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Cold and confused. That's what he felt like when he first opened his eyes. It was freezing, wherever he was, and he did not know why or how he was there in the first place. He was covered by some sort of white blanket and laying on a cool metal surface.
He sat up in an instant and paused, willing his icy limbs to move one by one, first a finger then an arm and a leg. His body felt wrong, it felt like moving around a puppet. He covered himself with the blanket to shield himself from the cold with very little success and staggered towards the other side of the small room, deciding that this must be the way out. He had to get out.
And Get out he did. He found himself face to face with a man, who upon shouting at him or perhaps because of him, had fainted. He stared at him for a moment then walked out of the room. It wasn't much warmer in the corridor than in the small room but atleast now he could go. Go where? Where did he need to go? Did he need to find something? Someone, perhaps? The more he thought the more questions rose. One thing was for sure, he needed to figure out where exactly he was and he needed to get warm clothes. The blanket (or was it even a blanket?) was not much use against the cold.
With slow and unsure steps he walked the seemingly endless halls, he felt like he was in a labyrinth. There were a few dim lights in some of them but in others it was pitch black. The silence was only interupted by the ticking of a clock and after a few minutes of this he started to feel quite dizzy. He pulled the fabric tighter around himself with one unfamilliar hand and placed the other one against the wall to keep himself upright and moving.
His gaze fell on the worn out informational posters and maps on the wall. He could just make out a few words and a symbol. ''Hospital..'' he muttered and stopped. Why was he in a hospital? If he had a reason to be in the hospital surely he would remember that, but no matter how hard he thought nothing came up. The farthest he could remember was waking up in that cold, small room. Had something happend to him that was preventing him from remembering? His thoughts were all over the place and his breathing sped up. He blinked hard and started walking again.
He hummed softly to calm his nerves. He didn't have a clear idea of where he was going, but he was going and that's all that mattered, he'd figure the rest out later. The sound of footsteps nearby startled him and he clumsily crouched down behind a gurney. When the they eventually stopped, he stuck his head out just enough to see who they belonged to. There was someone at the end of the hall, he had a long black coat, black slicked-back hair and sunglasses? It was much too cold to wear those at present surely. The man seemed to be looking for something, or someone? He was glancing around at the signs and down each hall. It seemed like he hadn't noticed him, he hoped. Why did he hope that? Maybe he worked here and he could help him. He musn't think like that, he thought and pushed all doubts and warnings back into a distant part of his brain.
He stood up using the gurney to keep himself steady and took a step forward, only for said gurney to make a loud squeaking noise that echoed down the hall. This allerted the man, he turned his head in his direction and smiled. He froze but why? If his assumption was correct there was nothing to fear, except maybe a few awkward questions. The man started walking closer and all he could do was stare at him, his body refusing to move an inch. A shiver ran down his spine. He noticed that his jacket had a symbol on it, the same one he saw on the poster earlier, he definitely worked here then. His eye twiched as if to protest the thought. He had almost reached him by now, each step seemed slower than the previous one all the while that smile never left his face.
He took a shaky step back and his chest tightened with fear. All he wanted to do was get away from the man. He musn't listen to that thought, he told himself again but it wouldn't leave his mind. He needed help and this man could help him so he shouldn't run away, despite every cell in his body screaming at him to do so. Even if he was dangerous and he did start running, it wouldn't do much as the man was standing right in front of him by now. His hearts were beating unnaturally fast and between trying to think logically and trying to drown out his doubts and fears-
''Help me.'' He blurted out suddenly. The man's uncanny smile widened and he spoke after a short pause. ''Can you walk?'' He glanced at his hand that was still gripping the gurney. ''I think so..'' He mumbled and took a few short steps forward while slowly letting go of the gurney and trying to keep himself from falling over. His legs were still shaky but he could manage, he thought. The man stared at him for a moment longer then turned around and started walking. He followed as best as he could, but quickly realized he would not be able to manage. His legs felt even shakier than before and so, so wrong. He clenched his jaw and willed himself to keep going but he could feel his legs slowly give up. Before he could fall, he grabbed the man's arm with one of his and clung on for dear life.
The man halted and stared at him, tilting his head to one side quizzically. He stared back. Even through the sunglasses his gaze was magnetic, he couldn't take his eyes off his face despite the fact that he made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He had the unmistakable feeling that something was deeply wrong but he couldn't look away. He realized that the man felt oddly familliar and as he kept staring, he could feel his doubts melt away like snow. He wasn't sure how or why he knew him, but if he did then he wasn't going to harm him, not that he did anything to suggest that before. He only wanted to help. He should trust him. His hearts were starting to return to their normal rythm, he felt almost calm now and he relaxed his grip on the man's arm. He was mesmerized. Suddenly a lound thunder outside broke the silence and their staring contest with it. The man snapped his head towards the window and inhaled sharply. What just happend? But there was no time to think as the man lightly tugged on his arm and began walking again just seconds later.
* * * * *
After a short while of walking through the hospital he realized that he was unintentionally clinging to the man's arm but since he gave no sign that this was an issue, he decided it would be easier if he just kept holding on. In all honesty, he didn't really want to let go. Despite his rapidly heartbeats, the man's warmth drew him in. He wasn't much warmer than him but it felt nice not to be so cold. He felt his head slowly tip to one side and before he knew it, he was leaning his head against his shoulder. The man's arm tensed but he didn't say a word, so he kept it there. This was nice. He closed his eyes and let the man lead the way. He pulled the shroud, that's what it was he had finally figured out, closer to himself with his other hand. But wait, why was he wearing a shroud?
Pictures of an operating theatre with doctors above him flashed through his mind at the question and his breath hitched. His eyes snapped open and he let go of the man's arm in an instant, as if his subconscious was the one controlling his body. He was about to start walking away when the man reached back for him, almost politely steered him back, and resumed walking as if nothing had happend. He was holding his arm just as hard as he was clutching his a moment ago. He tried to break free but the harder he tugged the tighter the man's grip became, so he just accepted his fate, for now. Another shiver ran down his spine. He cursed himself for not listening to his brain earlier and booking it back to his TARDIS.
TARDIS? Where did that word come from, he wondered. The word felt like home and safety, so this must be where he lived but where was this TARDIS? He could ask the man, if he really knew him he'd know, but he realized he was horrified by the thought. Not a good idea. Who was this man anyways? His arms stiffened and as a result he held on to the man's arm tighter against his will. He felt rough fingers caress his hand, he couldn't tell if he was trying to be comforting or he took some sort of pleasure in his suffering. He didn't like this at all.
''I need to find clothes...'' he whispered, shivering. At the next opportunity he squeezed his arm tight and moved the both of them down a different hall. The man stopped and attempted to turn him back around, quiet harshly this time. He successfully resisted and pried himself out of his grasp, hoping he wouldn't fall again. A small part of him mourned the loss of warmth.
Suprisingly, he just let him walk away. His breathing became slightly erratic as he picked up his feet. This hall was long, longer than any of the previous ones. The man was most certainly following him again and was slowly catching up to him. He clenched his fist around the shroud, he couldn't let that happend. He walked as fast as he could while slightly swaying from side to side and occasionally glancing back at the man. It felt like he was a cat stalking it's prey, taking one slow and calculated step after another. He could feel his hearts beating in his ears. He also became aware that the man sounded much closer now, but he daren't look back. A wobbly step and he sounded even closer. Then another one and he was sure he was right next to him. He tried moving even faster but he tripped over his other foot and almost fell to the floor, were it not for the man who by this time was next to him again.
He grabbed his shoulder with one hand and leaned on him, the brief moment was quite awkward. They were standing chest to chest, almost nose to nose. He did not react at all this time, not a smile or a raised brown in sight. The man just froze, as did he. After the shock of almost falling again wore off he acted quickly. He gripped the man's shoulder and pushed him back with all his might which proved to be quite a lot. The man landed on the floor and his head hit the wall with a loud thud. He wasted no time and rushed further down the hall, his legs suddenly feeling more alive now. His mind was still full of questions but atleast he could think much more clearly, welcome changes at last.
He heared the man get up just seconds after he turned a corridor. He shivered and thought he heard the man's footsteps when suddenly a different male voice rang in the air. He and the man had to be even farther away as he could barely make out what they were saying. His hearts were starting to return to a somewhat normal rythm as he turned several more corridors and entered a room with the sign 'employees only' on the door. Now he could finally get to finding himself some clothes...