My Friend Carl

Chapter One

Is There Hope?

10th Grade

Bobby shattered the stereotype of a high school and college football quarterback. He seized the height but lacked muscle tone. He sprouted as an undernourished and mistreated wretch of humanity. However, he ate more than any of his school mates. Skinny with no flair nailed him, but he ran faster and pass a football further than any kid in East Kentucky. His gaunt face and rusty hair fought either brush or comb. His ears loomed large and floppy.

Silence squelched the voices of Bobby Davis and his friend Carl Hatton. Bobby's promise kept him from disclosing Carl's secret. As the community embraced them with hero honors, the enigma became a wedge. The clandestine conduct could have crushed their connection.

Bobby scrunched his eyebrows and said, "I agree we are not cheating. We are just studying. The help we give each other when we are together is research. The three of us are a preparation group. We are not writing the other's papers, nor are we copying test answers on an exam. Perfect recall does not come under cheating."

Carl's appearance began the summer before their sophomore year. Bobby admired him for his sportsmanship and intelligence. Boyd County Central High School produced an anomaly. One of the smallest high schools in Kentucky would produce three of the smartest athletes in the Commonwealth.

Carl finished his homework before the last bell rang daily. He could read two hundred fifty words a minute with perfect recall. After school the three crammed their minds full of facts in the library. He placed a finger on Bobby Davis and Betzy Davidson's arm. In seconds they visualized an entire text, all the questions or problems. They completed their work and retained the knowledge. They even memorized the page number where each answer would be in the textbook. They were the smartest kids in school. Every teacher claimed their methods contributed in creating the girl and boys' geniuses. The truth is, Carl finished first, Betzy Davidson soared to second and Bobby Davis trailed to third. Betzy was a freshman. All three of them were friends, but Bobby knew Carl's secret. Throughout high school and college, Bobby held tight to the promise to never reveal Carl was not human.

Carl helped Bobby and Betzy to uphold an A average and sustain their knowledge. In football the school claimed a 9 and 3 record in Carl and Bobby's sophomore year. Their junior and senior years were 12 and 0. Bobby did not understand how Carl helped them recall the knowledge with a single touch. A light surge tingled comparable to static electricity. It did not hurt nor make a sound.

Bobby was incapable of divulging Carl's methods. Other than the touch, he was unable to explain the phenomena. He and Betzy read their textbooks independently of each other. They solved the problems without aid. Then Carl stroked their right forearms. The magnetic sensation caused them to retain their knowledge. However, explaining the how or why was impossible. Not even Carl could explain it. His concentrations created the culmination.

Vietnam

Bobby laid in a bed, unconscious for two months. The doctors and nurses at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines kept him alive. He had witnessed Carl's demise. As Air Force Second Lieutenants, he and Carl were inspecting Air Policemen on guard duty at their Vietnam assignment. The second day on duty a missile smashed Carl in the chest splattering him to oblivion. Only his dog-tags endured.

A mortar-blast mangled Bobby's physique. He observed their lips moving but no sound reached him as he faded into oblivion. His contorted appearance concealed his view. The sounds he emitted rendered panic from the medical staff. The images dispatched dreaded dreams to sundry struggling souls.

Visions from a former time plagued his mind. Those funny comments and serious stares were trapped in an inaudible excuse of a human being. His awakening outpaced the worst of a nightmare. Exposure to the mirror startled his sanity.

Bobby's right shoulder slanted up and back. His left extended down and forward reminding him of Lon Chaney's character in the black and white movie version of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." He faced away from the reflection. He held onto the bed as he stumbled and landed on the floor. His mind imagined headlines in the Boyd County Post expounding, "Former football star of East Kentucky is a freak." He observed the nurse's lips moving. No sound soothed him.

His speech gurgled as groans, grouses and grumbles. The medical staff wrote messages to him on typing paper. He did not comprehend what he read. A scowl surfaced as his head shook left and right. The writing was blurry, and he closed his eyes. He swayed sideways as sniffles streaked down his cheek. His body convulsed.

Sleep gave him no comfort. The room was cool but sweat saturated his sheets. His trembling remained despite the medication. He rolled onto a ball. Does death linger?