Chapter 1

I woke up and suddenly realized I had no idea where I was. I looked around the room and it looked like a hospital room. What was I doing here? Was I dreaming? I tried to sit up and fell back down due to being dizzy. I quickly found the nurses buzzer and pressed it at least a half dozen times. A nurse came running into my room, "You're awake! Oh my God!" she looked nervous as she grabbed her phone and called in the doctor before I could even say anything.

"Where am I? What's happened to me? How did I get here, I can't remember anything!" I screamed out.

"Just stay calm Mr. Wright, the doctor is on his way. He'll explain everything to you. You were in an accident," she seemed nervous, but I didn't know why.

The doctor came in and I quickly asked him the same questions. He told me to calm down and said he would answer my questions as soon as he ran a few tests. He squeezed my hands and asked me if I could feel it. He then pricked my feet and toes. I pulled back saying, "Ouch!" It made the doctor smile. I had to wonder if he was a sadist or something, smiling that he caused pain.

"Mr. Wright, you were in a car accident and have been in a coma. I have a few questions to ask you. What do you think the date is today?"

"What does that have to do with anything? I believe it's December 23. Why are you asking me this?"

"I'll explain it to you in a few minutes but I need to ask you a few more questions. "What is the last thing you remember?"

"I'm not sure what you mean. I remember being in my office and I think I got in my car last night, but I can't remember why. Where's my wife Julie? I think I remember her singing and she kissed me goodnight. Wait, that might have been a dream. Damn! I can't remember. Get my wife please; maybe she can help me here."

"Mr. Wright, the date is March 29, 2014. You've been in a coma since Dec. 22, 2013. You were in a terrible accident and have been in a coma since you arrived."

"Why can't I remember anything?"

"It takes time. It will come back to you. Our brains sometimes block out tragic events. You just woke up, after all."

"What else can you tell me?"

"Mr. Wright, Annie, your caregiver will be in within the hour. She's been with you since the night you arrived at the hospital. She'll also call the people you want contacted. She can probably explain things to you better than anyone."

"Who is she and what is a "caregiver"?"

"She's a registered nurse. A nurse is assigned to coma patients to take care of their needs, whatever they need. Annie volunteered to be your caregiver." As he was talking, a cute nurse walked in the room. "Oh, here's Annie now."

"Hi Justin, I came in the moment I heard you'd woke up." She actually had tears in her eyes. The doctor told me he would see me later and quickly left the room.

"I know you! We went to the same college, didn't we? Your name is Annette. How come I can remember you, but not what I last did? Can you tell me what happened and contact my wife Julie and my parents?"

"I'll tell you all that I know. First of all, I contacted your parents already and they'll be here first thing in the morning. I called your wife and left her a message on her phone. I'll try to explain what I can to you, but we need to take it slow."

I spoke first, "You were my lab partner in science. I remember us working on projects together. I liked you; you were so much fun to be around. I remember us always talking. I believe I had a light crush on you but I was going with Julie at the time. I remember hugging and kissing you after we won the science award. I was so happy. Am I right?"

"Yes," she smiled at me. We were lab partners and friends. Julie didn't like it and in no uncertain terms told me to keep away from you; that you were her boyfriend. You ran with a different crowd than I did. Eventually you asked Julie to marry you. That's about it."

"I'm sorry; I didn't know she'd said that to you. You should have told me."

"Told you what? 'Your girlfriend said to stay away from you.' We were just friends. I wasn't going to mess up your relationship. Besides, that's water under the bridge, it was two years ago. We both went on with our lives. You married Julie and I got my nursing degree."

"Why did you volunteer to be my caregiver? The doctor said you volunteered."

She had tears in her eyes. "I was on duty when you were brought in. You were in a single car accident. According to witnesses, you and another car almost wrecked. The roads were icy and you turned to avoid hitting the other vehicle and went over an embankment. Your car rolled over at least three times, pinning you inside.

"The EMT's said you were unconscious when they arrived. They cut your seatbelts and pulled you out. When they pulled into the emergency entrance, you were covered in blood. You had a big gash on the side of your forehead and the blood covered your face." I reached up and felt a scar near my hairline.

She continued, "It's healed pretty well now. Your whole body was x-rayed and no one could believe that nothing was broken, but you were badly bruised, both inside and out. You did lose a lot of blood. After you were sewn up and x-rayed, they brought you to the ICU. After two days of not waking up, you were taken to a private room where I offered to be your caregiver. I'm so happy to see you made it through." She was crying and excused herself.

Annie came back a few minutes later after composing herself and I asked her what happens next. She told me I would have to undergo therapy to help build my arms and leg strength back up. I noticed I had a catheter in and asked when it could be removed.

"As soon as you're able to walk to the bathroom, using a walker. It may be a few days. You will start therapy today. You're going to have to try to be patient; it may take awhile. Tony will be in to see you about your therapy. Anything else I can help you with?" She said with a very beautiful smile.

"Can you tell me more about Julie? How often has she been here to see me?"

"Justin, I prefer not to talk to you about Julie, if you don't mind. Your parents can discuss it with you tomorrow."

"Why? Please, just tell me if she has been here to see me," I almost begged, but I wasn't sure why.

"She came in the afternoon, the day after your accident. She stayed maybe fifteen minutes, argued with your parents and then left. There was an older man she called 'Rob' who waited for her in the visitors lounge. She stopped by a few times the first couple of weeks. She argued about your care with the administrators. After that, she came in maybe once a month looked at you and left. I'm sorry but I won't lie to you."

"Thank you for being honest with me. Is there any chance I can get something to drink? My mouth and throat are really dry."

She poured me a small glass of cold water and told me just to sip it. She also ordered me in a ginger ale but told me to drink it slowly. I was told I had been fed intravenously for the last three months and my stomach has to be retrained starting with soups and soft foods.

The doctor came back in and ran a few more tests. He told me everything was looking good and that I was a very lucky man. I sure didn't feel that lucky, laying there in bed. He was interested in my memory of what I thought were dreams. He said very few coma patients who woke up ever mentioned having dreams.