"09."
You look up as the door opens, stomach churning and hands clammy. Andrelina stands there, in the doorway.
"Y-Yes, miss?" You manage to make eye contact, heart somewhere in your throat.
She told you to wait in your room for her, told you there was something important you had to do today. You shuddered to think of what sort of test they might run on you today. You hope, at least, that there are less needles involved. They're your least favorite, but not by much. Everything the scientists do to you tend to be more awful than not.
"It's time," Andrelina beckons, holding the door open.
You nod, swallowing hard as you get to your feet and follow her out. The tile in the hall is identical to that in your room, right down to the temperature. Your toes curl at the cold and you wince, but say nothing. You wish, sometimes, that you were allowed shoes like the doctors and scientists wear - though maybe not the ones with heels like the redhead wears. Or for the floor to be warmer. Either way, Andrelina will not care what you have to say. Well... Most of the time, anyway.
"What are we doing today?" you find the courage to ask. She's usually willing to tell you that much, unless she's in a bad mood.
"Your tattoos. Dr. Adus says it's time."
Your heart sinks, a lump forming in your throat. You've heard mixed stories about the tattoos - some of the others have had them done painlessly, others not so much. And with Dr. Adus being, well, himself... You don't expect this to go pleasantly.
You chew on your lip a little, "Does it... hurt?"
"I wouldn't know. I've never had them."
Your shoulders sag; you're certain Andrelina knows. She's probably accompanied many Re-Genes to this procedure. She just doesn't want to tell you, or doesn't think it's worth the effort explaining. And it's not like you really deserve to know, anyway.
The redhead comes to a stop at a set of elevators and presses the button. You fidget with your clothes - the dull grey uniform is rough and itchy, and barely fits properly, but you can't complain. You're barely allowed existence - what right would you have to complain about the clothes they gave you?
The elevator dings when it arrives and Andrelina gestures for you to enter. You do, sidling into the corner. She follows, tapping her ID card on the screen and pressing the button for the third floor. You wonder - not for the first time - how many floors this place has. How far up does the elevator go? How long will it be until you get to leave and see the world beyond? You hope it'll be sooner rather than later, you'd love to get out of tests and experiments just for a little while.
The elevator comes to a stop all too soon. The door opens once again, dinging.
For a split second, you have the urge to hit another button on the screen. To go higher, to the top, maybe, and out. But the urge passes quickly - rationality reminds you that you don't have an ID card, and thus the elevator wouldn't obey your command. Not to mention, Andrelina is right there.
You exit the elevator, the lump in your throat getting harder to ignore. Andrelina is practically on your heels as the pair of you head down the corridor. Your hands tremble and you clasp them together in front of yourself, trying to control it better.
"In here."
You glance at the door you've just arrived at, pulse picking up. When you next emerge, there's no way anyone will mistake you for a person. Unless they could only see your face. As you reach to open it, you wonder briefly what color your tattoos might be. You've seen a lot of variety.
Dr. Adus sits at a desk in the room beyond, opposite the door. You step inside, a greeting dying somewhere in your throat at the sight of the chair next to him. It looks like it might be comfortable, with its tall back and long seat - it's so long it looks as though you're supposed to rest your legs on one end. The only thing that's really off-putting about it is the open leather straps all over it. You freeze in your tracks, heart starting to race - they're not going to tie you down for this, right?!
"The restraints are only if needed." A gentle hand - so gentle - on your shoulder prompts you to look up at Andrelina. She rarely touches you so softly. No one does, for that matter. She lightly pushes you further into the room, nearly on your heels. When she releases you, it's to step around you and stand near the wall on the opposite side of the chair.
"Took you long enough," Dr. Adus gives you a look, as if it's your fault you weren't here sooner, before returning his attention to the instruments on the desk. "Strip down and take a seat."
You swallow hard, certain you misheard. "S-Sorry?"
He looks at you again, eyes narrow. "Take off your clothes and sit down," he repeats firmly.
You glance at Andrelina, who nods ever so slightly. You bite your lip but do as you're told, pulling off your pants and shirt. Goosebumps form on your skin as the cold settles in even worse than before. When you look up, shivering, Dr. Adus is staring at you with a strange look in his eyes, his gaze roving over your mostly bare form. You have the distinct feeling that he isn't looking at the bar code on your chest.
You approach hesitantly, perching on the very edge of the chair. You don't like the way he's looking at you, keeping your eyes on the floor.
You shudder when he grips your shoulder, pushing you against the back of the chair. You look up, eyes wide with terror.
"She said the restraints are only if necessary." His tone is as cold as the room. "Now, hold out your arm and stay still." He gestures towards the armrest.
You stretch out your arm, eyeing the strap warily. Dr. Adus turns back to his desk once more, picking up... something. When he returns his attention to you, you're able to get a good look at it. It's got a large needle on one end, with what seems to be some sort of small tank attached to it. Your mouth goes dry at the sight of the needle, stomach twisting, trying not to think about how much worse it's going to be than a normal needle. He holds it almost like a pen, hovering over your arm, just a little bit past your elbow. He doesn't even give you any warning before starting.
The needle pierces your skin, a sharp pain drawing forth a cry that you don't get the chance to hold back, instinctively pulling away. Your arm stings badly, your heart starting to race.
This is going to hurt a lot.
Dr. Adus roughly grabs your wrist and puts your arm back where it was. "Don't. Move."
You mumble an apology, gripping the armrest tightly with your other hand as he resumes.
You barely hold back another cry, the shaking worsening. Tears form in your eyes as the pain intensifies briefly but thankfully plateauing at a mostly manageable level.
"Sure looked terrified when you two came in," he glances towards Andrelina.
"Yes," she sighs. You can't see her expression, too focused on holding still and not screaming, but you have the feeling she looks annoyed. Or disappointed. "She's going to be reprogrammed tomorrow. Again."
Reprogrammed again. Locked up in that awful machine, and for what? To feel empty and numb and wrong for a few days, a week or two at most, only to go back to your old, anxious self. And have to be reprogrammed again. You aren't supposed to remember the sessions. Or feel so much. But you do, and they don't like that.
The pain stops. You look down at your arm to find orange lines crawling their way up your forearm, just a little past your elbow. You wipe away your tears with your other hand, bracing yourself for the next round.
"Lean back," he orders.
You do, settling on the chair properly, bringing your legs up onto the lower part, the cool leather of the backrest sending a chill up your spine. He shifts closer, and you look away. You don't want to watch this. It never helps.
The area he's working in now must be far more sensitive. The pain spikes and you scream, actually scream, and jerk away, unable to help yourself. It's just too much to handle. You hunch over, clutching at your arm.
"09!" he snaps. "What part of 'hold still' do you not understand?"
"I-I'm sorry!" A panicked sob escapes you. "I-It hurts, I'm so s-sorry!"
"Just restrain her. We haven't got all day for this," Andrelina speaks over you. You feel her hands on you again, but they are far from gentle. No, this time they are rough, shoving you back against the chair, holding you there while Dr. Adus straps you down.
"P-Please!" You cry, struggling, but he's already got one wrist bound. You know, deep down, there's no point in fighting. There's two of them, they're both stronger than you, and it's only going to make things worse. But what are you supposed to do? You can't stand just sitting here and letting them have their way with you. Neither of them even acknowledge your pleas. Soon, you are totally restrained, now unable to move at all. Your chest and throat are tight, tighter than the straps are. Tears spill down your cheeks, shoulders quivering with silent sobs.
"If you'd just listened, you wouldn't have to deal with this." He shakes his head, frustrated. He picks up the needle-pen-thing and brings his chair closer to you. You tense in your bonds as he rests the tip of it on your arm again, just barely, lingering a moment so he can watch you squirm in discomfort.
You jerk against the straps when the pain returns for the third time, whimpering. Dr. Adus doesn't even glance at you, continuing his work. You turn your head to stare at the wall; it's better not to watch. Not by much, though. You wonder how long this is going to take. How long will he keep you here, trapped like this? And... If it hurts this badly on your arms alone... You shudder to think of how bad it'll be on more sensitive areas of your body. You shut your eyes tightly, the tears never ceasing, resigning yourself to what is bound to be a very long day.
