The Morning After

The sun had barely risen over the horizon, casting a warm glow over the hospital room where Harry and Lloyd had spent the night. The beeping of machines and the soft hum of the air conditioning provided a stark contrast to the chaos that had erupted on the side of the road just hours before. Harry, lying in his bed, yawned widely, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand. He looked around the room, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings, and his expression changed from one of confusion to alarm. He tried to sit up, but a wave of drowsiness washed over him, forcing him back onto the pillow. Lloyd, on the other hand, was sitting up in his bed, looking remarkably better than he had the night before. His face was still pale, but his eyes were clear, and he seemed to be in good spirits. He noticed Harry struggling to stay awake and smiled weakly. "Hey, man, how are you feeling?" Lloyd asked, his voice soft and gentle. Harry blinked slowly, his eyes half-closed. "I...I don't know," he mumbled, his words slurred. "What happened?" Lloyd chuckled. "You don't remember? We ate that crappy beef jerky, and then...well, you know." Harry's eyes widened, and he tried to sit up again, but his body felt heavy, as if weighed down by an invisible force. "Oh, yeah...the jerky. And then...and then what?" Lloyd shrugged. "I think we got food poisoning or something. But I'm feeling pretty good now. Just tired." Harry nodded, his eyelids drooping. "Me too...tired." As the morning wore on, Harry's behavior became increasingly strange. He would start talking, then trail off into incoherent mumbling. He would try to get out of bed, but then forget why he was getting up in the first place. Lloyd, on the other hand, seemed to be recovering quickly, chatting with the nurses and asking for food. The doctor came in to check on them, and Lloyd was able to provide a coherent account of what had happened the night before. Harry, however, just stared blankly ahead, his eyes unfocused. The doctor nodded thoughtfully. "It seems that both of you have made a full recovery, but I'm not sure what's causing Harry's... unusual behavior. We'll need to run some more tests to determine the cause." Lloyd frowned, concern etched on his face. "What do you mean? He's going to be okay, right?" The doctor smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure he will be, but for now, let's just focus on getting him comfortable and figuring out what's going on." As the doctor left, Lloyd turned to Harry, who was staring at him with a vacant expression. "Hey, man, I'm here. You're going to be okay." But Harry just blinked slowly, his eyes glazing over, and mumbled something incoherent.