Exposed

Michael Yen, early 30’s, finds himself “trapped” in a psych ward with his dog, Fate. He is not so much a prisoner of the ward as much a prisoner of his own past traumatic experiences. Yet he is not suffering any form of delusion or psychotic break. He’s simply the victim of terrible circumstances. The person assigned to his case is one Dr. Collins, late 40’s. She is an intelligent, intimidating woman worthy of the respect the letters behind her name carry. This is her first time meeting Michael and has tasked herself with interviewing him about his experiences over the last year. To start their interview, it is revealed that Michael is an African American that immigrated to Taiwan, got married, and took his wife’s last name for bureaucratic reasons. He claims not to know the current whereabouts of his wife but believes there is still a chance that she’s alive. He then proceeds to tell his story, starting about one year earlier from the day of this interview. Two months before the quarantine started, a much healthier looking Michael lives in Taipei and discusses his fears of a virus currently spreading through China that has started to expand to other countries. His main fear is that the Chinese New Year vacation will lead to Taiwan being infected by travelers from the mainland. His wife, Xiaochun, and coworkers tell him not to worry about it. One month before the quarantine started, the virus has now run rampant throughout the planet, causing thousands of deaths. Taiwan has been hit hard among many other countries, with a death toll in the hundreds. Michael argues with Xiaochun about leaving the country and buying weapons. They disagree on both issues, ultimately choosing to stay in Taipei because of her family. Taipei is declared a quarantine zone, ending any chance Michael and Xiaochun have of escaping. They stock their apartment with food and supplies, hoping to ride out the pandemic mostly indoors. During one of their trips to the store, Xiaochun is grabbed by two men. Before they can kidnap her, Michael manages to rescue Xiaochun, killing one of the men in the process. No authorities are called. They simply go on with their lives, but now agree that they need to acquire some weapons to protect themselves. A few months into quarantine, Michael and Xiaochun have acquired weapons, including a single pistol, but are running out of food. They decide they will need to leave their apartment for good in search of supplies and a new place to live. They decide to go to her parents’ apartment. Sadly they were unable to reach it before her parents passed away but they decide to live there for the time being. A couple tries to rob them, leading to Michael and Fate killing the intruders and them having to leave the apartment for good. Seven months into quarantine, Michael, Xiaochun, and Fate have teamed up with Tom (35), Grace (34), and an American named Fred (37). The group survives by hunting down and killing others for supplies. Xiaochun is disturbed by the fact that they’re killing as aggressors, but Michael, the leader of the pack, has declared it a necessity for their survival and protection. Nine months into quarantine, the group is starving. They are so desperate for food that they have decided to eat a person they killed. Fred is unable to stomach the idea and decides the correct course of action is to kill and eat Fate. Michael and the rest try to stop Fred but he cannot be reasoned with. Michael kills him in order to protect Fate. Michael, Xiaochun, Fate, Tom, and Grace decide to try to find a boat and sail out of Taipei. They go to a harbor and are attacked by another group. Tom and Michael are both injured, but everyone escapes alive. The group has holed up in an office building while they recover. Tom and Michael will pull through fine but Xiaochun has become very sick. They believe she has contracted the virus. Grace says they have to move or they will starve to death. Michael refuses to abandon Xiaochun. Xiaochun threatens to kill herself if they don’t leave her in order to prevent Michael from dying. Michael agrees to go look for food if she agrees not to kill herself. They find some food but Xiaochun has disappeared. Michael leaves the food to Grace and Tom and takes Fate to go look for his wife. Ten months into quarantine, Michael and Fate find themselves back in their original apartment on the brink of death. They are rescued by the World Health Organization. Dr. Collins concludes her interview with a few closing questions and some important information that is brought to her attention.