Where is the love?
Sky put his arms around Andy who had fallen asleep after a tiring day-trip around the city. Sky’s idea had been to take him to all those places they had visited in the past. Andy had remarked he found some spots familiar. Well, familiarity was better than nothing. Six long months and Andy was still struggling to regain his memory. Sky felt sorry for both Andy and himself. He wondered how long they had to keep trying. But he knew the answer already — he would keep on trying forever. Or, at least, until Andy was comfortable with his new life at an old place creating new memories with people from his past.
He’d been in touch with Dr. Sun to report on Andy’s progress. Dr. Sun had advised him to keep on trying. The headaches had almost vanished. That was a good sign. The doctor wanted him to prepare Andy for the worst-case scenario. It looked increasingly difficult for Andy to regain his lost memory. He knew there was an outside chance of Andy rejecting him as his lover.
Over the past days he had realized he needed Andy as much as Andy needed him. The accident had shaken him up too. Sky was afraid of losing everything. Losing Andy once had been painful. He couldn’t bear to lose him again. He had to find a way to make Andy fall in love with him.
He bent down to kiss Andy’s cheek. Andy stirred.
“What’s up? What are you doing?” Andy pushed him away.
“Nothing,” Sky said with disappointment.
“Where is mom?”
“She is at the neighbour’s.”
“Why?” Andy sat up.
“Don’t know. Is there something you need?”
“Yes. I’m hungry.”
“Let me serve dinner.” Sky stood up.
“No, thanks. I can do it. I must do things myself.”
“Sure. Shall I call her?” Sky offered. “Do you want us to eat together?”
“Yes. Thanks.”
Sky left Andy and went to call Mei Lai. When they returned they found Andy in the kitchen. Mei Lai helped him set the food on the table. They sat down to eat the vegetables and rice she had cooked.
“I wanna look for a job,” Andy said, after finishing the first mouthful.
“Great,” said Mei Lai. “Do you want to rest and recover first?”
“No. I’ve recovered. I don’t feel weak any more.”
“What’s the hurry?” asked Sky. He was supporting Andy already. Why did he want to find a job before he had regained his memory?
“I don’t think I can remember everything from my past. I’ve tried it for six months already. It doesn’t seem to work.”
“It will come back to you slowly, son,” said Mei Lai.
“Yes, yes. That’s what I keep hearing all the time. I’m the one who’s living it.”
“We are in this together. The three of us.” Sky tried to calm him down.
“Well, I don’t wanna be a burden. I wanna stand on my feet again like you said I did in the past.”
“Okay. Have you thought about what you’d like to do?” asked Sky.
“I don’t know. You had told me I worked in an office before…?” He dropped off.
“Yes.” Sky didn’t know what else to say.
“Can I apply for a similar job here?”
“You did administrative work. That requires basic computer skills at the very least,” Sky said.
“How basic?” asked Andy.
“A little more than what you’ve been learning recently.” Sky was helping Andy operate a PC almost everyday. Although it looked promising, Andy wasn’t there yet.
“Okay. What else can I do then?”
“Do you want some vegetables?” Mei Lai asked him and served him some without waiting for a response.
“Let’s see. Let me ask my friends if they have any vacancy. We can check the newspapers too,” Sky said.
“Good.” Finally, Andy smiled.
After dinner, Sky showed Andy how to look up postings in the jobs section of the Guilin Life website. Andy was happy to browse on his own. Since it was getting late, Sky decided to return home. He said goodbye to Andy and went to the living room. Mei Lai insisted on walking with him for some distance. She informed Andy and both of them set off.
“Is there something you wanted to tell me?” asked Sky.
“Don’t know how to say this,” she said.
“Did Andy say something again?”
“Yeah.” Mei Lai was taking her time. “It’s a bit embarrassing, son.”
“What did he say?”
“He said he can’t remember anything about his past life with you. He doesn’t believe you were his lover. He sees somebody else in this weird dream he has two to three times a week.”
“What dream?”
“It’s a dream in which he’s waiting for you somewhere. When you arrive, you run to him and hug him.”
“That’s a good dream, right?” Sky didn’t see what could be bad about it.
“No. After you hug him he finds out your face is not yours.”
“What does that mean? My face is not mine?”
“He sees somebody else’s face there,” said Mei Lai. “Sorry, please, don’t mind him. He can’t remember anything. He’s helpless.”
“So am I, mom. What am I supposed to do?” Sky felt tired. All the stress was making him weak. He sat down on a bench next to the park they were walking by. Mei Lai sat down beside him and put a hand on his shoulder.
“I don’t know what to say. You know I want to see you together.” She sighed. “Give him more time.”
“It’s like meeting him all over again. A fresh beginning. The only difference is he doesn’t seem interested in me this time.”
“He is not a bad boy. You know that. The accident was beyond your control. Don’t blame yourself for what happened.”
“I know but I can’t stop blaming myself.” Sky sighed.
“You know everything about his past. You are the one I can really rely on to take care of him.”
“I know.”
“I’m sure you can make him fall in love with you again. Just don’t give up on him,” said Mei Lai. “Please.”
They hugged each other and sobbed. Sky hadn’t cried in a while. It was good to let it out.
