The ramblings of a madman

"Hurry up, Suzy!"

Hearing Kevin's voice, Suzy snapped out of her trance. She looked at Kevin in confusion. How could he ask her to call his dead mom? This had to be a case of amnesia. Nothing else could explain why he was behaving like this.

Before Suzy could explain things to him, he snatched the communication bracelet dangling on her wrist and proceeded to enter a code. The device beeped once but didn't connect to any user. Of course, no one would pick up. Kevin's parents had died six months ago!

"Hey, mom! I'm really sorry that I called you so late. I was so busy I completely forgot about it. Ohh, come on, now! It's not like that!" Kevin was speaking into the communication bracelet, even though there was no one on the other end of the line.

Suzy's throat dried up as she watched Kevin pace around the room, talking to his dead mother. She didn't hear any female voice on the other end and the communication bracelet wasn't glowing green. No one had picked up that call, yet Kevin kept on talking.

After a 10-minute long conversation, Kevin handed the watch back to Suzy. "I'm feeling so damn hungry right now I could eat a whole horse," he said, rubbing his belly.

"You're not alright Kev. I need to—"

"You've been acting really strange Suzy." Kevin eyed her with suspicion and then took a good look at his room. Scanning the walls thoroughly, he asked, "You're trying to prank me right? Where are the cameras, huh?"

"I don't understand anything that you're saying. Why would I try to prank you?"

"Ohh, don't get me started." Kevin shrugged. "I know who set you up to this. It's definitely Greg. He really enjoys pulling my leg!"

First, it was his parents and now it was Greg. Kevin was digging up corpses faster than a grave-robber, but he didn't look the slightest bit disturbed. In fact, he seemed to be in a very cheerful mood.

Suzy was at her wit's end now. She had no other option but to contact her mom and inform her about this bizarre development.

Dr. Stacey answered Suzy's text in a few minutes and asked her to bring Kevin to the armament lab. Without diagnosing him, there was no way for her to tell what was wrong.

"Mom's calling us to her lab. We should go," Suzy said.

Kevin pumped his fist excitedly and exclaimed, "I bet she's made some super delicious pasta for dinner. I really hope there are meatballs too." His tongue stuck out of his mouth as he pretended to drool over the dishes.

Without speaking another word, Suzy pulled Kevin by his hand, dragging him out of the room and taking him to the express elevator.

When they arrived at the lab, Dr. Stacey was waiting there with a gray-haired elderly woman whose face was a crisscross of wrinkles. She was wearing the same gray lab coat as Dr. Stacey. Since this color was reserved for the supervisors, it wasn't difficult to guess that this frail, old woman was also in-charge of some lab.

Judging from what Suzy had told her, she had reasons to believe that there was something wrong with Kevin's cybernetic interface. Problems in synchronization had often caused memory gaps in many previous test subjects.

"Hello there, Kevin," the old gray-haired woman greeted him. "Do you know where you are right now?"

"Of course, I know. I'm inside an underground research facility," Kevin scoffed. "Who are you again?"

She didn't seem to mind Kevin's attitude, and politely answered, "I'm Edna Weber, the chief software engineer at this research facility. I helped develop the AI for your cybernetic interface. Please follow me to the ACMAP so that I can run a few tests on you. I think your software is malfunctioning."

"Stay the hell away from me!" Kevin cried out, slapping her hand away. "I'm not gonna be your guinea pig for some crazy research."

"I just need to run some tests. It's just going to be a basic diagnostic scan."

"There's no way I'm gonna let you stick needles in me! I hate injections!" Kevin nervously stepped back and looked at Suzy's mom for help. "I never agreed to volunteer for any weird tests. I only came here to see the lab!"

"It's okay, Kevin. No one's gonna force you to do anything," Dr. Stacey blurted out. Clearing her throat, she gestured to Edna showing her the elevator. "You're really... crazy Edna! Yes, you are totally crazy. Running all those tests on...on all the young kids you find. I will have you fired right away! Stay away from Kevin. He...he is our guest here."

Edna understood she was just trying to re-assure Kevin and left the lab without any further discussion.

"Why do you hire people like that, Dr. Stacey?" Kevin asked, despondently.

"It's...not in my hands. Suzy's dad is in charge of all the recruitments." Dr. Stacey spread out her arms and approached Kevin for a tight hug. "I'm sorry for that. I never should have allowed Edna to come here. By the way, did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, I slept like a rock," Kevin replied. "The beds here aren't very comfy, but I think I can manage."

Suzy realized what was going on now. Her mom was trying to earn Kevin's trust by trying to act as a friend. She always had a cheerful disposition, but now she was overdoing it just to make Kevin feel comfortable.

"So, Kevin, I heard that you spoke to your mom. How is she? And where is she?" Dr. Stacey asked, without showing any signs of disbelief.

"They are still in Psionis. It's gonna be a long-ass vacation." Kevin hugged her warmly and added, "I'm so glad at least you're here. Otherwise, I'd just have to stay at home all by myself."

"Oh, Kevin!" Dr. Stacey ruffled his hair. "I'd never let you stay alone. Your mom and I are great friends. She would never forgive me if I let you starve to death." She chuckled and pulled away from Kevin with a pleasant smile. "So, Kevin, do you like it here in this underground facility?"

"When Suzy first told me it was a lab, I was kind of put off by it. But this place is super cool. I almost feel like I'm living in the future. I think I'll have plenty to explore before my parents return."

Suzy could no longer stand there and keep turning a blind eye to what was happening. Kevin was constantly talking about his parents as if they were alive and it made her feel extremely worried about his mental health. It was painful to watch him weave his elaborate lies.

"Kevin, you know what happened to your parents, right?" she cried out.

"What do you mean?" Kevin asked, the smile slowly fading from his face.

"You're parents are—"

"Suzy! I think you've teased him enough for one day!" Dr. Stacey bellowed out. "He must be feeling lonely in here. Keep him company and stop trying to annoy him!"

Before Suzy could open her mouth to utter another reply, her mom rushed to her and pulled her to a quiet corner. "This is a coping mechanism. He is trying to deal with his trauma in this way. Stop scratching his wounds," she whispered in her ear.

"How long are we gonna keep doing this? This is not good for him!" Suzy whispered back.

Their conversation was cut short by Kevin's call. "Can I get something to eat? I'm really starving."

"Oh, I almost forgot it's dinner time. I didn't even ask the cooks to prepare the meals," Dr. Stacey replied, pulling away from her daughter. With the same sweet smile pasted on her face, she approached Kevin. From inside one of the deep pockets of her trench coat, she took out a nutrient bar and handed it to Kevin. "I'll ask them to cook something tasty. Why don't you try this?"

Kevin happily took the bar from her and tore its wrapper in a jiffy. Dr. Stacey and Suzy looked on as Kevin kept chewing the bar and spitting it out alternatively. He seemed completely oblivious of the fact that he wasn't swallowing anything.

Crunching on the last bit, he licked his fingers and smacked his lips. "That was really good! What do they put in those nutrient bars? I'm already full!"

Dr. Stacey turned pale for a moment as she realized Kevin was not having a temporary mental breakdown. There was something far worse going on inside his mind.