Raman
Jalota's Stories
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The Butterfly
Effect
By Raman Jalota He could see them. They were far away but were waving to him. He could make out a few faces but not all of them. That's Greg for sure, in his usual faded brown leather jacket. And that has to be Shirley ... they always hung out together. What a pair! Who else is out there? Where's Marina? He pushed against the surface but it didn't budge at all. He placed his head against it and braced his feet on the top of the ladder and pushed. It didn't yield at all. He looked out and everything had disappeared, everyone had vanished. There was just the solid light yellow wall surrounding the dull room he was stuck in. The pain in his head started growing and his head throbbed. It was unbearable. Every time it would throb and then stop for a split second .... I hope the pain is gone permanently ... another split second and it would throb again ... the pain is all I can feel now ... pain, shooting pain and nothing else but pain ... but I know relief is creeping around ... and then black.
..
Dr. Jim
Hernandez stared at the monitor in disbelief. The subject was
climbing up as if on a ladder. He decided Symuya was doing a mime
act but then his jaw dropped. Symuya rose up in the air and
almost reached the ceiling before placing his head on the wall and
pushing against it with his head. A few more minutes and Symuya was
back on the bed sitting with his head in his hands. Jim looked at Stacy and gestured, "What the heck just happened?" "I saw what you saw. He rose up against the wall as if climbing on a ladder." "But there is no ladder in the room!" "Yes, I know that, but he did climb it he climbed something " "And what the heck was he doing with his head against the wall?" "It seemed he was like a rat or a mole pushing through dirt, getting ready to dig through it." Jim saved the video file and started writing his notes.
..
Symuya
woke up and looked out the window. The sun was coming up and the
horizon was orange as if on fire. He stared at the orange color
till it dissipated. A brilliant blue sky was all that was left.
He kept staring at the blue color, trying to use his mind to force it
to change. To change it back to orange. It didn't budge at all.Why do I want it to change to orange? I always liked the blue sky And it happened again He was sinking ... My head hurts I can't swim anymore the water is too hard and the sky is black like death maybe it would be better to die my arms won't hurt any more then A voice hit him like a baseball bat, Wake up boy! Push, you are there a couple more strokes boy!" He stood up and looked around nothing Damn What was that? Who was that? He saw a ray of orange ahead and stared. It grew to a shaft and then it fanned out. It slowly became a circle and then it became the horizon. The horizon was on fire. A great pinkish orange fire engulfed everything. It even cut across the ocean and started turning the water purple and white. He pushed harder and harder. I must get into the orange sweet sweet ... beautiful orange orange my savior. He shook his hands and awakened. I don't remember being at sea or drowning or swimming. But he remembered the sensation of wanting to float to and into orange. He stared hard at the wall. A thought came into his head. ladder what ladder? where is the ladder I used yesterday and then a different stream of thoughts orange is orange the key? And the ladder was there before him, propped against the wall, reaching almost to the ceiling. He closed his eyes and thought of them. Where is my mother? Where is my dad? Where are all my friends? Where is Marina? Marina sweet Marina He tried hard to remember her face and her body, how she felt in his arms. Her lips and how they tasted. Her eyes her gray eyes her hair her dark brown shoulder length hair that framed her face so exquisitely the sparkle in her gray eyes how wonderful they looked set against her dark brown hair gray eyes Marina's gray eyes the gray eyes that are strangely mine. He started climbing the ladder and reached up with his hands to brace himself against the ceiling. With Marina's gray eyes filling his head he pushed against the surface. It's hard like glass he tapped against it with his fingers yes ... it's not wood or cement or drywall this is glass for sure. I should be able to push it out. Or maybe I can break it. He pushed with his head and then using his legs he tried harder and harder. I can see them again are they all there? Where's Marina where's gray?
..
Dr.
Hernandez stared at the monitor. Stacy leaned forward too, her hands
opened involuntarily as if witnessing God or some super power. Symuya
had his head against the wall, tapping the wall with his fingers.
She pointed at him and whispered, "Look at his face." Symuya had a very
peaceful almost happy look on his face as his head was pushing against
the solid concrete wall."If he wants to break out, why doesn't he try to go through the window?" "You think he is trying to break out? Look at him. He's floating five feet above ground, happily pushing his head against the wall. Have you ever read or heard of anything remotely like this Stacy?" "No, have you?" "This is amazing. He is not on any drugs. He does not have access to anyone or anything. He doesn't know of the cameras in his room. He is not pretending. He is really trying to go through the wall. This is not a fake thing, he is very rationally trying to go through that wall." "So why the wall? And not the window?" "That's what you and I need to figure out. Maybe there's something beyond the wall that's not beyond the window. At least the way he sees it." Stacy paced around the room and wondered aloud, "He has no family. His parents died when he was growing up. His friends, including his girl friend, died in that terrible car crash. He has no near and dear ones left. I wonder if that has affected his brain in an extraordinary manner?" "Yes, I understand all that, but he climbs through space. How do you explain that?"
..
The
rain came suddenly. On a clear, sunlit day, the wind picked up,
suddenly it got dark and then the skies opened up. Symuya stared
at the clouds and the rain; the sound of the rain against the window
mesmerized him. And then it stopped and the clouds drifted away,
leaving a deep blue sky. He stared at the sky
blue
deep blue
flashes of lighting blinded him
blinding light
blue
blinding
flashes again ... and then it was blue.He stared at the road trying to keep his attention on the road and not get too involved in the antics of the other three. He glanced back to see Marina high-fiving with Shirley as Greg looked on sheepishly. Marina's laugh filled the car. Symuya closed his eyes for a split second, drinking in the pleasure of her laugh. And then there was a flash of blue. What the heck? that damned car jumped the divider and is heading towards us he braked hard. There was screeching and smoke and the blue car spun around headed straight towards them. A loud bang and then it was deafeningly silent. A few minutes later he heard a painful moaning from the back good, and then there were some moans from the front Good, Marina must be OK he squirmed away from the steering wheel and felt the pain in his chest. When he could turn a little, he looked at the passenger seat. Marina sat unmoving, her eyes unblinking and her mouth open in a scream that never started. He felt the pain in his chest grow exponentially. Damn blue blue is no good I need my gray or is it orange? He was near the ceiling and with his eyes closed he pushed his head against the surface. It parted like petals of a flower and he felt the soft texture of the flower as his head went through. There they are they are all there and this time I can see Marina too his eyes started to tear as he stared at Marina I am coming babe he pushed hard but he was locked in. His head was through but his shoulder was pitted against the solid wall again change damn you melt hurry now.
..
Stacy
was frozen, staring at the monitor in complete amazement. Jim
jumped up and reached for the phone."Please get to the subject now. His head has gone through the wall. Sound code blue." He opened the door and stood outside Symuya's room, waiting for the attendant to hurry up and unlock the door. They entered the room together as the code blue response team came running down the corridor. Symuya's body seemed to be hanging from the top of the wall. As they looked at each other, wondering what to do and who should do it, Symuya pulled his head back in and climbed down the ladder. He sat down on his bed with his face in his hands, tears running down his cheeks and his body shaking with disappointment.
..
Jim sat
in the passenger seat. "I don't want to drive today, I am completely
hosed."His wife adjusted the rear view mirror and put the Lexus in reverse, "What happened?" "Unbelievable! You know about that strange guy we are studying - Symuya?" "No, I don't remember. What about him?" "He is out of this world. I saw him with my own eyes, as he climbed a ladder in his room and pushed his head against the wall last week." "So?" "There was no ladder in his room!" "Huh?" "Well that's nothing. Today I and Stacy saw him climb the same invisible ladder and climb to the top of the room and then push his head through the wall." "What do you mean? He broke the wall with his head?" "No. He pushed his head through the wall and it parted as if it was butter or something." "Are you sure?" "Absolutely he just stood there with his head through the wall and his body still hanging by the ceiling of the room." She thought about it, murmured "bizarre" and turned the green Lexus on to the Oakland exit. All he saw was a blue flash. The truck came from the next lane just behind them, crossed the solid line and came towards them. She steered the car as far to the right as she could while slamming on the brakes, but the blue truck hit the Lexus with full force in the front - right at the driver's door. He screamed as her blood splattered over him. The windshield broke into a million pieces and the airbags deployed with loud explosions that sounded like two gunshots fired rapidly.
..
Dr.
Hernandez limped to the chair and sat down. Stacy put her arm
around him, "Welcome back, Jim. How are you feeling?"Jim looked at her and almost choked, "I will be OK. It's hard it was so sudden and now she is gone don't worry I will be OK. Thanks." He wiped his eyes and tried to force a smile, "How's Symuya doing?" "It has become stranger and stranger he has been pushing against the wall and sliding through the wall deeper and deeper. We installed new cameras outside the wall but they don't show anything except a solid wall. I have no explanation. No one has any explanation of what's going on?" Let me study your notes from the last month and I will join you in the observation room shortly. He punched in his code and started watching the video files and reading her notes on the screen.
..
Symuya
walked to the window and looked out. I can feel this dull pain in the
pit of my stomach. There must be a way to relieve this pain or
anxiety or whatever it is. What was the thing that Marina had
taught me
oh yes ... Qi Gong
Now first I must sit in a relaxed
position
Let energy flow from the top of my head to the side of my
body
slowly flowing through my ears, the sides of my neck, my
shoulders, energy flowing smoothly through my body relaxing me
He
heard Marina's soft voice talking him through the exercise
flowing
through my upper arms, my elbows, flowing through my lower arms and the
palms of my hands; especially flowing through the palms of my hands
now the front of my body
As his mind went through the Qi Gong exercise, his body relaxed, he was breathing slowly and deeply, almost asleep. He sat in this relaxed state for several minutes. He finally opened his eyes and exhaled deeply. He reached to the side of his bed and picked up a glass, filled it with water and drank it slowly. Ahh now I am relaxed and ready for the final attempt. He started seeing orange, blue, gray and green colors, flowing in and out of each other like colored silk sheets flowing in the wind or Holi color powders floating in the air. He started climbing the ladder. It feels so natural He looked at the crowd and focused on Marina ... she has on her favorite long green dress that sets off her brown hair and those beautiful gray eyes sparkling gray eyes ... I want to get into the gray he pushed his head against the soft wall ahhh its parting like the petals of a flower no even softer like cotton His head went through the wall and Symuya walked out effortlessly.
..
Jim and
Stacy screamed and looked at each other. The monitors showed an
empty room inside while the external cameras showed a solid wall with
the window still intact and no one outside the room."What did we just see?" "Stacy, call security and lets inspect the room. They walked into the room together and looked around nothing. The security guard looked under the bed as Jim tapped on the walls and the window. He looked out the window and looked in both directions. "Nothing out there either."
..
Jim
Hernandez walked into the empty room, exhausted from the three hours of
relentless questioning that he had been put through. He looked at
the room as if seeing it for the first time. He murmured aloud."What was he doing the last time I saw him? He was sitting in this chair and relaxing. I think he was doing some sort of meditation." He sat in the chair and closed his eyes and tried to relax. His mind was full of colors green ... blue . Yellow orange. And then he saw it. "Oh my The ladder!" Dr. Jim Hernandez climbed the ladder till he was near the ceiling; he put his head to the side of the wall and bracing himself against the ladder, he started pushing. The
End 2600 words
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Copyright © 2004 Raman Jalota. All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the author. |
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