Chapter 4 The Devil Saved Me

Opening my eyes. I was hoping to see my apartment ceiling and just woke up from a nightmare.

But it was the same old concrete. I groaned in agony.

I pulled myself up using nothing, but the plain wall as support. I remember hearing someone calling my by my name before I passed out. My head ached as I tried to remember. I put my hand on the back of my head. My brows furrowed when I felt some type of fabric wrapped around my head.

I weakly untied the bandage on my head. A white cloth.

My eyes landed on a cold compress beside me. The ice has melted already and it caused a wet mark on the floor.

"What the hell?" I mumbled to myself. I thought I was just hallucinating. There was an actual person in here?  "And he put this bandage and ice compress on me..."

Anyone would feel appreciative about this, but not for me. I'm in the most dangerous place I could ever be right now. You really don't expect me to appreciate kindness here. Everything in here will require something in return.

This room has only one door and I'm sure I heard that voice on the opposite side of the door. I slowly turned my head to the area I'm talking about. There, I saw the bed attached to the wall. Nothing special and suspicious about it.

I scanned the room with a painful head. My eyes stopped on the toothbrush on the sink. My eyes grew big.

"It's changed. It's new. It's the same color, but it's different," I talked to myself. I could be wrong. I wasn't in good shape when I entered this hellhole, but I'm sure that I see what I saw. It was an old disgusting toothbrush and now it's new.

The fuck?

"Maybe someone from the cleaning staff really did came in here and put this bandage on me." I looked at the toothbrush. "And perhaps changed that toothbrush too?" I closed my eyes at the silly thought. I genuinely have no idea how things work here. When do cleaning staffs come here to clean?

"Out!" 

A loud voice of a man yelled outside the door. It sounded like he's telling everyone to come out. I weakly pulled myself up and linger by the door, waiting for someone to open it. My eyes landed on the small window. I see a hint of a morning light.

"It's the morning roll call! Everyone stand up behind their doors. Don't even try locking it. You already know the consequences," he said using some type of audio device. I sighed weakly. They didn't bother feeding me last night. Now, I feel weaker than ever.

Any food I eat would taste like heaven at this point.

I've always been curious what being a prisoner is like. It's not that I wanted to be one. It's just that,  I go around arresting people for their crimes, but I'm never really sure what happens to them after. Are they being treated like animals like what the media is exaggerating on televisions?

My eyes grew big when the metal door suddenly sprung open in front of me. I thought it was going to be the same police officer from last night, but it's a new face.

"H-Hey..." is all I managed to say. He ignores me and went to the next cell beside mine.

My eyes automatically scanned the place as soon as I stepped out of the room. They are opening the cells one by one and each prisoner stands in front of their door. I decided to do the same.

"One!" A man loudly counted. My head tilted slightly.

"Two!"

"Three!"

"Four!"

And they started counting like everyone has their own number chant. I wonder what's mine.

They were counting one after another when they suddenly stopped counting at twelve. I looked at the guy who last counted then to the next prison cell before me. Nobody was standing there.

"He's on it again. Hahaha!" One of them said. I started to get more confused when all of them started laughing like this is a normal morning for all of them. Looks like this isn't the first time prisoner 13 didn't come out of his cell.

One of the officers prompted a colleague to check prisoner 13 inside his cell.

"Go straight to the cafeteria," they said. Everyone start to walk down the hall as soon as they heard him say that. I carefully stepped out and follow the sea of prisoners on the hall. I'd be lying if I tell you that I don't feel intimidated by their huge built. Almost everyone in here is as tall as Falaguerra.

Wait... Yes. That guy. Where is he?

I found myself on the cafeteria they are talking about. I was expecting a uniform line on the front where a long table with limited food servings accommodated by staffs are being served. Then, a bunch of officers guarding the area. But I was surprised to see them moving freely without watch.

"What the hell?" I mumbled to myself.

"Move!" Someone loudly said that behind me and the next thing I felt is a big force of hand pushing me to the side. If I were well and not hungry, I would have withstand the force, but the last time I tried to eat was last night and it was interrupted. Of course, I'm weak and I wasn't surprised when I fell down easily from his light push.

"WOAHHHH!" Everyone gasped from the fall I made. I accidentally pushed some chairs with me and that caught the attention of everyone.

"A-hole..." I whispered.

Just when I thought I'm the only one who heard what I said, the guy who pushed me frantically looked down at me. I had goosebumps all over my body when I finally got a better look at him.

Gawd! He's big. He's literally twice my size.

"What the fuck did you just say?" he said with gritted teeth. My face turned pale.

"U-Uhh..." I couldn't find words to respond to him. Even my own voice is betraying me right now by not letting me utter a single word.

"It's a new face, Missile." A guy with snake tattoo on his temples said. I bowed my head slightly. He has a group with him. Looks like I found the bully in this place.

"New face, huh?" he slurred. I gasped when he forcefully lifted my chin to look at him. I was still on the dirty floor and looking small while he's in front of me looking big with his hand on my face like I'm his prey or something.

"You wouldn't want to lay a finger on him."

The familiar deep voice made me look behind him.

"C-Cole..."