Janie and The Gray: Part 5
Awakening. Part five of a dystopian science-fantasy serial.
I gave myself permission to hope — to feel. My heart rattled to life. A chill washed over me. My skin prickled. I saw my world with new eyes. I was not a canary caged in concrete — fragile and weak and helpless. I was a tiger confined by cardboard. The walls didn't matter. The aliens didn't matter. They couldn't hold me. I ached for freedom and I would taste it.
I thrummed with adrenalized anticipation as Delores ladled the slop into my bowl. Her head tilted slightly as she looked at me. Could she see the tiger? The psycho-static pulse told me that she could. I didn't care. I was a few steps away from my starting line — to the right turn at the end of the table, to the spot where I would break into a run. Four steps, three steps, two — Joffrey. I stopped short of the aisle as the alien passed in front of me along my escape route. He took his position at the door.
It didn't matter. I couldn't go back. I closed my eyes and embraced inevitability. I was going out that door. Try to stop me you fucker. I will rip you apart.