When Sal woke up, he found himself in a hospital bed in a sparse but functional room. There was an old TV on a table and two chairs in each corner. A curtain separated him from the other people in the room. There were stands for intravenous drips and monitors on his right. The air had an undertone of bleach, which wafted over him. He couldn’t make out whether if it was day or night.
Someone was moaning somewhere in the room, and Sal decided he'd had enough of the place. He freed himself from the monitor watching over him, killing its beeping which threatened to expose him. He was still wearing his pants, but his t-shirt was absent.
He swung his legs over the bedside and was preparing to leave when someone spoke to him.
“I am impressed,” the voice said. It had a calming effect on him. “Not only are you a very skilled mind-hacker and telepath, but you are also an absorber."
Sal inspected his surroundings, trying to figure out where the voice had come from.
“Your skills are evolving fast, but you are untrained. The emotional stress you experienced today was overwhelming, and your mind got overloaded and shut down,” the voice continued.
“Where are you?” Sal asked, pulling the curtain hard aside.
“Shhh…not so loud,” the voice replied with a laugh. “Can’t you feel me?
Sal eyed the room, sat back down on the bed, and closed his eyes. “Where are you?” he asked inside his mind. He felt a presence very clearly—and it was pleasant.
When he opened his eyes, a tall man glanced at him from the end of the bed. It was the man he'd seen at The Diner. He was more striking, if that were at all possible, given his breathtaking smile, which was structured—fine yet manly at the same time.
“Where did you come from? Why couldn’t I see you before?” Sal was mystified.
“I blend in wherever I want. It’s my trade,” his visitor answered. “Trade?”
“Yes. My specialty. I believe your specialty is mind-hacking and the ability to glamour people. Please excuse the vampire terminology; you must be sick of that.
"And I do believe that you can also absorb energy. The tribe is impressed.”
Sal was taken aback. “The tribe? You mean there are more?”
His visitor smiled. “Yes, Sal. You are one of us. Your questions will be answered, but I have to leave now. They are coming.”
“What is your name?”
The man said, “My name is Seth,” and then he vanished like a ghost. As foretold, the door to the room opened and his parents and a physician walked in.
The next moments were a blur to Sal. He was still mesmerized by Seth's image, stuck in his mind. Seth was a stranger, but Sal was infatuated by him.
People around him were talking about stress and physical exhaustion. Someone measured his pulse.
“Well,” the physician said in a high-pitched voice. “You’re fine, Sal. You can go home, but you need to take it easy for a while. It's a good thing summer's just around the corner.”
Sal just nodded. He stood up, picked up his t-shirt, and left the room without a sound.
People stared after the tall, young man, leaving the hospital with his half-naked body and no shoes on.
Sal’s parents found their son standing at the entrance, staring out into the night sky. “Where's my bus?” was all he said when his parents caught up with him.
“It’s back home. It’s parked in the driveway.
“Sal, are you okay? Everyone's been so worried. The doctors only discharged you because they put you under our care. You need to rest.”
“I’m fine,” he answered. He sounded indifferent.
“Sal, we just want to understand what’s going on with you. What happened today? Why did you and Rosie go to see Louise Adler?”
Sal didn’t answer. He didn’t want to. He just turned his back on his parents and put his t-shirt on. His mother handed him his sneakers without a sound.
Something had changed inside of Sal. He didn’t trust his parents anymore. A peculiar feeling of them having overstepped their privileges filled his being. He believed they were truly worried, but he couldn’t figure out whether they were worried about him or themselves. His head was quiet and clear, and he wanted to stay in that state of mind for a while.
Questions in need of answers piled up, but his parents only met them with silence. Finally, his parents stopped objecting to his silence, and they led the way to the car.
As they drove home, the silence, closely followed by tension, filled the air.
Sal believed what he was experiencing was, according to philosopher Simone de Beauvoir, a moral moment. He'd discovered his own freedom, his own truth, and his own values that were constructed and not absolute and eternal.
He had to count on himself to find the answers. His parents’ norms and values had prevented him from seeking out the truth—his truth. He could not abide this anymore.
The information stung a little—his parents never meant him any ill will, but their obstruction to the truth did him no good. This was the moment he chose to be free.
His decision was made in what Sartre, the philosopher, called “good faith,” a decision expressed from an authentic self. He was on a journey toward who he truly was.
After what had seemed like forever, they arrived at home. Sal got out of the car, hugged Carl as he walked past him in the doorway, and went straight to his room. He locked the door, kept the light turned off, and fell into a deep sleep.
A vivid dream of a building burning in a sea of yellow and red while people's cries echoed through the air as they tried to escape the blazing inferno haunted him. Sal tossed in his sleep until a familiar face stepped in to save him—it was Seth. The incredibly handsome Seth took his hand and led him away from the chaos. “Don’t be scared, Sal," he said in a light tone. "You chose to be free and seek the truth. Now, let go and claim what's yours.
"It’s like opening a door that’s floating in the middle of nowhere, and all you have to do is turn the handle, open it, and let yourself sink into it." He touched Sal lightly on the cheek.
Sal wanted to stay in the dream with Seth and consider his words, but he was awoken by an unsettled Carl, banging heavily on the door.
“Wake up, Sal," Carl hissed. "He’s fucking dead!” Carl hissed.
Sal sat up straight in bed and rubbed his eyes. He made his way to the door and unlocked it. Carl came crashing in. “What?" Sal sat back on the bed. "Who's dead?”
“Ben Adler, Louise’s dad! Someone found the body early this morning in a cabin in the woods.
“What happened yesterday, Sal?” Carl’s voice was filled with panic.
“Shit, Carl, I—” Sal was interrupted by a knock on the door. Their mother peeked inside and cleared her throat. “Good morning, Sal," she said. "How are you?”
“I’m fine. What’s going on?” Sal was confused.
“Another murder's been committed, and there'll be a town meeting held later today at the school assembly, so will you please watch the twins today?” Their mother looked at her shoes.
“Yeah, sure,” Sal answered, hoping she'd go away so he could deal with Carl.
“Thank you,” she said and closed the door.
Once the door was shut, Carl was all over Sal like a rash. “I’m not stupid, Sal. I know what happened yesterday was bad. It sent you to the hospital, for God’s sake. Rosie was totally freaked out.”
Sal sighed. “What I experienced was bad—really bad. Ben Adler was a bad man. Are you absolutely sure you want to know?”
“I'm sure. I want to help Louise.” Carl sounded determined.
“He abused her, Carl. I don’t know for how long, but he abused her. The child she'd carrying is his. Ben Adler abused his daughter and got her pregnant. It’s so dark inside Louise. I can’t believe no one knew.” Sal felt sick again.
The words hit Carl like a bombshell. He looked as if all the blood had left his body. His mouth fell open and his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
“I’m sorry, Carl,” was all Sal could say.
Carl swallowed a couple of times and blinked. Sadness filled his eyes. “I’m sorry, Sal, but you opened Pandora's Box. I should've been there. I should've been there for Louise.”
“None of this is your fault, Carl!” Sal ran a hand through his hair.
“Maybe Ben Adler got what he deserved. What happens to Louise and her brother?”
Carl shook his head. “I suppose they’ll go and live with their mother.” The two brothers sat side by side a stared into nothingness, everything seemed so unreal.
“What did you say to Mom and Dad?” Carl asked quietly.
“Nothing,” Sal answered indifferently. “They think I’m exhausted, which is the truth, just not in the way they think." He took Carl’s hand and looked him directly in the eyes. “I was so cold toward them. It was cruel, but I don’t trust them, Carl. Am I way off track here?”
Carl clenched Sal’s hand. “No, you’re not,” was all he said.
Sal was relieved. He wasn’t alone in this, and he wasn’t going crazy. Sal decided to tell Carl about Seth. Carl just sat there quietly, taking it all in.
“I'm with you, Sal," he finally said. "All the way.”