Flux

but it had him baffled.
    “What’s this? He asked.
    “Uh. Oh, a map.”
    “A map? Of what?”
    “Where I’ve been.”
    “Where is that, does this place have a name?”
    Iain shrugged his shoulders.
    “When were you last there?”
    “Not long ago.”
    “Before you came here?”
    “No, after.”
    “But Iain, you’ve been here all the time, sleeping.”
    Iain already knew this and had worked it out long before. When he was in the other place, his body stayed in the hospital, comatose. He wondered whether his body was now lying asleep somewhere on the other side; easy prey for the creatures that inhabited there. A wave of panic overtook him, his mind throwing up images of Gary, alone and dead on the slime covered flags.
    With a lump in his throat he demanded, “I want to see Eve?” He needed comfort and it seemed that lately, she was the only one who could provide it.
    “Eve? Eve who?” a puzzled look appeared on the doctors face.
    Iain felt a sinking feeling start in the pit of his stomach. “My support worker: She’s been taking care of me since I came out of hospital, you know, after the crash.”
    “I know of no-one by that name.” said the doctor; his tone changing from quizzical to concerned.
    “But she was here yesterday. You must know her!”
    “You’ve had no visitors whatsoever, only me. We’re still completing your initial assessments, and no one’s allowed in to see you until they’re complete!”
    “You’re lying, trying to fuck with my head. Is this one of your tests? Well is it?” Iain demanded to know.
    The doctors voice took on a smooth, professional and relaxing tone, one which was well practiced. “I can assure you Iain, that nobody has been in to see you.”
    “Maybe it was when you weren’t here?”
    “No,” more firmly now, “Nobody has been to visit.”
    The bottom dropped out of Iain’s world. The one person who could offer him comfort and keep him sane, was a figment of his imagination. He couldn’t believe it, wouldn’t believe it.

    When the nurse came to the room, Iain was in a confused and bitter frame of mind; “Are you real? I bet you’re not. Nothings fucking real anymore.”
    “I can assure you I am,” she said. She certainly looked real, if maybe a little too good to be true. She was quite young-looking for her profession, maybe around the same age as Iain with straight cut, shoulder length dark hair and full lips. Petite with ample bust and a rear which still looked perfect despite the ill-fitting blue uniform.
    “Prove it?” he said, having no idea how she would and simply being difficult for the sake of it.
    “And how would you like me to do that?” she asked, walking across the room towards the bed.
    Iain had to stop himself staring at her cleavage, ample as it was. It had been a long time since he’d been with a woman, ever since he’d split up with his girlfriend over some trivial thing months before his accident. All of his pent up testosterone and lust seemed to choose the moment to reveal themselves and he became suddenly aware of being semi-erect. Blushing slightly, he stumbled over his words, “never mind, sorry.”
    “No,” she said, “I want to prove it to you now, how real I am.” Moving over to where Iain sat, she reached down and touched him where his penis was no longer just semi-erect and was straining at his hospital issue trousers. She tugged at the waistband and slid her hand inside, clutching him hard; “Does this feel real?” she asked.
    “Yes,” he whimpered.
    Pulling harder at the top of the trousers, she pulled them down slightly to just below his buttocks. Iain’s eyes closed as her mouth closed around him. With her head slowly gliding up and down Iain thought to himself, she’s definitely not real.
    She paused and looked up at him, “does that feel real?”
    What the heck, “Yes,” he groaned.
    She stood up and backed away a step leaving Iain sitting there proudly sticking up in the air. Undoing her own trousers, she let them slip to the ground, kicking them away over her shoes. She wore no knickers and Iain stared at her neatly trimmed pubic hair, a narrow stripe of black against pale skin. Looking him directly in the eye, she slowly walked over and in one neat movement straddled him, sliding onto him effortlessly.
    “Does this feel real?”
    “Yes,” his eyes now rolling back in their sockets. She felt perfect.
    She rode him steadily to start, building pace, groaning, until they were both