Jump

Jump

            Thud. Thud. Thud. My head was pounding as I ran through the woods, with branches whipping against my skin and wind rustling through my hair. Where am I? Where am I going? Who am I? Who will I be? My mind was racing as the thudding got louder and louder. I jumped over a root sticking out of the ground, and continued to run.

            I stopped, both to catch my breath and get my bearings. I looked around, and everything seemed to be almost in a dreamlike state, always shifting and changing. The leaves moved to make a mirage of movement in the forest, and suddenly my vision narrowed. I got dizzy, and it felt like the world was spinning. I couldn’t keep my bearings, and I fell down.

            Thud. I cracked open my eyes a little. Thud. I slowly opened them a little more, then closed them. THUD. My eyes shot open and I sat up as quickly as I could. The thudding continued, quicker than before, and I realized that it wasn’t my head pounding, but instead it was something running towards me.

            THUD THUD. THUD THUD. THUD THUD.I got up and ran for my life, refusing to give up. No matter what, I wouldn’t die. I would not die. I was running across the plain, grass shimmering in the breeze as I ran. I felt the wind pushing against me, hindering me as I ran against it. I jumped a river bed, slipped, but pulled myself up. But in doing so, I hit my head on a rock, and fell unconscious.

THUD. THUD. THUD. I felt my heart beating against my chest as I ran across the building top. I slowed to a stop, and realized that I had no idea where I was, or how I got here. I had no memory of anything before a few minutes ago even. That made my heart beat even faster. THUD THUD THUD. THUD THUD THUD. THUD THUD THUD.

            I ran across the building top as fast as I could, and loved the feeling of cement beneath my feet. It felt like clouds beneath me, soft and slick, and I ran faster than before. The wind was roaring around my ears, and I felt it pushing and shoving in an everlasting fight against my skin. The edge of the roof was coming up, and I pushed ever harder, pushing myself to go faster than I had before. I came to the edge, and launched myself off. I went closer, and closer, and closer to the edge of the other building. It was taunting me, beckoning me. I came up, and dropped. I slammed against the side of the building, and plummeted.

            I slowly woke up, and the thudding was gone. All that was left was the pulsating light from the ceiling of my room, which flickered every so often. I lazily looked around the room, and sat up. I strained my arms against my straight jacket, doing what I could to stretch out my arms. The room was pure white pad, with a padded door on the opposite side from me, and two windows on either side of the room. There were bars over the window, but I could still see out.

            I walked over to the window to my left, and saw a forest, far beyond reach. I walked across the room to the other window, and saw a plain in the distance. I then slowly walked to the front door, and saw the sight I had seen thousands of times over hundreds of days. I saw a hallway, and a window across from the door. And through that another, and another, and dozens more, all perfectly lined up so I could get a tiny view of the city. I wanted to get out, I wanted to run, I wanted to jump.