Three strangers, Bentley (Anton Yelchin), Matthias (Freddie Highmore), and Hana (Imogen Poots) are selected for an "innocent" social experiment where they are to experience their worse nightmares and impossible dreams. Placed in an empty asylum, th...
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Three strangers sat together on a worn-out leather bench. The concrete walls -- most of them decorated with spray paint and symbols - raced behind them at a constant speed. The lights inside the subway flickered in weak bursts of yellow, providing the passengers with little to no light. The train itself rumbled and shook as the wheels scraped over the rustic tracks beneath them. There was no comfort in the journey to their shared destination, but they knew they would soon enough arrive and be tended to.
The oldest among the three was nineteen year old Bentley Smith, a college student at High Point University in North Carolina with a degree in physics. He was humble and kind, traits that rarely roamed the campus. He was born in Minnesota and then moved down South when he was five years old. His parents worked outside the home while he was at school, making quality time something that slowly died. Bentley, though drawn to himself most of the time, was fairly independent and knew how to think on his feet. He was nothing short of attractive and his innocent, yet unpredictable bursts of confidence, made him extremely likeable. However, his comfort in solitude kept him out of the spotlight on campus, and it wasn't long before he was mostly known for the uniqueness of his name. He didn't mind it at all.
To Bentley's right was the majoring lawyer, Hana Taylor. She was eighteen and a student at Stanford University in California. She was the top of her grade and never earned less than an A in her entire academic career. She was considered a prodigy, but she begged to differ. Hana was naturally smart and beautiful, but took neither for granted. Many mistook her as a cheerleader or model with her thick blonde wavy hair, twinkling blue eyes, and slim hourglass figure. But despite her false stereotypes, she was not athletic and was severely camera shy. This, like Bentley, made her a ghost on her campus: known only by associations.
And then there was Matthias Solomon. Also an introvert and enjoyed his thoughts more than others' opinions. He was eighteen years old and a student from The University of Notre Dame, Indiana. He was studying architect, and was already creating a blueprint for a government institution in Austin, Texas. He was a foster child, his parents were killed in a robbery when he was fifteen. His grandparents would have taken care of him, but their grief distracted them from supporting Matthias and it wasn't long before the remaining members of the family decided to place him in foster care. The money for his education was all that was poured into him. Matthias - though he never mentioned it - believed it was out of guilt he was given an outstanding academic opportunity. The boy, just like the other two, separated himself from the masses and tended to his secluded world.
As the underground train continued to jolt around and mess with the overhead lights, Bentley swallowed and turned his eyes to the passenger beside him. His hands fumbled with the laminated folder in his hands as he arranged his greeting properly. "You two both going for this social 'experiment.'" He smiled uncomfortably as he waited for their reply. The girl spoke first.
"Yes. I received it in the mail and it looked promising. I mean, sixty dollars an hour isn't that bad for dedicating your opinions to science." She laughed nervously and stashed her blonde strands behind her elfish ears. "From what I read, it sounds like all we do is watch videos and then comment on how they made us feel. And it's only a month."
