Darn Stupid Brother You Are

(Cylan's POV)

The message came late at night. I was lying in bed and the dull hum of the center's fluorescent lights buzzed overhead. My phone vibrated once and broke the silence sharply. I didn't recognize the number at first but the words on the screen made my blood freeze.

>> Cylan. It's me, Emily. I hope you've not forgotten me. Please help. I'm locked up somewhere in the center. It's dark and I don't know where I am.<<

I sat up so fast that the blanket slid off me. My heart pounded as I read the message again and again until the words became jumbled together in my vision. Emily. The girl I thought I'd never hear from again. The one who had vanished without a trace weeks ago.

Was it really her?

I didn't know. I wanted to believe it but something about the message felt off. There was no explanation and no follow-up. Just those few desperate words.

I stared at the phone while my thumb hovered over the keyboard. My mind raced with questions. If it really was Emily, how did she get my number? Why hadn't she reached out sooner? And most importantly-where the hell was she? The next morning, I couldn't focus on anything. During breakfast, the chatter around me blurred into meaningless noise. Angel tried to talk to me but I brushed her off because I was too lost in my thoughts. My phone buzzed again as I was heading back to the dorm and my stomach flipped.

>> They're watching me. Don't tell anyone.<<

The words hit me like a punch. I stopped and stared at the screen. They're watching me. Who were they? The staff? Dr. Joe? Was this even real or was someone playing a cruel joke?

I shoved the phone into my pocket as my hands trembled. I needed to think. I needed to figure out what to do. But before I could, a mocking voice broke my thoughts.

"Hey, Cylan," a deep, teasing voice called out. I turned and saw one of the male patients smirking at me. "You and your little girlfriend still playing hide and seek?"

My jaw tightened. "What the hell are you talking about?"

He shrugged and smirked wider. "You know, the janitor chick. Heard she went missing. Guess she couldn't stand being around a freak like you."

The words stung more than I wanted to admit. My fists clenched but I forced myself to stay calm. He wasn't worth it.

"Mind your own damn business," I said and turned away.

But he wasn't done. "I don't get it. Why would anyone choose you? You're just a waste of space... and sperm."

That did it. I spun around as my heart pounded with rage. "Say that again."

He grinned, enjoying the reaction. "You heard me."

•

Before I could respond, a staff member appeared and her sharp voice cut through the tension. "Both of you, to Dr. Joe's office. Now."

Dr. Joe's office was pristine but off in a sense. The faint smell of antiseptic lingered in the air and the man himself sat behind his desk, his piercing blue eyes scanning us like a predator studying its prey. "What seems to be the problem?" he asked calmly but coldly.

The other guy started to speak but I cut him off. "He's a homophobic jerk who doesn't know when to shut up."

Dr. Joe raised an eyebrow and glanced between us. "Is that so?"

The guy sneered. "She's just mad because the truth hurts."

I wanted to scream or yell or do something but I forced myself to stay quiet. Dr. Joe stared at me for a moment longer before leaning back in his chair.

"I don't care about your personal problems," he said coolly. "What I care about is maintaining order in this facility. You're both on thin ice. Step out of line again and there will be consequences. Understood?"

I nodded reluctantly as my fists stayed clenched at my sides. The other guy muttered something under his breath but Dr. Joe silenced him with a look. That looks felt too familiar to just be professional. Even the way the jerk looked down...it seemed like a son feeling embarrassed because he's being scolded by his dad in front of...

"You're dismissed," he said and waved us off.

As I turned to leave, I scanned the office. I looked at the shelves and the desk for anything that seemed out of place. But it all seemed too normal. What are you hiding, Dr. Joe?

•

(Hendrix's POV)

The hallway was empty and the faint hum of the fluorescent lights filled the silence. I leaned against the wall and strained my ears to catch every word.

Dr. Joe and a staff member were talking in low voices just around the corner. I couldn't make out everything but the bits I heard sent chills down my spine. "The special projects... moving forward... Phase Two..."

I frowned as my mind raced. Special projects. I'd heard that phrase before, always whispered and vague. But what did it mean?

I thought back to the things I had overheard in the past and the pieces I had tried to put together. There were four projects I knew about:

1\. The Conditioning Program: Patients were subjected to mental and emotional manipulation and their minds were broken down to fit some twisted agenda.

2\. The Bioengineering Trials: Experimental drugs and procedures were used to alter the body in unnatural ways. My own "treatment" was probably tied to this.

3\. The Surveillance Initiative: Every move we made was monitored and recorded. Privacy didn't exist in this place.

4\. The Organ Harvesting Operations: The darkest of them all. Patients were treated like livestock and their bodies were prepped for extraction.

But now, listening to Dr. Joe, I realized there was something more. Something worse.

"We need to ensure the journal doesn't resurface," Dr. Joe enunciated, "If the wrong people find out, it's over for all of us."

I stiffened. The journal. He was talking about the journal we found the one that exposed the truth about this place.

My blood boiled at the thought. Dr. Joe was behind everything. The lies, the manipulation, the experiments. And now, he was covering his tracks to make sure no one could stop him.

I clenched my fists. I couldn't let this go on. I couldn't let him win.

As their voices faded, I stepped out of the shadows and made up my mind. It was time to take action. Time to end this nightmare for good.