[Bluejay]

After a sleepless night, Kimo paced once more along the tiny path. "She's not coming," he thought. Yesterday's fear was today's reality. He tried the same thought process as before, but he simply could not accept that they would never see each other again. He would have to somehow find her. Perhaps at her room...

The figure stood on the path, looking at him. Kimo's heart leapt, and he moved forward, closer. With enthusiasm, he pulled off his hood. "I'm here!" he cried.

The figure threw up its hands and cried out in a male voice before fleeing down the trail.

Disappointment coursed through him. Then he froze in shock at the realization that he had just recklessly exposed himself to a stranger. And there were boxes with blue emergency buttons all over the area...

He hurried back to the path. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself enough to walk along with the demeanor of the innocent. The sudden sound of sirens erupted ahead of him, and his heartbeat doubled. Within a minute, the presumed victim raced past, leading a group with blue gowns. They turned and headed along the trail. Kimo picked up his pace, looking for others to blend in with. He spent the rest of the recreation period trying to behave like the others around him.

Afterwards, safely back in his room, he considered his options. She was in her room now. He walked to the wall and pressed his hand against it, foolishly trying to touch her. "Maybe if she touches her wall, too..."

He paced around and around his tiny room, almost frantic. The room stifled him - he had to get out, to find her. He didn't care about anything else any more.

Covered once more, he gripped the door handle; it wouldn't budge. He had never tried to open it before except at recreation time. They were locked in? He tugged at the handle, up and down, vainly trying to do something to make the door open.

With a strong chime, a rep appeared on a screen. "Recreation period is over," it announced. "Do you require assistance?"

Perhaps this was his way out. "I... I'm not feeling well. I think I need some help."

"Please remain still," the voice commanded. Kimo's bracelet lit up, the light spinning around and around as it scanned him. When the bracelet darkened again, the voice said, "Erratic heart rate. Increased body temperature. Do you require assistance getting to the meds?"

"No," Kimo said, trying to contain his excitement. "I can make it."

"Proceed," the voice said.

He tried the door, and it opened, letting him out onto the empty hallway. She was two floors down, at the end of the hallway. He raced down, cautiously looking along her corridor as he opened the stairway door. There was no one to see him, no one to question him.

Her door was closed. It was the only thing now standing between them. He didn't know what to do. How could he get her attention? With dismay, he realized she wouldn't be able to open the door. Frustration gripped him as he stood there, wishing he could just break it down and find her.

The door opening brought him back from his thoughts. She was there!

"I..." he began. Then he staggered back, stifling a scream at the being before him. It was black - black hood, black gown. He had heard rumors of Death before, of that which eventually came and took everyone, but he had never actually seen it before. It stared at him.

Kimo looked past it, into the room. Two more figures in black were there. They took steps toward him. One raised its arm, a pale bony finger pointing at him. He saw the hand was covered in blood.

Kimo stumbled backward. "I... I'm not feeling..." Then the corridor spun around him, and he fell into darkness.

*****

His bracelet chimed, soft and deep, gently vibrating against his wrist. Kimo sat up immediately in the darkness. Registering his movement, the lights came up. He was back in his room, as far as he could tell. What happened?

As he sat there, disoriented, he heard Shona's ring. Her screen flashed the incoming connection. He grabbed the wand and answered the call. Her rep appeared, bearing a concerned look.

"Kimo!" she said. "Are you ok?"

"What do you mean?" he asked warily.

"I heard you weren't feeling well and passed out in the hallway on the way to the meds."

"Oh," he said. "Yeah." Relief passed through him - had he really gotten away with it? Perhaps nobody knew the truth. Then the memories came back to him. Her room... Death... What happened?

At the thought of her, he slid open the drawer and took out her hood. He held it to his face and breathed in. She was there, but he realized the scent was fading.

"What's been going on over there?" Shona asked.

He shook his head. "What do you mean?"

"These news stories have been coming out, all in your community. First, there was the report of someone exposing himself to people in the woods. Now, there's this..."

The screen next to her activated, and the report appeared, already in progress.

"They found this woman dead in her room," Shona said. "She was obviously out of her head."

Kimo felt pain behind his eyes. He sensed the worst. "What do you mean?"

"Well, there were rumors that she was breaking multiple laws. She was touching people."

Head swimming, Kimo reached up and switched off the automatic response of his rep; he manually selected a thoughtful posture.

"What was that?" Shona said.

"What do you mean?" he said.

"You looked funny for a moment."

"I don't know," he lied.

She shrugged. "Well, anyway, it's even worse - they say she may have been having sexual intercourse. And there are some rumors that she had conceived and was with child."

Kimo felt the denial rise. "She wasn't like that," he thought. "She wasn't like that at all."

"Which," Shona said, "makes her death even more serious. A double crime, as it were. I hope they don't try to save her eggs."

"Those are just rumors," Kimo said sharply.

"Why would they report them, if they didn't have some truth?" Shona looked at him reproachfully for a moment and then continued. "Can you imagine that, conceiving a child? Not only a reproductive crime, but child endangerment. Carrying it around inside her like that, outside the safety of a lab..."

Kimo brought the hood to his face and stroked his cheek. It was the only connection to her that he had left, and it was slipping away.

The video showed a room. Her room. The announcer was relating again what Shona had reported.

Bringing his hands together, he entwined the fingers, imagining it was her hand. It didn't work. How could it be so different? His hand gently slid along his arm. He caressed his face, ran his hand across his chest. It wasn't the same. It would never be the same. The hole...

The camera focused on her wall screens. The screens were covered with strips of white paper, blocking out the empty blackness.

"Look at that!" Shona exclaimed. "How anti-social..."

The field of white was imperfect only in the center.

"There can be no doubt about what went on here," the announcer stated, as the camera began zooming in. As the imperfection grew larger, Kimo saw it was writing. Whatever she had used to write, the lettering had smeared and run, eventually drying black. The camera finished its zoom - the words were clear:

"Someone please touch me."

Kimo wanted to. He wanted to reach out and touch her. Deep inside, he felt the plea himself now. He heard her voice.

I've spread my disease to you.

Then he heard the echoes, ingrained in his very being.

Touch leads to sickness and death.

"She must have been sick," Shona said. "How could someone be so depraved?"

Kimo's head felt about to burst. His eyes burned; there was moisture on his cheeks. "Shut up," he said quietly.

"What?" she asked, her rep's eyes wide.

"Just shut up."

She huffed, but the tone in his voice seemed to register. "Kimo, what's wrong with you?"

He pulled out the palette and scanned the small set of reactions. His pointer hovered over first this and then that, seeking but not finding. Finally, he dropped the wand onto the desk.

He wanted his rep to sob uncontrollably, with large, oversized tears rolling down its face. He wanted to vent his sudden rage and despair and sorrow and anguish. He wanted Shona to see his feelings. More than ever before, he needed her to see what was going on inside him. More than anything, he wanted to show her how he felt.

He wanted to show her, but he didn't know how.

(END)

[angel]

like i said said at end of part three this is just so like wow. i loved this its very breathtaking n compelling i was hanging on every word. you will get brilliant comments on this i bet. excellent one jna

[Bluejay]

Originally Posted by arsenalelite

like i said said at end of part three this is just so like wow. i loved this its very breathtaking n compelling i was hanging on every word. you will get brilliant comments on this i bet. excellent one jna

Wow, thanks! I appreciate the kind words. There have been a few stories that really got to me as I wrote them. This is one of them.

Thanks for reading along. You and Peppy kept me going.

[angel]

mostly i read poetry as im a poet this one the caught my attention. keep writing jna ill keep a look 4 more pieces from you. nice 1 mate

[Peppy]

I don't know what to really say. All of the parts were excellent. It was well written, the story focused on one theing which the title annouces, but I can't help like I want to read some more. Ahhhh...it's that "finished" ending.

[Bluejay]

There are definitely a lot of open ideas about this "world". I hope this will only be the first of a number of stories set there...

[xtremelady]

I can’t believe I never commented first time I read this story. Such a poignant story, so in tune with human nature and our needs. Perfectly portrayed N1, and something which could be developed further if you wished.

[Bluejay]

Thanks. Yes I had plans for making this a small part of a larger story. Unfortunately, I have forgotten some of it. lol Maybe it will come back to me.

[Wesley]

Astonishing.

[Bluejay]

Concise and to the point. Thank you.

(Though I'm left to wonder... "Astonishing concept and story execution." or "Astonishing someone would waste space with this." Sorry, kidding and rambling... I appreciate the kind thought.)

[RENA HANDS]

I believe you concluded the story most brilliantly. You don’t need to add anything more.

Everything is so self explanatory. But if you decide to do another installment/chapter/story then I might I suggest that you keep the title but say whatever the next event of the action will be. You have labeled ‘The Human Touch,’ what comes after that? Individual Thought?

(Still a 5 out of 5!)

One more thing? How did he know where the woman lived? Did he follow her home? Was she wearing some apparel that identified her location within the community? I might have missed that explanation so that is why I ask.

[Alex]

The last installment, I do indeed want more. It was such a good plotline and point. I hope you write more on this idea.

[A.V.H]

Eh...I really didn't expect her to die. But after reading the ending, I had a sudden strange urge to touch something, something living and near me at the moment - my hamster!

[Bluejay]

Thanks all for the comments. Perhaps I will explore this more some day.

[Ambrose]

Ok, things I liked: the portrayal of this totalitarian society, how regular people dress in white robes, how cops dress in blue robes, and how the "cleaners" dress in black. I like the third part especially because it captures what you were trying to say in the story, that touch is what fulfills us and without we are lost. It was exciting how Kimo risked everything to be with this other woman, the reader knowing full well how much trouble he is going to be in if he's caught. Oh, and the way the bracelets acted as alarms was cool, but I wonder why Kimo's bracelet didn't change when he touched the woman (or hers when she touched him)?

I don't like the ending. I wanted Kimo to really rebel against the system, to start a ruckus. After the girl dies, I think he should do something to show his dismay. I don't think Kimo's the violent type, so this would probably be nothing more than passing on the woman's message, meeting with other people in the woods, letting them know that touch is alright. Right now the story ends on a slope, on falling action, and we don't ever get to see where that action takes us. What Kimo says to Shona at the end makes sense, but we already know its coming so its not that poignant in my mind.

What is poignant however is part 3. I think you did a great job conveying Kimo's and the woman's sense of fear and curiosity and longing. I also liked how the woman felt immediately guilty afterward, conflicted by her emotions to behave and to experience.

Hope you decide to expand on this universe.