“It looks like he may have a case of amnesia. I won't know how bad until we do a few more tests.” He looks at me, “In the meantime, I’m going to ask you a few questions.”
I nod and give him permission.
“What’s your name?”
“Brice Harte.”
The doctor looks at my mom, and I notice her eyes widen ever so slightly.
“Where do you go to school?”
“Williams Point High School.”
“Do you know why you’re here?”
“Based on the splitting headache I have, I’d say a baseball accident. Shit! Mom! What day is it? I have to tell coach I decided to join the minors.” I look at the doctor in a panic, “I can still play ball, right?”
“Relax, dear. You’ve only been out for less than a day. You have time. Brice, what’s your girlfriend’s name?” Mom asks quizzically.
“Heather Westport, why? Where is she? Does she know I’m here?”
“And how long have you two been dating?”
“I don’t know. Since July, I think.”
Mom looks at me curiously and then asks to speak with the doctor out in the hall. They open the door, and the strange girl is still there, biting her thumb, waiting, watching. Who is she and why is she here?
*****
Diane and the doctor step into the hall. Diane looks at me and they move down the hall, still not out of earshot.
“The girl he thinks he’s dating is his ex. They broke up in August, right before school started. They dated briefly for a couple of weeks.”
This can't be possible. Does he think he’s still dating Heather?
“It is possible his memory has blocked out certain people for now. It is also possible his memory has switched places, times, and even people around, putting new people in situations they originally weren’t a part of and completely forgetting others.”
“Well, how long does it take to heal from this kind of thing?”
“Unfortunately, the lasting effects of a brain injury are hard to predict?”
“So, is this permanent?” Her eyes glance back to me as I wait with bated breath.
“It’s hard to tell. It’s best to take it one day at a time. Surround him with the people he is most comfortable with, and maybe something will jog his memory.”
I find my voice and make my way over to them, my arms wrapped tightly around my body in an attempt to hold myself together. “So, you’re saying he has no idea who I am?”
“I’m sorry, miss, but yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. It seems as though anyone tied to Robert is unrecognizable.”
“But he knew he needed to tell Coach about his decision; Robert made that decision.” I’m grasping at straws, but I can't help myself.
“Presley,” Diane says like she’s pitying me.
I don’t need pity; I need someone to fix him.
“Coach still calls him Brice. Not Robert. You heard him the other night. As much as you don’t want to believe it, right now, Robert is gone, along with all his memories which, includes you. You have the opportunity to follow your dream. Turn in your acceptance to South Carolina, pursue what you originally wanted and if you two reconnect again, then you know you two were meant for one another.”
I can't fucking believe what I’m hearing. His mother, my mom’s best friend, is fucking happy her son can't remember me.
“You two were becoming entirely focused on one another. It’s not healthy, Presley.”
I stand there in utter disbelief as she thanks the man who has single-handedly crushed my hopes of everything being okay and goes back into Robert’s room. I get a glimpse of him as the door swings open and slowly closes. He stares at me the same way you would see a random person, no hint of recognition. As the door swings shut, it’s as if it’s closing on our future together as well.
I walk back to the waiting room in a full daze. Nothing matters at this point, and I sit there totally and utterly alone. Gone. He’s gone. My future with him is gone. My heart races. I repeat those words over and over until I’m rocking myself, tears streaming down my face as I try to close my eyes to hold them back, but it’s useless. This is so much worse than a breakup. At least in a breakup, both parties know it ended, and you move forward.
But this, this is a fate worse than death. I have a sea of memories of us, I have a picture of what our future looked like, and he has nothing. He can move on as if nothing happened, because, in his mind, nothing happened, whereas I’m in limbo, watching and wondering if he will remember me. Waiting on a miracle. I’ll have to give up on him to move forward.
The doctor said to surround him with people and things to help him remember, but how can I even be around him if he’s afraid of me? The look on his face gutted me. He was afraid of me. No amount of force can bring his memory back, only time.
I feel a strong, unfamiliar arm around my shoulders; I try to open my eyes, but I can't. It’s not the arm I want holding me, reassuring me everything is going to be okay. It’s not Robert.
“Presley,” his voice sounds deep and gravelly.
Coach? I give into him and cry into his chest, “Tell me it’s a dream. Please, let this all be a dream. Please, help me wake up. I need to wake up.”
He stays quiet and continues to hold me until I hear another voice.
“Shhh, sweet girl. We’re here.”
Liv? She rubs my back in slow circles, my breathing calms enough so I am no longer on the edge of hyperventilating, but my eyes are swollen shut.
“What’s her problem?”
You have got to be fucking kidding me. Heather? My eyes instantly fly open in time to see Liv take a swing at her.
“Who the fuck invited you?” I stand from my chair and shake off Coach’s grip on my arm. “Let go of me,” I snap, and he releases me.
“Enough, Presley!” Diane raises her voice, stopping my advances, and I notice the waiting room is full of our family and friends.
“Wow. Fucking wow! What the hell did I ever do to you, huh? What in the world made you ever question my loyalty to your son to the point you would rather he be with this bitch instead of me?”
I notice my mom flinch, and I laugh to myself. God, today keeps getting better and better. “Mom, did you know Diane didn’t want me to go Arizona with Robert?”
“What?”
“Yea, in fact, she told me I should accept South Carolina, do the long-distance thing, pretty much banking that long-distance relationships don’t work.”
“Diane?”
“Presley, when I told you to accept South Carolina, it wasn’t so you two would break up. I would never want that for either of you. You make him better. You’ve caused him to grow up, and I’m so thankful for you.”
“I call bullshit, and you know it.”
“Enough!” Gramps raises his voice and causes me to jump.
I’ve never heard him yell before unless he was yelling at the cattle.
“Presley, peanut, I know you’re hurting, and this is a lot to take in right now, but Heather is here for a reason I’m sure will be made very clear in a little bit. Now everyone’s tempers are running hot, and I think it’s best we all calm down. Liv, take Presley to the restroom and help her clean up. Heather if you so much as look at my grandbaby the wrong way, I will end you. Diane, obviously, there is a much bigger picture Presley has not been privy too, and you will explain to us all later. But for now, why don’t you explain why you called us all here.”