It was tedious and time-consuming, but absolutely
necessary if he wanted to stay one step ahead of It. He
performed this examination twice a day, morning and
night. He would have preferred to do this inspection more
often, but there just wasn't enough time during the
workday. Sometimes he was so busy at the office he didn't
even get a full lunch break. And he needed to allow
himself the time for a thorough check. Each examination
took exactly sixty minutes. He’d had to impose this time
limit, otherwise he would find himself spending hours
watching and waiting for It to strike.
The examination completed for this morning, Alex
gripped the sink and closed his eyes. There was no further
sign of the rash that had appeared and then mysteriously
disappeared a few weeks ago. He drew in several deep
breaths, willing himself to relax, waiting for the dreaded
itch and tingling sensation to begin at the nape of his neck
and travel down and outward to the rest of his body. A
signal that his Skin was awake and about to begin its daily
battle with him. His Skin. His Enemy.
Eleanor Greenway puffed nervously on her
cigarette as she sat across from Dr. Usher. "I'm really
feeling kind of helpless," she said. "I'm not sure what to do
about Alex, how to handle him. What if I say the wrong
thing?"
Dr. Usher gazed thoughtfully at Eleanor. Both she
and her husband, Alex, had been his patients for several
years now, but when Alex had first come to him a few
weeks ago with his strange symptoms, Dr. Usher had
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