Terms & Conditioning

I’m Terms & Conditioning, also called T&C.

Solitary confinement. A gray cell with the necessities for hygiene and sleep. Porridge engineered for maximum nutrition and minimal taste, served at room temperature by a rotating panel. No windows, but a sunlamp running on a timer. A steady flow of recycled air kept at an unremarkable temperature. A place to sustain a body and starve a mind.

The room doesn’t change. You don’t change, much. Sometimes you wake, and your nails are trimmed, your hair is cut. They must come when you sleep, but you can’t catch them. Drugs in the food. You refuse to eat, savoring the feeling of hunger, the act of resistance. You wake later with a full stomach. Drugs in the air. You resume eating.

The room changes. You wake and find the far wall is different. Rectangular panels, all at right angles to each other. The seams are too small for your fingers. There is no give as you press at them, beat at them, throw yourself fruitlessly against them.