Morning arrived, bringing a terrible headache with it. Kody couldn't move without pain shooting through his brain. His body ached as if he'd been working all night.

"Ugh, " he groaned, shifting positions on the bed. The rustling of the sheet against his body vibrated throughout his body, triggering another round of stabbing pain in his head.

"What is wrong with me?" He whispered, and still sounded like he was at a heavy metal concert, standing in the first row.

His mouth was drier than a desert; every time he moved his tongue, trying to create moisture, it felt and sounded like sandpaper. The roughness and weight of his tongue left him feeling flummoxed. How dehydrated did one have to be for their tongue to turn into a box of sandpaper?

"I told you that party was way out of control!" A woman was yelling—her voice piercing Kody's head.

"I know." A male responded in barely a whisper. Kody knew instinctively that he had a rough morning and wanted silence to ease his aching head.

"So explain to me why you never returned from going over and asking them to tone it down until now?" The yelling woman demanded.

"I meant to do just that, make my request and return." The poor guy sounds baffled.

"So, why didn't you?"

"I knocked on the door. A woman greeted me. Places a drink in my hand and ordered me to drink." Kody heard the astonishment in his words. He understood how he felt, for it had happened the same way to him.

Deciding to go into the living room and help the man defend himself, Kody fought against the aches in his body, the swimming motion with each step, and the cluster of pain sporadically shooting throughout his brain to walk into the next room.

"Why did you join them? Why didn't you just say no? You knew I was waiting at home for you?" The woman angrily shouted.

"Ugh! Can you keep it down, please?" He said as he stepped into the empty living room.

"I saw you! You were bumping and grinding with those whores!" The woman said accusingly.

"What? I would never..."

"But you did! It's over!" She yelled, marching to the door and slamming it as she left.

Kody peeked out the peephole and saw his cousin's neighbor standing in front of her apartment, wiping tears from her eyes.

Stunned, he shook his head. Pain filled his entire head, bringing him to his knees. "What the... she sounded like she was in our living room."

How was he able to hear through walls? Maybe it was her yelling. The walls had to be thin.

"Why does my mouth feel so dry?" Kody heard their neighbor's boyfriend whisper.

"Drink some water, " Kody whispered, standing to go get his own pitcher of water.

"Thank you, " the man whispered back.

Astonished, Kody whispered, "You can hear me?"

"Yes. You sound like you are in the room with me, " he returned.

"What happened last night?" He asked his neighbor.

"I'm not sure, but I am going to my doctor to find out what is going on with me now. My headaches and I am talking to a stranger through a wall."

Having received no answers for what happened the night before, Kody went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. He guzzler it in two gulps. He poured a second glass, and it was gone just as quickly. Needing to fill up with water, he stuck his head under the faucet and lapped at the spout.

The water helping a little, very little, Kody stood, wondering where Brudford was hiding. He searched the apartment for a note. Every step, every sound, even the dim light, causes him pain in some form or another. Not being able to find any relief, he decided to go back to bed. Maybe, he was sick and needed to... his stomach clutched, causing Kody to double over in hunger pain.

"When was the last time I ate? You would think I hadn't eaten in days."

Kody stumbled into the small square kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, and onions sat on the first shelf; he grabbed them to make a vegetarian sandwich, one of his favorite meals. As he closed the refrigerator door, he noticed raw ground beef. He didn't usually eat meat; he and his parents are what they grew on the farm. But his stomach urged him to reach for the meat. Shaking his head, sending another round of pain through his brain, Kody shut the door.

He set the armload of vegetables on the table, retrieving a bowl from the cabinet and a knife from the utensil drawer. He picked up the lettuce, and the pain intensified. Unable to bear it, he sank his teeth into the lettuce and chewed. Disgust and nausea filled his senses, and he spread the contents of his mouth onto the counter.

Lifting the lettuce, Kody took a whiff. It stunk. He lifted each vegetable in turn, and they all carried a putrid odor. He tossed them in the trash.

"Why doesn't he clean out his refrigerator? Now, what am I going to eat?" Ground beef flashed into his thoughts, and the saliva in his mouth increased.

Kody brought the ground beef out and plopped it into a frying pan. The sizzle filled his ears and the odor filtered through his nostrils along with anticipation, increasing the intense hunger pains.

He felt like a kid receiving a present from Santa at Christmas, bouncing back and forth, waiting for the burger to cook. He usually are his meat well done. Today, medium rare would have to do. Breaking off pieces of the burger, he chopped on the tasty substance straight from the frying pan.

Grease mixed with saliva dripped down his chin until the last piece was eaten. Then and only then did he think to clean his face, removing the evidence of his messy eating.

Kody's stomach rumbled a thank you as the desire to sleep took hold of his body. Sprawling across the sofa, he surrendered to the desire.