Twenty- Thousand Leagues out of the Womb

Seven thirty in the morning is not a good time to be out of the protection comfort of my bed. The least I could do was take solace in any privacy I could find. I’d taken my usual spot on the bench facing the rectangular window on the upper floor, in the area near the A and B hallways.

“Boo!” My friend Laura tugged at my bag.

“Oh no! Please, don’t hurt me,” I replied sarcastically, automatically slipping on the backpack to accompany her to her locker. She placed her bag on the ground, worked the combination, and opened the locker.

“I wanted to show you something,” She said.

“What is it?”

“Hold on.” She seized a few textbooks and shut the dull gray door, stuffing them in her lime sack. Mission accomplished, she resumed her original upright position, now fiddling with something around her neck.

“I picked it up on vacation.”

I stepped closer for a more proper view. Around her neck was a string of what looked like large, dark violet marbles.

“Pretty….”

“Isn’t it cool?”

“Yeah...I want one like it! Where’d you get it?”

“Some souvenir shop whose name I can’t remember.”

She unclasped the necklace, taking two of the orbs off the chain and handing both to me.

“A little present,” she grinned.

“Thanks,” I exclaimed excitedly, always one for receiving little gifts. The hallways were now much more congested.

“Mmm...I should head downstairs… I do not feel like running all the way down to the bloody choir room again.”

She laughed. “All right. See you!”

“Catch you later!”

Shoving through the irritating clutter of socializing students, I quickly made it to the staircase. However, I spotted something small and round bounce off the steps. One of my gem-beads escaped from my pocket. I watched as it rolled into the crowds, bounced off the bars of the railing and became lost among the throng. A light gale commenced. Funny, I thought these usually occurred outside.

‘What the hell?’ I struggled through the oblivious mob. When the wave of people began to part I looked frantically around for my lost gem.

“Ah-ha!” My gift was nudged into a small corner of the staircase. I bent over, reaching for the item. Suddenly, I found myself painfully blinded by a flash of violet light. The floor beneath me seemed to have disappeared.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

I think I fainted.

When I came to, I found myself unable to see my surroundings.

‘Where am I?’

The first thought that came to mind was that I was trapped in an extremely small bathtub that was surrounded by soft walls. This space was horribly cramped and moist. But if this was the case, shouldn’t I be struggling for my mortal life? Hell, I shouldn’t have been able to fit into such a small space in the first place.

‘Did I shrink?’ I must have been out of my mind.

I tried to shift, but I could hardly move more than a few inches before the “wall” halted my progress.

‘What the hell is this?’

I hit and kicked at the wall, claustrophobia finally rearing its ugly head. Quickly wearied by my frantic efforts however, I allowed myself to relax, curling up in the recesses of whatever held me. What kind of imprisonment was this? More importantly, how was I going to get out of it, especially when already it was driving me crazy?

‘God, if I don’t get out of here soon, I’m going to go crazy.’

I wringed my hands as I usually do when I get nervous. Something else was very wrong. Why the hell did they feel so tiny and fleshy? Upon further exploration, I found that my whole body felt like a soft, fragile vessel of tissues, almost like I’d been turned inside out. Sheer panic reigned again (did it ever really go away?).

‘What the hell is this?’

My hands grasped what felt like a thick, slimy rope. Further studying indicated some more discoveries.

‘An umbilical cord?’

A horrible comprehension washed over me.

‘Oh, no... Don’t tell me I wound up in a fetus! ’

Realizing that I wasn’t dreaming, my mind re-played the events that led up to this this…predicament. This happened all because of that damn crystal orb!

‘This is something straight out of a crappy sci-fi movie!’

I only left the realms of shock when the “cell” began to cave.

‘Oh my God, oh my God! I’ll bloody suffocate!’

The walls wouldn’t hold, despite my best efforts, and I thought it was the end. In an instant however, something dawned on me.

‘Yes!’ I feebly lifted my little arm to shake my fist in celebration. There was no visible escape route at the moment.

‘Let this be quick,’ I thought desperately, not thinking about my plans after the breakout, and not completely remembering all the information I’d picked up from various documentaries. My fetal form continued to slide through the organ pipe, but at an excruciatingly slow pace. Highly uncomfortable with the further narrowing of the crevice, I screamed at the deliverers mentally.

‘Move your butts! I don’t want to rot in here! Hurry up hurry up hurry up!’ Such thoughts of mine continued until a bright light finally caught my eye. I immediately shut up, trying to propel myself forward. My mother’s body was a stubborn thing. Sometimes the movement stopped, sometimes it moved slowly. I became crazy with desire for the open air.

‘C’mon baby, just a little bit more…c’mon! Please! I’m begging you!’

I could hear voices.

“Keep pushing! I can see it!”

An animalistic cry responded.

‘Push ma, push! You’re almost there!’

“I see the head!”

Finally…‘Liberty! Sweet liberty!’

Blinding lights never felt so glorious! The extraction was rather rough, but I’d made it out. There was only one exclamation that could be uttered for such an exhilarating moment of liberation.

“WAAAAAAAAHHH!”

“It’s a healthy baby girl!”

I felt my mother’s arms cradle me.

“Hey, what’s this?”

There were two silhouettes in the distance.

“It was on the floor…looks like a gem or something.”

My attention turned to the speakers. The marble-thing! Of course if it got me here (if?), then it could get me home. Only it would be problematic just getting the blasted thing. I struggled to lift my arms. The room’s occupants laughed. A woman approached, although she halted a foot or so away. I wailed, still reaching for the thing.

‘Just a little closer...please!’ I begged. The nurse held it out.

“It’s pretty isn’t it?”

“She really likes shiny things.”

I ignored any further commentary and reached with all my might. My hand skimmed the surface of the object. The familiar flash and falling sensation returned.

‘There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home!’

When I woke up, I found myself sprawled on the landing between the flights of stairs, exactly where this misadventure had begun. After lying there for several moments, my vigor returned.

“Oh thank you, thank you!” I kissed the ground for several minutes. After I’d regained my composure I got up, and checked my watch, ran to the main office, and picked up the phone to call home.

“Hello, mom? I ran a little late and guess I missed the bus. Hmm? Yeah, I’m all right. It’s just been a very…odd day. I can’t tell you how glad I am to make it through.”