Clouded Rainbow by Jonathan Sturak Read Free Book Online

never felt before. It was as if something was unnaturally poking deep within his abdomen and, with each movement on the bed, it dug farther into him. Roger flipped up the blue gown and saw a long tube coiling around his leg. He followed it up, and what he saw shocked him; the tube did not end on the outside of his body, it traveled into the urethra of his penis. Roger squeezed the tube and pulled slightly, and with each movement, he could feel it poking deep within his body. His breathing escalated and sweat drenched his face. The image of the catheter burned into his mind, and he was beginning to hyperventilate. Roger knew he had to pull it out quickly, or he would fall back into the unknown void.
    Just like a bandage , he thought.
    Roger turned his head and reached down to his groin; he firmly gripped the tube and yanked. He felt the hose pull out from his body followed by a burst of fluid. Roger was terrified to look down, afraid to see gushing red blood spewing from his delicate penis. He barely mustered the strength and saw the yellow color of urine dribble from the uncorked apparatus.
    Roger took a moment and focused on the closed door in front of him. He looked at the light from the hallway casting through the door’s window and tried to forget the unsettling images of his catheter removal. He hoped these pictures would be purged from his mind’s database and never retrieved again.
    Roger planted his feet on the cold, hard tile, which made his mind refocus on the nerves on his soles, temporarily taking the pain away from his upper body. He stood up and shuffled to the door like a toddler taking his first steps. Roger finally stopped to glance through the window of his cell into the brightly lit hallway. Roger opened the door and glanced left, and then right. He saw medical equipment lining the hallway with banks of identical doorways. The thought of Lois suddenly entered his mind. He pondered her existence sleeping in one of the adjacent hospital rooms. Roger used his strength to move toward the next room. Inside was an obese creature Roger assumed was male; however, he couldn’t be sure as thick gauze wrapped the person’s entire body, including the head. Roger lurched toward another door. He peered inside, as a wrinkly male patient lunged at him from the shadows. Roger wobbled on his feet from the surprise, and then toppled over to the unyielding floor; his head bashed the wall sending a flood of pain to his skull. The elderly man slammed the door and retreated inside his room, bringing the hallway back to silence. Roger’s bizarre environment made him crave his home even more. He rubbed his head, and then picked himself up, but pain shot down his right leg.
    The lost businessman tottered down the hallway. His gown had a slit open in the back as cool air grazed his backside. Suddenly, Roger heard two approaching voices—one voice was deep and resolute, and the other was somewhat higher, but still masculine.
    “I’m looking for Lois Belkin. Where is she?” Roger asked the two approaching male nurses.
    Both men neared the lost patient with wide eyes and wide grasps.
    “You have to go back to your room,” the taller nurse said.
    “Where is Lois?” Roger continued.
    “There is no Lois here. Let’s get you back to your room,” the shorter one said as he gripped Roger’s arm.
    “Hey! Let me go,” Roger snapped.
    “We’re just trying to help. Your head is not right. You need to rest,” the taller nurse insisted.
    Roger panicked from the grip of the four claws. He gave in.
    “Now, where is your room?” the taller nurse asked.
    Roger nodded down the hall behind him. The three of them moved toward the wrong direction. Roger felt scared, alone, lost. He had to escape.
    A crowd of visitors swarmed them. Roger saw an opening. He used all of his energy to break free. Roger ducked between two women, and then fled down the hallway.
    “Hey! Stop! Get back here!” the taller nurse yelled.
    Roger was free. He