I used to work in a lab. Last year I discovered something that changed my life forever.

I used to work as a lab assistant at a well-known university. My job was to maintain the lab, prepare samples, run tests, that sort of thing. I worked under a supervisor who I was only recently allowed to meet. My supervisor is a man named Dr. Dean. He’s a very tall, older man with greying hair. His eyes are blue and kind. My first impression of him was that he was a lot like Santa Claus - from his height to his huge beard and belly. He put out a warm aura, a very nice man. I had been working for Dr. Dean for about seven months when I received an unusual request from him. I had just returned from a lunch when I ran into him in the hallway. He asked if I had time to take on some overtime. I explained that I had just finished lunch and then said yes, I had plenty of time left. He asked me to meet him in his office. I entered Dr. Dean’s office. It was the first time I had really seen it, so I looked around. He had books lining the walls of his office like a small library. There was a glass window behind his desk that looked into the lab I worked in. I had a few questions for Dr. Dean. Things I wanted to ask him, but I wasn’t sure if I should. I finally got the chance to ask him. I asked him what was in the boxes. Dr. Dean looked confused so I elaborated: “What are those big boxes on the other side of the lab? They’re not labelled. Is it something I would need to know for my job?” Dr. Dean leaned back in his chair. “No, not at all. You don’t need to worry about that.” “I see. Is that what this meeting is about?” “Yes, sure thing. You see, I’ve been running some experiments in the lab. But I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather. I could use an assistant with these experiments.” I was delighted. “Really? I would love the opportunity.” “Yes, really. I think you would be the perfect candidate. You see, these experiments are being run in those boxes you just mentioned.” “Oh, so now I have to worry about them?” “Yes, I suppose. You need to know how to run the experiment, right?” “Exactly.” Dr. Dean stood up and started walking over to the lab. “Follow me, please.” Dr. Dean walked over to the box. It turned out that there was more than one box. 4 total, each one directly next to each other. The boxes were huge. I couldn’t even imagine what could be used in a box that size. Dr. Dean walked across the room and opened the door to one of the boxes. I couldn’t help but stare as I walked over to him. “This is Box 18,” he said. “Now, this is very important. You cannot take your phone with you into the box. I must make that very clear.” “Okay, I understand.” Dr. Dean smiled. “I’m glad you do. Second, you cannot touch anything except for the chair. Do not move anything except for the chair. Do not pick up anything except for the chair. Do not move your arms or legs out of the chair. Also, do not look away from the thing.” “What’s the thing he keeps talking about?”, I thought to myself. “What thing?” “What thing?” I said out loud. “You’ll see it. You will not need to look at anything else once you see it. It is very bright, so please be careful. And don’t take too long. You will start to feel sick” I was getting more and more confused. “What do I do in the box?” “You go in the box, sit in the chair, and sit there for 5 minutes. When the 5 minutes are up, get up and exit the box. Then go back to your business.” This sounded strange to me, but I figured it was part of his experiment. I decided to ask more questions later. “Okay, I understand” Dr. Dean smiled and handed me a paper. “Good, good. Your shifts will be Monday to Friday, 10:00 - 12:00. The first one is tomorrow at 10:00.” I took the paper. “Thanks, I’ll be there.” Dr. Dean smiled. “Great. Oh, and one more thing.” “Yes?” “Don’t talk to anyone about your shifts. I don’t want any rumors going around about this.” “Don’t worry.” I said. He smiled again. “Great. Thank you.” I left the lab. I went home and did my usual things. --- That brings us to the first time I entered the box. It was the next day at 10:00. I showed up to work at 9:00 just to make sure I was on time. I couldn’t stop thinking about the box the entire time. What was the thing? Why was it important that I sit in the chair? Why did I need to be there at 10:00? Why did I need to be there at all? I sat at my desk and went over my usual routine. I was taking inventory of samples when 10:00 rolled around. I stood up, took a deep breath, and walked over to Box 18. I reached out, grabbed the handle on the door, and lifted it up. The door swung down as I entered the box. It was dark inside the box. The lights hadn’t come on yet. I felt around until my eyes adjusted enough to see. I looked around, trying to make sure I wasn’t touching anything. I felt the absence of a floor, and my stomach lurched. I tried to step forward, but my feet met a slight resistance. I pushed my arms out and, through some sort of magic, was able to float in the air until I bumped into the chair. The chair was made of what looked like thick plastic. It was shaped like a normal chair, but it had no legs. I guessed it was the same material the floor was made of that kept it floating in the air. The chair was hovering next to a small table. On the table there was a small digital counter. It read 00:00. I hopped in the chair, making sure I didn’t touch the table. As soon as I sat down the counter started. I looked over to the left to make sure I wasn’t touching anything. I looked to the right again to make sure I wasn’t touching anything. I was about to look back at the counter when I saw the thing. A picture of a girl. It was across from me in the chair, maybe a few feet away. She looked like she was 16, maybe a little older. I saw her looking at me, then she smiled. “Hi.” she said. She was beautiful. I was taken a back by her question. It took me a second to answer. “Hi.” “Thanks for coming. Do you like my picture?” “Yes, it’s very nice.” “Did you bring a snack?” I was confused. “A snack?” “Yes, did you bring something to eat?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, its fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring my dog?” “Your dog?” “Yes, did you bring my dog?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, its fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring a snack?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, it’s fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring my dog?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, it’s fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring a snack?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s ok-” “Wait, how long have we been talking?” “Not very long.” “Are you sure? I feel like we’ve been talking for a couple of minutes.” “Just a bit.” I looked down at the counter. 00:03. Only 3 minutes had passed. I looked back at the girl. “I feel sick.” I said. “Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, its fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring a snack?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, it’s fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring my dog?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s okay. Did I scare you? You look scared.” “No, its fine. You’re very nice.” “Thank you. Did you bring a snack?” “I didn’t know I had to.” “Oh, that’s ok-” “Wait, how long have

I used to work in a lab. Last year I discovered something that changed my life forever.

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