Injected

Chapter Two

Having dozed off only once or twice the previous night, Rhys wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep when he awoke to Dennis’ voice.

“Rise and shine, sleepyhead,” his voice called, far too happy for this time of morning. Rhys pulled his pillow over his head with a groan. Dennis laughed as Rhys sat up, dishevelled. He didn’t want to get up. He could spend the rest of the day in bed, as he had for each day before. But Dennis seemed to have other ideas.

“Come on, Alice told me you’d been up and about last night. We’re going to be starting to get you back to health properly today.” He rummaged around in the cupboard that Rhys had now seen were indeed behind him. He came back to Rhys with a smaller needle then they’d used any other day.

“Alright, Rhys. So I’m giving you a smaller dosage because you’re going to be switched to actual food today.”

Even after several days of injections, Rhys still bit his lip at the liquid that flooded out of the syringe and crawled into his bloodstream. Dennis knelt down and reached into one of the cupboards underneath the counter. He pulled out a small apple. He offered it to Rhys, who took it without a word, and bit into it. He had almost forgotten what it felt like to taste. The sweet acid from the apple spread over his tongue as he savoured the feeling of eating. He’d never noticed how much he appreciated food until just then.

Dennis sat upon the counter, observing Rhys closely as he finished quickly.

“Was that alright?” He asked as he took the core from Rhys and threw it into the bin. Rhys nodded vigorously, making Dennis laugh.

“I’m going to head out now, feel free to explore the place, get your legs used to working again. You can go outside as well, if you’d like. It might be good for you.” Dennis smiled brightly. “There’s a pile of clothes for you on the counter. See you later.” He waved and left, the door shutting behind him.

Rhys immediately got up, winced at the ache in his body. He changed into his new clothes: a grey t-shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. Pushing the door open, he headed down the same way he did yesterday. He noticed a few smaller details in the early daylight than he did when it was pitch dark: the doors and walls had deep scratches in them, causing larger cracks to crawl their way across the plaster of the walls. There were many spots on the floor that were lighter than the rest of it, clearly having been scrubbed hard. That being said, there wasn’t a speck of dirt there. Rhys suspected it was because patients were being treated here for the disease.

He walked through the small hallways, taking everything in. Down the stairs, into the living room. Each bed there was made neatly, their bedclothes folded at the foot. Rhys followed the hall, to where he and Alice had gone last night. This morning, he noticed a circular table in the middle of the room with five girls sat around it, eating all sorts of things. Each one of them wore clothes identical to Rhys’: either the striped pyjamas or the jeans and grey shirt. Rhys’ mouth watered as his eyes wandered to the rolls, eggs and bacon, waffles and pancakes.

Rhys spotted Alice at her spot on the other side of the table. Her eyes were lit up as she chattered away with the other girls. She looked up and noticed him.

“Rhys! Hi!” She stood and walked over to him, her face split into a smile. She pulled him into her side and faced the table.

“Girls, this is Rhys. He’s new here, and I think he’s going to be staying next door, with the boys. Let’s make him feel welcome!” He forced a smile. He’d never been one to like the centre of attention. The girls all stood up, each introducing themselves to him and then embracing Rhys one by one. He found it in himself after two of them to react, awkwardly hugging them back. He appreciated their efforts, though he probably would have fared better with a handshake.

He pursed his lips as the four girls sat down at their table again, though Alice stayed standing with him.

“Well, I definitely feel welcome,” he chuckled awkwardly. Alice smiled, not seeming to pick up on his discomfort.

“I’m glad! We don’t often get newcomers, but it’s always a delight when we do!” Her cheerful voice was mirrored in her energetic movements. “Now come on, have some breakfast with us!” She took a chair from the side of the room and set it down beside her own. The girl who had been sat beside her - Erica - moved over a little bit to better accommodate him. He smiled at her before looking down to the plate that Alice had given him.

He noticed that there was no longer the sound of cutlery on plates. Looking up, all five of the girls were watching him. Rhys pursed his lips, not sure why they were all staring at him. He waited for a while, heart pounding.

“Here,” Alice said, splitting her roll in two. She gave a half to him, and he took a small bite. He chewed slowly, the buttery taste making his eyes flutter closed. He licked his lips, and the table broke out in continued conversation. Rhys kept to himself, finishing his roll and looking down at his lap until Alice, who was the only one not talking, whispered to him.

“You don’t have to be nervous,” she told him. “Eat whatever you want.”

He shook his head. Alice just gave him a sympathetic look. “We all had our first days here, I get it. Just eat something, please?”

Rhys bit his lip and reached out for the tongs on a plate, which was still piled with bacon. He was surprised that no one watched him, that they just continued to eat and continue their conversations. He took two pieces, replacing the tongs and picking it apart slowly, savouring the bold taste. Alice smiled and jumped into a conversation with the girl next to her.

***

When everyone else had finished their breakfast and left the table, Alice proposed something to Rhys.

“I can show you around today, if you’d like.”

Rhys nodded, though hesitantly. “Sure. If you want to.”

Alice had laughed and, both of them dressed in their day clothes, had set off, out the door in the living room.

Outside made Rhys feel like he could breathe properly: there were so many trees and the grass grew a lively green. The air smelled fresh. Next to the building that they had just exited was another, identical to it.

“That’ll be yours,” Alice told him. “The ones with the worst of the disease stay in these two, we’re isolated from the rest of the group. Come on, I’ll show you around.”

Alice and Rhys followed a dirt road, admiring the trees on either side of them and the way they seemed to enclose them on the small road. The sky was visible through the branches, a bright blue finding its way through the clouds and the entwining lengths of wood.

There was silence between them, making their footsteps seem amplified. In the distance, another building seemed to grow as they came closer. Despite this, Rhys noticed, it was much smaller than Alice’s or the one next to it. It was white, just as the others were. He and Alice stopped in front of it.

“The rest of the buildings are just general,” she told him. “Ours is the only specific to the severity. The others are just wherever people want to stay, though it’s still girls with girls and boys with boys. There’s stories though...I’ll tell you later.” She laughed loudly. “I’ll race you to the next house!” And she began running. Rhys had never been competitive, but he did like running. He could hear Alice laughing as she ran. He started to jog, catching up to her in no time. She gave him a look, slowing down.

“How the hell did you catch up to me so quickly?” She hit him playfully. He smiled and slowed to a walk. He shrugged.

“I’ve always been a runner.”

She grinned and rolled her eyes.

“I mean...I figured that much! But so have I, and I always win races, even against the boys!” She seemed to be holding back a laugh. “Another thing I’ll have to tell you about sometime.”

They walked in silence, approaching another house, and then another. They were obviously closer to one another than his and Alice’s was to the rest of them. Their walking pace sped up to a light jog.

Approaching their own houses again, both of them were slightly out of breath, but grinning at each other. Only about an hour had passed, Rhys realized. They both re-entered Alice’s building. Dennis was sat in a chair at the table, scribbling into a small pad of paper. He looked up upon hearing them come in.

“Ah! I’ve been waiting for you two. Rhys?” Dennis pulled out the chair next to him and Rhys sat down, immediately wondering what he’d done wrong. Dennis shut the notepad and focussed on Rhys.

“So we’re moving you next door. I presume Alice has given you an explanation?” He looked up to her with a smile. Rhys nodded as Dennis clapped a hand to his shoulder. Rhys tried not to jump.

“Great! Let’s go then. If you’d like to come, you can.” He directed the last sentence at Alice, who nodded, following them out the door that they’d just come from.

It was an extremely short walk next door. The inside was the exact same as the girls’ place from what Rhys could see. Dennis took him upstairs, where a boy lay on one of the two beds, wearing his jeans and grey shirt. He had a ball, which he was throwing at the ceiling, where it bounced back to him. A bored expression adorned his face as he caught the ball time and time again.

“Jack, this is Rhys. I trust you will introduce him to River?” The boy made a small noise in his throat, but Dennis took it as an affirmative.

“That’s great, thanks.” He turned to Rhys next. “I might pop in later to see how you’re settling in, it’s hard for some people to become accustomed to the place.”

“No thanks,” Rhys whispered, just loud enough for him to hear. “I’ll be alright.” He didn’t like being put in with new people, but he hated people doing things for him more. Alice had been nice enough, and she’d been new. He was going to be alright.

“Fair enough,” Dennis smiled. “I’ll leave you be then.”