I sat in a metallic box, oblivious to my surroundings. Blinking, I looked around. Where am I? Now seemed a good time to know. The walls surrounding me are metallic, and I'm shaking. I didn't feel scared at all. Gazing upwards, a small window illuminated the dark box. Flurries of pictures whizzed by, and it only took a moment for me to realize I was moving. Not of my own accord though. But as to where I was going was a mystery.

I got up, my legs trembling. How long was I asleep for? Or, was I even asleep at all? I couldn't remember a thing from before... Perhaps that was for good reason. When I tried to shuffle closer to the window, I was stopped. Glancing down, my ankles and wrists were chained together. Did I do something wrong? I could just be on my way to the police station, but this didn't look like a cops car. I sat down with a sigh, feeling defeated. All I could really do was wait. Closing my eyes, I attempted to sleep. 

"You can still escape." A voice hissed in my ear like a snake, knocking me awake. I canned the box for a body to locate the voice with, but had no such luck. Then it came again.

"Don't you want to be free?" It, or perhaps, he spoke as if conversion with a small child.

"But I'm stuck. There's nothing I can do." I said bluntly. Hearing the sound of my own voice startled me, as though I had never heard it before.

"And I can fix that, little lady."

It was clear that this voice, who or whatever it was, wanted to strike a deal.

"Name your price." I spoke almost lazily. The voice chuckled.

"Why, I already have your payment, Karen."

"How do you know my name?"

Somehow I didn't feel surprised that the vice knew me, but I thought I should start a conversation. There wasn't anything else better to do.

"How could you forget? You told me yourself."

"Where are we going?"

Laughter. Psychotic, maniacal laughter screeched into my ears from all directions. I covered my ears with my hands, but couldn't drown out the noise.

Then, one of the walls opened. A well-built, bearded man greeted me with a stony face. The laughter had stopped as well as the box I was moving in. The man approached me, wearing only white. He cut my legs free from the shackles, but left my wrists untouched. When I held out t hands, motioning for him to free them as well, he just laughed as if I told a humorous joke.

"Think I'm mental, d'ya?! C'mon, lets go." And he grabbed me by the chain, half dragging me to a large, rectangular building. There were no windows aside from vents, and the only entrance and exit I could see was a thick, white door. Looking back, I saw the truck I had come out of, its walls casting a darkening shadow across the cobblestone pathway. The man grunted, pulling the door open. He tugged me along, down a narrow, dimly lit corridor. We came to a halt outside a door, similar to that of the entrance, only this door in particular had a small slot where food trays could be filtered through. The man shoved me into the cell roughly, and unlocked the handcuffs at last. I rubbed my wrists, looking the man in the eye.

"Where am I?" I asked. The man replied with a mischievous smirk before closing the door.

"Welcome to the asylum."

2: Inmates

Thump. Thump. Thump went my head against the wall. What had I done to deserve this? Stupid. Thump.

"You're going to give yourself a headache." 

I stopped hitting my head to look at the boy perched up on the top of a bunk bed. The boy grinned through a pair of black rimmed glasses that held stunning icy blue eyes. His nose was larger than average, so it stood out slightly from his face. His hair was long and resembled the colour of ink, draping down to his waist. He could tuck it in his pants if he wanted. Speaking of his pants, the jeans he wore seemed to be three sizes too big for him, and they dragged lower than I would have preferred. He was also shirtless, so I had the brief suspicion my roommate was some sort of stripper. At least he wore underwear, I guess.

"Does it look like I care?" I muttered irritably. The boy puckered his lips.

"Aww, don't be cranky, we're in this together, aren't we?" I felt like he was mocking me in some way, so I decided to end our conversation right then and there.

"Sure. Look, can we talk later? I don't feel very sociable."

"At least give me a name! I'm Arrow." He hung upside down from his bunk, his hair reaching the floor easily.

"Arrow?" I repeated. Arrow shook his head.

"It's a nickname, duh."

"I'm Karen."

I decided to tell him my real name. Was I supposed to have an alias? Perhaps it didn't matter.

"Cool. But if I could suggest anything, I'd say make your own nickname."

Of course.

"Like what?" I challenged.

"What about... Blondie?"

"Ew, no. My hair isn't even blonde, it's brown." I pointed out. Arrow shrugged.

"Fair point. Greenio?"

"That sounds dangerously close to Cheerio, which I am not. No."

At this point I was under the impression he would use any- and all of my features against me. From my emerald eyes to my small lips, I wouldn't even put it past him to comment on my nonexistent figure. There was little to be seen, and I mentally tended to complain about it. My haircut didn't help much either, as it made me look more masculine than a girl should look. Even though I was often mistaken as a boy, I just dealt with it. It didn't really take me long to get used to be seen as a boy. Sometimes it was even helpful.

"Can't I just call you Coppertop and be done with it?"

"What? Why?" I protested with a start.

"You have a copper top. As in your hair."

"That's just stupid."

"Well it's your name now." I sighed, and climbed into my bed on the bottom bunk.

"Goodnight." I stated firmly.

"It's noon."

"Whatever." I faced the wall and curled into a fetal position for why felt like hours. It possibly was hours anyway, because before I knew it a loud rapping came from the door. A man, different from the other one I saw announced something I was too groggy to hear. Arrow filled me in right after he left though.

"Coppertop! Get up, food time." He handed me a small tray that held a singular slice of bread, a container of yoghurt that I was almost certain was expired, and a tiny plastic cup of water.

"Thanks." I took the small portion of food and nibbled on the bread. Arrow kept trying to ask me questions about myself, which I gave my full answers to.

"Favourite colour?"

"Sky blue, you?"

"Bright red. Hobby?"

"Dunno."

"What. How can you not know what you like to do?"

I shrugged, taking a sip of water.

"Maybe I just don't remember."

"How so?" He studied me, intrigued.

"Well I don't remember anything before I was on my way here, perhaps I was knocked in the head."

"Maybe, yeah."

We sat in silence for a while, and finished our 'meal'. I was about to curl in my bed again and sleep when Arrow casually mentioned something shocking.

"Oh, and don't forget about the test tomorrow."

I nearly jumped out of my skin.

"Test?!" I exclaimed.

"Chill. It's just a procedure they do to everyone. I went through it too, no biggie. Didn't really make sense, now that I think of it. It's harmless, you'll be fine." He explained, a little vague.

"Okay. Yeah. Right." I nodded, laying my head on the hard pillow, wide awake. The night went on, and soon my mind drifted into a dreamy state. Sleep overcame me, and the darkness spread.

3: Cracking Through Skin

"Get up." A low voice boomed in my eardrums. Still groggy from sleep, I rolled to my side, facing the man. A dark skinned face stared at me emotionlessly.

"Get up." He repeated, more forceful this time. I sat on the edge of the bed, stretching. A swift move of a hand and I hollered out in pain. Touching my face, I felt where the man slapped me.

"Faster." He said, almost mockingly. Arrow had shot out of his bed, glaring at the man but not willing to temper him. I stood, looking the man in the eye.

"Let's go then." I growled. He snickered, chaining my wrists together and shoving me out the door. I watched the look on Arrow's face fade from menacing to a half worried half kind smile at me as I was dragged away.

I was thrown into what reminded me of a doctors office, only with a dark twist. The metallic bed that would normally be clean and well was stained in blood, as well as some other unknown liquids. Buckets of god knows what were sitting peacefully lined in a corner. One look in one showed me something that looked like an organ- human or not. I gulped, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck tingle.

"So glad you could make it." A man drawled from behind me. I froze in my place, the footsteps of the man drawing nearer. "I was afraid you wouldn't make the first night with that boy." He chuckled.

"What's wrong with Arrow?" I found the courage to speak, finally.

"Hm? He's going by that name now? How peculiar. That boy, Arrow as you called him, is a psychopath much like you. I thought I might have some entertainment in watching you fight to the death. Oh, perhaps another day." I heard him sip a drink. "You know, it's rude to speak to someone when your back is turned. Face me, boy."

"I'm not a boy!" I turned to face the man. His outlook quite frankly made me jump. He was balding in weird places, so there were bits of his hair coming out randomly from his skull. Clean shaven, with a twisted smile and milky white eyes that looked a little to the left from where I was. The man wore a lab coat, similar to the style of the men who escorted us, with striped suspenders that matched his pants in pattern. His once white shirt was stained with red, orange, yellow, and even the occasional green in some spots. Oddly enough he wore slippers to tie the entire outfit together, and looked as though he had just risen out of bed.

"Really? Your voice is deep for a woman." He shrugged, and walked to the metal bed.

"Are you blind? If you are how could you have known I had my back turned?" I shot questions at him father than a machine gun.

"Of course I'm blind, girl. If you were too you would be able to tell what your surroundings were fairly soon after, providing your not daft. If persons voice is quieter than normal, clearly you were turning your back. You have a loud voice if you haven't noticed." The man shook his head, opened a red metallic box and started to dig through it.

"My name," He pulled out a scalpel and laid it down. "Is Professor Knox. I will be your, shall we say, doctor for your stay here. We will meet every day at this time and have a chipper time together, no? Let us start the experiment." Professor Knox smirked, holding up a pair of scissors menacingly. I stood tall, shooting a fiery glare at him. He swiftly pinched a rift of my already short hair and snipped it off. Holding it close to his face, he smiled again.

"If you would, the table." He gestured for me to sit. I did so reluctantly. The Professor cheerily picked up the scalpel he had taken out previously, and waltzed to me. Lifting up my shirt he exposed my midriff, and pressed the scalpel against my skin.

"Hey-!" I tried to jump back, but that only made it worse. I cried out in pain, blood dripping from the fresh wound.

"Agh! Look what you've done! Now I have to patch it up, stupid girl!" Professor Knox fumed, scampering off to grab a needle and thread. "Hold still!" He barked, and jabbed the needle in my side. I yelled in pain, but stayed as immobile as possible. God knows I didn't need another reason to piss him off. Professor Knox speedily stitched up my cut, and took out the scalpel again. He held it near my face, threateningly.

"Hold. Still." He growled. I gulped, but obliged. I felt the metal poke into my skin, first a pinch but then a splitting pain. I bit down on my tongue, so hard that I tasted blood. And as soon as it started, it was gone. I glanced up to see Professor Knox holding a chunk of flesh. My flesh. I turned away, avoiding the urge to vomit.

"Good. We're done now. See you tomorrow." His voice trickled down my spine like slime. I squirmed around on the table, getting more antsy by the second.

"Ah, wait one moment." He wrapped a thin layer of gauze around the small hole. "There. Off with you now." He shooed me away, and into the firm grasp of another man. He led me, a little forcefully, to my room, which seemed more like a jail cell than anything. I walked in, a little uncertain. Arrow greeted me with a half smile.

The memory of what Knox had said hit my stomach like a ball of lead. I dragged myself into bed and bit my lip.

"What happened?" Arrow tucked a long strand of his hair behind his ear and leaned over me.

"I'd rather not say." I curled into a ball, wincing as my knee brushed against my wounds.

"What did he do? Coppertop let me see!" 

"Piss off." My voice shook from the pain.

"Guess you leave me no choice." He muttered, grabbing me by the leg. I felt a spike of pain lodge itself deep inside me. I screamed loudly. Arrow let go as soon as he could, looking shocked. His fingers grazed over the stitches and gauze, sending bolts of agony through me. Finally he let go and backed away.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, then leaped up to his bunk. I lay there, slowly recovering. It gave me time to rethink my motives. I didn't know if I could trust Arrow to begin with, but this set the bricks in place. I'm on my own now.

4: A Story From Outside

Arrow and I sat on my bed, passing the time with a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. He had insisted on playing it with me, so I complied. Though I kept my distance, as if the finger scissors he used would surely slice my throat open.

"I win again." He smiled, but sounded bored. "That's the third time you've used paper."

"I know." I sighed, dropping my chin into the palm of my hand. We really had run out of ideas, there was only so much we could do here. And I wasn't willing to take anything a step further. I was even surprised at how inattentive Arrow was. Perhaps the original excitement of my new arrival had worn out.

"Karen. Stand by at the door." The gruff voice of one of the many so called guards of the asylum ordered. I stood, and waited. The door opened, and instead of the tall, frightening people I'd normally see, an short, Asian girl with equally precise jet black hair, with a skin tight tee and skirt that were as pitch as her hair came instead.

"Karen?" She squeaked, hardly daring to speak. She looked almost... Terrified.

"Yes?" I spoke indifferently.

"Oh my god," She scuttled closer to me. "You don't remember." I was starting to get a bit uncomfortable.

"Uh, who are you?"

"Alexia," she had tears in her eyes. "My name is Alexia. And I'm your best friend."

There was a deafening silence, in which I resisted each temptation to speak. Friend? I had no friends. At least, not that I had any recollection of.

"So this is Arrow?" Alexia inquired.

"Yes." I stated, still suspicious of the strange girl. Looking around me, I could see two of the guards stationed barely out of sight. If you weren't looking for them, you wouldn't find them. I knew that they would leap from their spots at once if they thought either me or Arrow did something they didn't think too fondly of. Their presence was enough to put me on edge.

"Karen? Karen!" I snapped back to reality, giving Alexia a contemplating look. "You're more out of it than normal."

"Normal? What am I normally like?" I asked.

"Well, you've always been an outgoing sort of person. Kind to those close to you, loyal, friendly, happy..." She gazed at me forlornly. "But it seems that's not the case anymore."

"No, it's not."

"I just wanted to check up on you, but I never expected you'd change so much. What happened to you back there?" The concern in her eyes made me twitch. I had no idea who this girl was or what she wanted from me. Sure, she says she's my friend, but how do I know she isn't a liar? I narrowed my eyes, trying to scan her every movement, like anything could be a sign.

"Back there? As in with Mr. Mad Scientist? He cut me open- twice. Not exactly a good first impression." Alexia gazed at me with utterly shocked eyes. "S-seriously?!" She stammered. I nodded. "Yes. I have the scars to prove it." I lifted my shirt up enough to show her the chunk of flesh that was missing, and the cut. Upon looking at them a worried look caressed her thin face.

"They did this to you?" She whispered.

"I already answered that question." I stated. Alexia closed her eyes, and let out a heavy sigh.

"I need to tell you a long story."

"You won't remember, but we used to go to church together." Arrow stifled a laugh in the background. I threw him an aggravating look and motioned for Alexia to continue. "Well, um, one day during the sermon you seemed a bit in edge. I asked you if anything was wrong a few times, but you just gave me this confused look as your nose crinkled and said you were okay." I gave her a look. "When you're confused your nose crinkles. I thought you'd know that by now, even with... Never mind. Anyway, you just excused yourself to go to the washroom out of the blue. Of course I didn't suspect anything. How could I? It was just the washroom. A couple minutes passed, a-and then I heard a scream. Your scream. Apparently the rest of the church did, too, but I got there first. You- you were holding a large shard of glass a-and was pressing it against your throat. I- I didn't know what to think! I somehow managed to comfort you and help you drop the glass, but you passed out. When I saw you- Karen, your eyes were completely black. I saw ivory veins stretching onto the side of your face, connecting with your eyes. Y-your wrist was bleeding too, from slicing yourself with the glass. The a-ambulance came and took you to the hospital, and I f-found out you had been transferred to the asylum yesterday. So, h-here I am." Alexia's speech was filled with sobs by this point, her face stained with tears.

"So your saying I used to go to church." I stated stiffly.

"Karen! I'm serious!" Alexia fumed between tears.

"Okay, okay I believe you. Just- stop crying. Please." I watched as Alexia took in deep breaths. In, out, in, out. Finally she calmed herself down enough so that she could manage a smile.

"It was nice seeing you again. I should go- I'll be late for work at this rate."

"Bye." I waved. She gave me a quick hug, which took me by surprise, so I stiffed up pretty quickly. After, she left.

"So, you're a church girl, huh?" Arrow smiled during dinner that night- which was the same as breakfast.

"The past is in the past. Do you think I could ever be a church girl?"

"Pfft, you? You're as stubborn as a bull, and stiff like a rock. I can't picture you like that." He snorted.

"Good. I can't either." I took a sip of water, washing down the dry bread.

"Do you still believe what that Alexia said? About the entire glass thing?" Arrow surveyed me over a miniature mountain of bread.

"Yes." I said immediately. Arrow caught on quickly. "Why?" He asked. I stared him dead in the eye, and spoke firmly: "I have no reason not to." There was a pause, in which Arrow swallowed his mouthful, looked at me, and started to laugh. Hard. I waited until he calmed down and addressed me before speaking again.

"No reason not to? She's a complete stranger who just popped in to say this possibly made up story about you, and how you supposedly ended up in this hellhole! That's a perfect reason not to!" This was the first time I'd heard Arrow raise his voice, to anyone. It didn't come so much as a shocker to me. But I did have something to use against him.

"I know what your problem is." I started.

"Then enlighten me." Arrow growled. I gave him an odd sort of smile, allowing my lip to curl. "You have some sort of sick crush on me." His face turned a bright red.

"A- a what?!" He recoiled back in shock.

"You heard me."

"A-all right, so maybe I do like you. Are you suggesting something?" His gaze turned to me, though I could still see Arrow was blushing furiously.

"No. I don't like you like that. Besides, I don't like guys."

"Huh?" Arrow looked mildly confused, trying to put two and two together. "So you're a lesbian?"

"Just drop it." I finished my last bite of food and stood up. "I'm going to bed. Good night."

"Wait! Are you asexual? Bisexual? I'm really curious now."

"You'll have to hold out until morning. I'm tired. Good night, Arrow." I heard him grunt in frustration, and hastily eat the rest of his food. Soon he too climbed into his bed. I could hear him tossing and turning. Pleased with myself, I snuggled into my stone pillow and fell asleep faster than I would've liked.

5: Deal or No Deal?

My eyes fluttered open only to witness the dull metal bed frame above me. The same thing I woke up to everyday. But something seemed a bit off. I rubbed my eyes sleepily, sighing. I sat up, letting the bed creak underneath me. It was only when I heard the raspy breathing closer to my ear than necessary that I looked to my right, where Arrow was creepily perched.

"YOU LITTLE SHIT!" I cursed, kicking him dead center in the chest. He was sent flying backwards, smashing into the wall, looking dazed. Blinking, he kept his eyes fixed on me. I curled into the back corner of my bed, raising my rock pillow as defense and breathing heavily.

"Explain to me," I panted. "Why you were staring at me while I was sleeping."

He paused for a moment, deep in thought. "I really don't know." He finally answered.

"Don't know?!" I snapped. "I call bull, tell me what the-"

A loud bang thundered on the door interrupting me mid-sentence.

"Keep it down in there! We wouldn't want to have to move you to a different cell."

I scoffed, irritated. Arrow cowered down, but I was still fired up.

"Yeah? Try me! I'd be glad to get out of this idiotic place! Why don't you take me out right here, right now!" I raged. I hadn't felt so angry in... Well, ever. A few seconds passed by with nothing, but then a cruel voice answered my prayer.

"As you wish." Footsteps echoed from outside, getting fainter by the second. His words sank into my skin, seeping into the wound I had just made.

"You shouldn't have done that," Arrow gazed at me with a troublesome look. "You have no idea what you just got yourself into. Dare I say you'll me dead by next morning if we stretch it."

"Shut it," I growled through gritted teeth. "They'll only put me through another doctor episode or something. Besides, all I did was lash out once." I sat adjacent to the wall by Arrow.

He shook his head. "You don't know what happens when you rebel in a place like this. Tell me, have you seen any other people in here besides us?"

"Should I?" I rested my head on my hand.

"I've had three other roommates, not including you. They're all dead because they decided to take a stand or escape. The punishment is brutal. The 'doctors' always wonder why they haven't managed to kill me yet. And what about you? You cried and howled when they took a sample chunk from you. You're a dead girl, Karen. A vulture among ravens."

I stared at him, entranced not only because he never bothered to tell me about these other roommates, but the fact that he used my real name made the message feel more... Threatening.

"Did any of them escape?" I asked seriously.

"No. Though Flicker came the closest to us all. She was outside, breathing fresh air. Free. Next thing she was being mutilated right before my eyes. Flesh torn, life taken. Bye-bye, birdy." He grinned psychotically, looking so unlike the boy I thought I knew. Then again, we were in an asylum.

"Let's make a deal then," I said. Arrow turned one of his eyes on me. "I'm listening."

"If I live through whatever hell awaits me, you have to tell me everything. About you, this place, everything."

"And if you die...?"

"Another one bites the dust."

Arrow frowned. "There's not much in it for me."

"I'll tell you everything about me."

He smiled. "All that you remember?"

I gulped. "All of it." He waited a second, thinking. Then Arrow smiled again, his face stretching larger than it should have. "Then we have an agreement. Good luck."

"I'll need it." I breathed, running my fingers through the bit of hair I had.

"Stand back, woman." The guard from before had returned and was grinning from ear to ear, as if he had won something. I scowled, crossing my arms in annoyance. The metal door creaked open, and a thin man with a hollow face stared at me with cold, grey eyes.

"So you're the one who made an outburst." His shoes clunked on the floor as he approached me. I noticed how long his blonde hair was, perhaps longer than Arrow's, and straight like an uncooked spaghetti noodle.

"Yeah, and?" I raised an eyebrow.

He smirked. "Is your roommate troubling you? We can move you somewhere...more comfortable."

"No, he's fine," I lied. "It's the guy behind you that started it. I'm just starting to lose it a bit, maybe the air is getting to me. There isn't any way that I could go outside or-"

"That, my dear, is forbidden." he narrowed his eyes. I took a step closer to him. "And why is that?" I challenged. "Besides, who are you to make the rules?!" I mentally slapped myself for not controlling my emotions, and should have slapped myself again when I saw the man's grin.

"How ironic, dear, is that I run this civilization. All I merely do is take those who society is disgusted with and put them somewhere where they can live freely."
I couldn't stop from laughing at his words. "Live freely? You practically keep us in cages! And this 'doctor' you send us too only inflicts pain! What kind of civilization is that?"

"Karen." Arrow warned. I ignored him. "Huh? Tell me!" It felt like time moved extra slow, and even then the man just smiled his cruel smirk.

"I think we're done here," He nodded towards the guard and turned back to me. "It was good talking with you. I expect we'll see great things from you, Karen. Great things. Ciao." He left only a stale feeling in my chest. The feeling that I should not have done that.

"Guess you don't need me to tell you I told you so." Arrow mumbled after the unsettling silence came back.

"But I won the bet. I'm still alive. So tell me about your other roommates." I had to push away the thoughts on what just happened. And Like I just said, I was alive. Actually I shouldn't say that. That is not something I want to be remembered for. That never happened.

"For now," Arrow sighed. "Fine. Remember the one who got outside? Flicker? She was great. A lot more positive about her situation than you. She was always thinking of these weird plans to escape, and would constantly be trying each one out. None worked, obviously. Her last plan, when we got outside, was the only one that had gotten her anywhere. I actually had to be her realist on that though, but she wanted to take me out with her. You would've done the same thing. We waited until after they took the straight jacket off, knocked all the guards out, messed with the wiring enough to cause a blackout, and ran. Once we were outside good ol' hair extensions stopped us form getting any further. He killed Flicker with his own hands and I was subjected to weeks of torture." he stopped for a moment. But one thing about his story bothered me.

"What do you mean 'after they took the straight jacket off'?" I questioned. His feeling would have to wait until later, I needed to know this.

"Oh yeah, you haven't gotten there yet. I expect you will be soon. It's exactly as you think it would be. They wrap you in one of those self-huggers and sometimes put you through some 'tests', as they call it. I call bull, though. Just imagine one of those horror movie people, and place yourself in there instead. There's a lot of ups and downs, but it's not as bad as the other experiments they do."

I nodded. "So how did you find Flicker if you were in a straight jacket?"

"Luck. Nothing more." he scowled. "Can we move on?"

I bit my lip. "No. How did Flicker die? What did you see outside?" I fired any question I could think of at him. Arrow's face darkened.

"We're in the middle of nowhere. Now tell me about you."

"Arrow-"

"Enough." he glowered at me. I held my hands up in defeat. "Fine, I'll tell you what I remember." He was obviously hiding something from me. Could he really just not want to talk about it? I wanted the answers. Hell, I didn't even know his real name! It was like everyone here had a code name or no name at all!

"Having fun?" A voice whispered into my ear. I jumped, looking everywhere for who could have said that. Arrow simply gave me a confused glance. His lips were sealed, as far as I could tell.

"I have a plan, even now you could escape this dreadful place..." I had to bite down on my tongue to keep quiet. This voice character sure didn't make his appearances at good times, however seldom they may be.

"Go on." Arrow kept his eyes glued to me like a hawk, though the tone of his voice could have said otherwise.

I gulped. "Right. Well, you heard what Alexia said. Apparently that was my life before, but all I can remember from before I woke up in the back of a moving truck are small pieces about me." I felt a small breeze ruffle my hair. Uncomfortable, I patted it down flat. Clearing my throat, I continued. "I enjoy reading and architecture. Uh, I don't do sports that well. I'm not that sociable as it goes. And...I don't like unanswered questions."
There was a long moment of silence, in which I saw Arrow nod slightly to himself, and the voice covering the silence.

"It's rude to not answer my questions, you know."

"Suppose that's it, huh?" Arrow huffed a sigh. "Don't know why I expected more. Or why I agreed to tell you what happened to her. It was kind of stupid, looking back on it."

"Not really," I tried giving him some life. "I feel more comfortable around you."

"Are you sure about that?" Arrow said softly. My smile faded. "Thought so." He chuckled to himself. I stared at the ground. He was right. If anything I felt on edge just thinking of all the things that had been done to him. Is that why he was so psychotic now? Or was he always like this?

"Maybe if I were to answer all your questions you would fear me." His almost callous demeanor seemed to change everyday. When I first met him he was boisterous, always happy and nice. Am I uncovering who he really is? Or is this just an act? This is idiotic, I mean, why should be stressing over this?

"I doubt it." I sat in my bed, and delved into my own thoughts. Why was I being so circumspect when it came to Arrow? Maybe I should try an avoid him, it could do me well. But then who do I have that knows a damn about this place? Perhaps I should get a notebook to write down all my theories in. If you can call them theories. Speculations? Whatever. I might just have to go by what these people keep saying. I could have been a church girl. Does amnesia change someones entire personality? I hope not. Who am I? That's the biggest unanswered question I have right now.

"I can answer that question, too. Just give me a chance, Karen. I'm only here to help."

"Yeah, right." I scoffed, and immediately wanted to hit myself for talking aloud. I heard no response from Arrow and felt slightly relieved. At least I got to avoid that awkward scene.

"So, will you join forces with me or not? I promise I'm not being equivocate." It almost felt like this voice was trying to empathize with me. Eugh.

"Fine," I whispered as low as I could. "But don't expect any promises out of me. We're in the same booth for now." What choice did I have? I wasn't going to get anywhere by hiding, that was clear.

"Excellent. See you tomorrow, then."

"Wait, what?" I blinked. Clenching my fist, I wondered if this was a stupid decision. It probably was. I suppose the only thing I can do is wait- again. I needed to get some sort of game to occupy me. Maybe the head of this place would let me get Connect Four or a deck of cards. ...If only. I stared at the wall, and allowed my mind to wander wherever it pleased.

_Author's Note_
Hazzah! Mystery! Progress! Somewhat! Unanswered questions! That's all for this chapter, anyhow. Yes, Arrow is a bit weird. Yes, Karen has started talking to herself. And yes, the guy with said hair extensions is the head of the asylum. You're welcome. Now I couldn't find out where the image used in this chapter was found, but I found it on Google. So kudos to you, creator-of-picture guy! Or girl. Maybe alien. Close enough. So, what did you think of this longish chapter? Tell me in the comments. Please. I don't really know if anyone reads these things or not. It's a little unnerving. (That's how you guilt trip people into commenting, folks.) But really, anything is nice. I freak out when someone favourites a story. Like really bad. It's a little scary. I'm horrible in reality. Yeah okay I'm just gonna go now. See all of you invisible readers soon.