Chapter 3

Joe was discharged from Psychiatric hospital and was given drugs.

The doctor assured Michael and Lucy that their son would be alright, all they had to do was give him the prescribed medications and remind him frequently of his past.

With the words of the doctor, the couples felt a lot better.

They held on to Joe as they walked out.

Joe felt pity for the couples knowing he wasn't their son, how does he get out of this mess he had gotten into?

“Wait a sec, he pulled, “if I'm in the kid's body, then who is in my body” he asked himself.

***

A woman could be seen at the front of a coffin with flowers in her hands, this woman had plenty of tears in her eyes and couldn't control it.

They were a few people behind her also holding flowers to keep on the coffin.

Mrs. Vera was heartbroken, she only got to see her son in his wedding suit dead.She would never forgive her, will she?

Emily's clouded eyes turned red visually, her only brother had died.

Imelda was also there, she stood in the background with great bereft.

Mr. Franklin showed up suddenly and to pay homage to the corpse.

Mrs. Vera gave him a slap immediately after sighting him, she couldn't control the rage she had towards Mr. Franklin.

She even went as far as blaming him for murdering her son, swearing that she won't let it go.

Mr. Franklin left at once, despite his hatred for Joe, he never wanted him dead.

He made sure to drop the same envelope Vera gave to him, he apologized to her as well.

***

Joe stared at the large room that was called his own.

He couldn't believe his eyes, for it was a combination of his room and his mother's.

Lucy closed the doors behind him, leaving him in the room with Eric.

“Is this really my room?” Joe questioned in amusement.

“Yeah! Indeed, it is, you don't remember anything, do you?” Eric spoke out.

“Well! Joe began," I'm not really….

“Eric!!! Interrupted Lucy as she opened the door slightly, making Eric leave in the middle of the conversation.

Joe sat down on the floor with his head bent down.

“ I should have just died” he thought.

Minutes later, Joe was called downstairs, he was informed that someone was searching for him.

“Who is she?” Joe asked.

“Man! You were really knocked out, Hun? Eric commented, telling Joe that she was his girlfriend.

The girl walked up to Joe and gave him a slap, making him respond with a hot slap.

Vanessa fell on the floor with great shock as Lucy came to the rescue.

Joe kept on wiping his mouth with his hands.

He ran upstairs quickly without looking back.

Lucy apologized to Vanessa, informing her about Joe's brain disorder.

Vanessa took her leave, hoping that Philip gets well soon.

Michael ran down from the stairs, he heard the sound of a slap a while back and was too busy to respond to it immediately.

The questions were written over his face when he looked at his wife.

She gave the answer also using facial expressions, looking at Gabriella, who wiped her tears before entering the car.

“It's going to be harder than we thought,” Michael confirmed to Lucy.

“They have to be a way to put him back, what about Eric” she suggested?

“Indeed, they are close”

“Great! We should talk to him, he will definitely help his brother out”.

Joe locked himself inside the room, he looked through the window and thought it was a good idea to run away because he couldn't bare the fact that he was away from his real home, gosh. What will his mother be going through right now.

He pushed one foot across the window, but withdrew it, seeing the gardener urinating close by.

“An old man like him is being so childish urinating in the open,” Joe snapped, ordering the man to leave his window.

The man apologized and left at once, even without completing his actions.

“ This boy must be wealthy” Joe affirmed, for the man called him sir.

However, Joe was not desiring a change of fate he passed through the window, he had to go home, no matter what, at least his mother would understand when she sees him.

As Joe moved toward the gate, he was stopped by the gatekeeper, who carried him back inside.

On sighting Joe in the gatekeeper's hands, Michael was determined to lock Joe up for his safety.

“Hence forth, Philip will stay indoor with tight security” Michael commanded, dashing out of sight.

“Why this father's attitude suddenly changed toward his favorite” Eric taught.

On hearing Michael's words, Joe begged and promised to be quiet from then on.

Joe sat confined in the room like a three-year-old scolded child.

Footsteps kept moving to and fro from his door sill, it was Lucy, she was worried about Joe.

She tried talking to Eric to help out, but he was afraid of getting beaten, who knows if his would be even worse.

The door opened slowly and quietly as Lucy peeped into Joe's room, he still had his hospital gown on and was fast asleep.

Lucy quickly beckoned on the house help to assist in giving him a shower and changing his wears.

Joe slept sound despite the hard bath.

“Is he okay?” The helper asked Eric with concern.

“No, he has no many memories of us” Eric responded.

“So does that mean he won't be aggressive again”

"No. But he will be terrifying, so get prepared.

Eric stepped out of the house and told the house help to keep an eye on him and alert him when he finally wakes up.

'Knock' knock' the sound came from the door.

Joe opened it after a while and found Lucy at the door.

“How are you doing sweetie” she asked, trying to feel his temperature.

Joe pulled her into the room and shut the room behind them.

Lucy had her eyes popped open as Joe pushed her to sit on the bed.

“Am sorry if what am about to tell you will break your heart” Joe began. “I'm not actually Philip and I my memory is intact, my real name is Joe,” he confessed.

Lucy stood up with pain in her eyes as she turned her heavyweight eyes to Joe.

“I knew it would get worse” she cried, running out of his room.

Joe wasn't getting any better either, if only he had drowned in the sea, all this wouldn't have been happening to him.

Mr. Michael walked into Joe's room and pulled him by the arm.

“Where are we going to?” Joe kept arguing as they climbed down the stairs.

He couldn't believe his eyes, a thirty-year looking man pulling a grandpa like him.

He taught people of his age lessons when they messed with him, but all that is gone thanks to this teenage body.

Michael pushed Joe into the car and drove off at once.

As they got to the express, Joe summoned the courage to apologize to be set free.

“We are going to the psychiatrist, you'll be

treated better there” Michael blotted out.

Having been there before and never wanted such an experience again, he confessed that he recalled everything.

“What do you remember?” Michael questioned just to be sure.

“Eh mm I… Yes! I remembered it was Eric who pushed me into the sea”.

“What!”

Michael reversed the car immediately with fury.

"What have I done? Joe questioned himself, beckoning on Michael to come down, or he would get them both killed.

As soon as they got home, Michael roared Eric's name.

Eric came down towards them to welcome them, but he was knocked on the head.

“It would have been a punch” Michael said, bottoming off his wrist button, he lifted his hands high to hit Eric but was stopped by Joe who confessed it was an accident and that he was the cause of it.

Michael left both of them alone and climbed upstairs.

Eric swayed his head to show the knock was nothing, he gave Philip a daring look afterward.

“You should have just told him the whole truth, instead of lying” he said to Joe.

Joe stood mute and watched how Eric climbed, stamping his feet hard on each staircase.

He really wished all this hadn't befallen upon him, now he would have to pretend to be someone else.

He will definitely need someone to help out with this new change to fit in.

Accepting this fate would be the hardest thing he had ever done, for he would be eighteen again and the opportunity to correct his past lies before him.