THE SUBWAY THEORY

The Subway Theory

The full moon illuminates the night. The adrenaline hits hard with the thrill of driving at high speed. Jake’s body is in euphoria—completely intoxicated—on his cocaine and booze. His car zips past other cars, not caring about being close by centimeters.

Jake looks down at the cup holder, carrying a bag of Colombian dust. He notices the street is clear for him to take a quick hit. He goes for it, then another, because why not? Jake looks up, his face fully lit by an approaching car. He tries to swerve to the side—tires squealing—glass breaking. The thump of a body smacking Asphalt.

His eyes blink, blink… black.

Jake wakes to a rumbling vibration. His head throbs and pulses. He looks around confused and realizes that he is on a New York City D train. Jake gets up, disoriented.

How did I get here?

He searches his pockets for a metro card. All empty.

He notices five other passengers in the car. The passengers seemed to look normal, as if nothing seemed off. Jake makes his way through the car.

He studies them, looking for anything unusual. A stocky man who is unshaven, dressed casually in jeans and a jacket, gulping a whiskey bottle. A woman who seems to be in her thirties—nervous—sits in front of the drunken man. At another seat, a young boy plays with his G.I. Joe action figures with no parents by his side. A woman is on her cellphone with a boy beside her. An older man who looks to be in his late fifties. Good-looking, well-groomed, with a short maintained haircut and beard, dressed in an all-white suit. The man is reading a bible.

Jake scouts the car. He makes his way to the front end, trying to open the door. It's locked. He tries the other back-end, locked too. The passengers stare at Jake like he's crazy. Jake spots a suitcase sitting under an empty seat.

“Does this belong to anyone?” He shouts.

Everyone shakes their heads. Jake, not wasting any time, opens it. He notices a tape recorder inside. He plays it—shocked—at the voice on the recording.

It's my voice. What the hell?

“Yea, hello, It's me, well, us. Wondering how this is possible? Mind you, I was thinking the same thing. You are riding in the second car and all the doors are locked. When the train reaches 20 Avenue and 86th st, it will accelerate to its max speed. The train won't stop until you can reach the first car. The last stop is Coney Island-Stillwell Av; The train will derail from an improperly stored rail on that track. You have to make it in time to hit the brakes before it gets there. I would think before you act, if you don't, everyone on the train will die.” The recording ends.

The passengers heard the recording, and Jake could see the panic in their faces. The drunkard man grunts, as he notices the train passing his stop. Jake and the group could see people on the 42 ST Bryant Park platform; confused about the train not stopping. Jake runs to the end of the car, shouting at the other passengers in the third car. The passengers in the car are oblivious to Jake yelling and banging at the door.

“Hey! Hey! Can somebody hear me? What the—,” Jake yells.

It's like they can't see me

The others do the same; they start yelling, trying to get the other people's attention. They gave up. They all meet each other in the middle of the car. Jake joins them.

“I'm Jake. We gotta find a way off this train”

The mother with her child introduces herself, “I'm Valerie and this is my son, Noah.”

The nervous woman mutters her name, “Jul—, I'm Julie.”

The boy with the action figures, “I'm Tommy, Mister!”

The well-groomed older man closes his bible, “I am Emmanuel, but you can call me Emm, how can I help? Son.”

Jake notices the drunken man distant; with a face of disdain.

“And you? Jake asks.

The drunken man sneers. “You can call me Rob, pretty boy,”

“Nice to meet you all,” Jake says.

“Yeah, whatever!” Rob replies.

Jake takes a moment to think. His face full of hope, he scurries to an emergency brake and opens the cover. The alarm is triggered. Jake notices gas is released in the other cars. The passengers scramble, gasping for air, choking to death. They all fell dead.

They thought.

Jake’s eyes couldn't believe it; he watched as the passengers rose off the floor—twitching and growling—the gas infected them. Jake and the others watch the undead attack each other—violently banging at windows and doors—wanting to get out.

Rob, enraged, struts around with his bottle.

“What the hell did you do!” Rob yells.

The group watches him swallow the rest of his bottle.

Jake knows his type; a drunk who reminds him of his dad. The two get into a heated exchange. Emm barges in between them.

“Look, there's no time for fighting. We need to figure a way out of this,” Emm says. “Now get your acts together.”

Valerie keeps Noah close. “He's right. We need to, especially for them,” Valerie says, emphasizing the boys.

“Do any of you remember getting on this train?” Jake asks.

Everyone's answer is the same; the car was empty, with Jake already sleeping in the back. They all boarded the train from Fordham Rd station.

Jake finds it odd that the last thing he remembers is driving late at night through Fordham Rd. He was coming back from a friend's birthday party with his wife and son. Jake panics.

Where are they? Did something happen to them?

The anxiety amplifies the vertigo he is feeling. The train feels like it's spinning around Jake. The people on the train looked warped. He begins to remember everything, driving high and drunk with his wife and son in the car. He recalls taking a hit of cocaine and then swerving out of the way of an approaching car.

“I think I killed my wife and son,” Jake says, sobbing.

Emm and Valerie walk over to Jake, attempting to comfort him.

“I'm sure your wife and son are ok. you don't know if they're dead. It reminds me of a quote I read, All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become,” Valerie says.

“Who said that?” Jake asks.

“Buddha,” Valerie replies.

Jake smirks. “Makes sense,” he says.

“What are their names? If you don't mind me asking,” Emm says.

Jake pauses, confused for a moment, then—

“I can't remember. I can't remember my wife and son's names.” Jake says.

Tommy sits next to Jake and hands him his G.I. Joe figure.

“When I’m afraid, mister, I would think to myself, what would a G.I. Joe do in this predicament,'' Tommy says.

Jake smiles, “You know, Kid, I grew up on G.I. Joe. They kept me out of trouble. You're right, a hero never stays down.”

Rob scoffs. “Probably setting us up; part of some sick plan. Hell, you probably did kill your wife and kid,” Rob says.

Jake is annoyed by Rob’s accusations.

“Shut up! Rob, you are the coward who hides behind the bottle. You remind me of my pops. An alcoholic piece of shit, who beat my mom to death,” Jake says.

Jake and Rob stare at each other, their revealing distaste for one another.

Rob, flush red with rage, tackles Jake to the floor. The two men scuffled, crashing back and forth throughout the car.

Emm, Valerie, and Julie attempt to break them up. Julie grabs Rob by the shoulder.

“Honey, please, stop!” Julie yells.

“Woman, when it comes to men, You mind your business!” Rob yells at Julie.

Rob shoves Julie off of him. She falls back, hitting her head into a pole, breaking her neck. Emm struggles to break them up. Valerie notices Julie is unresponsive. She goes to check on her. Valerie screams, realizing, a pool of blood flowing from under Julie’s head. The men stopped fighting. Julie is gone. Rob runs to Julie, grabbing her into his arms. He sobs aggressively over her body.

"You're the reason why my wife is dead. You killed her, Jake!" Rob yells.

Rob lays her body down, then digs into his jacket, and pulls out a gun. He starts waving it around to keep them at a distance. Rob stares at Jake.

Emm and Jake attempt to neutralize the situation.

“Come now, no one else needs to get hurt. We can all sort this out,” Emm says.

“He has a point. I know you don't like me but think whoever is responsible, wins,” Jake says. He inches closer, hoping to disarm Rob.

"You killed her! You killed your mom…bye, Son," Rob yells. He stuffs the barrel in his mouth.

Boom.

The inside of his head painting crimson splatters over the door behind him. Rob falls back on a seat; his eyes blankly staring back at Jake.

Son?

The trauma comes back, flashes of his ex-cop, an alcoholic dad; who beat his mother to death, then used his gun to blow his brains out. Jake slumps back into a seat opposite Rob. The disbelief hits him hard of reliving that memory.

“Don't listen to him. He was a tormented drunk,” Valerie says.

Emm takes a seat next to Jake. "Son, the Lord gives us pain and loss, so that we can have the will to live. You have a wife and son—show them better—be the father you deserved," Emm says.

“You’re right. I'm letting him get to me,” Jake replies.

Jake, Emm, and Valerie drag the bodies to the back of the car. The zombified people in the other car behind; glue themselves to the door's window, more rabid to the scent of blood. Jake grabs the gun Rob used—a Glock 19—which in fact is an NYC police-issued pistol. Jake searches Rob's pockets. He pulls out an extra clip and an NYPD Detective’s badge.

“What—,” Jake says. He paces back and forth, confused. “He was a cop.”

Not only that, this guy was a drunk, but a cop, too.

Jake cannot believe the similarities between Rob and his dad.

Valerie snatches the badge from Jake. “We are screwed, we are so screwed!” Valerie yells. She stares at the badge, shaking uncontrollably.

Emm glances at the badge. “No dear, the cause of death looks self-inflicted, plus our situation isn't normal,” Emm emphasizes, pointing towards the zombies.

“It's true, the ones responsible put us here,” Jake says.

Jake ejects the clip and checks the ammo, almost a full clip minus Rob. He reinserts the clip.

“We're gonna need this to get to the first car,” Jake says.

Tommy walks over to Jake. "Mister? The people in those cars look like the night of the creeps. If you get what I'm saying," Tommy jokes.

Jake chuckles. "Wow, The Night of the Creeps, that's before your time, kid. We're in 2022, and you know about 80s classics. How old are you, kid?" Jake inquires.

Tommy smirks, "I'm 15, now. I watched it when I was 10. Dad and mom were always fighting, so I watched movies to get away,” Tommy explains.

Jake nudges Tommy's arm with his elbow, "I get it, I know the feeling"

Tommy surges to the side doors of the car. “What if I can squeeze through the doors? You give me a boost up, I can reach the front door from the outside,” Tommy says.

Jake hesitates, not wanting to risk it. “No, kid, it's too risky. It's better if I try,” Jake says.

Tommy shakes his head in disapproval. “Mister, I can climb fast enough before the train hits the next tunnel. Please, It's my chance to be a G.I Joe,” Tommy says, saluting.

Jake turns to Emm and Valerie for answers. “What do you think?” He asks.

“He's right, son, he can get to it faster than us,” Emm says.

“It's worth a shot. Plus, we're running out of options, look.” Valerie says.

Valerie points at the train now passing 79 St; that makes it three stops away from the train running at a dangerous speed.

Jake meets Tommy at the side door. “Ok kid, when we get to 18 Ave and 85th St platform. Emm and I will force the doors open long enough. Use me to give yourself a boost.” Jake explains.

“He never gives up, he’ll stay till the fights won—G.I. Joe will dare!” Tommy sings the G.I. Joe theme.

Jake chuckles, reminiscing of the theme song that helped him through his abusive childhood. “Yo Joe!” Jake shouts.

“I got this, mister. You're gonna make Ashley and Jonah proud,” Tommy says.

“Thanks, kid, that means a lot,” Jake says. He winces from a pounding pain growing in his head.

Wait, how did he know their names—

“Your nose is bleeding, son,” Emm warns.

Jake wipes his nose clean. “I lost my train of thought. Come on, let's get this over with” Jake says.

Jake and Emm force-open the side doors. Tommy hops on Jake’s back, then clambers to the top of the train. Valerie and Noah watch nervously for Tommy to get to the front door. Their faces blushed with hope. Tommy's feet are visible, hanging, making their way down the other side. He slides open the door.

“It worked Jake!” Tommy shouts.

Jake takes a step toward Tommy. He stops short, and his legs freeze. The front car's back door opens. The group turns pale at the sight of the infected—unleashed—right behind Tommy. Several hands clasp onto the boy, engulfing him in the horde of zombies.

They did not expect that opening the front door—from the outside—would trigger all the doors to open. Jake makes the tough decision to close the door behind the boy. There's nothing he can do. Tommy plops his bloody hand onto the window. Jake droops down to the floor, bawling with guilt as he holds the door shut. The wails of the young boy being torn apart echo through the subway tunnel. Valerie and Noah, back themselves closer to the end of the car, away from the horror.

Noah cautiously takes a step back, followed by another, hiding behind his mother from the horde. The back door behind Valerie and Noah slides open. Noah turns around to see the swarm dragging the bodies of Rob and Julie. An infected person is alerted when Noah mutters—

“M-mom”

The Zombie yanks Noah into the horde. Valerie reacts with her mother's instinct, diving into the crowd of zombies. Her only attempt to save Noah falls short. The horde drags Valerie and Noah into the other car. Jake and Emm are horrified, as the infected savagely rips apart the mother and boy, devouring them to the bone.

Emm wrestles the infected—shoving them back—not letting them enter. He closes the back door, holding it shut as the horde viciously attempts to get in.

Jake’s arms go numb from holding the door shut. He takes a deep breath. Jake lets go of the door, praying it doesn't open. He exhales in relief, the door latched shut.

“You can let go now, Emm,” Jake says.

Emm releases the door on his end. He sits in a nearby seat. The defeat on Jake’s face was obvious. They are running out of options.

The train reaches 20 Ave and 86th St platform. Jake and Emm could feel the train's speed increase. The two men grab hold of a pole, resisting the pull of the train's trajectory.

Jake notices the zombies in the other cars flying around like a spinning raffle box. Each curved turn causes the train to screech as it brushes against the tunnel's foundation. The train's friction with the tracks caused sparks to illuminate the subway tunnel. Anxiety hits. They are five stops away from the train derailing. Jake, clueless about what to do, leans back on a seat, scratching his head.

I woke up here, not knowing how. What am I missing?

Jake scrambles towards the recorder. He rewinds and replays the recording. Looping The words that stood out the most.

Think before you act. Playing over and over in his head.

Jake slumps in his seat, deep in thought. "Think before you act, I would think before you act" he reiterates.

His head begins throbbing like his brain wanted out. He drops to his knees, clutching his head in agony. Flashes of the events that happened on the train, hit him like a montage of clues. Each person represents situations or people in his life. His subconscious mind hinting at the truth. From the recording of himself to Rob’s uncanny similarities to his dad—calling him, son. Julie and Rob dying similar to his parents triggering the trauma he experienced. Tommy a lonely boy like himself, uses movies and G.I. Joe to cope with his childhood. Valerie and Noah; actually Ashley and Jonah, his wife and son. Emm—

Who was Emm, Emmanuel?

Jake’s mind goes back to his childhood. The 80s, an era of pop culture and drugs; influenced his life growing up. His mother would read verses from the Bible. Deep down, he knew his Mother was his heart; the last part of his childhood innocence. He could feel the caress of his mother’s hand on his cheek, as she would read, making sure he paid close attention to the lord's word. The smell of her perfume sneaked its way up his nostrils. Her smile always filled him with love, even through violence and abuse.

Her favorite verse—Matthew 1:23—“Behold, The virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel,” she said.

She kissed Jake on his forehead. “ Immanuel Means God is with us, Jake. Always remember god is—

“With us,” Emm says. Snatching Jake out of the fond memory of his mother.

“Even then, I was watching Jake. Your mother; my child, has a special place in my kingdom.”

Jake lifts himself off the floor. He turns to look at Emm.

"God is with us, or should I say with me," Jake says.

Everything around them pauses in slow motion. Moving at a speed, not normal in real-time, a stillness of reality. The two stand in the middle of the car, the only ones moving on the train.

"I knew you would figure it out Son, I have bigger plans for you," Emm says.

Jake looks around him while studying the train.

"This isn't real, none of it is, except you and me," Jake says.

"Correct, You can call this The Mind Train. This is you finding your way back, to a better life" Emm says.

"Why didn't you say something, why let me go through this torment?" Jake asks.

Emm smirks, "I created my children to make their own choices. You can make a new life, or you can destroy it. All I want is that you live in happiness and love…with no regrets, just a second chance" Emm replies.

Jake catches a glimpse of 86th St and 25th Ave. Three stops away from the derailment.

"So, if I don't stop this mind train, will I die for real?" Jake asks.

Emm sighs. "Unfortunately, yes,"

“Why do I deserve a second chance? I'm a drunk and an addict, who probably killed his wife and son,” Jake says.

“Everyone deserves a second chance, Jake. The choice is yours,” Emm replies.

Jake turns to stare at the bloodthirsty zombies pressed against the car door's window, salivating for flesh. Jake looks down at his hands, tightly gripping the Glock 19. He cocks back the slide, chambering a round.

The train phases back to real-time, traveling at its max speed.

Emm begins shouting—Romans 12:2.

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Emm says.

Jake smirks and looks back at Emm.

"Renew your mind, Jake. Renew your perception of life, separate your older self from the new you,” Emm says.

"This…” Jake emphasizes the train; the scenario he’s trapped in.

“Is an intervention of my soul. What I manifest can be real. If I truly want it. Right now, I want the doors to open," Jake says.

Emm chuckles, seeing the determination in Jake’s eyes. “Now you get it, Jake”

The doors slide open. The infected violently scamper over each other, starving for their next meal. The hordes enter completely smothering Emm like a crowd at a Metal concert. Jake hustles to the first car, locking himself with the rest of the infected.

The Horde in the car, jerking their necks, twitching as if their bodies had not realized they were dead. Jake watches them tear off the rotten pieces of flesh that hang off of them. Click, The door latches shut. They turn their heads towards the back of the car. The horde snarls, drooling at the fresh prey at hand; Jake.

“Flesh-eating undead, Nah. You're just my inner demons…and you're in my way,” Jake says.

A zombie, near Jake, lunges at him. Jake lets off a round in its skull. the zombie drops dead. The casing echoes as it hits the floor. The horde growls in rage as they all surge towards Jake.

Jake goes through the horde relentlessly with a vengeance. Headshots, rolling, dodging, using anything in the car. He made sure to put souls to rest. He takes them all out like a one-man army, hellbent on survival. The horde had no chance. Jake made up his mind.

Survive.

The stink of the NYC subway tunnels and the stench of death, blend perfectly. Piles of corpses lay behind Jake, as he is draped in blood. Jake is only inches away from the controls. He halts.

Something violently, thrashing from within, struggling to come out of The Operator’s booth. The Train Operator bursts out, folding the door like aluminum foil. Jake notices that The Train Operator looks to be at least six-foot-five; A heavy-set man. The operator spots Jake, growling, gritting his teeth. He hunches over, hulking with bleeding eyes. Jake can see the man is craving human meat.

Jake aims the Glock at the Operator’s head. He pulls the trigger.

Click.

Empty.

Jake sighs and readies himself. “Come on, let's do this, Big man!”

The operator scrambles towards Jake, He wraps his massive hands around Jake's neck. Jake grips the zombie's wrists, resisting the weight of the infected man. The two fall on the pile of corpses. The operator growls. Saliva and blood flowing down; as he hovers over him, trying to bite Jake. Jake sees floaters, everything sounds muted like underwater. He notices the train passing the Harway Ave and Bay 50th St platform, one stop away from the train derailing.

Jake blacks out for a second. Valerie’s words playing in his head.

All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything.

Jake opens his eyes. “What we think we become,” Jake says.

Jake uses his mind to break the forearm of The Operator. The operator's eyes widened—Crack—a bone-snapping crunch heard through the tunnel. He grabs The Operator by the neck with one hand. The Operator looks down at his broken right arm, exposing the ulna. Jake grips tighter, sinking his fingers in the zombie's neck.

“I think your time is up!” Jake yells.

Jake twists The Operator's arm, then drives it into his jaw. The exposed sharp bone pierces straight through the top of the skull. The Operator's eyes show a paused shock before he slumps over Jake. Jake pushes the lifeless zombie off of him. He makes his way to the Operator's booth. Jake looks down at the controls Confused, no buttons.

What the hell is this?

Jake can see far ahead, the Coney Island Stillwell Av stop. He closes his eyes.

“This is only in my mind. Renew my mind, change what you see” he whispers.

Jake opens his eyes. The train is centimeters from the end of the stop. Jake sees someone standing on the tracks, blocking the train. To his shock, he sees himself. The old Jake lived only for drugs and alcohol.

The recording said a rail at the last stop would cause a derailment. The RAIL IS THE OLD ME

“This train is my journey to leave behind the old and become new!” He shouts from the booth.

The train plows over the older Jake. The impact causes the train to go off track, folding and flipping over. Destroying everything in its path, then exploding.

It all goes black. Stillness.

Then—

Beep, beep, beep.

A loud exhale releases from Jake’s mouth.

“Oh my god! Oh my god! Nurse!” Ashley emotionally shouts.

A Day later.

Jake opens his eyes. A perpetual beeping sound. He could see Ashley and Jonah sitting beside him. His eyes water, tears flowing down his cheeks.

“Wher—where am I?” Jake asks.

“We're in the hospital” Ashley replies.

Jake takes a second to look around his room, noticing his son has grown.

“We were in an accident, we came out fine with minor concussions, but you went flying out the windshield. You were in a coma. Do you remember anything?” Ashley replies.

“Bits. I remember crashing, but it's blank from there. How long was I in?” Jake asks.

Ashley grabs hold of his hand. “Six years, babe. They said there was a chance you wouldn't wake up,” Ashley says. She sobs over his hand, kissing it.

Jake, teary-eyed; gazes into the eyes of Ashley and Jonah.

“I am so—sorry. I lov—love you both very much. This second chance, I will not waste,” Jake says.

Ashley and Jonah could discern the sincerity in Jake’s pink, teary eyes.

“Dad?” Jonah says.

“Yeah, Son,” Jake says.

“I knew you would wake up,” Jonah says.

Jake chuckles. “Son, always keep that in MIND”