Indifference

Chapter 3- Alex

I toss and turn and try to fall back asleep. My sleeping bag seems to have slipped off. I reach down to my toes but am greeted by tight ropes.

"Ow! What the?"I slit my eyes open and expect to find the ceiling of my green tent. Oh. Instead my eyes find the crinkled face of an old man hovering centimeters from my face. "Ahhhh!" I jolt my body to the left but am met by a searing pain that washes over my whole body. The man begins to laugh.

"Alex dear, don't be stupid. Fighting back will get you nowhere." As he moves his head back from my face, my eyes begin to focus on his features. Woah. First I find the bad guy from my childhood, now the mad scientist. What's next? The super sexy hero? The old man has crazy white hair that stands on end. He has a large nose and small, weasel-like eyes. All of his features are surrounded by large, deep wrinkles. God, he's the definition of ugly.

"I'm not fighting back! You just scared the crap out of me. Look, scaring young women like that makes you look really messed up, and....wait, how do you know my name?"

"Well, you have quite a tongue don't you? The procedure will get rid of that." God, this day is getting weirder and weirder. 

"Um, what's the procedure?" A voice from the corner of the room says. It startles me as I thought no one else was here. I swivel my head around in attempt to find who is with us. After several tries, I find the person. Oh, it's Carter. She doesn't even look the slightest bit frazzled. 

"No questions girls."

"Look, if you don't tell me right now what the hell is going on, I'm going to...."

"Shut up Alex," says the old man calmly.

"At least tell us who you are," Carter tries.

"My name will not matter when you are in Indifferent." He finally turns around and looks at us. He sees our puzzled glances and sighs to himself. "God, Vineus is really choosing the stupid creatures isn't he." He then looks at us. "I am Professor Hilamatus, and I will be preparing you for Indifference." He looks at us for another second and then turns around.

"That's all we're gonna get?" I ask. This professor is really beginning to piss me off.

"No, if you shut your mouth for second, I will show you something." Okay, not talking for a minute. That shouldn't be hard...well....maybe. The professor turns to his computer and types something in. In response to his actions, a massive sound of creaking metal booms. The iron wall in-front of me slides to the side. After about a minute, it stops. Behind it stands a massive screen like ones from the cinema. The professor glances at me. "Good, now keep quiet." The screen lights up. Printed across the screen is the word 'Indifference'. God, I am really beginning to hate that word. Not knowing things bugs the hell out of me. Several seconds pass. Just when I think that nothing is going to happen, the screen changes to a young lady. Oh my god. It's Harriet. A tear runs down my cheek. She seemed like such a wonderful woman. She is smiling again. She begins to talk.

"Hello. My name is Harriet Harper Roth." A strangled gasp escapes from my mouth as my brain begins to process what she has just said. Harriet Harper Roth....Vineus Roth...could it be? Could they have been married. Oh my god, Vineus really is a self-centered bastard! Harriet still looks happy in this video. It must have been shot a long time ago. She continues to talk, "I know this all must be very confusing for you, but it will all make sense soon. You are going into a world called 'Indifference.' After you have been through the process, you will be a perfect human being and you will join the other perfects. You are lucky. You have been chosen to be part of the new world. Once you are in Indifference, you will remember nothing of your past life. This is due to the mental part of the process. The physical part will take care of how you look. You don't need to worry about anything. Have fun and good luck." With that the screen turns black and the wall returns back to it's position. 

"Okay girls, we are going to start with the physical part of the process." The professor places his hand on my shoulder. 

"Get your filthy hands off me you perv," I sneer through clenched teeth. What has happened to the world I once knew and loved? The professor looks at me and laughs to himself.

"Look, I'll give you some time to pull yourself together." He looks me dead-set in the eyes. "Oh, and don't go anywhere,"he smiles to himself again and turns around, "though I doubt you will." He closes the door behind him. God that man is the definition of annoying and evil. I run my hands over the ropes.

"Carter, we have to get out of here. Now." Carter looks up at me.

"Alex, stop being stupid. We're stuck." Even in life threatening situations, Carter is a stubborn cow. I think this proves my point. I start to squirm around. "Alex.."

'Look," I stop wriggling. "You can stay here and die, but I'm not going down without a fight."

"Alex, we're not going to die. Did you not listen to a word that anyone has said today?"

"Carter,"I mimic her, "did you not listen to a word Harriet said as she was being shot in the face! You shut up Carter. I'm sick of you. Sick of everything you do! You can stay here. You might not die, but I don't really care." With that I continue to try and escape. She's quiet. I look over at her. She is red in the face but is now playing with the ropes around her small waist. I smile to herself. I honestly think that this is the first time that she has listened to a thing I say. I continue to pull at the ropes, jolting my body in awkward positions. Grunts and groans jump from my throat in determination and slight pain as the ropes dig into my ribs. Carter is doing the same to my left.

A voice suddenly intrudes into the almost silence of the room."Fighting will get you nowhere. Do you know anything?" I jump and squeal. 

"Shit!" I didn't even hear footsteps. I turn around and expect to find the professor, but instead I find a young man that looks to be about 19. He is tall and  and extremely attractive. I gasp silently. On the island, all the men are either much older than me or younger. This man seems too perfect. He has flowing chestnut hair and deep brown eyes.He has a sharp jaw bone and perfect skin covered in a thin layer of stubble. He looks at me with a soft grin opening up his face. 

"Well, I haven't heard or seen a girl talk in about two years. Whereas I haven't heard anyone swear in about ten. What makes you so special." I am taken for words. This guy is just too damn sexy for words. His voice is low and seems to flow along with the breeze.

"I....I....um....well...ah?" A slight chuckle escapes from his mouth. 

"Lost for words now huh? Look, I'm not going to hurt you, I'll help you." I shake my head. This seems to much like the hero from a comic strip.

"Look, who are you?" I ask.He grins.

"I'm Jasper, your knight in shining armor."