Chapter 5: Go to Sleep

The street was busy. Everyone was in a rush but Matthew only stood up in front of a glass building, repeating the breathing technique he learned from his doctors. He tried to look confident, but his thoughts were preventing him from doing so. After a few minutes, he walked to the garden. It looked well-groomed with lupines and hawthorns.

He opened the door and took a step in. He smelled the air, it reminded him of the ocean. Inside of the building was highly impressive. Everything looked like it was made of glass. The ceilings were high and gave the sense of serenity. He saw a few people walking in different directions. They weren’t in a rush. It looked like they were just taking a walk.

Matthew’s eyes finally met someone else’s. A tall, red haired woman was coming to greet him. Her eyes were bright and her smile was sincere. Matthew also smiled, unconsciously. She was wearing a khaki suit with pants. As she came towards him, the sound of her heels echoed through the place.

“Hello. You must be Mr. Reed. Am I wrong?" She raised one brow while keeping her smile on her face.

“I am Matthew Reed,” he said quickly while looking at her gorgeous green eyes. They were captivating.

“It’s so nice to meet you.” She made a move to shake his hand. Matthew couldn’t reject it.

They started walking and took the elevator up 10 floors. Matthew was impressed by how everything was literally made of glass. The tables, small couches and bookshelves in small offices he barely noticed. He wondered if they were even comfortable.

They entered an office. Gina sat behind her table while Matthew sat on one of the glass couches. He was surprised that it was soft and cozy.

“What do you think about our workspace?” Her smile was getting bigger and bigger.

“It’s innovative, I can say,” said Matthew while looking at everything in her office.

“It is, really. As I was informed, you are a very close friend of Robin Sorokin, our customer.” He was caught a bit off guard when she ended their small talk suddenly.

“Oh, yes. He told me a bit about…”

“Us?”

“Yeah, he tried to,” Matthew smiled a bit uneasy.

“Let me guide you through the process. When I’m finished, I’ll take your questions. I’d love to answer them one by one.” She got more formal and Matthew felt a bit better because of it. He didn’t want to be under her influence. Because her smile could convince many people.

“We accept people with lethal diseases to provide them with the cure they need. They have diseases that don’t have a cure yet. That’s when we intervene. We freeze all motor functions in the body and put you in our system. In the future, it can be ten or a thousand years, our workers will wake you up when the cure for your disease is found. Does it sound good?”

“It is. But I still can’t believe it can be done.”

“That’s perfectly normal. If you choose to work with us, you’ll be working with a psychologist to adjust to the situation quickly.”

“So, I’ll go to sleep and I will wake up at an unknown time. When I wake up, the year could be 2500!” Matthew was thinking aloud. He really started to understand the situation. The gamble.

“Exactly.” Her honesty surprised Matthew a bit. She knew that it was crazy, right?

“Even if this is all true, it is still like a dream. I’m still having a hard time accepting that I will die so soon.” Saying it aloud hurt him so much at that moment. He put his head between his hands.

“It would be a tragedy. If you didn’t have a choice.” She paused a little to see the effects of her sentences. “You are diagnosed with encephalitis and you are given a year to live. This is unfortunately the normal part of life. Many people die young before us. But now, we have enough technology to shift time.” She leaned on the table. “You will be cured, Matthew. In the future world,” she smiled again.

“And if I decide to… do this with you, can you give me the exact year?”

“We don’t have the data for the future since it is never predictable. But the developments are always getting faster with better opportunities in time. So, we wouldn’t want to build a false expectation. Your status will be controlled by our computers continuously. When the cure is found for your illness, our doctors will confirm your awakening.”

“What will happen to my body until then?”

“Your body will be kept in our Cytube. You can see one, if you desire. “

“That’s good to know.” He paused for a bit. “Why couldn’t I find anything on the Internet about you? Who knows about this?”

“We only work with specific people who desperately need a cure, an opportunity. But we are afraid our mission might be in danger in the wrong hands. Robin Sorokin is a very reliable gentleman. And thanks to him, you get to have this opportunity.”

“Yeah. And it means that, if I accept it, I have to say goodbye to the people I know.” He immediately thought about Cathy and Oksana. They were the only ones left in his life.

“Yes, Matthew. But haven’t you been saying goodbye since you learned of your disease?”

He couldn’t say anything. She was right. Everyday, he woke up surprised that he was still alive. Everyday, he fought more to regain his health but he knew that he was getting closer to that day. Matthew knew that he had a vital choice to make. And it was between life and death. He left after saying he needed time to digest everything.

He came home without talking to Robin. Matthew could call him later. He had to talk to Cathy and Oksana, immediately.

And so he called Cathy and waited until she arrived, before he could share the news with them. Cathy was listening to him with curiosity at first. She thought that Matthew found a health camp where he would get better or that he wanted to move to the suburbs. But the more she heard, the more she cried. Oksana started before her. The reason wasn’t that Matthew had this crazy yet dangerous opportunity. But it was that they were doing this talk, Matthew was sick, even if he wouldn’t “sleep” for hundreds of years, he would die in a year anyway. But knowing that Matthew had a choice, even if it was the craziest thing they heard, relieved them.

Oksana got up and stood in front of him. “Matthew, we support you no matter what. You know that, right?” She held his face in her hands. She had looked after him for so many years. How could she let go so suddenly?

“I know, my sweet Oksana.” They touched their foreheads together. Matthew felt at home. Oksana stepped back after a while to look at Cathy.

“Cathy?” asked Matthew. She was wiping her tears while hiding her face. When she heard Matthew calling him, she lifted her head quickly.

“I already lost you, right? The second time,” she said with a crackling voice. “But you have an option now, which is better.” She tried to smile but he could see it was hard for her to do so.

They spent the night talking, laughing, crying and thinking. They tried to predict the future. How it would be around 2500. Oksana voted for flying cars.

“I think there will be talking pets!” Cathy said. “I really want to understand my cat!” She was petting Juno. Matthew took her from Cathy and put her on his lap. Juno was a lovely dog, aggressive sometimes, but Matthew was always good with dogs.

***

Until his procedure of faking death, Matthew met Robin a few times. Robin was glad that he could help Matthew. And Matthew couldn’t thank him enough.

How could he prepare himself for the future? Could anyone do that?

Having to do it alone was hard for Matthew. Waking up in a future, in a different world.

But he was determined. That was the only way for him to continue living, which was the most important thing for the human kind. His survival instincts were working in extreme mode.

Cathy helped him make the arrangements. Everything was left to her and Oksana. Matthew only took the money for Cryolife. That day, he didn’t want Cathy or Oksana to come with him. He didn’t want to feel sadder. And after a month, he was at Cryolife for the second time. This time, he wouldn’t be leaving.

There were many tests and x-rays to be done and Matthew was getting tired. Finally, he was told that everything was ready. Taking his clothes off and lying on a glass bed wasn’t that hard for Matthew. But sleeping when you know you won’t wake up in the morning, going into a blackhole felt frightening.

He closed his eyes for the last time. And didn’t open it for a while.