Peripheral vision is a tricky thing. The high rod density found at the edges of the human iris makes it such that looking at something indirectly in low light can render a clearer image than looking at it head on.
“Hi, excuse me. I’m so sorry to bother you, but, um, do you work here?”
“Yes ma’am. How can I help you today?”
“It’s just... Do you know where we are?”
“Yes, ma’am, this is Lucy’s convenience store.”
“What?”
“Lucy's convenience store. The one just off Main Street. You know: ‘Lucy's neighborhood convenience for the convenience of her neighbors.’ The motto is a little circular, I know. Are you... feeling alright, ma’am?"
“Yeah.. Yes, that sounds familiar. Sorry, I’m just so dizzy. I’m fine, probably just dehydrated."
“Okay, that’s a good start. Let's get you some water. Would you like to sit down? My mother always used to get these dizzy spells.
“No. No, I’m alright thank you. I think...I think that I actually have to go.”
“Oh, where are you going?”
“I was on my way there before... before...?"
“Before?”
The human eye has three cones, whereas most mammals have two. This allows them to see red, blue, and green light. More importantly, it allows them to see the entire spectrum in between. They pity animals that cannot interpret the world as they do. They do not wonder if anything pities them.
“Before I was here. I don’t have time for this. I need to go."
“Okay... um, do you remember how you got here, ma’am?”
“Yes. I think... I think that I was walking. No, I was running.”
“Running? Like for exercise?”
“No... from something. It was chasing me? Yes. I’m sure of it. Something was chasing me — I have to go before it catches up. I know it sounds crazy, but I’m not safe here.”
“Hey, hey, It’s okay. I believe you, Mrs. Anton, but you're clearly in no state to keep running. Let me call an ambulance. They’ll take you to the hospital, and the police will meet you there. They can keep you safe."
“No! I don’t know who they are... I can’t stay here! It will find me."
“The ambulance is already on its way. My brother, Luke, works there, and he’ll take care of you personally. It will drive you faster than you can run in this condition. Just take a deep breath. Here, drink this."
“When did you call them?"
“Just now. You heard me on the phone with them. Tell me more about this thing that was chasing you."
“I don’t... remember."
“Do you remember where you were running?"
“I was.. In a mall. Old. From the 60’s. Abandoned. The linoleum curled up from the floors, reaching out for me. The paint peeled off the walls like a reptile's dead skin and exposed mildew and mold that wriggled with parasitic life underneath."
“Mold! Okay, now we're getting somewhere. Do you remember if you touched it?”
“I had to know what was underneath. I didn’t want to, but there was no other option. Every hallway I took led me back to it. It wanted me to see it and know that I would never understand. Not to break me but to twist me. Twist me like that which writhed in viscus liquid uninhibited by the living blanket that covered it."
“...”
“I have to leave."
“Wait.”
“No! It's all coming back to me now. It still wants me. I have to get out!"
“Do you know where you are going, ma’am?"
“I don’t... I can’t... It’s really none of your business!"
“Sorry! I didn’t mean to pry; I just wanted to make sure you're okay. My sister works at a hospital, and you could say she’s gotten in my head a little bit with all of the medical talk. I’d hate for you to be going through something and not be able to help you because I wasn’t aware enough."
“Yes, yes, of course. I’m sorry for snapping at you; I don’t know what came over me."
“It’s alright, ma’am. Do you remember where you were?
“I was... at the optometrist.”
“Yes, that’s right. You’re at the optometrist.”
“What?”
Most of what the average person sees are educated guesses made by the brain to fill in the space between key objects the eyes focus on. Some things are easier to focus on than others. The things that go unnoticed are often unfamiliar. It’s just more convenient to ignore them.
“You passed out there for a second, but I’m glad you are aware of your surroundings.”
"No, I’m not...”
“It happens sometimes with the flashing lights; nothing to be concerned about.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m Luz... your optometrist? We’ve been working together for years to mitigate your excessive phosphenes. Does that sound familiar?”
Phosphenes are fuzzy splotches of lights and colors that humans see after they rub their eyes too long. Sometimes seeing things is a sign of a more serious condition. Other times it’s just light leaking in from the outside world, and the only thing that can be done about that is to open your eyes.
“Yes... I think so.”
“Wonderful! You’ll be pleased to know that all of the paperwork has gone through, and you’ve been scheduled for the surgery.”
“Surgery?”
“Yes, the experimental surgery! This really will put you at the forefront of modern biological symbiotic medicine.”
“Wait... no.
“It’s okay to be nervous. I will be by your side the entire time.”
“No... no, no, no, wh- why...?
“There is no need to cry. We can’t have you getting the surface wet.”
The human eye cannot rupture like a balloon. There is very little fluid inside of it. It is less like a fishbowl to swim in than a terrarium to tunnel through. That is not to say that puncturing the eye would not be an indescribable pain. There are millions of nerve fibers that weave their way through the nervous tissue. It is...unquantifiable.
“Open your eyes for me.”
“No.”
“Look at us.”
“No!”
The human eye is made to see things— Did you really think you had outrun something that had no body?
“Wait. I know you. All of you.”
Do you remember what was chasing you now, Lucile Anton?