CHAIR BOUND
I must have been drugged. My head was throbbing, and my vision was pretty much gone—or restricted by something blurry—was it my mind or some blindfold, I thought? I slowly regained consciousness, or as much as my drugged state allowed. I tried moving and found that every attempt to shift my body came upon a quick restriction, with what felt like solid ropes wrapped many times over my entire body.
There was a broken mirror nearby and I could make out a very indistinct image of myself: tied to a heavy wooden chair, with a back equal apparently to the top of my head. When I tried to move my head forward it came to a full stop. My neck and head were bound to this chair too.
That scared me—what if that rope around my neck strangled me? I shuddered—literally-- and backed off any wild attempts at escape. Maybe that’s what whoever did this too me intended, because every attempt to escape was met by an equal and restricting tightening of rope somewhere else.
It was like the rope around my wrists, behind my back --but pulled up to right-angles with my chest-- appeared to be linked to rope around my ankles, waist, arms, and worst of all—my neck. If I pulled down I could feel a tightening like a noose around my neck. My fingers couldn’t locate any knots to untie, and the best they could do would be to flail about, frustrated in their tight cocoon of ropes, out of my sight, behind my back.
And I had on an orange turtleneck, I could see it all bunched up at the top of my neck, where it meets my chin. It felt like someone was tickling me every time I turned my head; plus I could feel a number of ropes encircling this sweater, almost up to above my Adam’s apple. Danger, I thought to myself, breathing deeply to try to calm my frantic mind.
I slowed down more and began to explore any possible avenue of escape. The rope around my knees seemed joined in some Rube Goldberg contraption of knots and ropes, to my chest and arms. I felt like a fly stuck in flypaper—all dressed up and nowhere to go.
I tried to scream, but all that came out was: “Hhhhllllllpppppp! Ppppzzzz! Hhhppp mmmaae!” I was gagged completely. There must have been something stuffed in my mouth, because my tongue barely moved. Probably a sponge because every time I bit down on it some pungent liquid would fill my mouth and then slid down my throat. It felt very warm, and my drugged state seemed to become something of a reverie. Damn, was I starting to like this? What’s wrong with me?
I realized also that there must be duct tape wrapped around my mouth. I could see wide gray tape encircling my head in the mirror, who knows how many times. I’d never been tied up like this before in my life! Sure my girlfriend and I played at tie up games, taking turns, but she wouldn’t be part of anything like this. No way. Too extreme.
So who did this? And how long was I going to be all trussed up like this? I was really becoming anxious, and the ropes and tight clothes didn’t help me at all. I felt like I was in some evil person’s cocoon, a prisoner, unable to escape. Frustrated, struggling, breathe heaving, ropes tightening, trying to back off, but continuously trying to break free, my efforts built up and slackened as my energy waned.
This must have gone on for several hours. The light in the room started to appear like sunset, and the room began to get colder. My body started to shake. I was certainly glad to have such warm clothes on now. I remembered putting on a thick long-sleeve Hanes t-shirt this morning, and then the turtleneck, blue jeans and boots. I also remembered walking down the street, feeling really good. Then…this.
I fell asleep a number of times bound and gagged in that heavy chair, only to be awakened with a start, as my head would hang forward, choking me, and again realizing my predicament. The sponge kept releasing that liquid, and after each gulp I felt even more drugged.
I heard voices coming from below me now. The beat of music became louder, and there was laughter now and then. I tried screaming out loud but all that came out were those pathetic ‘mmmppphhh!” Damn! I’m trapped until someone let’s me go. Enforced waiting is an amazing form of torment, I now realize. The ropes keeping me bound felt like a warm embrace, holding me to the chair, keeping me secure. I was someone’s prisoner, and for who knows how long!