Who Moves The Dead Ones?: Chapter 1 "Escort Service"

“Patient Escorts transport conscious, semi-conscious and/or unconscious patients to and from floors and treatment areas in a campus hospital and/or clinic facility; and perform other related duties as required. Incumbents typically transport patients in gurneys and/or wheelchairs; pick up and deliver routine and/or emergency reports, specimens, and patient care equipment; may determine priorities of requests for service; and may transport critically ill comatose or semi-comatose patients under the direct supervision of medical or nursing staff personnel. Incumbents are primarily involved in the transportation of patients.”

If you had told me that I would be moving dead bodies for about ten dollars an hour I would I would have asked you what ancient gods whose names have long since been forgotten that I somehow upset. Before I talk about moving corpses let's go back a little bit. To 1997. Discman still existed. DVD's were a rumor. Grunge was still a thing. You still had to get photos developed. It was a glorious time.

Working at the hospital was my very first job. At that time I was a Unit Support Associate. That is a fancy name for garbage man. Well, I also served patients food. Yeah. Wrap your head around that for a second. I would clean rooms infected with diseases, mop around crying family members feet, take out the trash, make the beds, dust, and then when the food cart arrived serve them food that smelled the same no matter what it was. How do you make eggs, bacon, and toast smell exactly like steak and potatoes? How, Sway?!

Learn To Swim: Chapter 1 "The W"

Sonia looked around the office. It was darker than it needed to be on account of the fake wood paneling that lined the walls. Almost. The were about half an inch too short which allowed her to see the drywall underneath. This was the kind of room you'd see in kidnap footage. Sonia wasn't being kidnapped but she felt as if she were turning herself in for a crime she did not commit. Job interviews did that to her. Sonia did not want a job. In all honesty she was not sure what she wanted but she for sure knew a job was not one of those things.

Sonia could see the back of framed photos on the desk but refused to pick one up. She had no desire to know what Mr. Wilkerson's, her interviewers, family looked like. She figured that they were unattractive based on hearing Mr. Wilkerson's voice over the phone. She could do that. Or at least she told herself that. Ugly voice, ugly person.

Mr. Wilkerson entered the room and reinforced Sonia's belief in her mutant ability. He was what Sonia would describe as a skinny-fat guy. He had a pot belly with thin arms and legs in a pair of tan slacks and a light blue button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a loose tie to make him appear casual. Sonia thought he looked like he was on trial and given the clothes of a drunkard that left them behind. When he sat down the whoosh of his motion sent his smell towards her.

Popobawa: Chapter 1 "Doubt"

Monsters exist, but they are too few in number to be truly dangerous. More dangerous are the common men, the functionaries ready to believe and to act without asking questions. - Primo Levi

For the third day in a row Rich was spending his morning watching the sun rise through the mini blinds of his girlfriend Shay's bedroom window with her two young boys, 8 year old Andre and 4 year old Jo-Jo, in between the the two of them. Rich considered himself a patient man. He was 32 which he considered relatively young, had no children of his own, a small business selling security to neighborhoods that he wished to live in one day, and helped take care of his brother Jai that lived at home with his mother.

Rich could feel his patience slipping.

At 2am, minutes after having sex with his girlfriend of four months Shay, the door suddenly exploded. Jo-Jo was first to enter. Rich had just enough time to cover himself up before Jo-Jo landed on the bed screaming. Moments later Dre ran in and joined his brother. Shay rubbed their heads. Rich retrieved his boxer shorts from the floor and discreetly put them on while the boys were distracted.

“It came again!” Jo-Jo shouted. “I saw his eyes this time!” Last night it was his hands Rich thought. The night before it was his teeth. “His eyes were yellow!”

“No, they were green!” Dre chimed in. This started a debate about color.

“You can't see green eyes in the dark!” Jo-Jo said.

“You can when they glow!” Dre replied.

“Eyes don't glow in the dark...” Rich said which caused Shay to sigh.