THE SIXTH GUEST: Chapter Two - Part Seven

Joey was unconscious still and dreaming as Clare shut Henry’s door and tapped more cautiously on his. The tapping didn’t rouse him. Whatever the visitor had done to all of them had hit him harder, perhaps counter intuitively, considering his size. Joey hadn’t lived a long life but he had never met another soul yet whose head he couldn’t see clean over.

In the dream he was back in the secure unit, but like the non-sequential flashbacks he’d experienced when the visitor had slid in through his eyes, nose and ears, there was no logic to what he saw; no flow of time that made any sense.

He was in the television room, slumped lifelessly in front of the goggle box. He was talking to one of the nurses in an office, head hung low. He was waking up to blank walls in his tiny room. He was shouting, unsure how the fork had got in his hands; unsure why he was holding it to the female nurse’s throat. He was in a corridor, laughing loudly at a joke because everyone else was laughing, not because he’d understood it.

Hands touched his arms. A gentle voice was calling him. He woke, sitting up sharply enough to crack his forehead on the slats that held up the top bunk.

“Joey! Joey, are you okay? Be careful! You’ll hurt yourself.”

He squidged back on the mattress, taking in his surroundings in a continuing daze. Clare was touching his knee and his right bicep, looking into his face with concern. Her bosom was close to his chest and though she didn’t expose herself as much as Selina did she was still real nice to look at. He tried not to think about it, rubbing his head where he’d banged it.

“Do you remember what happened?” asked Clare.

Joey shook his head.

“Did you kick your TV? The screen’s broken.”

He looked at it mutely. After it had happened, smoke had been pouring out; now there was only a wisp. “Fuck.”

“Do you remember anything at all?”

“No.”

Clare was on her knees. She sat back on her heels and placed her hands on her thighs. “I’m taking you with me to casualty.”

“What? Why?”

“Something’s happened to us – to all of us. I don’t know why or how but whatever did it to me came right up here afterwards and did it to you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Joey distracted by the ruin of his TV screen. “Shit, I can’t believe this happened. What am I going to do?”

“Joey.” Clare put her hand on his wrist and he came right back to what she was saying. He didn’t feel that strange heat anymore but just where she was holding him still glowed darkly. “I think you and I could have been... damaged. It’s not right that we should both have had the same thing happen to us.”

“You mean you passed out too?”

“Yes. I think Henry did as well but he won’t admit it for some reason. I think it was some kind of seizure.”

“But why would we both have it at— Do you mean you had yours just now too?”

“Uh huh.

“Why?”

Clare chewed her lip. She flickered a smile then, frowning, said, “I don’t know.”

“I don’t like hospitals.”

“You and Henry have that in common but you’re going. Come on.” She got to her feet and took his wrist again. Joey couldn’t think of any reason to disagree as long as she was doing that.

“I’ll be back in time to leave for work, right?” He had to be in Ferndown for ten and it was a half hour drive at that time of night.

“I should think so, yes. Look, if we drive down in your car then you can always leave me there if it’s getting late and I’ll walk back. It isn’t far.”

“Or get a taxi.”

“I’ll walk.”

Joey considered it then nodded. “Okay.”

“Come on then,” said Clare. “Let’s go and find out what happened to us.”