White walls

                                                White Walls

                                           by : Alejandra Bermejo

writing prompt: write about someone keeping track of time with tally marks on a wall- until one day they discover that all the marks are gone

“You’re going to die in there for what you’ve done” The guard sneered at the man in the cell  before slamming the door. A pair of glowing blue eyes stared back at him from the darkness.

He ran to the door, sticking his face to the small window  “Brave words from the man with the keys. why don’t you step inside and I’ll show you whose going to die first.” His eyes blazed with hatred, every word spoken with poison on his lips.

He turned away and sat down with his forehead to his knees. He started replaying the night repeatedly in his head. where did I make the mistake? he thinks to himself. However, it happened, He’s still here. powerless. weakened by the fight that brought him here. I am in a cage again. I’m alone.. AGAIN.

Minutes turned to hours; hours turned to days. everything seemed to meld together, day and night were no longer something he could recognize.

Touya reached for his face, sticking his finger between the open staples on his cheek. I have to do something. they won’t give me a pen, so I need to improvise. So he  decided to use his blood to  keep track of the days to regain some control of his situation. A simple tally, to mark the passing of each day.

Keeping tally was the only thing touya could think about. the white walls seemed to mock him. mock him with their pure white color. it was as if they knew how dirty his hands were.

 you aren’t special. I was pure once too. He thought to himself.

Because of his crimes, touya was put in solitary confinement. The judge was adamant to throw the book at him. Touya’s crimes were unforgivable but despite the nature of his crimes he was still given the opportunity to speak. to say his peace before they locked him away.

“Son, what do you have to say for yourself? why did you do what you did?”

a question that touya wasn ’t used to hearing. most of the time, no one lets him speak. so hes going to make sure he gets heard.

“Everything I did... I did it to turn the tide on society. those people were just pawns in my plans old man. martyrs for the cause. “

the judge was in shock. disgusted by his complete disregard for human life.

“you are so young. you were brought to the precipice of insanity by the misguided actions of a fool. You still have a chance to use this time in prison to repent.”

Touya thought it over, carefully considering the judge’s words. is he right? can I do that? I am so tired. tired of this rage. tired of this pain. but there is no redemption for me.

“The Precipice of insanity? judge you flatter me! I’m already There.” touya jumps on the table and a malicious laugh rips through him.

“everything I do. every action, every person I kill.. everything is a part of the plan. to bring down the man you exalt so much.”

touya turns to the back of the courtroom to address his father directly.

“ ENJI! HI! its me! your son! these hands? the ones you see that are soiled by blood? they are yours you sadistic bastard. this monster you see? this is someone YOU created.”

Shocked and upset his father walks out of the court room.

“GET BACK HERE YOU COWARD!” he jumps from the table, ready to go after endeavor, but he was interrupted by the guards who were prepared for this.  The judge orders that touya be restrained and he addresses touya directly.

“Son, I’m sentencing you to life in prison. it is clear that you are too far gone. may god have mercy on your soul”

and with one swing of the gavel touya is whisked away to a white van and restrained.

touya turns to stare at his wall of tallies. seven days. its been seven days since he was thrown in here to die.

“Thrown in here to die, like a sick dog. I wonder what dear ol’ dad would say about this.”

Dad.

 the thought of him. his name. it nauseated him.

Even now he sees his father’s face in his nightmares. the man that stole from him his childhood. his innocence. the man that abused him and his family. the source of his rage.

“No he can’t ruin this. this is supposed to be my vacation” He laughs to himself. If im going to be here, I might as well long I might as well enjoy myself.  

he looks at the tallies on the wall, fascinated by the way each one is different. touya lays down in his bed, looking up at the pure white ceiling.

You monster

how could you? how could you take my life from me?

“what the hell? whose there?”

touya sat up, confused. He stared at his wall of tallies.

murderer

MONSTER

The voices were coming from the wall. each tally a different voice. A different life he had cut short.

The voices grew louder and louder. each word cutting deeper into his ears. He grabbed his ears and curled himself into   a ball on the floor.

 “STOP! YOU ARE ALREADY DEAD! LEAVE ME ALONE!!”

the voices grew louder and louder until they finally stopped. touya sat up, confused. he looked back at the wall and realized that the tallies were gone.

Look at you.

touya did not have to turn to know who it was. it was a voice that haunts his nightmares. a voice he would never forget. dad.

 WEAK. so pathetic.

The sound of Heavy Footsteps approached behind touya.

Look at you. its disgusting. I taught you better than this.

Touya couldn’t stop his heart from beating as hard was it was. “You aren’t here old man. this is just me losing my mind” despite how much he tried to rationalize it, he couldn’t stop the fear he felt.

Stop your blubbering Touya. Get up and face me you coward. You get this from your weak mother.

“YOU DON’T GET TO TALK ABOUT HER” Touya stood in front  his father. His knees were shaking, nausea was building in his stomach. As scared as he was, he had to defend his mother. Even to this monster.  he could not look him in the eyes. not like this. not while he felt so weak.

He closed his eyes with the hope that this was all a nightmare.

please. please go away. I cannot go through this again. NOT AGAIN.  he thought to himself.

Suddenly, Touya felt five thick fingers grip his neck and lift him to the wall.

“You WILL look at me when im talking to you.”

In his desperation touya opened his eyes. Now he knew where the tallies had gone. His own blood betraying him, the ultimate prison.

The monster before him was an abomination, a creature made with the blood of his tallies.

His father gripped tighter around his throat before throwing him against the wall where the tallies used to be.

“You are such a disappointment.”

touya tried his best to fight back against this monster, but he still had not recovered from the fight he had that brought him here.

his father grabbed him by the hair and threw him against the wall. this time touya did not get up.

the next day they found his body curled up in a corner, with his face twisted into a scream. the coroner had declared that his heart had stopped.

a death that not even he deserved.