"Doctor, Doctor."

"Yes?"

"I think he is waking."

"See if you can find his wife."

"Yes Doctor."

"No need to talk."

"Where…"

"You're in a hospital."

"Where is my wife?"

"The nurse is getting her."

"What…"

"You were in an accident."

"What year is it?"

"Year?"

"Yes, year?"

"It's 2008."

"2008."

"Yes. I'll be right back."

"Doctor is my husband Ok?"

"He is awake."

"Is he Ok?"

"I'm not sure, he may have some memory loss. For some reason he asked what year it is."

"I want to see him. I want to see him now."

"Ok, but Mrs. Ryan…"

"Steve."

"Kate."

"Kate?"

"Mrs. Ryan."

"Doctor, what is wrong?"

"The accident may have caused some memory loss."

"Memory loss?"

"It could just be temporary amnesia."

"Let me talk with him. Steve, Steve it is Julie."

"Julie? Julie?"

"Yes, your wife, Julie."

"Julie. Yes, you look like Julie, little older."

"Well, that's not a nice thing to say."

"My wife?"

"Yes, your wife."

"We married?"

"Yes, for over thirty years."

"Oh, my."

"You don't remember?"

"I remember you, but I don't remember marrying you."

"What do you remember?"

"Mrs, Ryan, you may not want to go there yet."

"I think I do."

"You are stubborn, Julie."

"You remember that."

"I, uh remember about a week of knowing you."

"Really, what week?"

"Our first week."

"You're kidding, I barely remember then."

"It wasn't that memorable."

"It was memorable. It was just a long time ago."

"We met at the lunch line. You bought me a hotdog and milk."

"It was a hamburger."

"Right, it was a hamburger."

"What else do you remember?"

"You played Joni Mitchell's Blue, and played Horse, and didn't finish, and you Mother interrupted us."

"What, playing Horse."

"No, she interrupted us kissing."

"I remember that."

"You do? I thought I was the one with memory problems."

"Well, you don't have any problems with our first two days, and I can't forget our first kiss."

"I think we kissed a little bit more that week, but instead of that and holding hands that is all we did."

"That's all?"

"I don't remember anything else."

"That week?"

"We were supposed to go to a concert, but I don't remember going."

"We went."

"Was it good?"

"It was more than good."

"I don't know what that means."

"For a writer you can be so dense."

"A writer?"

"A writer, you don't remember?"

"Remember, I don't remember."

"Mrs. Ryan I think you should let him rest a little."

"I've rested enough I think."

"Let's let him stay at least one more night and make sure he is Ok, and then we can release him."

"Don't worry honey, I'll be right here. They made a bed up for me right next to you. I'll call the boys."

"Boys?

"Hello dear, How are you doing?"

"Dear?"

"You still don't remember me?"

"Remember, I remember you, but not you now, or anything about you for over thirty-five years. I wish I did."

"Well, maybe we can do a little catching up. Maybe that will spark your memory.'

"Maybe, I hope so."

"Have you eaten?"

"They brought in something, I couldn't eat."

"You aren't feeling well?"

"No, I feel Ok. I am too upset to eat"

"That's right; you won't eat if you are upset."

"I can't."

"Well, I need to eat, I will be right back."

"Hey, how are you doing? I've been holding your hand for a while. I guess you needed the sleep."

"I guess I'm a little sleepy."

"Ready to get something to eat?"

"Not really, I'm thirsty though."

"Here, I have a bottle of water."

"Thanks."

"I guess we need some catching up to do. Are you ready?"

"Sure, maybe you can start after our first week."

"Ok, I mentioned the concert."

"You said it was more than good."

"I guess I meant that it meant the real start of our relationship. I guess you could say that I fell in love with you then."

"So does that mean that your Mother didn't go?"

"She went all right. My Mother was very good at not interfering. She sat and listened to the music (I think she became a fan of Joni Mitchell then). We mostly listened to the music, but when we had a chance we also talked."

"We talked before that."

"I guess when you do something special with someone; when you share something with someone there develops a special bond with them. While you were… out I was usually sitting next to you and holding your hand. I wished I could have been closer to you, but the most I did was to kiss you. I did play some music; mostly I played some of the music we played when we first knew each other. I guess I was just being sentimental."

"What about after the concert?"

"I guess we were never officially boyfriend and girlfriend. We did spend a lot of time together. Before I knew you I didn't really have any close friends. I had quite a few friends, but none were close.

"When we graduated I went to college at Yale. Since you weren't a good student you didn't start college right away. I went to Yale by myself for the first semester. You followed me after that. At first I still lived in the dorms, and you got a job at a bookstore in the area.

"I spent so much time at your apartment that I just moved in that summer. We got married that summer."

"Married?"

"Yes, we're married."

"I figured that."

"When I finished at the University I finished my education, and got my Masters and Doctorate."

"All on my pay at the bookstore."

"Well, you were the one earning the money, but I did get scholorships."

"You were smart then."

"Still am."

"Yea."

"And you had a variety of jobs. Unfortunately few moved a lot through the years. After School I worked at a few different schools, so your job history is a little sketchy."

"And what about my education?"

"You have taken classes through the years and audited more. You never got a degree. You and school haven't really gotten along very well."

"Not bright enough, disabled?"

"Let's just say that you are on a different plane, not better, just different (although I think better)."

"So, what am I, a janitor somewhere?"

"I'll get to that."

"And what do you teach?"

"Literature, I specialize only in obscure authors like Charles Williams. Well, eventually I ended up here."

"And here is?

"Well, right here is a hospital in Boston."

"And here career wise is?"

"Harvard."

"Harvard."

"Harvard."

"Well, that is pretty cool. You missed a lot of details."

"Yes, but I am not you, and I would like to get to bed eventually. I do need to get back to work someday."

"You said we have kids?"

"Yes, two teenage sons."

"Hey you kids need to get to bed, or at least he does."

In chorus. "Yes Mom."

"I think she's right. I'll turn off the light. I'm not ready to sleep yet so I'll see you in the morning."

"Night."

"I checked on Mr. Ryan. She is actually lying on his bed next to him. They look so cute."

"You talk as if they are a couple of kids."

"Well, they still look cute."

"The car is ready and the nurse insists that I walk you out with this wheelchair. Don't give me that look. You men think you are too much man to be coddled — even you. Now get in this chair."

"Nice car."

"Well we indulged just recently."

"Oh, yea, so a… what do you do at Harvard?

"I am actually a Professor."

I am impressed. So as Harvard Professor you must make pretty good money."

"I do fine for myself, but that is not why we could afford this car."

"Rob a bank?"

"A publisher's bank."

"Counterfeit?"

"How you got there from what I said I'll never know."

"I have a strange mind."

"Can you walk?"

"Of course, at least to the bathroom."

"This is less."

"Back to the car."

"I guess I need to tell more of the story. And maybe I could show you. We can make a side trip. When our first son was born we decided that you would stay home with them and I would work. This seemed to work out well for you since you spend your time developing your writing. For years you wouldn't even attempt to publish, but eventually I convinced you. Here we are."

"Where we are?"

"At the Borders."

"Ok, you want to buy a book?"

"Well, always, but I want to show you something. Are you Ok to walk?"

"We'll see. I'm a little stiff. What happened to me?"

"Let's just say that we will need to buy you a new bike. You don't remember?"

"Apparently not. Where are we going?"

"Fiction."

"What am I looking at?"

"About a half dozen books so far. You would have been further along if you'd started earlier."

"What genre?"

"We don't really know. You won't seem to choose."

"I bet that makes the suits crazy."

"I think that's why you do it. Since I'm here I think I'll graze. You want anything?"

"Coffee."

"Here, get me a cup too."

"Thanks, I'll go take a look at the music while I'm here. Where will you be?"

"You'll just have to find me."

"Here, I had to guess what you want in your coffee."

"And?"

"Just cream."

"That'll do. The music section is over there."

"So what did you get?"

"A CD."

"You can't get anything past me. I suppose you'll tell me in your own time which CD you got."

"Eels."

"Eels?

"Yes, You might like them."

"I'm sure in time I will."

"Hopefully not in another life."

"Sure, whatever. You have everything you need?"

"Yes."

"This is our house?"

"I guess we picked it for the location."

"We have good taste. Where are the kids?"

"They have been staying at friends houses. Are you hungry?"

"Not really."

"You need to have something."

"Then I'll get a light soup."

"You sit here, and I'll get it for you. Here's a blanket if you're cold. I'll put some heat on."

"Honey you want to come to bed?"

"I'm not ready yet."

"Ready for what."

"Don't give that hurt look. It's not you."

"Then what is it."

"I feel I don't know you enough. It's like going to bed with a stranger. I feel like we are still a couple of teenagers just starting to get to know each other."

"Well, uh, I guess you can go to bed in the guest room."

"I'll be ok here. I'm not sleepy. I have my tea and my book."

"Ok, good night then."

Julie walked downstairs. Steve was lying on the lounge chair with his book open on his lap. She pushed the blanket around him, leaned over and kissed him on the lips. Julie picked up his book and a paper fell out. There were a couple of poems on it.

---------------------------------

Julie put the paper back in the book and put the book on the stand. She took the tea cup and put it in the kitchen. She stopped and looked at him for a moment then she leaned over and kissed him on the lips again — a little longer this time.