Déjà vu
As the motorbike rolled to a gentle stop in the parking lot Derek realised he was grateful for taking the bike. The fresh air that was rushing past him and filtering through his helmet was enough to make him feel alive again – even if it was only for a few hours. He noticed there was a crowd near the door as soon as he came in and was desperately trying to pull up close to it. He noticed that Tyler, Leslie, Victor, Dr Kasal and even Dr Hoffman were there and he could make out a large muscular man and a petite woman who he recognised instantly as Angie. The man was 'Butch' (As Derek thought the name suited him more) but his real name was in fact James – Angie's boyfriend.
He pulled up alongside them but didn't need to get close to hear the shouts.
"Do you not understand!?" Angie yelled halfway through a sob. "There's nothing going on between us!"
"Between who?" Derek pulled the helmet off and pulled the bike onto the rest.
"You two!" The muscular man roared in Derek's face.
"Dude, chill. I'm sorry for being such a dumbass geez…" Derek grumbled. "There isn't anything go on. Why would you think that?"
"Because you spend so much time with each other!"
"Did you ever think that we work together? And when we do go out together, we're going out for a drink with OUR friends!" Angie screeched. "You're so jealous! Does this mean I have to stop being friends with all the guys I know?"
"If it means I know you're not cheating on me!"
"You stalked me to work!" Angie sobbed. "I can't not stop being friends with guys! I work with them for god's sake! And I would never give up being their friends!"
Derek's head stung as if a jolt of electricity had been passed through it. This is just like the dream… Angie was arguing, and then she was slapped by something… Or someone…
"Dude, Angie's your girlfriend; you're supposed to believe her! And not stalk her to work!" Tyler growled.
"Keep out of this Blondie!"
"I'm sick of this!" Angie screamed suddenly. "Why didn't you tell me about this before I left? Why did you have to follow me? All you do is argue and try to control me! Forget it, we're through! You just wanted what all other guys want when they see a girl like me! I'm not selling my body to you!"
"I never got very far with that! You're so frigid and I bet you're still a virgin too!" He swiftly slapped Angie across her face knocking her sideways. "I'll get my stuff while you're here!" Angie ran into the building, her makeup cascaded down her cheeks and her eyes red from her cries were now complimented by the red mark along her cheek. He attempted to knock the motorbike off the kickstand and make Derek fall backwards but he failed miserably.
"What an evil bastard he was…" Victor growled. "Even by my standards…"
"Dude, poor Angie…"
"That last comment was unnecessary; it is after all Angie's private life…" Dr Hoffman and Dr Kasal agreed.
"Déjà vu…" Derek mumbled to himself. "That was a little weird…"
"I'll go and…" Leslie turned to run after Angie.
"- No I will." Derek shouted suddenly. "Just let me park the bike."
He crept into his and Angie's office and threw the leather bike jacket on his chair.
"Angie?" He restrained himself from touching the frail nurse. "Please Angie, look at me…"
"Mmf…" Angie said something but Derek couldn't hear it.
"Sweetie" He reached out and tapped her shoulder gently. She looked around at him and water engulfed her emerald eyes. He wanted to break down, he hated seeing her upset. He half expected her to slap him across the face.
"Derek…" She watched as he knelt down to face her.
"Why didn't you tell me Ang?" Derek asked.
"I didn't know myself you moron!" She suddenly realised what she had just said. "I'm sorry I didn't mean that…it's just…you were always the first person I went to when me and James argued."
"Angie, I also live the closet to you and James…" Derek thought carefully before adding. "But…you'd have more sense than to cheat on your partner, I'm sure of that."
"Thanks, that means a lot…just like you keeping me company when me and him argued did…" Derek passed her a tissue to clean her face now her tears had stopped. "About the last comment he made…about me still being a virgin…"
"What about it?" Derek saw the emerald glint in her eyes.
"It's true…but please don't tell anyone…" She waited for Derek to laugh but he never did. "…I just think that if you're supposed to remember the first time you made love then you should make sure you really love the person too…"
"It's fine, I won't say anything and I agree with you."
"Are you ok Derek?" Derek sat on his chair at his desk for a few minutes to give Angie a chance to recover. "You don't look too good yourself…" Angie watched as he turned to face her. "You look like you haven't been sleeping well…"
"…I haven't…" He mumbled, ashamed of himself.
"Why? Is something the matter?"
"No, everything's fine" Derek replied quickly.
"If you say so…" Angie watched him carefully before turning away again.
"Can I come in and talk to Angie?" Leslie called from outside.
"Sure come in!" Angie called. "Derek, will you?"
"I'm gonna get some coffee anyway, want one?"
"No thanks…" She studied his figure; something was definitely keeping him from sleeping.
"Hey dude, everything alright with Angie?" Tyler put the coffee cup in front of Derek.
"She should be alright." Derek replied truthfully, the sleeplessness beginning to creep up on him.
"You don't look healthy either Derek!" Victor yelled.
"Chill, I just need some sleep is all…" Derek yelled back. By the time Tyler turned round to tell Derek to calm down Derek had fallen asleep.
"Dude?"
"Leave him!" Victor growled.
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"Oh no, not here, not while I'm working!" Derek cried in the vast darkness. "The bright flash…" The glare caused Derek to wince. "Where's He?" Then Derek saw Him. The monster – human looking but far to tall to be one. He was much more muscular than any other human Derek had seen before too.
"Who are you?" Derek cried as the ground shook beneath him. The blue robe on the figure was becoming more defined – the creature was coming closer.
"I am your worst nightmare, your disease! Now you know my secret you shall be terminated!"
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Derek woke suddenly. Tyler was prodding him.
"You look like you were having a nightmare…" He lifted his head and saw the others.
"Or a fit…" Dr Kasal quickly cut in.
"It happened again…" Derek felt like crying.
"What…" Victor looked up. "Holy shit! What the fuck's that!" Derek felt himself choke as he felt huge slender fingers grip his throat. He was in the air still struggling and spluttering. Then he saw the same two friends of the monsters.
"Déjà vu Stiles!" The twin snakes hissed together. He felt himself being thrown through the door until he hit the wall in the reception. He felt blood gargle in his throat at the force he'd been thrown. "Our master, Asclepius has something to chat to you about…"
"Asclepius? He's a god! He's not real!" Derek cried through the blood.
"I quite assure you I'm real boy!" Derek felt himself lifted again and thrown so that he landed on a trolley and slit his hand on the scalpels. He felt himself grope at the board he'd just knocked off with his good hand to hide a scalpel in his sleeve.
"I think you've been intruding on my plans…" Derek struggled through his blurred vision to see the creature. "You've been having nightmares about it have you not?"
"Leave… Angie…Alone…" Derek snarled. "Why is she…in your plans?"
"That has nothing to do with you." He placed a device that was a small wooden block with a piece of metal which pinged rhythmically. "You should be more worried about your incurable disorder…"
"You don't mean?" He saw as the monster turned the dial on the digital metronome screen and felt his heart beat slow. He fell back against the wall and clutched his chest. "The incurable, unknown heart disease you've suffered with since you were a boy… A rhythmic heart beat… until now nobody knew who it was controlled by…" The snakes slithered towards the metronome and began to turn it down more until it reached ten. Derek could feel the life being sucked from him.
"Derek doesn't have a disease!" Angie screamed but was hushed by one of the snakes.
"It was never…written…on my…records…because I refused…to let them…study it…" Derek struggled to pronounce the words. Asclepius hoisted him up again.
"A fellow Asclepiad like me, you're not worth the energy!" With the last ounce of strength his exhausted and dying body would give him, Derek lifted his arm, slid the scalpel down his sleeve and stabbed it into the Greek god's arm. He fell to the floor and fainted instantly. Angie watched in horror as the monster screamed, altered the metronome to its original speed and vanished.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Derek had been out for half an hour. He watched as the blood in the bag filtered into his arm and began to time his pulse.
"64 bpm like it should be…" he pulled the needle from his arm, checked if anyone was in the corridor and made his way to the door. As he got outside he ignored the pain in his slashed hand, chest and began to limp home.