Thirty-Eight

I stepped out in to the break area to find everyone looking up, not towards the sky, but towards the roof. I turned in the direction of their stares. There he was, the guy with the hunting cap, and he was on the roof.

He was running around, laughing and having what looked to be a good time. He was running up and down the shingles, cackling like a witch at a cauldron. He was screaming, “I’m out! I’m out!”

Darc, with a cigarette hanging out of the corner of his mouth, simply mumbled, “Dude, you’re in the quiet room again in about 36.8 seconds.”

He was right. Two or three seconds later there was a team of three orderlies climbing up on the roof to corral the guy. He put up quite a fight, but the guys in white never lose when the tranquilizers are on their side. A small injection later and they were carrying the guy toward a ladder on the other side of the building.

“How’d he get up there?” I asked Darc.

“I dunno,” he replied.

He flew.

I don’t believe that for a second.

Look at you, being all picky about what you believe in now. C’mon, man, you did it in the gym a little while ago.

I can’t fly.

The hell you can’t.

No one saw me fly. I didn’t fly.

I saw you.

I don’t believe you.

Maybe we should play ball again sometime.

Whatever.

“Dude, you got a light?” Darc asked.

“Man, you know I don’t smoke,” I said in annoyance, watching the orderlies carry the quiet room regular inside.

“Oh yeah, I forgot.” Darc turned around. I saw his hand move toward his face and then he turned to face me again, puffing away.

“Dude…..umm…..no…no….,” I was downright scared. Before now, everything that was happening could have been marked up to just about anything. I could’ve been experiencing psychosis from my experiences, bad side effects from the suite of medications they were giving me, or just typical bipolar behavior. Now I had seen it all.

“What did you just do?” I asked.

“What do you think I just did?” he replied, smiling.

I think you lit your damn cigarette without a lighter.

So what?

So, no one can do that.

But I just did it.

He smiled. The smoke from his cigarette wafted in to the air. I just shook my head in disbelief.

“What’s bugging ya, dude? Ya look a little wigged out.” Darc smiled at me.

“C’mon guys, time for group,” Thomas shouted from the door. Darc and I started walking toward the door.

I don’t get this.

Just getting ya ready, buddy.

Ready for what?

For your trip.

To where?

Hell, of course!