Author Note: I have no affiliation with Stephenie Meyer or Twilight in anyway. This is my take on her character Alice's life before the Cullens.
2. Asylum
I awoke with a start in the unfamiliar surroundings. I was in a small room with padding on the walls and floor; there was one small barred window on the door and a small barred light source above my head. I realized I couldn't sit up or move much at all. I looked down at my arms and realized I was chained to a stiff white sheeted bed. My legs were bound too I realized. The events from before I passed out came slowly back to me. I was in the asylum.
"Oh no, this can't be happening," I whispered to myself shaking my head. The vision was still fresh in my mind and I felt my stomach churning and my head pounding in response to the images. Time seemed to stand still. I laid on the bed counting my breaths and tried not to panic. I needed to stay calm if I was going to get out of that place. I couldn't tell how long I was in that little room before someone came in to talk to me.
"Mary Alice, how are you feeling this morning? I do so apologize for the inconvenience of the shackles, all just protocol I promise you," a dark haired man with skin so fair it was almost white and eyes that looked almost gold stared down at me. The man was beautiful. He wore a white lab coat and had a clipboard and pen in his hands. "I am Dr. Cornelius Ballard. I will be in charge of your care here."
"I don't need your care. I need to get out of here. If I don't I'm going to end up dead so if you don't mind…" I knew it would never work but I had to try. Dr. Ballard cocked his head to the side and stared at me.
"My dear, what do you mean you'll end up dead if you don't leave? You honestly think I would let anything happen to you?" he asked me. He seemed sincere and it's not like anyone ever believed me when I had a vision anyway so I figured why not.
"I saw myself in the forest behind this place, I'm sure you already know I 'see' things and that's way I was committed. I was running from a man and he caught me. I ended up dead. Listen I know it sounds crazy but I've never been wrong before. I don't want to die," my voice trailed off into a whisper and I turned away. I felt the burn of tears and willed them away.
Dr. Ballard sighed and pulled a chair I hadn't noticed in the room up to the bed. He smelled amazing. I felt a shock of cold run from my hand up my arm and turned to see he had put his hand on mine. I looked up at him sure that my face betrayed the shock I felt.
"I would never say you were crazy my dear. I know this must be hard for you. Please tell me what kind of things you have seen. I can help you to understand what is happening to you," his voice was gentle. I wanted to trust him; I wanted to believe he would get me out of here before it was too late. I didn't know if he could. I had never been able to call on a vision before but I tried at that moment. I needed to know if he was being honest.
"Listen, Dr. Ballard, I would love to chat with you and try to figure out what it is that is really going on in my head but I don't really think I have enough time for that. My visions are subjective and can be changed, the future is always changing and right now I need it to be changed. Will you help me get out of here if I promise to talk to you once we're safe?" I looked him in the eye and a shiver of fear slide down my spine. I felt something was off about him but I knew he might be my only chance at making it out of here alive. As I looked at him, I saw pity spark in his eyes. He felt sorry for me; I could work with that as long as he helped me.
"Mary Alice, I will help you get out of here. I know a place I can take you but not until later. I have to wait until its dark and nobody can see us. Will you tell me how these visions come about? Is there a trigger or do they just happen?" he asked me with an eager look in his eyes. I smiled at him and choked back a laugh. He was intrigued by my visions. I hated to disappoint him, they weren't pleasant and I couldn't control them.
"They start with a jolt to my stomach and then a burst of light behind my eyes. My head feels like it's going to explode and then images flicker into my mind. Once the vision is complete I feel weak, nauseous and have a horrible headache. I don't get the visions often but the effects last for weeks. There has never been a trigger. I figure I just see what I'm meant to," it was such a relief to tell someone about my visions. I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
"Incredible," he mumbled to himself. "What kinds of things do you see exactly? People you know, death or misfortune? Is it always the same kinds of things every vision or always unconnected?" Dr. Ballard coaxed while his hand glided across the paper with incredible speed.
"I don't think any of it is connected. Today; or yesterday I guess; was the first time I had ever seen myself in a vision. It's always tragedy that I see. I don't think my family would have committed me if I could have made them rich or told them how their lives would turn out. I usually don't know those who are in my visions," the words flowed easily from me. I was desperate for someone to believe me maybe even understand me. Dr. Ballard stared at me. I couldn't read his eyes. He sat looking at me for a long time. I was about to say something when he stood up and started to walk away. Half way to the door he turned and looked at me with a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry Mary Alice, I'll help you," he turned and left the room faster than I thought possible.
I stared at the ceiling willing myself to have another vision. I was concentrating harder than I ever had. I was desperate to know if Dr. Ballard could save me from my fate. I laid in the bed thinking about my family and realized that if I did manage to escape this place I could never see them again. They would send be back. I felt the burn of tears stinging my eyes and tasted the salt water on my lips as the tears trickled down my cheeks.
Please review, I'm very curious to know what people think of my story.
