My Life: Hello Izzy
I would love to have an original phrase to describe what I felt when I woke up, but the only phase fitting would have to be stolen from my mom.
'I woke up. All I could taste was blood…and metal.'
I felt around my face. I knew this trap. It was the Reverse Bear Trap. I looked down at my arms. They were still littered with scars, but there was a huge lump on my left arm. Sitting right next to me was a tape recorder. My hands shaking, I picked it up and pressed play.
"Hello Izzy. You have nothing to worry about in life. You have friends, a good family, and a generally happy life. Yet, you brought yourself to the point where you resorted to self-mutilation. Not only does self-abuse leave scars on you, but everyone around you. Now, you're going to show me whether you are truly deserving of life. As your father, I know you are, but you need to prove it. The trap attached to your face should be familiar. You know how to get out of it, so I don't feel the need to explain it. But you may be confused by the lump in your arm. To represent you cutting yourself, the key to the next room is inside your arm. You need to cut into your arm to retrieve the key. In the next room, you will find a furnace. The furnace represents all of the people you hurt or 'burned' due to your abusive actions. You must crawl into the furnace to get the key to the next room, which contains the key to your freedom. There will only be one thing in that room, and once you see that thing, you'll know that it holds your key, and how you'll need to obtain it. I'll give you a hint. Think of your mother. Live or die Izzy. Although all of us would prefer the former, you need to make your own choices and decide if this life has meant anything to you during your thirteen years of experience." My father's voice sent chills down my spine, and I knew that I could possibly die in this very room. As soon as the taped ended, I heard the timer begin. Knowing this model of the Reverse Bear Trap, I knew that it gave the victim more time to get out of it. Time that I would need if I wanted to survive. I picked up the knife that had been in front of me the entire time and sighed. I've cut myself multiple times, and I could do it again. I quickly dragged the knife across my arm and the key slid out. It hurt like hell, but so did all the other cuts. I fumbled with the key before I made it to the door and opened it.
I assumed that the furnace would be the most painful part of this trap. I felt just like Obi in the Nerve Gas House. I stared into the furnace to see where the key was and of course, it was at the very end of it. I slowly reached my hand in to see if I could reach it without crawling in. I couldn't. I tried to lean in to get it, but I still couldn't. Finally, I made the mental decision to actually go in to get it. Right as my entire body was inside, I assumed the fire would just appear, but it didn't, meaning that the key was likely what triggers the flames. I crawled to the end of the furnace and found that the key was on a string. As soon as I pulled on the key and got it out, the door closed shut and the flames shot out.
"Shit…" I muttered. I had no idea how the hell to get out of this, which is a surprise. Being the person who designed this trap's daughter, one would think I'd know this trap better than any other victim could. I even remember helping with the mechanism that cause the door to close when the string was pulled and the key was freed. Then, it hit me.
'Once you are in Hell, only the devil can help you out.'
I looked around for the knob as the flames grew closer and licked at my legs. I found it at the very end, near where the door was. Taking a chance and reaching into the fire, I groped the walls until I could feel the knob in my grasp, and turned it. Instantly, the flames died down and the door opened. I breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at my arms. Not only were the cuts still there, but so was some burnt flesh from reaching into the fire. With the key still in my other hand, I crawled out of the furnace, opened the door and advanced onto the final stage of my trap.
As soon as I entered the room, I looked around for what would hold my key, and I found it. It was a person, lying on the floor.
'It's in the stomach of your dead cellmate.'
Amanda's first test came to my mind, and I knew that whoever the poor soul is that's lying on the floor, he sure isn't dead. I kicked the body over and scanned the face and tried to see if I recognized him. Unfortunately, I did.
"Hey guys, check this out. It fell from some trap door when Margie pulled the third needle out of the ceiling." Casey pointed out.Casey Frank. From the game my father had me help out in.
"No…nonono." I whispered. I didn't want to kill him. He was a nice guy.
Casey's eyelids fluttered open a few seconds later. "Izzy?"
"Casey…" I said.
"What the hell is that on your face?" He asked, pointing at the Reverse Bear Trap.
"It's nothing. Now listen…I'm sorry for this but…I'm going to have to kill you." I said solemnly.
"What the…?" Casey shouted, backing up.
I picked up the knife that had been lying next to him. "My father told me to."
"Wh-wh-who's your father?" His voice quivered. Casey continued to back up until he reached the wall, and from the look on his face, he knew he was cornered.
"Jigsaw." I said. I thrust the knife into his stomach. I could hear the ticking of the trap getting louder, meaning I had twenty seconds to get the key. I continued to stab Casey until I could clearly see the key. I reached into his body and nearly dropped the key.
"Come on…come on…" I muttered, trying to find the lock. The clock slowly ticked down, and as it reached the last few seconds, I let out a bloodcurdling scream.
Back at home, the entire family was watching Izzy's trap on the large TV in the den and as soon as she screamed, there wasn't one dry eye in the room. Even Jill. Even Diana. They were all crying. Zepp was huddled in the corner of the den bawling, as he had been when the game first started.
"It's okay Zepp." Amanda said, patting him on the back. "The game is all over now…"
About a day or so later, Zepp went upstairs to Izzy's room. He found her body lying in bed.
"I wish you had never done this to me…" He said, even though she couldn't hear him. "You don't know how much this hurts." He sat down next to her and looked at her arms, covered with scars and burns. Then, Zepp looked at her eyes. "I love you Izzy." Then, feeling a bit of bravery, leaned in and kissed her on the lips, and then walked away. He was smiling for two reasons. One, he had just kissed his true love. Two, he had gotten to kiss her with her jaw intact. [1]
"Congratulations Izzy." Billy had said. "You are still alive. You have made the rest of your family and me proud."
I went over all of this in my head as I slept. I survived. And now, here I am. Wide awake but trying not to open my eyes as Zepp spoke to me. When he leaned in and kissed me, it took all of my strength to stop me from kissing him back. I figured I would wait a while to let him know that I was still awake when he kissed me. Maybe I'll wait a week. Or maybe I'll never tell him. Maybe.
[1] You gotta admit that was a bit stupid. If he kissed Izzy...her jaw would be intact T.T
A/N: I decided I'd kept you guys in suspense long enough...hehe. So anyways, looks like Izzy has finally proved herself worthy. And she got to kiss Zepp...yeah, I had to do that! I love you guys! Well thanks so much for reading this and I hope you like it because I don't T.T...well yeah. I still need to tie up the loose end I left for you guys at the AIM chapter, so I better get to that. See you laytah! Love and hugs, Izzy!