The Lies in Beliefs by Maggie Long

Maggie Long

Earth

The Lies in Beliefs

“It’s this fuckin headache, I swear!” I say as I grab onto Tom’s shoulder for support. He has been my best friend since Kindergarten. I tell him everything. “Lizzy, you need to go to the nurse. This is the 2^nd day in a row this week you have been getting lightheaded and faint.” He says. The only thing he doesn’t know about me is the events that happened on the Thursday of last week. Or well, he knew what happened…just doesn’t remember it. He doesn’t know we were the lucky ones out. We escaped the grips of the unknown.

            Tom and I have a routine before we go to classes. I stop at my locker, he comes skateboarding down the hall and hands me a note as he passes. It’s my good morning note. Some say things like, “You’re too beautiful to put into words”, or “I could spend my whole life with you and it wouldn’t be enough time.” Little cute things like that. Although, we are not boyfriend and girlfriend. We can’t be. At least, not anymore. Not after finding out the truth. The events of December 22^nd 2011 are never to be repeated. Until now.

            I got up, did my hair, makeup, all of that good stuff. I went to school. Tom gave me my morning note. Although, he was a bit late to school. His family is a trouble for him. They hate him. One of the reasons we are friends is because of that. His mom liked me. She thought of me as his role model. He was just madly in love with me. As I was walking to my first class, I saw someone looking at me through the window. I had to go see who it was. There was just something too strange about it. I glanced over and saw a little girl. She looked like a little toy doll. Her hair was brown and curly, she had on red lipstick and a red dress that was absolutely beautiful. I didn’t understand why she was here in my high school. Since I was already late to class, I followed her to see if she needed any help finding her way.

            As I turned the corner to catch up to the girl I find myself knocked out cold. I remember someone dragging me into the bathroom, but I was so out of it I couldn’t make out who it was. Next thing I know I was laying on a table in a bright white room. I wiggled around a bit to try to move my arms but to my surprise I was tied up to the table. That’s when the panic set in. Where am I? Who did this? Why am I tied up? All of these unanswered questions left hanging in the air. As I sit and figure out what I am going to do, I hear a noise. It sounds like a high-pitched scream. Suddenly a woman walks in. She presses a few buttons and the noise goes off. “Hello Lizzy. Welcome back home.”

            “Who are you?....What do you mean, “home”?” I cry out. “We have much to talk about Liz….much to talk about.” The lady says. I sit there as though I am in the shower. With tears dripping down my face. Will I ever get to go to my actual home? The lady cuts the rope holding me back. I instantly feel my wrists. They hurt a lot. I check the rest of my body. What is this lump in the back of my head? I don’t remember falling. “Come with me” The lady says. I enter a room that looks like something from an article for the future. Touch screen everything. I also see Tom. He’s playing basketball with some other kids that look about our age. “TOM!” I yell. “Hey Lizzy! Come play!” He says. Why is he talking like he’s not in a whole other place. “You should listen to Tom, go play with your brothers.” The lady whispers into my ear. Brothers? What the fuck? Tom is my best friend. NOT a brother.

            “Remember the girl you followed during school?”

            “Yea, what happened after I got clunked in the head?”

            “Liz, that is your sister. I am your mother. And the kids in that room in front of you are your other siblings or relatives. You were a microchip baby. We programmed you to act like a normal kid on Earth so that we can monitor the humans and how they are surviving even though they are all vicious killers.”

            “……We are not vicious killers. I AM a human. I was never a microchip baby or whatever your telling me! Bring me back to my family. NOW.”

            “Liz, you will be re-programmed tonight. You do not have a choice. We have to reboot you to the newest setting in our system. I’m sorry. I really wish this could have gone a different way. Please forgive us.”

            “How can I forgive you for lying to me and holding me hostage in this creepy place! The jokes over. Come on now, its not funny anymore. Let me go home. Let me be with my REAL family!” I screamed out at her.

            “Ah, what the hell is that?! My head! Make the noise stop!”

            “Liz, that is the time ticking in your head. The program is shutting down. You will die if you don’t let me change you!”

            “I-I-I I cant let you ch-ch-ch-change me. I am ME. Why am I slowing down and st-st-st-stuttering? What’s going on? Whats that light? MAKE IT STOP. MAKE IT STOP……”

To be continued……