Someone's In My Head (WATTYS AWARD WINNER 2015)

Chapter Five

A few days later, my mom decided I was behaving normally enough that she agreed to let me walk Saul at the nearby park. There had been no signs of violence behaviour nor rude remarks from me for almost a week now. So when I complained about dying in this concrete coop, she relented. But not much.

First, she briefed me about Operation Walk-the-dog. "You are to stay within a three-mile radius from here. No socializing with anyone except Saul. Are you clear?"

Sometimes I suspected my mom was actually an ex-military officer. "Crystal." I mumbled.

Next, she made me bring along my cell, which was very rare of her indeed. Since she read an article in the papers about cellphones being highly radioactive, my mom had always been irked by my prolific usage of my cell at home. Getting my mom to order me to bring along my cell was like getting Godzilla to play ping pong with King Kong.

Mom was making me promise to call her first thing if I felt anything weird or out-of -the-blue about my body. "Definitely." I assured her.

Taking the red leash from behind the door, I headed to where Saul was yipping happily at the front porch. I gave him a scratch on his scruff. "A very nice day for a walk, isn't it?" I commented as a refreshing breeze billowed past. Saul gave an agreeing bark. "Or is it because I've been cooped up so long, I wonder."

During the days of my quarantine, I was forced to resort to the boring jogs on the treadmill and other indoor physical exercise. The treadmill was kept at a rather confined space, making me claustrophobic every time I jogged. To be able to free myself from those confinements now was a pleasure indeed.

As Saul and I made our way to the park, I took the chance to observe the familiar greenery. The sun wasn't too glaring, its balmy rays adding some lively quality to the neighbourhood.

I replayed my exchange with Layla in my head, a habit that I've recently picked up. Till now I still couldn't figure out how I had let my mouth slip. I had tried calling Layla multiple times-to explain things perhaps? -but all I got was her corny voicemail that went, "Hi, you have reached the Borg collective. Please leave your name and star system and we'll assimilate you as soon as we can."

What's that weird feeling in my gut? Guilt? For what then? For hurting her with my words? Well, Layla didn't seem like the girl who would recoil at the sound of anything fouler than 'shit' or 'damn'.

But still, there was another feeling. A paranoid feeling of distrust. It was totally inexplicable, but I felt like, somehow, in a twisted reality, Layla was behind all these bizarre happenings to me after my accident.

Or maybe the accident altogether.

I shuddered as I shook away the imploding suspicions that were racking my brain. I decided to concentrate on the continuous tugging of the red leash in my hand.

Saul's nose was once again having an intimate relationship with the ground, as he always did whenever he went out for a walk. He was sniffing non-stop. It was quite an amusing sight.

"What do you smell, boy? Cinnamon buns with extra topping?" I knelt down to pat him on the head. Saul gave a low rumble. He was apparently having a great time sniffing around. I decided not to disturb his fun.

Suddenly, Saul started barking violently at the blueberry bush beside us. He tugged on the reins and was set to go bounding off if I had not had a firm grip on him.

"Whoa. Easy there, boy. Easy." I cooed as I gave the innocent-looking bush a hard and suspicious stare. Saul spun in a circle and continued barking, his tiny brown head bobbing up and down. His bristling fur made him look twice his normal size.