting out of here by winning the so called game of him. So, better we try to find something to help us win or escape...."

Parcher was surprised to see the young man passing by before already in the recreation room. He gave a nervous grin in his general direction before residing in the corner where a pack of playing cards lay. As he sat there fanning his sweaty palms with the flickering of the cards, the first girl came rushing, desperately pleading for ... drugs? Yeah, guess that makes sense.

Before he had the chance to respond, the girl was curled up on the couch crying about how they're all going to die, until someone else came in and started to soothe her. Then, the young man started snapping at them about getting their act together. And then another girl came out and agreed with him. Things are happening so quickly; a few minutes in and everyone's already desperate to get out. But then, most people seems to settle down after they've been somewhere for a while for some reason. Parcher wasn't like that. He's the type to be all curious and accepting about somewhere new at first until the place starts growing on his nerves. But this isn't some vacation spot.

Who cares?

Everyone cares, buddy, everyone cares. But this time, the concept of caring talks up a whole different context. It's not good to care. Caring holds you back. Parcher wanted to make these people stop caring.

He proceeded to split the cards in half, saving the reverse end for later on. His supplies seem to have vanished at the very least. He cringed painfully at the thought, but a resourceful artist can make use of anything.

Eric's eyes groggily opened, and the room spun before finally settling after a few seconds. He was sitting. back against the wall in a completely empty silver room. The only thing that even remotely stood out was the faint outline of the door. He stood; and noticed the olive drab clothing he was now wearing. It was similar to something that he would usually wear, although he noted that these clothes didn't belong to him. How'd he end up in these anyway? He tucked his shirt in, and checked the pockets; both empty. Approaching the door, he noticed no way of opening it. Unsure about what to do, he gave it a few hard knocks.

Suddenly, the room was filled with bright light, which caused him to take a few steps backwards. He leaned against the wall as he struggled to read some words that had appeared on a screen. A game? What kind of game was this? Although, he couldn't dispute the bit about murdering without thinking anyone knew. Was this some sort of police investigation. No, the police wouldn't use such odd tactics.

Eric watched as the door opened, but instead of leaving the room, he sunk back down to a sitting position. The adrenaline rush had left him rather out of breath, and he simply felt like he needed to take a few minutes to catch it. He worried about the fact that he didn't have a mask with him; even if the room did appear spotless.

When he stepped outside, he noticed that there were other people stuck in here as well. Following the directions to the bathroom, he ignored the small gathering of people he walked past. He dug through the various cupboards of the bathroom; finding nothing, really. However, eventually he did find a small box with some surgical masks in it. Breathing a sigh of relief, he donned one. Even if the place was clean and dust free, there were other people; meaning they would create plenty of things he couldn't be breathing in. He was a dying man; he had to play it safe.

His plan to quietly enter the rec room and observe the people in there from the back caught a snag when a few harsh coughs escaped him upon his entrance. After a dozen or so, he had his hands on his knees, and let out a final, scratching cough as he stood up straight.

Parcher often felt more at ease in a natural environment, but this commotion isn't the idle chatter of random pedestrians. He set down the card he was trying to fray at a corner to set an opening to split to look up as the first girl with the agitated mannerisms dashed around talking about life and games. That's not all there is to it, okay? he thought automatically. He frowned a little as she dropped half the cards after a comment about paper houses before proceeding to look through the kitchen supplies.

Well, this is depressing.
No, we're the ones getting depressed.

He suddenly stood up to snap out of yet another thought loop, only to collapse back down in laughter, until his eyes snapped back up to make sure he hasn't attracted any attention. Well, attention is what he seeks, but he still fears it. His head and his heart could never quite agree with each other. but without a heart there's no point in having a head. Or something. Because both the desire for and fear of attention originate from the heart.

SHUT UP ALREADY

Parcher stood up successfully this time and headed to the cupboards, flashing a nervous grin at another man coughing at the entrance. The spazzy girl was back on the couch with the other who was trying comfort her earlier, so he approached the bench and collected a teabag and the milk from the fridge. None of them seem to be in the mood for a drink anyways. Tearing up the teabag, he faced the wall, turning back once to grin nervously towards the general direction of everyone else. He needed to say something. But what? His mind was blank.

What do you think you're in for?
Do you think you deserve to be here?
Don't you think "justice" is a flawed concept?
... Don't you think this kidnapper guy is a self-righteous moron?
Or is this just a game?
If it's just a game, maybe it could be fun ...
y'know ...

It's not like Parcher actually had the guts to ask any of those questions. Even now that his vandalism had gained state-wide recognition, he still longs to chat about the big questions to someone who's interested. Apparently the closest he's ever got was imposing his ideas on public property and watch the media's reaction.

I wish I was out of here so I can see more of those reactions. his thoughts snarked halfheartedly and with no success at provoking humour.

He gazed up at the ceiling. "I'm Parcher ... Jay Parcher." he mumbled absentmindedly as a girl's voice; Chloe, she said; next to him inquired about names. Contrary to all appearances, he really hopes people heard that. But he's not gonna repeat himself if they didn't. It's just his name. It's not worth the effort of being repeated.

Eric vaguely heard people mentioning names; he had spaced out a little bit in the few seconds after his coughing fit. He stood in the back of the room, listening. Chloe, Julie, Parker...they came out one by one. Finally, he let out a quiet "Eric."

"Hey mister. What's the mask for? Are you a germaphobe?" The callousness of the statement is what bothered Eric; even though he was very much the same. Stares he was used to, he even eventually got questions from people, but he always assumed they probably thought he was just scared of germs.

"No. No I am not." The comment came out with twice the callousness that the original statement had. "I happen to have a terminal case of cystic fibrosis, so I cannot *cough* breath easily." He gave her a dirty glare, "And it wouldn't hurt you to develop any sense of tact."

Daniel had never really liked strangers, and now he was forced to stay in a room with them. A few began talking to eachother, the Junkie saying something to Old Guy and then to Little Miss Coo.
Another girl had came into the room and agreed with Daniel's statement earlier, but he was too stubborn over by the bookshelf to look her way. They obviously weren't here to make friends, so why did it matter if he stayed to himself or not?
'Cause nobody likes a grump. He thought.

". . .What is everyone's name? I am Chloe..." The new girl said, this time causing Daniel to put the book down and turn around.
"Julie." Junkie replied.
". . .Parcher." Old Guy said, though the rest of his words had been too quiet for Daniel to hear.
Eric. The new guy squeezed in.
"Oh, i'm uhm...Sasha.." Little Miss Coo stated, her voice sounding rather nervous. She had the right to be. The place they were in was like something pulled straight out of the beginning of a horror movie.
Well, at least Daniel could quit with the nicknames, now that they were all introducing themselves.

He was about to add in his name when Sasha seemingly freaked out. It was right when the newest lady came in, which made him wonder if Sasha just didn't like big groups or something. Personally, he actually liked crowds. More people meant a better chance of blending in and staying unnoticed. Sasha, however, looked as if she would disagree.
She sprang up from the couch and rushed into the washroom without even the slightest explanation. Rude. Daniel thought, though other than that he couldn't have cared less about what the woman did... Until he heard the mirror break.

"What the hell is she-" Daniel began to say, but Julie cut his sentence short.
"I-I'm going... I'm uh... going to check on her." The junkie announced before taking a few seconds to force her way into the bathroom.
That's what being friends looks like. Daniel thought, lowering an eyebrow when Julie's frantic yelling was heard. It didn't sound like it was out of anger, though. It was like... she was worried. Julie had known Sasha would a total of, like, five seconds and already she was worried about her.
How about you try it sometime? His thoughts nudged.

As the voices from the bathroom continued, the boy cleared his throat.
"Well, uh. I'm Daniel." He muttered, glancing at the remaining faces in the room. "Someone should probably go check if they're okay." He added quickly, nodded towards where Sasha and Julie were.

"Tact is overrated." Parcher rebutted automatically at Eric's remark. "Maybe. Probably. I think. I mean sorry about your condition and stuff ... or not ... sorry hehehehe ... idunno ......" He shrank back and trailed off nervously in a string of doubts.

Shut up; they'll figure out who you are.
But that's what you've always wanted! You're just too chicken to come out and tell everyone!
True ...

His eyes darted back up as Sasha; ... sounds like a guy's name; rushed out towards the bathroom without a warning. A chill shot up his spine as the shattering of a mirror rang from the bathroom. Julie was trying desperately to get in, and Parcher hardly had the chance to respond as she approached the drawers near him in search of a fork, scattering the rest of the cutlery in the process. She sure likes to scatter things, his thoughts remarked in a vain attempt to lighten the mood.

Until she started yelling. Daniel's probably right, someone might wanna check on them, but visiting two young women in a bathroom was probably too awkward to act on. Pretend not to hear him; you're always good at that.