The end of the last chapter was somewhat of a cliffhanger. Now it's time for the next one so nobody has a heart attack on me. ;)
I own nothing. The Almighty Larson owns it all.
The deafening siren combined with the sound of the cells opening causes me to wake up and fall off the unbelievingly comfortable bottom bunk. I groan and pick myself up off the floor.
"Damn," Bones says, standing in front of my cell chuckling. "It's no secret you're new."
"What time is it?" I ask.
"About . . . 4:30."
"In the morning!?"
"Yup. That insanely loud alarm clock goes off at 4:30 a.m., 12:00 p.m., and 7:30 p.m."
"Great." I stretch and notice that Scarecrow's bunk is empty. "Did Scarecrow leave while I was on the floor?"
"I don't think he ever came back from Unit F." He never came back? Oh no. He could be dead! Wait a minute. Why the hell should I care? He was gonna strangle me last night! I'm glad he didn't come back! Hmm . . . for some reason I feel bad for being happy he might be dead.
I walk with Bones to the cafeteria, all the while looking for Sampson or Warden Harris. I need to know what's happening or what already happened to Scarecrow. It's driving me insane!
"Hey, Bones?" I say.
"You're gonna ask another question about Scarecrow, aren't you?" Bones replies.
"Is it that obvious?"
"Yeah. Why do you even care about him? He ain't that important and he was probably gonna kill you last night."
"Well, maybe he just has anger issues."
"Or maybe he wanted to kick your ass cause you're smaller than him." That could be true, but I'm trying to give him the benefit of the doubt here. Then again . . .
"That couldn't be right."
"How do you know?"
"If that was true, he would've hit me in the cafeteria last night instead of you."
"Now that you mention that, I hope that little fucker is still alive so I can kill him for givin' me a bloody nose."
Breakfast consists of round, pancake looking things that are as hard as hockey pucks and a small bowl of an extremely lumpy oatmeal substance. How appetizing. As I sit in the same spot that I sat in last night next to Bones, I keep glancing down at the other end of the table, half expecting Scarecrow to be sitting there, staring at his breakfast.
"Lookin' for somebody?" Big E asks me. I suddenly snap back to reality.
"No," I say quickly just as I notice Warden Harris walk into the cafeteria. "Uh . . . I'll be right back." I stand up and walk as fast as I can without running toward Warden Harris.
"I'm surprised you're even up," he says to me. "Most newcomers seem to sleep through the siren."
"Who the hell can sleep through that?" I ask.
"Lots of people actually. How are you enjoying your breakfast?"
"The same as I enjoyed my dinner." Warden Harris chuckles.
"So, what made you want to talk to me?"
"I'm just gonna get right to the point. I really need to know if Scarecrow's okay."
"Why?"
"I don't know. I guess I feel kinda bad for him. I mean, he seems to get picked on all the time."
"What part of 'don't worry about it' didn't you get?"
"The 'don't' part. I want answers and I want 'em now!" Warden Harris sighs and pulls me out of the cafeteria. "Well? Are you gonna answer my questions?" I fold my arms across my chest.
"Sampson and Collins, who you know as Scarecrow, were attacked in Unit F last night. Hamilton, the other guard that helped Sampson escort Collins over to Unit F, was killed." I stare at him with widened eyes. "Does that answer all of your questions?"
"Where are Sampson and Scarecrow?" I ask, still in shock.
"They've both been taken to the hospital."
"Are they gonna be okay?"
"Collins is able to come back here today, but Sampson has been put on life support."
"Can I come when you bring Scarecrow back?" Judging by the look on Warden Harris' face, I don't think I should've asked that.
"I was actually going to head out right now," he says. "Are you sure you want to skip breakfast?" He smiles.
"If I must, I must," I reply.
Being in the hospital makes me wish I'd been taken over to Unit F. Hell, walking in the door makes me wish I could've traded places with Scarecrow. How'd they get this place so neat? They probably have millions of maids and little robots to get in those hard-to-reach places. After Warden Harris and I have been sitting in the glorified waiting room for about an hour, a doctor comes over to us.
As the doctor talks with the warden, I remain sitting and stare at the ground. I only stare at it for four seconds because it's so bright it actually hurts my eyes. Scratch that, this isn't clean . . . it's insanity! Seriously, there's a difference between "wow, this is clean" and "these people must polish the floors and the walls all day."
"Davis," Warden Harris says, "you wanted to see him, so get your ass over here." I stand up and walk behind him as he follows the doctor. We pass a window as we walk and I cover my eyes to shield them from the painful rays of sunlight.
"Here we are," the doctor says. Warden Harris suddenly throws me into the room and I fall, causing the sleeping Scarecrow to wake up. I stand up and turn around just as Warden Harris shuts the door before I can ask him what the hell he did that for. I turn back toward Scarecrow, who's glaring at me.
"Hi," I say with as much confidence as I can. He continues to glare at me and I study the bandage on his forehead, the splint on his wrist, the hospital gown he's wearing, and his jumpsuit that is now folded and sitting on a chair next to the bed. "Um . . . I bet you're wondering what I'm doing here." He rolls his eyes, closes them, and then lies back down. "Well, Scarecrow, I'll tell you anyway." His eyes snap open and his glare returns. "I asked the warden if I could come visit you cause I've been kinda worried about you." His glare softens and he sits up slowly. "So, how're you feeling?"
"Why do you care?" he asks.
"I don't know actually. I guess it's cause I feel bad for you since you're always getting picked on. I thought you could use some company."
"You don't even know me."
"I'd like to. I mean, if we're gonna be stuck together for the next three years, we might as well be friends, right?" I laugh nervously and Scarecrow just stares at me. "Acquaintances?"
"Acquaintances first, then maybe friends. Maybe."
"Well, pleased to make your acquaintance . . . acquaintance." I laugh again and Scarecrow makes a face.
"That was a terrible joke. Don't ever say it again."
"Sorry, Scarecrow."
"That's another thing. If we're gonna be acquaintances, you gotta stop callin' me Scarecrow."
"But that's all I know you by."
"I don't care. That ain't my name."
"Everyone else-"
"I don't give a damn about everyone else!" Wow. I didn't think he could be that loud. "Those assholes dubbed me Scarecrow just cause I don't talk to 'em. They think I don't talk cause I don't have a brain, but it's actually because every last prisoner I've ever met is too incompetent to carry on a conversation with."
"Then why do you talk to me?"
"I don't fucking know! Jesus Christ! Do you always ask this many questions!?"
"It was just a question. There's no need to snap." We're silent for a moment. "So, what should I call you?"
"Collins."
"That's what the warden calls you."
"And?"
"It's a little strange that you go by, and I'm guessing here, your last name."
"Well, it grows on you when you've been in that place as long as I have."
"How long is that?"
"Six years." I blink a few times and clean out my ear with my finger.
"How many years?"
"Six years. I've got three more before I'm a free man."
"What the hell did you do to get nine years?" He stares at me for a moment as if he's silently debating whether he trusts me or not.
"Enough talkin' about me. Let's talk about you." Hey! He just tried to dodge my question!
"Can't you just answer one more question?"
"Fine, but not that one."
"Could you answer a part of it?"
"I'm in prison for somethin' that was misinterpreted as something else, okay? That's all I'm sayin' on that subject."
"Fair enough." What I really mean by that is, "I'll get you to spill it later." I really don't know how I'm gonna do that, but I'll think of a way. "Why are you in prison if it was a misinterpretation? Is the warden trying to scare you straight or something?" Scarecr . . . Collins laughs. "What's so funny?"
"It's gonna take much more than Unit F to scare me straight." He laughs again, but stops when he sees the puzzled look on my face. "We're not on the same page, are we?"
"Probably not."
"When you asked me if the warden is tryin' to scare me straight, what'd you mean?"
"I meant clean up your behavior. What'd you think I meant?" Reality suddenly slaps me in the face. "Collins, are you gay?"
"Now what kind of acquaintance would ask somethin' like that?"
"Are you?" Collins sighs.
"Yeah." His glare comes back. "You got a problem with it?" He looks like he's about to jump out of the bed and kill me.
"No." I involuntarily put my hand out as if I'm stopping him from coming any further. "I don't have a problem at all. I was just asking." Warden Harris suddenly comes into the room.
"You're lucky Sampson likes you, Collins," he says, picking Collins' folded jumpsuit up off of the chair next to the bed. "Otherwise, it'd be you on life support instead of him." He throws the jumpsuit at Collins. "Get up." Collins stares at him with a blank expression on his face. "I know you don't talk, but I know you understand English. Get the hell up!" Warden Harris pushes Collins out of the bed and he lands on his already hurt wrist. "Next time I tell you to get up you'll do it faster, won't you!?" Collins says nothing as a small tear runs down his cheek. "What the hell are you crying for!?" Warden Harris starts to kick Collins, but I stand in front of his foot and he stops. "Get out of the way, Davis!"
"You can't take Sampson being on life support out on him," I say.
"I can do whatever the hell I feel like!"
"Actually you can't. You may be an officer of the law, but you still have to follow the law." Warden Harris glares at me and goes to the door.
"Get dressed, Collins." He slams the door and I help Collins off the floor.
"Is your wrist okay?" I ask. Collins nods. "Why didn't you stick up for yourself? You're a big guy. You could've taken him. You know he has no right to hurt you because another officer is on life support." Collins says nothing and I sigh. "I'll help you change."
That's chapter two! Hope you liked it! Review please!