What's on your eye-

[WP] You're studying your face in the mirror, you glance over to your left eye, studying its intricate curves when you notice just below your iris is a neatly inscribed serial number.

The sun seeped through the windows, its rays flashing against the children who still lay sound asleep. A few would groan in irritation, only to pull their blankets higher over themselves. Who would blame them for doing so. The cool crisp air that came with the spring was definitely enough a reason to stay in bed.

But of course, when the rays of light became too persistent, some would definitely be forced awake, especially when its radiance grows too intense. What else could be done except to sit awake and just prepare for the day. That was the case of Charlie who was the first to wake. Apparently, being given the bed closest to the window was only enjoyable in evenings but in the mornings, it was a spot he well avoided. The spot was oftentimes too bright and too hot.

Charlie sat up from bed. A groan of defeat escaping him as he begrudgingly forced himself to a stand so he could go about his usual morning routine. At 15, he was one of the busiest kids in the orphanage. As a top student who had already advanced to college, he was the most cherished of their caretakers. And as much as he enjoyed making his caretakers proud, as well as being able to teach his younger siblings, it was still no easy task to teach, study and do chores needed to be done.

The stress of having to maintain his scholarship and his relationship with the people around him was finally taking a toll on him.

As he reached the bathroom, he gazed at his reflection in the mirror. Messy hair, pale and a very unhealthy complexion. And it seemed that he had grown a bit thinner too. But what would be the most noticeable feature would be his eye bags. Ah yes, his heavily darkened eye bags that would probably be the first thing anyone would notice about him.

He leaned in closer to inspect himself more. He was sure he needed a shave but as he was reaching for the razor, he noticed something on the corner of his eye. Literally it was something on his eye- something he had never noticed before.

He pushed down the skin that covered his eye and there he saw something small. He had to go back to the room and get his magnifying lens. When he finally saw the series of numbers and letters, his eyes widened with shock.

How did anything manage to get into his eye? He had tried rubbing with his palms, rinsing with running water but every time he would check again, it was still there. Panic overruled him but he needed to act as if everything was perfectly normal when the other kids had started getting out of bed one by one.

He couldn’t dare ask to inspect the rest of their eyes so he had decided to pack up so he could head to his classes instead. On his walk, he glanced at the people that would pass him by. He was curious. Oh how Charlie wanted to ask but that could wait to when he arrived in his class.

In times like these, he could only trust one person. And that person was Andy, his best friend. Bruno. He was the only college student who had been willing to hang out with him despite his age and background. He knew that if it came to the weird things, Bruno would understand.

The moment he arrived, the familiar sight of his friend was the first thing that greeted him. And as soon as he arrived, Charlie immediately grabbed Bruno by the arm and dragged him to the laboratory’s bathroom. It was the most isolated place he could think of and it was definitely a place that nobody would ever expect them to hide.

“I have something to tell you” Charlie peeked out of the cubicle before he locked it shut “And I think you’ll find this weird too” He handed Bruno his magnifying lens then pulled on his lower eye lid a bit. “There’s something written on my eye.”

With a doubtful expression, Bruno took the lens and directed It towards Charlie’s eye and the expression on his face was something that even Charlie hadn’t seen before

“Check mine too- There’s something like 2084793US on your eye” He immediately handed Charlie back the lens and proceeded to pull down his lower eye lid.

Charlie leaned close and directed the lens to Bruno’s eye “Yours is… 1986483US” They were both dumbfounded with their newfound discovery. It was unusual and if they both had it, then it might have been obvious that everyone had it. “We need to see if our families have this too”

They nodded in agreement but Bruno had decided to seat himself on the covered toilet “What do you think these could mean. Our numbers are too randomized for it to be a sequence… unless… they were arranged according to birth?”

“Oh! That could be it! But… how do we prove that…”

“there… should be a database of sorts… in hospitals… but how would we access that… “

With a light chuckle, Bruno smacked Charlie lightly by the arm “You should remember that we are med students. Those words were the exact reason for both their wide grins “The many perks of taking up medicine”

Charlie nodded in agreement “But our residency doesn’t start until a few months from now. It’ll be a long wait until then. Do you think we can manage that and do research for a while? I’m kind of nervous about this. It feels like we’re secret agents or something right now”

“Research is the thing you’re best at. I’m sure that by the time we get to our residency period, we can get enough info until then. So are we doing this?” Bruno raised his clenched fist high enough for Charlie to see. And with a cheeky grin, Charlie collided his fist with Bruno’s for a fist bump.

So I got way too busy with work since it's every day now so I haven't had the time to write here much. Gonna try to make time for R.E.D tomorrow or finish this tomorrow since it really caught my attention. Anyways, goodnight from this side of the world