Jimmy

…rd! This is so weird! This is so weird! This is so weird! This is so weird! I feel like my heart’s going to explode if this doesn’t happen soon. Ooohhh! I should never have agreed to this. What was I thinking? This is so weird!

Ok, Jim! Just relax! Relax! This will be over soon! Just hold on, relax and it will be over soon. Breathe! That’s it, breathe.

One, two, three, four!

Breathe!

One, two, three, four!

Breeeeatheeee!

Remember the exercise that you taught yourself, Jimmy boy! Come on now!

Five things you see! Five things I see! What do I see? What do I see? I can’t see shit! It’s so dark! Shit, shit, shit! It’s so dark! I’m going to die! I’m going to die … I’m going to die!

Am I dead? You’re not dead, you idiot! You’re in the tank, that’s why you can’t see anything. Relax! RELAX! Ok, ok! Next thing.

Four things I can touch. What can I touch? What do I feel! I feel scared! No idiot, with your hands. What do you feel with your hands, with your skin. I feel … liquid. I feel … the mask on my face. I feel the floor under my feet. And … what else?! What else … I feel …my tongue? Yeah … I feel the tongue in my mouth.

Great! Now breathe … relax. That’s it? Relax! Good!

What’s next? Three things I can hear. What do I hear? Hmmm … bubbles? Ok, that’s one. What else? Are those voices? I think so. Can’t make out what they’re saying, but those are definitely voices. Must be the doctors. Ok, one more, Jimmy! One more! Hah … you hear yourself. Right? Sort of. It’s good enough.

Two things you can smell. Plastic, yeah, I can smell plastic. Ok! What else? Something bitter, rancid almost.

Ok! Last one. One thing I can taste. What can I taste? Hmmm … that’s weird, what’s this taste? It’s sort of bitter … and cold? That’s it, I taste bitter and cold. Good!

Good job there, Jimmy! That’s it! Much better now!

What’s taking them so long?

I should be under by now.

Hmmmm …

Is something wrong? Shit … I’m sure something’s wrong. Should I wait? Yeah … I’ll wait. I’m sure there’s nothing serious. Maybe they’re just talking. Yeah … they’re just talking.

Any minute now. Any minute... now …

Breathe, Jimmy … breathe. That’s it … breathe. Relax, think of it as going to sleep. You love sleeping, don’t you? Yeah! I love sleeping. I’ll dream like crazy. I’ll be free! I’ll finally be free.

Ok! How long has it been? Five minutes? Ten? Twenty? Shit! I can’t take this anymore. I need to get out of here and see what’s going on. Shit, shit, shit.

" …eeeeyyy!” Shit, why is my voice so horse? “… eeeeyyyy! ..et ..e ouuu…!” Shit! My muscles feel so stiff, and this damn liquid is so dense. I can barely move my arm. Come on Jimmy, punch that panel, punch it like it owes you money, Jimmy. Punch it!

“… eeeeeeeyyyyy!” Come on damn it, it’s not like you don’t know I’m here. “Le.. ..e ouuuut!”

Yeah! That’s it, I’m screaming in here you idiots.

" …s so…ne ‘n he…”

Yeah! I’m screaming! Shit! Move, you damn arm! Move! Pound that panel. Pound it!

" …lax man!”

What did he say? Relax! Shit, that’s the word of the day, isn’t it. Relax, relax! I am relaxed. Come on already, get me out!

“… stuc…, it’s stu…”

What the hell are they doing?! What’s taking them so long! “Heeeeeeeeyyyyyy!” Crap, if I move my mouth too much the mask moves. I don’t want to swallow any of that stuff. " …eeeeeeyyy.., ..et me ou…t!”

“Th.. l..v..r’s stu…, pul.. the on… on yo… end!”

What?

“Pu.. th… l..v..r!”

Pull the what? Pull … think Jimmy, think! Shit! The lever, pull the lever!

“Pu.. th… l..v..r!”

Pull the lever, where’s the lever? Where is it?! Come on, Jimmy, think, think! Where was it? It should be in reach. Right? If I can pull it, it should be in reach. Relax! Breathe! Breaaathe!

That’s it! Come on, Jim. Find that lever! Find it.

There! There it is! Pull it, pull it. Pull…. it!

Shit!

Aaaaaaaaaah!

“At a boy!”

“Pull him out.”

Oh my god, it’s so cold. Why is it so cold?! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!

“Alma, hand me that blanket! Let’s wipe this muck off of him before he freezes to death.”

Whhooooo arrrrrrre theeeeseeeee ppeeeeoppleeeeee! Brrrrrrrr. Shiiiiiit, it’s coooooooold.

“That’s it, you’re alright boy. You’re alright! Open your eyes slowly, slowly! You don’t want to go blind now, do you!? That’s it. That’s it! Let’s have a look at you!”

“Is he alright?” That sounded like a girl!

Shit, it’s brrrrrright.

“Yeah! Just confused. Like we all were. Remember?” Who is this guy? Sounds like my dad. No, older!

“Pfffff, not like this.” I don’t like this guy, he sounds like that asshole Jessie from high-school.

Why is it so bright? Come on, Jim. Breathe! Get your bearrrings! You’re alright. You’re alright!

“Where’s the doctorrr? Who are you guys?” That’s it. Relax! Is this how babies feel? Everything’s so misty! Ok, Jim! Relax and look around. Get your bearings!

“Pffft, doctor? Confused my ass, I think this one’s daft, Max.” Jessie 2.0 again. How old is he? Looks to be thirty something, that goatee sure makes him look like an asshole. Yeah, I don’t like this guy at all.

“Here you go, Mr. Tennyson. Here’s another blanket.” She’s pretty. A bit old, what is she? Twenty-five? Thirty? Pretty eyes. I really like green eyes.

“Thank you, Alma! Let’s get this boy on his feet. How are you son? Are you feeling better?” Old-Dad looks really tired. He doesn’t look anything like Dad, though. He’s fat and he smiles a lot. I like him, I like him a lot. “So, how do you feel? Do you feel better now?”

“Mmmhmmm! Thanks! Who are you? Are you doctors?”

“No, no! We’re patients, just like you. My name’s, Max. Max Tennyson! Do you know where you are?” Why is everyone starring at me like that?

Crap! I’m naked. Shit! And there’s a girl. Is she smiling? Shit!

“What’s your name? Do you know where you are?” Mr. Tennyson sure likes to repeat his questions.

“You’re wasting your time with him, Max. The frost got to his brain. See how his eyes are darting all over the place? He’s squirrelly.” Nope. Don't like him.

“Please leave the boy alone, Mr. Gage. So... do you remember your name?” at least Jessie 2.0 respects Mr. Tennyson. Is he afraid of him?

“Jim! My name’s Jim!”

“Good! That’s good, Jim! This is Alma and this is Mr. Gage. Now, do you know where you are?”

“At the Cryogenics lab in Houston, Texas?” Where are all the doctors? Who are these people?

“That’s right! Do you remember the year?” Again with the questions.

“2000… 30?” Or was it 2029, my brain feels slow. Have I gone squirrelly like Jessie 2.0 said? Oh, shit! Oh, shit?

“2030?” Alma, she looks scared.

“So, he’s one of the newer batches. That explains it!” Jessie 2.0, he looks terrified.

“I’m not sure we’re in 2030 anymore, Jim.” They all look like that.

“What do you mean? Where’s the doctor? What’s happening?”

“We don’t know where the doctor’s are, Jim. We woke up a couple of hours ago, just like you.” Is that worry on Mr. Tennyson’s face? Was he expecting answers from me? What do you mean ‘woke up’?

“What do you mean: woke up?”

“We were in cryo-sleep, just like you. We woke together at the same time, about two hours ago.” What are you saying, old man? Cryo-sleep?

“I wasn’t in cryo-sleep! They were supposed to put me under, but something happened and you guys showed up.” What’s he talking about?

“Pfffft, look around you boy! Stop being daft!” I really, really don’t like this dude. If he calls me daft again...

Wait! He’s right! The lab wasn’t like when I went in the tank. Oh my God! Where am I? When am I?

“It worked?”

“Yeah! It worked! Don’t listen to Mr. Gage, Jim. He’s just angry and scared.” At least Mr. Tennyson’s on my side. I think I’m going to need it if this continues.

“Pffffftttt.” Heh! Just like that asshole, Jessie. Angry and scared!

“What year is it?”

“That’s what we’re trying to find out. You’re the latest addition. I went under in 2010, Alma in 2012 and Mr. Gage in 2020…”

They do look scared. All of them. Especially Jessie 2.0. I guess that’s why that punk was always behaving like that. Heh! If I see him again I’ll punch him in the face. Settle down, Jim!

“Can you stand on your own, Jim? How old are you by the way? You look twenty.” Mr. Tennyson again.

“I’m nineteen!” She smiled. Is she shy? She’s looking away a lot.

“Poor boy!” What? Why poor? Poor old man maybe? How about that?

Just shut up, Jim! Does this mean I’m in the future? Oh my god!

“We’re wasting time. Literally every second is precious, or have you forgotten?” Jeez, does this guy ever relax?

“Is your name Jessie by any chance?”

“What? No!” Heh, could’ve sworn it was. Just smile and wave, Jimmy! Smile and wave!

“Come on, let’s get out of here. We need to find out what’s going on, here.”

“Finally! Thank you, Max.”

The lab looks really strange. Now that I look around, we’re definitely not in 2030. I wonder what year it is. Everything looks different. Are those screens?

“Did you check the computers?”

“Yes, we did! We couldn’t get any of them to work, I don’t think there’s any power in the facility.” Wow, her voice is so sweet Should I ask how old she is? No, don’t be a creep, Jimmy! That would be really weird. Hi! Welcome to a weird future! How old are you?

Just look around, Jimmy. Look at all the pretty walls. Look how pretty hey are. They have a nice white color. Wait! That’s right, everywhere I look there are only walls.

“Aaaaah, where’s all this light coming from?”

“The ceiling, as far as we can tell.” Mr. Tennyson seems smart.

“Didn’t she say there’s no power? How can that be?”

“We don’t know. But the ceiling glows. Quite brightly as you can see for yourself. It was even brighter when we woke up. Based on that, I believe the sun is starting to set.” He seems to have taken the leadership mantle of the group. The others don’t seem to mind it at all. Hmmmm.

“Why are you saying that?”

“Jesus, boy! It’s obvious they’re powered by sunlight or some sort of light since nothing else seems to work and we didn’t touch anything.” Here we go again with this guy.

“Relax, Mr. Gage! The boy doesn’t know what we did, or did not do. He’s right, Jim. When we got out of the tanks the lights were already on. As I said before, even brighter then they are now. That’s why we believe them to be powered by photovoltaic cells. Does any of the equipment in the rooms we’ve passed look familiar?”

“No, nothing.”

“Then I guess it’s safe to assume that we’re not in 2030 anymore.” Pretty smart.

“Mr. Tennyson! Do you think the others are waking up as well?” What others? What is she talking about? Idiot. Of course there are others here. Hmmmmm. But why haven’t they woken up yet?

“It’s safe to assume that they are, Alma. Mr. Gage, help me with this door please!”

Should I help as well? It feels so cold to the touch.

Come on. Put your back into it, Jimmy. One, two... three. That’s it.

“Great! Let’s see what we have here. Aaaaaah. This appears to he a locker of some sort. Let’s see if we can find something that will fit us, shall we?”

This material looks high-tech. It feels so light and yet it’s warm. I definitely like the future.

Ok! It looks a little tight on Alma. Right! Stop it, look away. Stop being such a creep. Remember what Dr. Patel taught us. Look for the markers. When you feel like this, when you feel the need to lose yourself in someone else like this, it’s because you’re trying to lose yourself, period. I’m scared and it’s ok to be scared. Remember who you are, Jimmy. You’re scared and lost and alone. Well, except for these weird people. Who are these people? Are they even who they say they are?

"We'll go look around some more. You two stay here. We'll be back for you!"

Should I talk to her? Now’s my chance while they’re away. Come on, Jim. Relax! You can do this. Just breathe!

“Hey, Alma!”

“Yes, Jim.”

“How did you get out of your tank?” Smooth, Jim.

“What do you mean?” Does she look scared? Am I that weird?

“I mean: did someone let you out or did you get out the same way I did? What happened?”

“No. The tank drained and let me out at the end of the process. It was almost empty when I woke up. The same with Mr. Gage and Mr. Tennyson. I think yours was broken or something.” Ok. That’s great to hear. It seems bad luck transcends both time and space.

“Did you look for anyone else?”

“There are over fifty tanks back where we were set up. We just figured it wasn’t their time yet. That’s why we came out looking for people.”

Hmmmm. Ok! So there’s more of us. Maybe someone has some answers.

“Jim!”

“Yes?”

“What’s wrong with you?”

What?! “Excuse me?”

“Sorry! I mean, what are you sick of?”

“What do you mean?” Am I that weird? What’s gotten into her. Why is shy asking me this?

“I mean. That’s why you’re here, right? Because you’re sick and you wanted to wake up sometime when there would be a cure?” Ok. Poor girl! So that’s why Mr. Tennyson made that face when I told him how old I was. That’s right! The first batches of patients where all terminal, this was their last hope.

“I don’t really want to talk about it.” Because I’m ashamed of it. Relax, Jimmy! Relax.

“Ok!”

I wonder what’s hers?!

“Jim, Alma! Could you please come with me?”

“Sure thing, Mr. Tennyson.” Pfiu! Right on time.

“What’s wrong?! Did you find someone?”

“Not exactly. But I think I know what’s happening.” It’s not good. He’s trying to mask the tremor in his voice... it’s not working.

Is it getting colder?

“Through here. We weren’t supposed to wake up like this. I think the coolant slowly heated up and that’s why we all woke up at the same time. Around this corner over here.”

Is Jessie 2.0 crying? What the hell?

“Is he ok?” Ok! I think she figured it out as well. Something’s definitely not right.

“He’ll be fine. He's in shock. Now, I won’t be able to hold the door open for too long. You need to see this with your own eyes, otherwise, you won’t believe me. Ready?”

Come on already! What's going on here?

“Ok. Now!”

What the...? Ice! There’s ice everywhere. Everything’s under ice. What the hell?

“Guys! I believe we've woken up at the end of an ice age… I think we’re several millennia into the future!”