Almost Perfect

CAPTAIN JACK GOES TO THE WALL

Jack was pressed up against the wall, Brendan wrapped around him. He was wearing a drowsy, dreamy smile. ‘What are we doing now, fellas?’ he asked, his voice thick with sleep.

Jon moved across the room, and threw an arm around Jack’s shoulder, drawing him close. ‘Oh, it’s all good, soldier.’

Jack blinked, slowly. ‘Why… Why am I here?’

Brendan laughed, gently in his ear. ‘You’ve forgotten! Oh, that’s great.’

‘We are very distracting,’ said Jon.

‘And haven’t you done well?’ said Brendan, admiringly.

‘What?’ murmured Jack. ‘What have I done?’

‘Provided us with a lot of much-needed power,’ said Jon. ‘You could call it a jump start.’

‘Please don’t,’ sighed Brendan. He started to kiss Jack’s neck. Jack laughed, slowly. ‘Listen, babe, we’ve got to go for a few hours. And you’re pretty much spent. So we’re going to leave you here.’

‘You’ll like this bit,’ said Jon. ‘Spread out your hands.’

And Jack spread out his hands, feeling the two of them wrapped round him, and he smiled, happily. None of it felt real. He looked at the wall, all neat, white plaster, and then watched, dreamily, as it changed, spreading with a blood-red stain which moved around his figure. And then rippled. And the pounding, the pounding that had been in his head for so long he couldn’t remember… oh, it got louder.

‘It’s the wall,’ said Brendan, pressing in on him. ‘Try and move your hands.’

Jack couldn’t. He managed to lift his left hand, just slightly, but the wall shifted. He struggled, and the wall just wrapped itself further round his arm. He turned, almost alarmed, but still giggly. ‘What is this?’

‘It’s the wall,’ said Jon. ‘We built a temple, after all.’

Brendan pulled close, kissing Jack and running a hand through his hair. ‘We built it out of our believers.’

And then he broke away from Jack, laughing as they pushed him into the wall. As it wrapped round his head and his body, so warm and horrible and strange, he realised that something very bad had happened. And he tried to scream. But as he opened his mouth, the wall just poured in. All warm and pulsing and red.