Arc 2.2: Chromewash by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Reed Business Information Ltd.
Published: 2014-04-15T23:00:00+00:00

* * *

Steve Kim

The body tourist

Jane Rogers

Paula

Ryan was going, “One hundred thousand pounds, one hundred thousand pounds,” and my stomach was sloshing like a washing machine. I’d never been off the estate before. My mum was crying and I told her I’ll be back in two weeks. The car was a cool retro shape but silent, auto-driven, and when you’re in among a bunch of them shooting along the toll passing and repassing it’s fun. But I didn’t see those hills and fields and that you see on TV. The toll was sunk too low in the ground. Never saw London either, not the famous stuff, only streets of high old joined-up houses. Ryan said it’s where we’re gonna live when they pay us. It’s ancient on the outside but inside it’s all smart. Self-cleaning, automatic, the fridge restocks itself and you never have to take down the rubbish. The clinic was like that, like a hotel in a film, with real flowers and fruit and wine complimentary in our room and order what you want from the food list. The room glowed and lit up when you moved in different parts of it, the screens and games were mega, we both got sucked in.

I can’t hardly remember what the doctor said. We did a medical, first me then Ryan, we had to sign consent stuff. The doctor asked how we kept fit, so I said dancing and Ryan told him about the running. His uncle works on a farm. Ryan and his dad went there on a public trans for some big family do. He had this fantasy he’d go and work there. He started running, cos you have to be fit to work on a farm. But why would they want an estate kid when they’ve got country kids out there?

Then Dr Butler was shaking our hands, like everything was sorted, so I elbowed Ryan to ask him.

“Ask me what?” smiles the doctor.

Ryan’s going, nothing, nothing, she’s talking crap, so I go, “What you gonna do with us? While we’re asleep?”

The doctor says, “That’s a very fair question and you deserve a proper answer, Paula.”So we sit down again and he explains.

When we’re back in our posh room Ryan goes straight for the wine and I said, “Aren’t you even gonna talk about it?”

“Why should I? I’ll be asleep, I won’t even know.”

“But, someone else in your body!”

“So?”

“What if they hurt you?”

“It’ll be them that feels it, not me.”

I didn’t want to drink. I wasn’t allowed to have anything after 20:00 anyway cos of the anaesthetic. He fell asleep and snored like a dog and I lay there feeling afraid with all my arms and legs heavy as cement, and at last I begun to cry and Ryan woke up. He give me a cuddle. “In two weeks we’ll be back here,” he said, “and we’ll be rich.”I was going first and he was going the day after. “We only do one per day,” says Dr. Butler, “so we can monitor everything very carefully.

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