Who am I?
It felt as if his head were exploding. There was a constant throbbing. Somebody, trapped inside his head, was hammering the walls of his skull. To make things worse, his eyes hurt too. He couldn’t bear the light.
When he came around again, he sensed the presence of people beside him. He squinted at them. There were two of them, a man and a lady. Both were looking down at his face.
“How are you, Mr. Yu?” It was the man.
“My head hurts. My eyes hurt.”
“That’s expected,” said the man. “I’m your doctor, Dr. Sun.”
“Doctor?” What did he need a doctor for?
“Yes. Mr. Yu, you are in a hospital.”
“Hospital?” He raised his right hand to touch his head and found it bandaged up.
“Don’t touch it, Mr. Yu. Your stitches haven’t healed yet,” said the doctor. “Could you pull the blinds and dim the light please?”
The lady carried out the request.
“Now, Mr. Yu, please, open your eyes slowly.” The doctor said to him.
He opened his eyes again, very slowly. The light hurt again but not as much as before. He could see better now.
“What happened to me?”
“You had an accident, Mr. Yu. Your friend brought you here.” The doctor turned towards the lady. “Please see if Mr. Qin is outside.”
There was a drip connected to his left hand. The plastic bottle hung from a post next to his bed. It didn’t hurt.
“Mr. Yu, can you remember anything?”
“Remember what?” Why was this guy calling him Mr. Yu. His name was not Mr. Yu. His name was — ? He panicked. He couldn’t remember his own name! “Who am I? What’s my name? I can’t remember anything!”
“Your name is Andy, Mr. Yu. Does that name sound familiar?” The doctor looked concerned.
Andy? Andy? The name sounded familiar. Andy?
“Yes, it does. That’s my name?” he asked. Why couldn’t he remember anything?
“Yes, it is,” the doctor said.
The lady entered the room with a handsome guy. The face looked familiar but he couldn’t remember anything beyond that.
“Andy! You’re awake. Good. How do you feel?” the guy asked him.
“Do I know you?”
“What’s this, Doctor?”
“Mr. Qin, please, follow me outside. I’ll explain.” Then the doctor turned towards him. “Mr. Yu, please, excuse us for a few minutes. We’ll be right back. “
Both of them walked out of the room. The lady returned and stood near his bed as if she were observing him. She was in a uniform. A nurse! But who was this Mr. Qin? Why couldn’t he remember anything?
The two men returned.
“Mr. Yu, this is Mr. Qin, your friend. He brought you in after your accident,” the doctor said.
“Call me Sky.” Mr. Qin smiled.
“I know you’re a bit alarmed right now because you can’t remember much. Please calm down,” the doctor said.
“Calm down? I can’t remember a thing!”
“We understand, Mr. Yu. You’re experiencing a loss in memory due to the injury to your head. Don’t worry, this is temporary and reversible. Do you feel dizzy?”
“No. But I’ve got a headache right now.” His head was throbbing like crazy.
“Don’t worry, I’ll prescribe some medicines to bring it down. Since you are looking good otherwise, we’ll discharge you in two days.”
“Then? Where do I go? I don’t remember anything!”
“Andy, I’ll take you back to your mom in Guilin,” Mr. Qin told him.
“My mom? Guilin?” Somehow Guilin sounded familiar. He couldn’t remember a mom.
“Yes. Guilin, our hometown.” Mr. Qin gave him a gentle smile. “Back to our old days.”
“However, while you’re here at the hospital, you’re advised more rest and sleep.” With that the doctor and the lady left the room.
So his name was Andy. At least that was a start. He had to find out more.
Mr. Qin sat down next to his bed and reached out for his hand. Instinctively, Andy withdrew his hand.
“It’s okay, Andy. I’m your lover.”
“Lover? I don’t remember anything. Sorry.”
“That’s okay. Don’t be hard on yourself. Try to relax and get more sleep. The doctor said you’ll get your memory back soon.” Mr. Qin smiled. “Until then, I can tell you about your past. Our past.”
“What’s my past? What’s our past? Are you really my lover?” asked Andy.
“Yes. You need to trust me on this one, okay? We are in this together. You’re not alone.”
“Thank you, Mr. Qin. ” Andy hoped what Mr. Qin told him was true.
“You’re welcome, my love. Don’t call me Mr. Qin. Call me Sky. I hope your head doesn’t hurt too much.”
“It hurts. How long have we known each other for?”
“We go back a long time, Andy.”
“How’s my mom?” Andy asked.
“Your mom’s the best mom in the world. She’s sweet and caring. And she loves us very much,” Sky said.
“Who else do I have at home?”
“Just mom,” Sky said. “And me, of course.”
“Do you know how I got hurt?” Andy noticed the pain in his legs.
“You fell down a staircase,” Sky said.
“A staircase? How did I get there?”
“It’s in your office building. You must have been hurrying down the steps. You were carrying a lot of stuff in your bag.”
“Office? Where is it?” Andy wasn’t even sure whether he worked. He had to accept whatever Sky told him.
“It’s in Shanghai. We’re in Shanghai city.” Sky said.
“Why don’t I work in Guilin?”
Sky paused for a few moments. “We moved here some time ago. Now it’s time to return to Guilin,” he said.
“I can’t remember anything at all. Just remember your face but nothing beyond that.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll remember everything. I’ll take care of you until then. I’ll stay with you forever, Andy. I love you.”
Sky was a good guy, Andy thought. But why didn’t he feel any attachment towards him although his face looked familiar?
Andy wanted to learn more about himself, but he was exhausted. He couldn’t keep his eyes open any more. He fell asleep.
