Eric Philpot is tired of being tired with his never-ending insomnia. One day, out of desperation, he resorts to a very dangerous yet successful treatment of his own. Now he's sleeping like a baby. And everything would be perfect except that now Eric can't tell the difference between when he's awake or when he's asleep. Written with a unique writing style and an imaginative plotline, Dormant will leave you asking yourself if you're really even alive. Includes an alternate ending with an introduction from the author.
Excerpt:
His breathing was now beginning to be more frequently unstable. What used to be a strong rhythmic and capable sound was quickly disposing into a harsh huff and puff rollercoaster.
He so wished this inevitable annoyance didn't have to occur so abruptly, or at all for that matter.
Can't I just be done with this with no pain? Foolish question. It had to be done no matter what.
He knew he would have to slow down very soon.
His running was both an obsession and a necessity.
He would stretch, breathe deeply a few times, psych his mind into the upcoming harshness he was about to face, and then dash off like the wind and always keep the pace until he absolutely couldn't endure the pain anymore.
Doing this everyday for the past year no matter what condition his body or mind was in brought his current running credentials to professional athlete status.
Because his pace was so intense, he could not last a marathon. Those kinds of runners include a certain pace that, although fast, they cannot give their all from beginning to end.
Not like Eric Philpot.
And it wasn't about winning anything. It wasn't about being an athlete. And it definitely wasn't for his own health. Well maybe… partly.
A doctor Eric met once on a bus specifically told him to either A: "Slow it down there, hot shot." Or B: "Why don't you run your little heart out on one day and then jog the next?" And this was because: "You're not doing your body any justice. Because your eating habits are so up and down, you're running off muscle tissue while you're going warp nine. Your heart is in shock when it goes from zero miles per hour and then accelerates to a hundred. You need to slow down, take a walk, shoot – ever thought of taking the day off? What are you trying to train for anyway?"
It wasn't about training for anything either. What was it about?
An obsession is an interesting subject because those of any sort go beyond a simple passion for something. Some of it cannot be explained even by the most plagued OCD subjugates. Sometimes things just aren't meant to make sense. No need to obsess on thinking about why that is.
He had to run.
