Chapter Text
Red. The hallway flooded with red. An alarm screeched from the speakers, bouncing off the concrete walls and shooting straight into your body into your skull. Your first instinct was to cover your ears and wince. The ground seemed to rumble in response, roaring as if to challenge the sound clawing its way into your ears. Your knees started to bend, already giving up.
You knew what this sound meant. The collider, the collider failed. You screwed your eyes shut, thinking that if you ignored it enough it would fade away. You begged yourself to move, to do anything. Panic stuck in your body like a stake through the heart.
You opened your eyes, still red. Run. That's smart, run. You peeled your hands away from your head and picked up shaking legs. You sped past your office, suddenly planting your feet. You looked back and forth, exit to office.
You dumped as much of your research into a single tote bag as you could. If you exploded by God your work would explode with you.
You sprinted down the hallway, tote bag in hand. Would the elevator be safe? You jammed the button and silently cursed yourself for not just going up the stairs. Finally, with a ding, the metallic doors opened and you hopped inside.
The doors reopened to the main floor and absolute chaos. People scrambled around, the ones that left carried papers in their arms. The last time it had been this chaotic was the bagel incident that John had repeatedly told you about.
You shook your head and moved your body. The only thought going through your head was escape.
The rest of the day was a static blur. The quiet car drive home, stumbling through your dark apartment, and your head hitting the pillow. You fell asleep quickly that night. The harsh jangle of your bedside alarm yanked you from sleep. A breath heaved from you, now sitting up you clicked the button and made your way out of bed.
Still in your work clothes, you flicked on the TV. Maybe it had been a false alarm or some demented drill procedure. A reporter stood before a crumbled building, most of it ashen and smoky. The quiet noise of sirens filled your living room. You narrowed your eyes at the flashing images. Your heart immediately dropped to the very bottom of your chest.
“Johnathan.”
Had he gotten out? Was he alright- how could you have not looked for him? The realization of the entire situation slammed into you like a ton of bricks. Your entire workplace blew up.
The next couple of hours consisted of you worrying, texting and calling Jonathan, calling hospitals, and pacing.
That’s how you spent the next three weeks.
Thursday. It had maybe twenty something days since the incident. You had come up with every theory or idea or hell, anything. Yet you still had no clue as to what had happened. Alchemex had sent you and email, that you had a temporary vacation due to ‘technical issues.’ Of course they wouldnt pay you while you couldn't work, so here you were, scrolling endlessly on your computer for some work. Safe to say you were pretty overqualified for most jobs here. Some places wouldn't even hire you if you were.
Suddenly a sharp knock sounded at the door. You jumped up, smacking your head right into the table lamp, which in turn sent it crashing to the unforgiving plane that was your hardwood floors.
“Aw fuck me-” Knock knock. You huffed. Knock kn- “I am coming already!” Rubbing your head, you approached the door.