Chapter Six:
The staff of Downton Abbey were unusually quiet when Thomas returned from Dr Clarkson's, and everywhere he went he felt their gazes following him, studying him doggedly; but as soon as he turned to confront them, they were looking somewhere else, pretending that they hadn't been watching him. So Thomas decided that it was simpler to ignore them entirely, and went straight to his room.
As soon as he lay down on his bed, a knock came at the door.
"Whoever it is, go away!" he commanded.
It didn't work, for a half-second later the door cracked open, and Jimmy poked his head in.
Thomas watched Jimmy through slitted lids as he came into the room and closed the door behind him.
"Mr Barrow‒"
"Did I say you could come in, Jimmy?"
He had the satisfaction of seeing Jimmy burn with shame; but still he remained.
Thomas sighed and stared up at the ceiling. "What do you want?"
"I just wanted to see how you were doing."
"How do you think?"
He heard Jimmy shuffling his feet and then taking a few steps closer to the bed. "You don't look too happy. What did the doctor say?"
"Nothing I didn't already know."
"Did he help you?"
"Is this the look of someone who has had their problems solved?" he asked in a sour tone, twisting to face Jimmy.
Jimmy frowned and crossed his arms over his chest in a vexed manner. "I don't know. You always look like that now."
Thomas's lips twitched with faint amusement. "I tend to smile when things are good, Jimmy. Just like everyone else."
Jimmy glared, but he couldn't resist the smile that eventually forced its way out.
They stared at each other for a long moment; and, seeing him as he was now, Thomas remembered how beautiful he thought Jimmy was. But he didn't want to think about that.
He let out a false yawn, and said, "I really appreciate your concern, Jimmy. But if you don't mind, I'd like to rest for a while." And without waiting for a response, Thomas rolled over and covered his face with his arm, a clear sign that he was finished.
Jimmy wanted to say more, practically trembled with it; but he also knew that Thomas desperately needed rest. And so he went, closing the door silently behind him.
He was frightened awake by loud, piercing screams. At first he thought it was part of his dream, but he'd been having a pleasant dream, not a nightmare ‒ certainly not something to scream about. It was only when he heard feet running past his door that he realized that the scream had been real‒that it had come from someone in the house.
He threw on a shirt and ran out to the hallway. A gathering of men was there, standing at the door to Thomas's room. Alfred came up behind to him, bleary-eyed and uncomprehending.
"What's going on, Jimmy? What's happened?"
Jimmy couldn't answer. He didn't know. He pushed his way forward through the crowd, toward the door, not caring that he was being rough. His heart was pounding and his stomach was in knots.
When he got to the room, one of the hall boys was there, his hand touching Thomas's arm. Thomas, who was coated in sweat and white as a sheet.
"What happened?" Jimmy asked the hall boy fiercely.
"I don't know. I was sleepin', an' I heard a scream, so I came. I only just got here meself."
"Is he hurt?"
"Don't look like it. But he don't look well, neither."
"You're not exactly a picture yourself," Thomas suddenly whispered in a strained voice, opening his eyes and greatly startling both the hall boy and Jimmy.
"What is going on here?" came Mr Carson's deep voice, booming from the hallway. He came into the room, but he hesitated when he saw Thomas lying in bed, looking very sickly. "Mr Barrow."
Thomas struggled to sit up. Jimmy leant a hand and helped him to prop himself up against the iron headboard. "Everything's all right, Mr Carson. It was just a nightmare," Thomas said.
Mr Carson searched Thomas's face closely, looking for something, some hint or clue as to Thomas's health and mental stability. Thomas accepted this blatant examination without a word or gesture of malice.
"Do you need to see the doctor?" Mr Carson eventually asked, clearly concerned with what he saw in Thomas.
"I do not. It was only a nightmare, Mr Carson. I'll be fine in a few minutes."
Once everyone leaves, was unspoken, but Mr Carson understood and, after waiting to make certain Thomas wasn't going to change his mind about the doctor, quickly moved to usher everyone away.
"Come along, Jimmy. Mr Barrow needs his rest."
Jimmy tried to linger, wanting to talk to Thomas; but Thomas caught Jimmy's eye and shook his head. Jimmy pressed his lips together, but unhappily obeyed and left with everyone else.
Alfred grabbed Jimmy's arm as they reached their room.
"What happened, Jimmy?"
Jimmy gently extracted his arm from Alfred's grip. "He says it was a nightmare."
Alfred's forehead creased. "That must've been some nightmare."
"Yes. It must've been." He turned the knob on his door and opened it. "Come on, go to bed."
Mr Carson stood outside Thomas's closed door, listening for any unusual noises and feeling rather odd over this concern he felt for Thomas Barrow. It was strange, how a year ago Thomas would never have been the one to inspire such feelings in Mr Carson; but after nearly having to leave his job with no recommendation, narrowly escaping prison, surviving a vicious beating, and now this, Mr Carson was beginning to feel almost protective of Thomas. He had had some hardships, recently; and Mr Carson was not made of stone.
All was quiet inside Thomas's room. Mr Carson turned away, and saw Mrs Hughes, Daisy, and a few of the other women standing at a distance, brought to the men's quarters by the sound of screams.
"Is everything a'right?" Daisy inquired as Mr Carson approached them, her words coloured with alarm.
"It was Thomas. He had a nightmare."
Daisy's mouth fell open in astonishment. "A nightmare?"
"Yes. It seems that whatever has been affecting him has just gotten worse." He addressed this to Mrs Hughes, whose face fell when she heard his words.
"Oh, dear me. What should we do now, Mr Carson? We can't leave him like this."
Mr Carson was wondering the same thing. "We wait, Mrs Hughes. That is all we can do for now. Wait, and watch."