Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
I looked at Neil, hoping that he’ll get the door for me but he shook his head “You have to do it, dear.”
I nodded understandingly as I sighed and slowly opened the door. A handsome guy stood before me with the same look of concern that Neil gave me when he realized I didn’t know him. “You must be Lance.” I nodded “Hi.” It was irrelevant for me to say it, but he was a stranger to me. Sure enough, I did not recognize him either.
“Niki…” he seemed a bit emotional, I could almost tell. Suddenly, he reached out and hugged me tightly. I didn’t know what to do so I turned my head to look at Neil. He only smiled at me and nodded for me to embrace Lance. So I did as he told.
After a moment, I uncomfortably let go and walked back to Neil as I took a seat next to him. “Do I have to introduce you to?”
The guys chuckled like I had a made a joke. “It’s nice to meet you finally.” Neil was the first to speak up and I wasn’t at all surprised that he was a bit more outgoing.
“Lance, she’s told me a few good things about you.” Lance shook his hand welcomingly.
“Well, let me explain what happened.” Neil began telling him the story about what had happened to me. It sounded like a story to me since I didn’t not recall anything that he had told me.
“How do you feel?” Lance asked after Neil was done.
I shrugged “I feel good. Just a bit tired.” I let my mind float away as I noticed myself giggling “It’s kinda strange to have this feeling of not recognizing anyone yet people are claiming that they know me.”
The guys looked at each other strangely, maybe I wasn’t making any sense. “Well, what can I do to help?” Lance was eager to help me recover my memory.
“The doctor says to tell her more stories about the past, something relevant in her life and maybe it will trigger her memory?” Neil explained. “Maybe we should take her somewhere? Where did she like to go when she was in high school?”
“I’m not sure. She lived so far from me that we rarely had the chance to go out. How about you? Have you taken her to any special places?” Lance asked.
“Just the beach, but it’s not of any importance.” Neil said nonchalantly.
They continued their dialogue and I turned from guy to guy and couldn’t help but feel that they were keeping something from me? But that was ridiculous to think, wasn’t it? It was strange enough having two guys I did not recognize talk to each other about me as if they’d known me for years. For all I know they were probably lying to me.
************
The next morning, Neil and Lance showed up on my door early to take me to some places that they thought about the night before. I quickly changed into my jeans and casual shirt as we drove to the beach “What did we do here?” I asked out loud as the three of us walked along the shore.
“We use to come here to chat because you told me it was peaceful and very relaxing.” Neil explained.
I nodded as if I knew “Oh…that’s all?”
He seemed to be pondering something that he wasn’t sure if he should tell me. “And…well, there was this one time when I took you out here to have a dinner picnic.”
I saw Lance turned to Neil with raised eyebrows, but he bit his tongue and didn’t ask. “We did?…why did you take me here?” I was a bit more curious because it almost seemed like he was holding back.
“I took you to this bar and it was Lesbian and Gay night and we were getting hit on, so after an hour, I took you here to make it up to you.” He had a small smile on his face and I knew he was recalling the night.
I glanced at Lance to see what his reaction, but he had a blank expression on his face. We continued to talk on and eventually, we ended up sitting down on the warm sand to take a break. “I feel like ice cream, you guys want any?”
“Chocolate for me please.” Neil said with a grin.
Lance smiled at me “Strawberry. Thanks Niki.”
“Sure!” I ran off to the nearest ice cream parlor. I had a feeling that the guys needed to talk, so I gave them a chance. I think they knew it too.
When I returned I found them standing in the same place with a grim expression on their faces. “Ice cream’s here!” I announced as I handed them their ice cream. “Thank you, that would be 10 dollars each.” I put out my hand to have the guys pay me.
Neil laughed as shook his head “You’re kidding right?”
I gave them a serious expression “Of course not. I’m not made out of money guys. I offered to get ice cream not buy it.” I saw Lance pull out his wallet in the corner of my eyes and suddenly burst into giggles “I’m just kidding! Was I that cheap?” I asked Lance.
“Of course not!” he answered quickly “It’s just…I don’t know…maybe you’ve changed?”
“Even if I did, I wouldn’t remember.” I could already guess that Neil and I were a lot more closer by the way he reacted to my question. I began to doubt myself and Lance. Maybe by not seeing each other for so long, we had drifted away?
The rest of day composed of my mind wandering off every now and then thinking about what had happened to me and if it was a good or bad thing? Maybe I was better off not remembering. That way I could start my life all over again? I went home early to sleep that night and I had the strangest dream. Neil and I were sitting in the water at that same exact beach that we were at in the morning. Our conversation was deep and casual at the same time. We looked so comfortable just talking but Lance was not around. The dream was so vivid that I could have sworn that it did happen. When I woke up the next morning, I received a call.
“Hello?”
“Niki?”
“Yeah, who’s this?”
“Lance.” I still didn’t recognized his voice. “I have bad news.”
“What happened?” I could feel my heart beginning to thump eventhough I could not think of anything bad that could have happened.
“It’s Neil, he’s been in a car accident. He was on his way to work and a drunken idiot ran into him head on collision. He’s been in the hospital all night, the doctors say that he might not make it.” I could hear his voice shaking as he told me the news.
My heart skipped a beat but I still had to ask “How did you find out?”
“Your name was on his emergency contact. The nurse that filled out the paperwork remembered you being in the hospital not too long ago. She recalled you were here for Temporary Amnesia. So she got a hold of me instead.”
“I have to see him!” It was as if it finally occurred to me. I don’t know why I had the sudden need to see him.
“I’m on my way over Niki, get ready and meet me downstairs.”
I hung up and went to change. When we got to the hospital, I was even more frantic “Neil Cheung, what room is he in?” I asked the head nurse.
She was on the phone as she put her hand up to hush me. “Yes, Mam…I understand Mam..” she rolled her eyes at the phone.
I don’t know what came over me as I reached through the small crack of the window and yanked the phone from her hand “Neil Cheung.” I said through clenched teeth.
She gave me a deadly glare but pulled it away to look at the list of patients. “Intensive Care Unit, Room 5.” She pulled the phone back from my grip.
I didn’t care that she was giving me an attitude, I just wanted to see him. I rushed through the hallway with Lance close behind. “Intensive care…room five…” I mumbled to myself so I would not forget.
When we reached the unit, there were metal doors separating the guests from the patient. “I think we have to wait, Niki…” Lance said ever so calmly.
I snapped my head around “Wait for what? Until he dies?!” I didn’t realize I was yelling until everyone in the waiting room was staring at me. “Open the door!!” I cried as I banged my fists on the metal doors.
“Niki…” Lance grabbed a hold of my shoulders as he pulled me back “Calm down…we’ll get to see him. Let me call the nurse inside.” He practically pulled me inside the waiting room. “Have a seat.” He picked up the phone to call into the Unit “We’re here to see Neil Cheung? Niki and Lance…Thank you.”
I saw him hang up the phone “Are we next?” I asked quickly. I probably looked like a mess but I didn’t care. I just wanted to see Neil.
“Yes, they’re going to open the door for us. Just wait a minute.” He said soothingly.
I sat restlessly on the chair as I arched my neck every few seconds to see if the metal doors had opened. “What is taking so long?” I asked out loud.
Just as I said it, the double doors opened and a nurse came out “Niki and Lance?”
I popped from my seat like a daisy as I rushed into the room “Neil…” I didn’t care about anything else as I rushed to his room. Inside, he was covered with wires and tubes taped all over his body. They monitored everything from his heartbeat to his digestive system. I could feel the tears rolling down my face as I got a closer look. It was the most devastating thing I had ever seen. “Neil?” I whispered through my cracked voice.
My vision was blurring from all the tears. I sat down on the chair right next to him and it was the first time I saw his bandaged head. The blood stain still fresh on his forehead. He was breathing through a tube and his legs was rolled in white bandage. My hand was quivering as I reached for his face and I pulled back not wanting to hurt him. I didn’t know what to do as I turned to Lance who was quickly by my side “What’s wrong Niki?” he asked.
I wanted to ask him was he crazy? Neil was lying there half dead and he asks me what’s wrong? When I finally calmed myself down, I realized that he was asking why I didn’t dare touch Neil. “I don’t want to hurt him.” I choked out the words softly.
Lance placed his hand on my shoulder “Go on, I’m sure he’ll know it’s you.”
I turned back to Neil and this time I touched his face. “Wake up, Neil…” I whispered.
But he did not wake up. I kept staring at the heart monitor to make sure that he was still breathing. The nurse walked in as she waved to us “Times up you two. He needs his rest. He was just in a four hours surgery.”
I shook my head vehemently as I looked at Lance for help “I’m sorry, but can she stay at least? She’s very important to him, maybe he’ll wake up if he knows she’s here…” he said with much feeling and I silently thanked him with my eyes as he smiled and nodded at me.
The nurse seemed to debate the question and eventually, she nodded “Okay, only she stays.” She said sternly but smiled before she gave us some time alone.
“I’ll be outside if you need me.”
I nodded thankfully “I owe you Lance.”
He touched the top of my head as he smiled down at me “You sure do.” He sighed as he walked out of the room leaving me alone with Neil.