Brandon Marshall Writing

Andrew looked around him aghast. He felt as if the platform was tilting into the water. The ocean was vast and lonely. He felt each wave striking the platform. His heart quickened in panic. He wished he had brought his flask. He lay down in fear. The gusts of wind hastened and strengthened. A military helicopter was landing on the platform.

Andrew waited for some time after the landing of the helicopter to get up from his fetal position. The blades whipped quickly about the massive machine. No one was getting out. Are they waiting for me? He started toward the chopper, careful not to be blown away by the force of the blades. The side door slid open mysteriously as if it had anticipated his arrival. No one was behind the door.

Within the helicopter was one bucket seat with an attached safety belt. The cockpit was sectioned off with a lead wall. A small monitor and keyboard sat on a table fastened to the bucket seat. A monotonous robotic voice started overhead.

”Please take a seat and fasten your seatbelt. Please take a seat and fasten your seatbelt. Please take a seat and fasten your seatbelt,” it perseverated.

He followed the instructions and sat down. He clicked his seatbelt into place. The monitor turned on. Only a blue screen appeared at first. Then, in white characters it read:

Please enter the date destination: []

The open brackets flashed at him, asking for a response. He answered.

August 17, 2019

The next prompts read:

Please enter the desired restaurant destination: []

Highlands

Do you wish to begin your travel: [Y] or [N]

Y

With a sudden jostle, the helicopter lifted from the platform and bolted forward off the platform, gaining speed at a rate inconsistent with modern day physics. The white ripples in the ocean zipped by faster and faster until eventually the ocean was a large blur of motion. His vision blackened as the G-force pushed him deep into his seat. Then there was nothing.

***

“Babe, why don’t you just park the valet? I don’t really want to walk that far in the dark,” a familiar voice said softly.

Andrew opened his eyes and found himself behind the wheel of his Subaru. He looked to Gwen sitting next to him and realized his hand was placed nicely on her thigh. Her touch was everything he desired. Everything finally felt right again.

It must have worked, he thought.

“You know what, tonight is special,” he said. “We can do valet tonight. No problem!”

Andrew drove the hatchback through the valet line and passed his keys to a man named Patrick, who couldn’t have been more than seventeen and walked inside. The rest of the evening went exactly as it had last time: the beautiful skyline, the engagement, the joy emanating from Gwen’s face, the applause.

“Thank you for looking after her,” Andrew said to the valet. “I just couldn’t let her sit out on the street all night.” He handed him a twenty dollar bill and smiled.

The drive home was solemn. He took in every second he had with Gwen. What were just memories of her touch and smell were real right now. His heart fluttered. His stomach was full of butterflies.

“You know Gwen, I can honestly say that without you, I would be so lost in this world,” he said to her.

“You are too sweet,” she said blushing.

“I mean it. There is nothing in this world that compares to the happiness you give me. I love you, babe.”

“I love you, too.”

They ended up in Gwen’s apartment and after greeting the cat, got right to work on each other. They started in the foyer and then, as pieces of clothing went missing, moved to the kitchen counters, and eventually ended up on the living room floor. After, Gwen’s head lay perfectly atop Andrew’s chest, both breathing deeply. Their hearts beat in unison; their breaths were synchronous. They slept peacefully together.

The next day was spent lounging in pajamas and ordering takeout. Andrew was trying to savor every last drop of Gwen’s presence because he knew his time limit was coming up quickly. He hoped that his change meant that he would have her forever, but who knows? Three years is a long time. What if something happens in the next three years? They spent the rest of their afternoon watching lifetime movies and holding each other.

Gwen was napping next to him when he felt that familiar pulsation in his temple. His vision whitened, the ground rumbled and distorted. There he was floating once again. The nothingness had returned, but this time to take him to his new paradise.

The platform was just as cold and barren as he remembered. The helicopter this time was waiting for him. He climbed in and buckled in.

The monitor prompted at him:

Do you wish to preview your new life? [Y] or [N]

Y

Flashes of new core memories flooded into Andrew’s consciousness.

Flash: Gwen looked stunning on their wedding day. It was overlooking a canyon atop a mountain, just like they had talked about. Instead of a ring bearer they used a mountain goat. Their close friends and families were there.

Flash: They spent their honeymoon backpacking around Patagonia. At one point, Andrew thought Gwen was going to divorce him after the tent blew off of his pack atop a mountain. After forty minutes of searching through screeching winds they found it. They made love under the Milky Way and wished on shooting stars.

Flash: They bought their first home together and adopted a puppy.

Flash: Gwen’s father died, and Andrew spent countless nights comforting her. He rubbed her back when she was in tears. He made her breakfast each morning. He ran her errands. She appreciated every act of kindness, and he loved getting to be there for her.

Flash: Gwen was pregnant. She looked really cute with her baby bump to him. She had a new glow that made her even more stunning than he thought was possible.

Flash: Gwen was in labor. Andrew had accompanied her to each Lamaze class to prepare. They had read books on parenting together. They had decided they did not want to know the sex until birth. Gwen sat beautifully in a tub of water and birthed a healthy eight pound girl. They cut the cord together and laid together with baby Elise on their chests.

An intense brightness brought him back to the helicopter.

Do you accept your new life: [Y] or [N]

Y

Andrew breathed a sigh of relief. His pain was over now. He could live the life he was meant to live. He could cherish and love the woman he was meant to love. He realized that not once in these new memories had he touched a drop of alcohol. He was not a servant to his poison any longer.

The helicopter stuttered and lost several feet of altitude.

What is happening?

Smoke filled the cabin. Andrew’s heart sank as the helicopter dropped rambunctiously downward. The ocean approached rapidly. Andrew closed his eyes and thought of Gwen. He crashed viciously into the waves.

***

A piercing pain rang through Andrew’s head as he wiped his crusted eyes. Waves of nausea flooded through his abdomen. He belched and felt that familiar acid burn throughout his chest. He opened his eyes to the vertiginous picture of his living room. Was it a dream? The pain never left him. Each night he dreamed of her. Each day he saw her. He was a servant to his poison now – to his medicine. That was just his reality. What could he do about it? Tears streamed from his eyes.

I am done being a victim.

He had kept his solution in the garage. He never thought he would be so certain about it, but today was the day. Sure, he had thought about doing it before, but never had he been so close to her. Never had he felt her touch and smelled her smell so intensely before she was ripped away from him. It felt like she died all over again. Today is the day.

He walked calmly to his garage, his fifth in his hand, and shut the door behind him. He uncovered a dusty 1982 Corvette. He hadn’t driven her in years, but he would sometimes flip the ignition to hear the roar. He sat in the driver’s seat. He thought about how life could have been if he hadn’t fucked up. All he had to do was park valet – just one time. If this was his life now, he didn’t want to live it. He switched on the ignition and took five swigs of his medicine.

***

“Another 40 milligrams of IV diazepam, Theodore, we have to get this guy under control,” a mysterious voice shouted.

“Coming right up,” another voice said in reply.

***

“He’s waking up now,” the mysterious voice said calmly. “I want you all to remember this presentation. Andrew’s case here was a classic example of delirium tremens. You remember when he came in he had all the signs: tremors, tachycardia, hypertension, tongue fasciculations. But also remember the lack of lucidity.”

Andrew awoke to a roomful of physicians standing over him.

“How do you feel, Mr. Williams?” the attending physician asked.

“Where am I?” Andrew replied.

“You came in here five days ago, sir. You had the worst case of alcohol withdrawal I have ever seen, and I’ve been practicing for twenty-three years. Do you remember anything from the past five days?”

“I can’t say I do…”

“You’re lucky you got in when you did. A man named Hank said he came to check on you when you didn’t come to his store that day. He said you were a regular. Hank saved your life.”

“God damn…”

“If you need help with getting off alcohol, we can help you. We have the resources and can set you up with a program. Are you interested?”

“Yes.”

End.