Sinus Infection

Ray Rasmussen woke with a start.

He dreamt that he had been having sex with an alien. The act was not sexy but more mechanical, like they were performing the act for procreation. It was pure, unemotional sex.

There was some pressure in his sinuses, but his mind was still focused on his dream.

The dream bothered him.

Did he initiate the interaction? Or did the alien?

Ray frowned.

Why was I fucking an alien in the first place?

The alien could only be remembered in fragmented blurs. It was off-white and humanoid based on the flashes of arms and legs that blinked through his mind. Ray clearly remembered the expressionless face with black reflective eyes and a small mouth.

He couldn’t remember if the alien had any distinctive sex organs.

It must’ve had them… I was fucking it.

Ray looked over at the alarm clock sitting on top of his bedside table: 12:51pm.

He yawned, slowly sitting up.

The pressure in his sinuses had increased and was starting to feel congested.

Don’t tell me I’m getting a cold.

He pulled the blanket back and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. When he stood up, he arched his back and stretched. His ears were plugged, making him feel off-balance and he staggered into the bathroom.

His hands took a hold of the sink and he regained his balance. In the mirror, he saw his brown hair was messy from a rough night of sleeping while his eyes were droopy and bloodshot. The skin around his nose and eyes appeared puffy and red, almost swollen.

In other words, he looked like shit.

Ray turned the cold water on and splashed a few handfuls onto his face. While the temperature was cool and refreshing, his sinuses throbbed in pain as the chilly water hit them. It felt like brain freeze and he clutched his sinuses with his thumb and forefinger, trying to massage the pain away.

Cursing, he left the bathroom and headed for the kitchen.

Ray walked to the fridge and yanked it open, causing all of the bottles on the door to shift violently in their place.

For some reason the fridge smelled like furnace oil to Ray. It was beginning to make him nauseous on top of his already painful sinuses, which were now completely plugged. He realized that he was breathing through his mouth. Before closing the door, he grabbed the only appealing item off the top shelf: a can of Red Bull.

Reaching his finger underneath it, Ray pulled back on the can’s tab, releasing a small fine mist along with the familiar audible hiss. He raised the can to his mouth and gulped it down. With his sinuses so plugged, there was almost no taste but at the same time, he found it to be refreshing.

An image of a warm bath suddenly flashed in Ray’s mind.

Soaking in the tub for a bit sounded good and he went back into the bathroom, grimacing as the pain in his sinuses grew worse.

Kneeling down beside the bathtub, he stuck the rubber plug into the drain and turned the water on. The sound of water splashing against the tub was uncomfortable but Ray tolerated it knowing he would soon be relaxing. Once the water was deep enough, he turned the taps off and slipped out of his jogging pants.

He slowly sat down in the water, allowing himself to become submerged up to his chin and was soon deep in thought thinking about the alien.

Once again, the blurred, fragmented images of intercourse flooded his mind and Ray was surprised to see that he was sporting an erection.

Blood began to trickle out of his nostrils. It was thin, at first, and Ray wiped it away with the back of his hand.

Then something moved.

Something was stirring inside his sinuses.

Ray grabbed at his nose, petrified that he could feel something moving underneath his fingertips.

The pain was excruciating.

Whatever was in there was turning itself around. Blood was now running from both nostrils into the water, clouding it crimson.

Breathing quickly became difficult as blood poured down the back of his throat, choking out his attempts to scream.

His back arched and contorted in pain as whatever was inside his sinuses began to slide down.

It reached the opening of his nostril and dangled for a second before it fell into the water.

After it splashed in the water, Ray looked down and saw that the thing looked like the alien he saw in his dream, only smaller. It was no bigger than a hotdog with a distinctive head, arms and legs.

It looked up at Ray.

Blood continued to pour down from Ray’s nose and he felt weak. His body grew numb and his head slid below the water.

Choking as he inhaled the bloody bath water, he managed to open his eyes one final time.

The little creature smiled at him before it leapt over the edge of the tub.

~ Jon Olson

© Copyright 2014 Jon Olson. All Rights Reserved