Binding Ink

Celia Elliott

The bright light took over me, watering my eyes. I couldn't open them, something blocked my ears, allowing me to hear nothing.

Then, a mechanical ringing filled my ears, my heartbeat fastened, my stomach turned, and utter discomfort spread through out my body. 

I wanted to scream, but I couldn't feel or hear my voice. 

It went on and on, suffocating.

The ringing started to fade, allowing my aching eardrums to rest.

Once the ringing faded, I heard distant voices, coming clearer and clearer with each second.

"She's starting to wake up!" someone gasped.

After I felt like it was safe again, I opened my eyes, only to be received by a piercing bright room. I blinked my eyes a few times, attempting to adapt into this bright environment. Strangely enough, my eyelids felt unusually heavy.

I could barely feel my limbs, but the only thing I could feel is the pain in my head. It felt like a thousand needles poking in and out of my brain, entering from the right, exiting from the left.

"Everything seems fine, doc"

"She's not supposed to wake up this early though."

"Should I get the anesthesiologist here?"

"...No need."

Two voices surrounded me, talking about things that I don't have the slightest idea about. I squinted my eyes, trying to get a better look at those people standing beside me, but all I could see was their white coats.

They seemed to be discussing a serious matter, judging from their tone of speech.

The person whom was previously addressed as "doctor" bent down suddenly, looking at me eye to eye. I jumped, turning my sight to the empty table beside me. Some memories attacked me in that moment, making my shoulders shiver slightly.

"You dare look at me into my eyes?!"

"No, no, no! I'm sorry, PLEASE!!"

The sound of the girl's crying left a mark in my head, one that will never fade. 

Then, the woman who stood beside the doctor pulled him upright, and gently pushed him away. 

"Why don't you give her some time, Doc?" She said, pulling up a kind yet distant smile. With a little dragging and pushing, the two people in white were then gone.

I got up slowly, leaning against the headboard of the bed. I looked around the room, studying it.

It's filled with people, yet it still remained quiet. Most of them had their eyes shut tightly, the others talking merrily with one another. The atmosphere felt light, with a warm sun ray coming in through the windows, lighting up the already bright room.

"Psstt!"

A light hiss was heard from the bed beside me. Curious, I turned towards the source of the sound.

Sitting there was a young man who looked about the same age as me, dressed in a white robe with loose pants, just like everyone else. He leaned his body slightly upon the railing, calling out to me. I tilted my head, unsure of his purpose.

"Are you okay? You looked like you were in shock back there." He asked, his grey eyes filled with concern. 

Did I look that bad?

I searched for a mirror, opening the drawers of the empty table . When I looked up, I was met with my own reflection in a reflective black box, stuck onto the wall in a distance.

It doesn't look like it's made out of copper or glass.

I craned my neck, attempting to get a better look at it. Suddenly, the box came to life, showing different scenes, as if miniature people were living inside of it.

What is this sorcery?

"So um, are you a TV person?" he asked again, seeing that my sight is basically glued to the black box's screen.

"What's a... TV?" I asked, having no knowledge upon this object with a weird name.

Not that I'm very knowledgeable to start with.

He blinked his eyes at me a few times, seeming to not believe what he's heard. He lifted up his finger and pointed at the box that's currently playing what seemed like a theater show.

"Uhm... That's a TV."

Huh.

I've never seen anything like this before.

Has the door brought me into another reality?

Were the stories true?

I shook my head, getting rid of the useless thoughts swirling about in my head.

"What is this place?" My voice came out hoarse and raw, a complete opposite to the melodious voice I once possessed.

The man stunned for a while, then letting out a small chuckle. "You better not let the doctors hear this, or they may or may not extend your visit here." He paused for a moment, thinking of something.

"Or have you lost all of your memories? Nope, that doesn't work out either..." He muttered, scratching his head to think of more logical reasons.

I cupped my face in my hands, grinning at his silly expression. "Well, would you believe me if I said I might not belong in this world?" 

Suddenly, he sat up right, looking at me from eye to eye. His expression became serious, his lips tensing into a straight line. He looks like as if he's about to discuss a serious matter.

Yikes.

"What you see on webnovels are all fictional, you can't just run in front of a truck and expect to be reincarnated in a book as the villainess." He let out a frustrated sigh. "I don't even know how you still survived that hit."

"Huh?" I blinked a few times, surprised.

I don't think I even know what a truck is.

He must've gotten the wrong idea.

"W-well, that wasn't what I meant--" I stammered. But before I even got to finish my sentence, a girl holding a metal bottle came into the space between us, breaking off the tensed atmosphere the man was emitting. 

"You can't really judge people when you, an intellectual figure, believes in curses." She handed the man the bottle, reprimanding him. He curled his lips, saying nothing afterwards.

The girl then grabbed a chair from the corner of the room, and sat down right beside me.

"Sorry about my brother, he can be a little... sensitive when it comes to novels. Including tropes." She apologized, her bracelets tinkled as she clapped her hands together.

"By the way...I believe I haven't had the pleasure?" She winked, holding out her right hand. 

I reached out, and gripped her hand lightly. "It's El--"

I can't tell her who I am.

What if... they know?

"El... Ellis! Celia Ellis." I corrected quickly, my lips curving up to an awkward smile.

"Oo, beautiful name!" The girl flicked her faint violet hair with her one free hand, "I'm Schwartz, Anla Schwartz."

The man, now lost of his solemn face, joined in with a simple introduction. "I'm Schwartz, Ivor Schwartz. " He paused for a moment, "And really, never try out the Isekai Mangas personally. They're dangerous."

I resisted my urge to laugh at his stubbornness, shifting my sight to the front door. 

The woman who was with the "doctor" previously have come back, making her way back into this room.

I pretended to not notice her, and continued to chat with the Schwartz siblings.

Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder.

I jolted, turning around to see who it was.

Standing there was the woman, smiling brightly. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'll have to borrow her for a minute."

Anla replied with a smile, and shifted her seat back to her brother's bedside.

The woman then pulled the curtains, closing us both in this little space created by it. 

"Don't worry Miss Elliott, it's just a mandatory check-up."