Cursed By Rebirth? – Installment 2

Cursed by Rebirth?

By

D.M. KURTZ

Installment 2: Baby Steps

“Alright, just ten more seconds.”

Amanda’s cheerful voice was almost overwhelmed by the pounding of Jason’s own heart. It took all of his focus to keep his outstretched arms from trembling around the rod clutched tightly in both hands.

“Nine, andd ten.”

The tall man gasped when he simultaneously released his grip and stepped down off of the half-moon shaped exercise ball. Despite the throbbing in his wrist and fire in his upper back, he had come to greatly admire the tenacious yet compassionate attitude of his physical therapist. Her support had been his guide during the difficult sessions he’d undergone over the past two weeks.

“Sometimes, it feels like you almost enjoy watching me struggle,” Jason told her between gasps for air. She smiled as she handed him a towel, which he used to wipe the sweat from his brow.

“Maybe so,” she admitted. “But it isn’t the struggle that’s fun to watch.”

Jason tilted his head to one side.

What the heck does that mean?

“It’s seeing you push through,” she clarified. “I’ve helped dozens of patients with similar injuries to yours, but you’re the first to truly face the work head on.”

Jason nodded, but his brow furrowed.

There’s nothing else that I CAN do. The thought was somewhat despairing, but he did his best to hide the truth of that feeling.

“I need to get out of here,” he said aloud. Truthful enough, though he hesitated to add that he had no idea where he would go once he was free of the hospital that had become his home. After all, the accident had left him with no memories of his life before he’d apparently been hit by a dump truck just outside the doors of the very place that had saved his life.

“Mmm,” Amanda hummed as she handed him a bottle of water, which he took and chugged heartily.

“So after this, what?” she asked. “I’ve never seen anyone come to check on you.”

Jason winced, and Amanda cringed.

“I… am SO sorry,” she apologized while she raised a hand to her forehead. “That was incredibly insensitive.”

“It’s ok,” Jason replied with a light shake of his head. He glanced down heavily and replaced the lid on the container in his hand before he met Amanda’s brown eyes. She had pressed lightly on occasion before about his life outside of the hospital, and he’d always been careful to avoid her curiosity. But, after all the time they’d spent together, he found himself wanting… no, starting to trust her.

“I, ah, can’t remember… anything, other than waking up here,” he waved one arm about in a grand gesture. “You, nurse Evans and Dr. Stevens… Well, you’re the only people that I know.”

In the ensuing silence, Jason moved to a window at the edge of the room. Sunlight caressed his face while he looked out to the nearly endless pavement of the massive parking lot several stories below; a dismal sight broken only by the occasional tree growing from a raised bed.

“Someone must know that you’re missing,” Amanda mused.

“Maybe,” Jason replied softly. “But one would think that after almost a month, they would have found me. If they were even looking…”

“Well, this is depressing,” Amanda declared, and Jason chuckled as he turned to face her.

“Hey, you asked,” he said.

She smirked.

“That’s fair,” she said, then paused. “Are you hungry?” she asked. “The cafeteria here makes a mean meatloaf, and if you’re a proper gentleman, I might be persuaded to buy you a coffee from Starbucks.”

The tall man smiled.

“I could eat,” he replied, and the beautiful brunette dipped her head and returned his look with a grin that allowed her perfect teeth to gleam under the overhead lights.

“You do realize that I have no idea what Starbucks means, right?” he told her as they walked.

“Really,” Amanda said in somewhat feigned shock. “Have you ever tried coffee?”

Jason shrugged.

“I have no idea,” he admitted. “Honestly, I’m not even sure what coffee is…” They continued in silence for a while before Amanda cleared her throat.

“That must be unsettling,” she said.

“I’m getting used to it,” Jason replied. “At first, I couldn’t remember anything. Even the names of basic things, like a bed, desk… TV. But most everything comes back, a little at a time.”

“But not your real memories?” Amanda asked softly.

“No,” he said. “Everything but, it seems.”

“Well, coffee… I’ll bet it’s exactly what you need to jog that brain of yours,” she told him cheerfully, and Jason smiled.

“I’ll hold you to that, you know,” he replied.

Amanda laughed.

“Trust me, for all the wonders of modern medicine, coffee is the real cure. I’d bet that it could even cure cancer, just from the joy it brings with every delicious, smooth sip.”

Jason tilted his head to one side.

“Cancer?” he repeated, and Amanda’s lips parted.

“Maybe that amnesia isn’t all bad,” she remarked.

“How do you mean?”

“Well… There’s a lot wrong with the world. A lot of bad people, terrible diseases. Sometimes I wish that I could… Forget certain things.”

A bold sentiment, and not one that Jason had considered before that moment. Could his memory loss actually be a blessing in disguise? The idea seemed far-fetched, but at the same time…

Maybe she’s right.

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Copyright © 2018 D.M. Kurtz

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