Jack

Jack rolled over and hit the snooze button on his clock radio. His copy of The Flyer Saucers Are Real fell off his nightstand onto the floor. He groaned, pressing his face into his pillow. He hadn’t gotten a good night’s sleep in what felt like months. He decided to forego his morning shower for an extra fifteen minutes of sleep. Before he could get back to sleep, he heard Shauna coming up the stairs.

“Jack, it’s after six,” she called into the bedroom as she walked past. Jack and Shauna had been out-of-sync for the past couple of weeks. After a fight last month, Shauna spent two weeks at her parents’ house and had returned as someone Jack didn’t recognize.

“Be up in a few,” Jack mumbled into his pillow. When his alarm went off again, Jack hopped out of bed and hauled on a pair of pajama pants. As he hauled on a T-shirt, he decided he’d call in sick to work. He couldn’t work on three hours of sleep. He ambled down the stairs into the kitchen and saw Bear patiently waiting by the front door.

“Has he been out this morning?” Jack asked, brushing his dark brown hair out of his face. Shauna was facing away from Jack, loading two pieces of whole wheat bread into the toaster. She shook her head “No” without turning around, her short, auburn curls bouncing as she did.

“Come on, boy,” Jack said as he opened the door for Bear. He felt the sun warm his cheeks. Bear hurried down the patio into the front yard to do his business. Breathing in the fresh air, Jack stepped out onto the patio and stared up at the sky, looking for signs of alien life. It had become a habit of Jack’s after watching a Bob Lazar documentary on Netflix.

“Ow, shit!” Shauna yelped from the kitchen. Jack ran back into the house to Shauna clutching a balled-up dishtowel in her left hand.

“What happened?” Jack asked, reaching for Shauna’s hand. She stepped backward, holding her hand close to her chest.

“I was trying to pit the avocado and I got myself with the knife,” Shauna said, clutching the white dishtowel. Jack took a small step toward her.

“Here, let me see,” Jack said.

“No,” Shauna snapped. Jack took a step backward and put his hands up to signal he wouldn’t try anything. “I’m sorry,” Shauna said, changing her tone. “I just don’t want blood everywhere.”

“Love, please come to the bathroom,” Jack sighed. “I’ll fix you up, I promise.” He offered a smile. Shauna met his gaze.

“Alright, fine,” she replied, reluctantly following him down the hall to the bathroom. Jack put the toilet cover down and motioned for Shauna to take a seat. He grabbed the peroxide from the medicine cabinet and unscrewed the cap.

“Okay,” Jack said, holding out his hand. “Let me see.” Shauna clutched the towel, but eventually loosened her grip and turned her head away. Jack took the dishtowel from Shauna’s hand and immediately fell silent.

“Is it really bad?” Shauna asked, sensing the tension. She turned her head back around. Jack was staring into her hand, mouth agape.

“What the hell?” Jack stammered. His face grew hot.

“What’s wrong?” Shauna asked, looking down at her hand.

“What is this?” Jack asked, pushing Shauna’s hand into her face. “Who are you?” He began squeezing Shauna’s hand.

“Jack, you’re hurting me,” Shauna whimpered. “What is wrong with you?” She’d never seen that look in Jack’s eyes before. She snatched her hand out of Jack’s and grabbed the dishtowel off the floor. As she raced down the hallway toward the kitchen, she heard Jack’s footsteps behind her.

“No wonder you’ve been acting weird,” Jack snapped. He grabbed Shauna’s shoulders from behind, forcing her to turn around. “Where’s my God damn wife?” He shook Shauna so hard her head seemed like it would roll right off her shoulders.

“Stop,” Shauna shrieked. “You’re scaring me.”

“Shut up,” Jack said as he threw Shauna hard against the kitchen counter. Her head caught the corner and split open like a coconut. Her twitching body fell to the floor. The same green sludge that covered her hand was now leaking from her cracked skull.

Exhausted, Jack poured himself a glass of water and sat at the kitchen table. He stared at Shauna’s lifeless body, a green puddle forming a halo around her head.

“You think I wouldn’t find out?” Jack asked the corpse, lighting a cigarette. “Extraterrestrial scum.” He spit at the body then leaned back in his chair, letting out a satisfied sigh.

A moment later, the phone rang. Jack answered it.

“Yes, hello. This is Darla from Dr. Samabala’s office,” said the voice on the other end. “I’m looking to speak with Jack Turpin.”

“This is he,” Jack replied.

“Great,” Darla said. “I’d just like to confirm your mailing address so that we can send you a hard copy of your diagnosis.”

“Alright,” Jack said. He was barely listening. “What diagnosis is this?”

“Well,” said Darla. “For your total colour blindness, sir.