Virtual Reality
An Original Story by Susan Loosely Based on True Events
"No, no," he cried, as they placed the handcuffs around his wrists. "I didn't do it. Don't you understand? This isn't real, this is all a game. No, please."
An Original Story by Susan Loosely Based on True Events
"No, no," he cried, as they placed the handcuffs around his wrists. "I didn't do it. Don't you understand? This isn't real, this is all a game. No, please."
He struggled to break free, but found it impossible to do so. He should’ve been able to, he had in the past. He just didn’t get it. Why was it different this time around?
“Please listen to me,” he begged as they dragged him away. “You’ve got to believe me. You have got to understand.”
He didn’t know where he was going or where they were taking him. He had noticed something in the distance. It was some kind of vehicle, a car perhaps. No wait, it was small van and it had people inside of it. He was sure of that, he had seen their silhouettes. He noticed the blue writing on the passenger door, but from this distance, he wasn’t able to make out what the words said. He was sure that he’d be able to see them, once they pulled him closer
“No, no, please.” He was screaming now, becoming hysterical. “Stop, please. You can’t do this. I won’t go. You can’t force me.”
He woke with a start. It was the same dream he had every night, he thought as he looked around the room. It was the same dark, empty room that he had been sleeping in ever since he moved in here.
He could never understand why he was here in the first place, but this is what he had to settle for since he was laid off almost three months ago. They claimed that it was due to downsizing, but he had known better than that. He had known the truth all along.
This had hit Alexander Porter right in the gut. It was so unexpected and it just came right out of left field. Why had they done this to him? Of all the people they had to let go, why him? He was the most self-respected man in the company, at least that’s what they always told him. He was the one that everyone had gone to for help. He had always bailed them out so many times that he stopped counting. He had believed them and trusted them and this was the reward he received for being a loyal employee. He had always been their shining star in the company, another lie that they told him.
Alexander had been working with a design team to create computer games. One by one they had worked diligently and not one of them made a dent. Now finally one had hit and that one was the one he figured out on his own. The company had stolen it right out from under his nose and claimed that it belonged to them. The game was aptly named "Virtual Reality" because there was so much variety. Oh sure it was a violent game, but it was a big hit. The kids loved it and couldn’t get enough. The game was selling like hot cakes and the parents were complaining just as quickly. In the end, the company came down on them hard. They explained that it needed to be modified slightly to please concerned parents. After all, they didn’t want upset anyone, especially their good paying customers.
Alexander was lucky. He had the original game, the only one with everything still intact. The raping, the looting, the killing; maybe it was bad for you, but he played it every night when he got home from a hard day at work. He needed somewhere he could go to get away from his wife screaming and nagging at him, some fantasy world to escape to and this was it. He wouldn’t let anyone bother him, not while he was playing.
He was living proof that the game was harmless as he and his design team had first thought. It was only a game and, in time, he would prove to everyone that he was right. He’d show them all.
Never mind that he was slightly eccentric and had his little idiosyncrasies. That shouldn't bother anyone. So he liked to carry his "lucky sock" in his pockets. So sometimes he kept it in front of him, especially at the workplace. It had always brought him luck, more than once. So he liked everything neat and clean and in order. So he didn't let anyone of his colleagues near him, not even his team. They usually worked through emails and phone calls back and forth. There had been a few ruffled feathers and a few complaints, but he had gotten the job done, that’s all he cared about. They disapproved of the way he had worked, but they couldn't fire him for that. This was his personality. They could get used to it, and even if they couldn't? So what?
Alex's life went on like this for eight months. It was the longest eight months in his entire life. It was the same thing over and over again, boring and mundane, everything status quo. He delved deeper into his game, sometimes pretending that the woman he killed and raped was his wife. He forgot about everything else, the game was all that mattered. He longed to be a part of the fantasy world that he had set up and never wanted to come back to reality. In fact, he was so caught up in it that he started getting to bed later and later every morning. He didn’t have time for anything else, especially that wife of his. What did she know, anyway?
It was harder and harder for him to get going in the morning. He didn’t want to go to work anymore; he just wanted to live in that fantasy world that was his virtual reality.
That’s how it was until the day Sherry Nikols walked into his life.
Sherry was the new receptionist. She was tiny, five feet to be exact and had short brown hair and glasses. She had a great body and she was all leg. She was friendly and intelligent and more importantly, she was funny. She could spar with him word for word, joke for joke.
And she was the only woman who would even bother to speak to him in the entire company. They all walked by him as if he wasn’t there or didn’t even exist. Not Sherry. She made him feel as if he were royalty.
Alex had gotten extremely close to her, sometimes spending most of his day at her desk rather than his own. She was great to talk to and fun to be around. She was close to his age; he was thirty-five, she was twenty- seven. He felt younger just being around her. Age really didn’t matter anyway; it was only a number to him. He hoped that she felt the same way.
That’s how it was until the day Sherry Nikols walked into his life.
Sherry was the new receptionist. She was tiny, five feet to be exact and had short brown hair and glasses. She had a great body and she was all leg. She was friendly and intelligent and more importantly, she was funny. She could spar with him word for word, joke for joke.
And she was the only woman who would even bother to speak to him in the entire company. They all walked by him as if he wasn’t there or didn’t even exist. Not Sherry. She made him feel as if he were royalty.
Alex had gotten extremely close to her, sometimes spending most of his day at her desk rather than his own. She was great to talk to and fun to be around. She was close to his age; he was thirty-five, she was twenty- seven. He felt younger just being around her. Age really didn’t matter anyway; it was only a number to him. He hoped that she felt the same way.
He was now beginning to wish that he had met her first instead of his wife, but that wouldn’t have changed things anyway. You see, she was married as well and a very happy one at that, at least that’s what she told him.
So when he came home now, he would substitute her as the woman he raped, well, he didn't consider it a rape as much as it was making love to her.
About three weeks later, they had laid him off and it was just when he was starting to enjoy his life again. It came from seeing Sherry every morning. Sherry cheered him up and made him feel like someone important. She was the light of his life, everything he looked forward to.
And he was never going to see her again.
Later that afternoon, he called his former company to speak with her. He needed a favor and he knew that she wouldn’t mind doing it for him. They had been good friends, right? She was the only one he could trust to do this for him. She wouldn’t tell a soul. He knew she wouldn’t. These were his personal files that he had kept in the computer and she was the only one who knew which computer and where to look for them. He didn’t want anything that had to do with the company; it was all just his stuff. She wouldn’t get into any trouble, not for taking something that belonged to him. He asked her to meet him in a parking lot and she would give them to him, only she really didn't know where they were or what he was talking about.
She agreed to it all and had hung up, shaking her head. She wasn’t going to give him anything, let alone meet him in the parking lot.
So he began to call her. The problem was he never stopped. His wife worked during the day and he had been alone. He missed her something fierce. The job thing was going nowhere and he was curious to find out about the company, plus it would give him an excuse to talk to her and possibly see her.
She had accepted his invitation to lunch the first time, thinking that they were friends, why not? Get a free lunch on him and talk over some old times. She didn’t understand herself why she accepted, only that she felt sorry for him. She walked away from him when he started to make advances to her. He trailed her to the parking lot hoping to straighten out the mess he had made, but she had driven off. He waited until later and tried to call her again to apologize, but she refused his calls and wouldn't see him again. Upset that everything had gone wrong; he went home and played his game, this time taking out his revenge. He had murdered little Sherry Nikols, if only in virtual reality.
Alex was a mess by now. He was heavily into his game and had quit looking for a job. His wife wanted him out and was threatening divorce if he didn't do something and soon. He was convinced the only way out was Sherry Nikols.
And that's how he ended up here, in this hole in the wall.
He looked around again and then he heard something out in the hallway. Looking up, he saw two of the floor nurses smiling at him. One of them placed the key she was holding into the lock on his door.
"Mr. Porter," she said, walking over to him, the other nurse following behind. "It's time for your medication now. Then you have your appointment today with Dr. Green."
Alexander's eyes widened. There were always two nurses, just in case something went wrong. How could anything go wrong, this was just a dream, right? It was nothing but a silly game. None of this was real. Now why couldn’t they understand that? It was obvious, wasn’t it? He shook his head and tried to tell them that, but they wouldn't listen to him. It was a conspiracy against him, something to throw him off the track. The company told them to treat him this way; it was all their fault.
So when he came home now, he would substitute her as the woman he raped, well, he didn't consider it a rape as much as it was making love to her.
About three weeks later, they had laid him off and it was just when he was starting to enjoy his life again. It came from seeing Sherry every morning. Sherry cheered him up and made him feel like someone important. She was the light of his life, everything he looked forward to.
And he was never going to see her again.
Later that afternoon, he called his former company to speak with her. He needed a favor and he knew that she wouldn’t mind doing it for him. They had been good friends, right? She was the only one he could trust to do this for him. She wouldn’t tell a soul. He knew she wouldn’t. These were his personal files that he had kept in the computer and she was the only one who knew which computer and where to look for them. He didn’t want anything that had to do with the company; it was all just his stuff. She wouldn’t get into any trouble, not for taking something that belonged to him. He asked her to meet him in a parking lot and she would give them to him, only she really didn't know where they were or what he was talking about.
She agreed to it all and had hung up, shaking her head. She wasn’t going to give him anything, let alone meet him in the parking lot.
So he began to call her. The problem was he never stopped. His wife worked during the day and he had been alone. He missed her something fierce. The job thing was going nowhere and he was curious to find out about the company, plus it would give him an excuse to talk to her and possibly see her.
She had accepted his invitation to lunch the first time, thinking that they were friends, why not? Get a free lunch on him and talk over some old times. She didn’t understand herself why she accepted, only that she felt sorry for him. She walked away from him when he started to make advances to her. He trailed her to the parking lot hoping to straighten out the mess he had made, but she had driven off. He waited until later and tried to call her again to apologize, but she refused his calls and wouldn't see him again. Upset that everything had gone wrong; he went home and played his game, this time taking out his revenge. He had murdered little Sherry Nikols, if only in virtual reality.
Alex was a mess by now. He was heavily into his game and had quit looking for a job. His wife wanted him out and was threatening divorce if he didn't do something and soon. He was convinced the only way out was Sherry Nikols.
And that's how he ended up here, in this hole in the wall.
He looked around again and then he heard something out in the hallway. Looking up, he saw two of the floor nurses smiling at him. One of them placed the key she was holding into the lock on his door.
"Mr. Porter," she said, walking over to him, the other nurse following behind. "It's time for your medication now. Then you have your appointment today with Dr. Green."
Alexander's eyes widened. There were always two nurses, just in case something went wrong. How could anything go wrong, this was just a dream, right? It was nothing but a silly game. None of this was real. Now why couldn’t they understand that? It was obvious, wasn’t it? He shook his head and tried to tell them that, but they wouldn't listen to him. It was a conspiracy against him, something to throw him off the track. The company told them to treat him this way; it was all their fault.
The nurses were holding him down now as he struggled inside the straightjacket. Finally, they got his hospital gown up and stuck the needle in his behind. Then they walked out, locking the door behind him, leaving him alone again in that little room of his.
But before Alex drifted off, he heard the two of them talking to one another.
"He should be out by now," the nurse said, looking through the bars of his padded cell. "So instead of prison, this is where they are keeping him? Is this how they treat all their murderers?"
"No just him. He is a special case, Doreen. He's completely gone off the deep end. We've kept him away from the other patients. He doesn't know the difference between his computer world and his reality. "
Doreen shook her head and looked at the other nurse.”It's really a shame, isn't it?"
The other nurse nodded and then the two walked away, but by this time, Alexander Porter was asleep.
But before Alex drifted off, he heard the two of them talking to one another.
"He should be out by now," the nurse said, looking through the bars of his padded cell. "So instead of prison, this is where they are keeping him? Is this how they treat all their murderers?"
"No just him. He is a special case, Doreen. He's completely gone off the deep end. We've kept him away from the other patients. He doesn't know the difference between his computer world and his reality. "
Doreen shook her head and looked at the other nurse.”It's really a shame, isn't it?"
The other nurse nodded and then the two walked away, but by this time, Alexander Porter was asleep.
Susan Friedman
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