His Conundrums

Chapter 35

Images Left

 Draco asked Sirius and Joe to meet someone in an intersection. It was a girl named Lula, a lady in her early twenties who works in a hospital. Draco said she could provide them the developing solution used when developing x-ray films. They’re 10 minutes earlier from what they have talked about. It’s already 7 pm.

They heard Joe’s stomach growled. Sirius looked at him, and he smiled.

“I think we still have some more bagel left,” Joe said.

He took the last paper bag that contains five more bagels. He took one.

“This is one of my most unforgettable trips ever featuring some bagels,” he mumbled as he ate it slowly while waiting for Lula.

Not too long when they saw someone wearing pants and a t-shirt that fits their description, they went outside using the hospital’s backdoor. She’s carrying a backpack and a black tote bag. Joe took something from his pocket, getting the payment ready. Lula crossed the street and finally reached their car. She knocked at the car’s window, and Sirius lowered it.

“Is he that busy that he won’t be able to fetch this himself?” Lula asked them as she handed the black tote bag she was carrying.

“He’s fixing some of his toys, or he’s just lazy. It’s Draco we’re talking about,” Joe answered.

Lula laughed and said, “Tell him I said hi. He should visit me at work if he has some time.”

Sirius and Joe bid him goodbye and went back to Draco’s place.

“Oh hey, just in time. Come here,” Draco greeted them.

“Lula missed you,” Joe told Draco.

“I know. That fella keeps pestering me to visit her in the hospital,” Draco told them.

“Is she a patient? I thought she’s working there?” Joe asked him.

Draco faced him and laughed, “I’m the patient.”

“What?”

“She wants me to visit her so she could get some doctor to treat my back,” Draco added.

“Are you sick?” Sirius asked him.

“I’m old,” he answered.

“You should see a doctor if you’re not feeling well, Draco,” Joe told him.

“For what? We’re going to die either way. Why spent some money? Besides, I have no family to mourn for me,” he said.

Joe stopped. He realized he has no family as well. He sighed.

“You have friends. You have me and that Lula.” Joe smiled.

Draco faced them again before opening the dark room’s door.

“I’m grateful enough to live this long, and I’m able to help you. I’m happy you could visit me even if the reason is not to check an old man if he’s dying, but at least I get to work with my hobbies again. Because you remember me and came for help,” Draco told them.

He opened the door for them. They saw how he sets up a dark room for a half-day. He did quite a work there. He pulled the developing solution out of the bag.

“You can wait outside. I wouldn’t say I like it when people watching me while working. I prepared some dinner for you in the kitchen. You can take a rest in the room I’ve prepared beside my room. Sorry, I only have two rooms in this house, you have to share. I know you’re tired from your trip, so rest assured,” Draco told them.

“We’ll leave it up to you, Draco,” Joe told him.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be able to see the pictures hiding in that film within a few weeks.”

“A few weeks?” Sirius asked.

“Yeah. It takes at least 7 days to develop that thing,” Draco told him.

“But we’re leaving tomorrow, aren’t we?” Joe asked Sirius.

“What?” Draco was a bit confused.

“No, we can stay for a few weeks,” Sirius told them.

“What?” asked Joe to his surprise.

“But I only brought a few pairs of underwear,” Joe mumbled.

-0-0-0-

He found himself in the middle of a white room. He was wearing white himself. There were no doors nor windows. It’s just pure white.

“Ah, am I dreaming again?” he thought.

He checked himself and realized he was wearing a hospital gown. The same gown he wore when he first woke up after the accident. He sighed. He felt empty.

“Sirius?” he heard someone called his name and felt his bed is shaking.

“Sirius! Sirius!” Joe waked up Sirius.

“I have a weird dream, and you may not be able to believe it,” he said.

“What? You end up looking like a bagel?” Sirius asked him.

“How did you know? Do you investigate people even in your sleep?” Joe asked him.

Sirius covered himself with a blanket, but Joe pulled it out.

“Can we eat something else for breakfast aside from bagel?” Joe pleaded.

“Yeah, sure, just don’t wake me up, okay?” Sirius told him and snatched the blanket away from Joe.

“Yes!” Joe exclaimed.

-0-0-0-

“What’s this?” Joe asked him.

“Breakfast,” Sirius answered.

“You mean a donut for breakfast? Are you kidding me?”

“We have to stay here for a few more days, or else you want to go back to Hallray penniless?” Sirius asked him.

Joe has no other choice but to eat what Sirius bought for him. They’re having their morning coffee outside. Draco told them he’d be sleeping this morning since he didn’t sleep last night.

Joe looked at Sirius with his sharp eyes while eating his donut.

“He’s not even a human,” he mumbled while rolling his eyes.

Sirius continued sipping his coffee while reading through some magazines.

“Oh, Lula!” Joe called a girl who just entered the coffee shop.

“Oh hey,” she said.

“Going for work?” Joe asked her.

“Yeah, Draco didn’t prepare you a breakfast?” she asked.

“He’s up all night, so we let him took some rest,” Joe answered.

“Oh, could you please give this to him and make sure he’ll take it every morning.”

Lula seemed worried about Draco, so Joe took it and smiled.

“Is Draco your uncle?” Joe asked her even though he knew Draco is an orphan who grew up on the streets where he met him before and became friends. He wants to know why Lula’s so attached to him.