Harry — Episode 1: The Supermarket

— Episode 1 in a five-part series about what happened to Harry —

We were actually already a bit too tired, but I hadn’t really been able to do any grocery shopping, so I said to Harry: 

“Let’s just quickly swing by the supermarket to grab something nice—maybe a bottle of wine and some good cheese.”

Despite his fatigue, Harry was up for it too.
I said: 

“Don’t just habitually turn left here, drive one more street and then turn left instead, that’s much more convenient.”

Harry mumbled something.
But he did in fact keep driving a bit further and only then turned left.

He said something else I couldn’t make out.

“What did you say?”

Again, something I couldn’t understand.
So I asked again:

“Sorry, what did you say? I didn’t catch that.”

I still couldn’t make sense of it. And because I noticed a slight irritation in Harry, I thought: never mind, I’ll just let it go for now. 

Not long after, Harry started talking again. From his intonation and body language, I could tell he was thinking through something technical that needed to be done in the house, but I could not make any sense of what he was saying at all. The sounds, the words, the sentences—it all sounded like Dutch, but the way Dutch sounds to someone who doesn’t actually know the language.

I couldn’t understand the situation at all.

“Oh, you’re pulling my leg!”, I said.

Harry wasn’t very verbally skilled, and sometimes I would tease him when he mispronounced words or expressions. I thought: well, that’s what I get. For a moment it crossed my mind that something might be off in his head. But that couldn’t be it—he was driving perfectly, responding completely appropriately to traffic.
Harry responded with a broad smile when I asked if he was joking with me, and again he produced sounds that resembled Dutch, but I couldn’t place them at all. 

I stopped finding it funny. 
It had been going on too long. Besides, you’d have to be fairly intelligent—or very well trained—to keep up a joke like that for so long. Then it dawned on me that something genuinely serious might be going on.
But I had no idea what. I decided to distract Harry as little as possible while driving and just hoped we would arrive safely at our destination. It was only a few hundred meters away now.

Harry turned into the supermarket parking lot and parked the car.
I said:

“I’m going to get out and call someone. Something is seriously wrong with you.”

Harry looked at me as if I had completely lost my mind. In his eyes, I was the one making no sense.
I walked away from the car to find some privacy so I could call Peter, a slightly older and wiser friend. But he didn’t pick up.

I started to panic.
I didn’t really know anyone in Bagheria. I felt completely alone. I didn’t understand what was happening, let alone what I was supposed to do. I walked back to Harry and asked him to give me his phone. I thought I could call one of his best friends and let them speak to him. That way someone else could hear what was going on and maybe help me figure it out.

Harry refused to give me his phone, acting like:

“Don’t be ridiculous!”

Instead, he rummaged in his pocket and offered me a few coins and screws that apparently were in there.

I didn’t know what to do with him or with the situation. Completely desperate, I walked away from him. 
I don’t even know where to. Just away. 

BAM!

I had only been about ten meters away from Harry when I heard a dull thud behind me. I turned around, but I couldn’t see Harry anywhere. I walked back toward the car—and there he was, lying on the asphalt behind it, twitching and shaking.  Foam at his mouth. 

Episode 1 in a five-part series about what happened to Harry. 

 
--> Episode 2 

 Photo: Christian Lue