Chapter 3 Dr. Kenny Jones is Dead

Kenny had been staring at the face of a woman who was staring right back at him. He touched his face and the woman in the mirror had done the same. He feels like he is watching one of those horror movies but it is even worse as he is in it.

He had been a doctor for years and had never encountered nor studied anything like this before. But he did watch a movie where the mother and daughter’s bodies had switched. Wondering if this could be happening to him too, he thought of his body.

He has kind of an understanding of his situation, though it is still hard for him to process and accept it, what more is this body belongs to a woman and the inconvenience of not being able to walk would be an everyday hassle for him.

“I can’t believe that this is really happening! And why me?” Kenny muttered with frustrations.

“I must go back to the barracks as the owner of this body could be occupying mine too," he thought.

He was about to go out from the toilet when he suddenly realized that he actually needs to use the toilet. It was just an excuse earlier to avoid the man’s penetrating stare, and how could he answer his questions? Even he himself wants an explanation too.

But now, “how to do this?" he mulled.

Although, Marriane’s lower body is crippled, it is not a total hopeless. Her body could have recovered if she did therapies before. 

Kenny transferred himself from the wheelchair to the toilet seat. He had to exert more effort to get there. He is a doctor by profession so seeing a woman’s body wouldn't faze him.

As soon as he sat down, he noticed some dirty red marks on the white lace underwear that he had a struggle to pull down. 

“Oh! NOO! Please NO!” he squealed.

“Why does this body have to have it now!?”

Annie, who had been standing and listening outside the door, walks in after hearing Marianne’s voice. 

“ Marianne, are you okay? May I help you?” she asked. She is being wary of her as she doesn’t recognize her, and she had been happy to assist her earlier but Marianne had adamantly shooed her away.

She went in but only for a couple of steps and stands closer to the half open door in case she will throw her out again.

Kenny looks at her with sharp eyes and poor Annie is not feeling comfortable with it, she was about to leave the room but a “Wait!” in an anxious and authoritative voice came from Marianne.

She turned around and patiently waited for Marianne to say anything. 

“Uhm, uh, could you tell me what to do here? Uh could you help me here, please” said Kenny with a stutter voice.

“ Yes, of course, that’s what I'm here for," Annie replied with a smile.

But after that, Marianne is being quiet. 

“So, what could I help you with?” Annie asked nicely. 

“Uhm ... I think the woman’s monthly cycle is due now and I need help with it," he said, but then seeing Annie’s reaction, he is not sure if he said the right thing. He doesn’t have much interactions with the ladies, nor a sister or a lady friend to have conversation regarding these stuff.

Yes, he is a doctor but he never assisted or seen anyone use it.

After a while, Annie seemed to grasp what Marianne wanted to say. 

“Do you have your period?” she asked.

“Uhm, yeah, that's what I'm saying," Kenny said, feeling so embarrassed and at the same time bracing himself for the next step.

“Ok, I will check the closet and I’ll bring you some fresh clothes to change into," Annie said.

After Annie left, Kenny is in his thoughts. “ I should learn the ladies proper terms for stuff like this, I don’t know how long I’m gonna be stuck in this body. I need to learn to cope up with things. For now, I must make do with whatever this situation is and for that, I would be needing Annie's help with a lot of things."

With Annie’s help, Kenny easily managed his experience of the" first time" of having a menstruation in a girl’s life.

Annie wheeled Marianne back to the room. 

Kenny, who temporarily forgot about the situation with Francois, is back in a crummy position again when he spotted the man. He took a deep breath and looked at the handsome man who was seated not too far from him. 

“I can do this, it’s like being in a play," Kenny thought.

“I’ll pretend to be Marianne for now, and when I meet the owner of this body then we’ll find a way to switch back," getting a bit more confident, Kenny wheeled himself a bit closer to where Francois is.

Francois, on the other hand, who is reading some papers did not look in Marianne’s way but he is aware about the lady’s reaction. She seems to be scared of him. He knows that Marianne is looking on his way but he thought that it’s best to wait for her to talk to him.

Professing to himself that he is courageous, Kenny plastered a smile, imagining how Marianne would have smiled to Francois. Kenny also observed earlier that the woman’s face he is possessing is very beautiful. If she is not stuck in a wheelchair, he swore that this lady would have attracted a lot of mankind, men and women would have adored her. Unfortunately, this beauty belongs to a man who does not appreciate any superficial things. Well, he doesn’t appreciate anything! 

“ Firstly, I must apologize to him, afterall, I was rude earlier, though I doubt that he cares about it”, secondly, pretend that due to the fall, I don’t remember anything that happened and so I can’t explain what he is asking me, then lastly, I must think of a logic way for him to take me to Yorkshire. I must go to the barracks and check if Marianne is living in my body." It shouldn’t be a problem as I am his wife, he would agree with me as long as it is within reasonable matters.” Kenny thought.

Kenny who is still smiling nicely, moves a bit closer to Francois. He was about to apologise, but then he saw the front page of the newspaper that Francois was reading, his plan to smile nicely and act like a lady had just banish in an instant.

“What the heck!!” he exclaimed, then barbarically snatched the paper from Francois’s hands.

On the front page are bold letters with his name on it “Dr. Kenny Jones, of Catterick Garrison Hospital had passed away."

With a trembling hand, Kenny reads it again, he carries on reading to the page where it says "continue to page ..." silently cursing these people who work at the newspaper as to why they have to make it hard for people to read the newspaper.

“Dr. Kenny Jones’s body was found hanging in his room. The discovery was found by his flatmate. A suicide is the most probable cause, but the police are still investigating to eradicate any doubt.” Kenny carried on reading the rest and reread it over and over again. He thought of calling the hospital to ask about it as there must be some mistake. He spotted Francois’ phone on top of his suitcase. He grabbed it immediately but he cannot use it as the phone is locked.

He finally noticed Francois who is silently observing him and Annie who has a puzzle and concern look on her face.

Kenny wants to tell them that he is not dead, but how could he explain?

“Would you like to use my phone?” Francois asked him.

“YES!” Kenny said loudly but then realized how badly he answered him.

“Yes, please," he said politely.

“Do you know Dr. Kenny Jones?” questioned Francois, though he did not take the phone to unlock it.

“Huh? Uhm ... sort of," answered Kenny, then he thought of Francois position before, surely he still have contacts with people.

“Do you know him? Could you find out if he is really dead?”  Kenny asked Francois hesitantly  but also eagerly. He knew that it would be easier for Francois to get reliable information than him, knowing he’s still in Marianne’s body.

“I was there yesterday, I heard some soldiers talking about it, I’ve not seen it, but it couldn’t be a hoax. Surely, they wouldn’t just write that in a national newspaper if it is not true," Francois explained.

Kenny who is having mixed emotions is staring at him. 

“But, I’ll call someone to inquire about it, if that's what you want," stated Francois while reaching on the phone.

After talking to someone on the phone, he puts it down.

"Dr. Kenny Jones commited suicide, that was from the intelligence office," said Francois unemotionally.