Sophie's swim

The room was dark. It was the same as Jack's but the furniture was the wrong way round. The bathroom was to his left, not his right. The screen flickered with a pale light, illuminating two single beds. Jack tip-toed around the near bed. Only a tousled mass of blonde hair indicated the identity of its occupant.
Jack squatted down by the second bed so Sophie's face was only inches away from his. In the light from the screen he could make out her upper lip moving in time with her breathing.
He put out his hand and touched her forehead. His palm felt a surge of heat. It was as if he'd touched a sun-baked stone. The pain woke him up. His hand tingled with the memory of it. He had a headache. He slipped off to sleep again.
It was the morning of the first day of the 2012 Olympics. Jack was aware of it as he surfaced from his sleep. The swimming events were scheduled to start straight after the ceremony. Sophie would be swimming that evening. Perhaps, he thought, that's why I've got this strange wet feeling.
Jack's skin felt like it had been plunged into a cool bath. He could feel a peculiar wetness around him. At the same time, he felt powerful. His shoulders, arms and legs were bursting with unused energy. It was as if he was emerging from a long illness and, although he was still on his sick-bed, his muscles felt new again. He was relieved when the feeling started to fade and his skin lost its ghostly clamminess.
The walkways of the competitor village buzzed with excitement as Jack strolled to the breakfast counter. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned round, alarmed. He found himself facing the chest of a much taller man.
"Hey, Brit. Remember me?"
"Jim," Jack answered. "Basketball man." They shook hands.
"You still living on the empty floor above me?"
"Yep, I'm still there. They should be moving me to the proper accommodation soon, though."
"How's your training going?"
"There’s a lot to learn but I'm picking it up."
"Well, I've been learning all I need to know just by walking around," said Jim. "I don't reckon I need help."
Jack was keen to change the subject. "Are you going to the opening ceremony?"
"Yeah! We'll all be there. It's the end of everything."
Jack looked up into Jim's face, surely he meant the beginning?
"It's the end of all the uncertainty," Jim said. "All the training. All the hoping. Will I make the squad? Is my form good enough? Will I be injured? It's the end of all that. I'm here now. After today, they can't take it away from me." He puffed out his chest and it nearly hit the end of Jack's nose. "I'm an Olympian. Whatever happens after today, I can say that. I'm an Olympian."
Jack wondered if Sophie was thinking the same way.
"Anyway," said Jim, "I'm heading for training. You look after yourself."
They shook hands and Jack was engulfed in loneliness once again as Jim walked away.
The breakfast counter was doing good business. Jack took his tray to his usual spot by the window. He could watch the athletes jogging by. He thought about what Jim had said. Did his sister see it the same way? Is it the end of a long hard road for you as well, Sophie? he asked.
"What?" It was Sophie's voice. Jack looked round. Oh no! What's she doing here? My cover's blown, he thought.
"What?" He heard it again. This time he realised it wasn't a noise he was hearing through his ears. It was inside his head.
"Sophie?" He didn't say it …