(1 of 1. Originally posted on January 13, 2023 for the prompt “Cabin Fever.”)
Where am I? Why is there a rope tied to my arm?
Sleep-gummed eyelids pop open.
I’m already standing. Was I sleepwalking?
Bleary view of a room. Wood floor. Sparse wooden furniture. Something glows. An oil lamp? Empty fireplace. Bare walls. The walls look…wavy? Logs. This is a log cabin.
This is my cabin. How did I get here? What’s wrong with my head? There’s no fire. I should be cold. Why am I hot?
An eternal blizzard rattles the window. My stomach rumbles.
How long have I been here?
I need food. First I need a fire. Wood to burn. There should be a stack nearby. Picture it. Thirty feet out the front. Five feet to the right. Close enough to reach it. Far enough to risk getting lost.
I need to tie myself off. There’s a rope on my arm…
The other end of the rope is coiled up on the floor. Pick it up. Seems long enough. Need something sturdy to tie it to.
The table? Maybe. Then I’ll walk out…but I can’t close the door with the rope in the way. I need to tie it to something outside. The doorhandle?
Nearly fall at the first step. Feels like wading through mud. Sluggish muscles. Everything aches. Stumble to the door. Fumble with the latch.
Am I wearing gloves? Feels like gloves.
The door opens to a blast of ice. Cold on the skin.
Why am I hot?
Fumbling with the rope. Can’t tie a knot with gloves on. Pull the gloves off. Hold them between teeth. Over. Around. Through. Race against the numbness. Tug on the knot to test it. Seems firm. Gloves back onto frozen hands. Time to go. Stumbling into the dark. Eyes closed against the stinging wind. Can’t see, anyway. Counting my steps. One two three four five feet.
What’s that beeping sound? Who is talking…?
“…have to get that fever under control…risk of permanent brain damage…patient is not responding to…”
Where am I? Why is there a rope tied to my arm?
Sleep-gummed eyelids pop open.
I’m already standing. Was I sleepwalking?
Bleary view of a room. Wood floor. Sparse wooden furniture. Something glows. An oil lamp? Empty fireplace. Bare walls. The walls look…wavy? Logs. This is a log cabin.
This is my cabin. How did I get here? What’s wrong with my head? There’s no fire. I should be cold. Why am I hot?
An eternal blizzard rattles the window. My stomach rumbles.
How long have I been here?
