Chapter six

Chapter 6

Yeah I passed out. I didn't know how many hours was I sleeping or for how long for that matter. What woke me up was the dream, I was dreaming about, my girl, flashes came, I dreamt about the appalling accident. Everything that had happen, I did not realize that someone was next me on my hospital bed. I stormed up like, lightening had stroked me. It was all because of the knock I felt hitting me so hard. When I opened my eyes, I was exhaling and inhaling so hard. In front of me, there was a male doctor standing, with my parents I couldn't understand how my parents got to the hospital. All I could remember was the time I saw Lindy running holding my paintings. I know I've been hit by a car and I was with Lindy, but where is she at.

"Welcome back to life" said the doctor "You know miracles do happen… from the condition you were in, we probably thought that you were not going to wake up!"

It came in as a shock to me; I know it was already evening by the time I was hit by the car. And if it was evening I probably slept the whole night. And I had just got up.

"Doctor what you mean... you obviously thought that I was not going to wake up?" mother fell down just like Lindy last night. She lifted her hands and she was praying so hard. She was mumbling I could barely hear a word she was saying; next to me there was Musa. He whispered

"You need to close your eyes and thank the Almighty God for giving you another chance in life."

"Another chance," I was confused.

"Yeah, we thank God for keeping you Alive," he said

"Hey tell me, was I brutally hurt?"

"Yeah terribly, you suffered a head injury," he explained.

"Huh, I didn't know that I suffered a head injury, but my legs were broken, that for a fact I know," I said.

"You are one Lucky guy Joseph, see the God your parents serve, is really an awesome God, he gives hope to the hopeless." Doctor said.

Father, spoke in tongues, I was shocked the way the tongues got out. Musa wept, they were freaking me out seriously.

"Doctor, I know I've been hit by a car last night…"

"…Last night, no, no, no, it's not last night sonny…" he said.

"What?"

"It's been almost a year now and 2 months…" he said.

I felt like the walls were closing in, and also getting bigger at the same time. I couldn't let them play mind tricks with me.

"Hold it Doctor… I was hit by a car last night!" I tried to convince myself that this was not happening to me.

"What day it is today?" my voice was quivering.

Musa and the doctor spoke at the same time

"Tuesday 28 August 2012."

I sensed heat on my ears I hardly breathed; I closed them I was hallucinating. I then removed the pulse ox-meter and every tube I could see, I fell on the floor, and on my mind I couldn't see the casts on both of my legs. So that means I could walk and I was healed I wanted to get out of the bed but only to find out that, the reason that made me fall was because I couldn't feel my legs.

It was like walls were crashing in on me. My reaction was bewildered. Nurses came rushing inside my ward, they pulled me back to the bed, but I was fighting each and every one of them who was trying so hard to calm me until my father released his cool and slapped me so hard for the first time in his life.

"The bible says 'teach a child in a way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it' it seems as if you are losing direction." he spoke with his still calmed voice. I saw the rage in his eyes that he was grieving and wasn't pleased with his action. Mom was shocked, my behavior was uncalled for. Tears were dripping out of her eyes enormously. The look that she gave to my father was contemplating that he then apologized.

"I'm sorry son… forgive me,"

The doctors sedated me and there I went on and dozed off! The dream later then came back, when I got up last time it was because of the reflection of the car accident, and sent me right up to coma. I couldn't even realize that it was that long. I then got up again, this time around I was dizzy, and kept on repeating the same name 'LINDIWE, LINDY'. I opened my eyes and saw a handsome young man dressed in formal, he was dressed in a suit.

"Who are you?" my sight wasn't that clear.

"Monsieur…" he said.

"Monsieur, is that your name?" I asked.

He gave me a frantic gesture. "Am sorry man, you must be on the wrong ward…" he did not mind my mumbling he kept on saying 'monsieur' for a while I thought that this guy was some sort of French or Portuguese I did not really understand. But later then, it rang a bell on my mind, I opened my eyes, he was being accompanied by a beautiful lady who introduced herself as Mercy.

"Ok, now I won't freak out, I know I'm in Hospital… can someone please tell me how long I've been sleeping here?"

"First of all, welcome back to the land of the living," said the Doctor.

"If I recall very well, you did say that earlier today… and please don't tell me it was last week?"

"Ok" he said. "It was not last week, but… it was yesterday." He said

"Jesus man, have it occurred to you that I also have a life… what is it that you people are giving me?" I asked out of anger.

"Mon… please, would you calm down." said the other guy.

"Who the heck are you to tell me to calm down?"

"Bro…. you need not to be rude," said Musa.

"Ok, ok, forgive me for my behavior, its uncalled for… I apologies,"

The room was full of strangers, people's faces I've seen before but I don't recall their names or where I've met them before. It was so painful like a nail had been pierced straight right into my heart. I tried so hard not to break down. I couldn't help it; the pain i felt was so overwhelming I couldn't endure it anymore. I know that its said men don't cry but the situation am facing its uncontrollable, unbearable, tears dripped out of my eyes, like rain drizzling not really sure if it'll rain hard or its just some sort of a mist rain.

"No man, don't cry… you'll make us all cry." said the other guy.

"Its so sad…. What pains me most is to see the people in this room… I recognize their faces but cannot recall their names."

"Look I'm sorry my friend…" he said "I'm your best friend Trevor."

"Tell me something, would you?" said the doctor "where have you seen this faces before… how do you recall them?"

"I'm busy dreaming about them and also this lady Lindy…" I explained.

"… yeah that's a good sign though…" said the doctor.

"So… um… Doc… will he gain his memory back?" asked Mercy.

"According to my calculations he will, but one step at a time…. You don't have to try hard to regain your memory." he said.

"What about my legs doc… cause I can't feel them." I said.

"At the moment lets just hope for better results to come…" said the Doctor.

"For better," I said.

"Yes… tomorrow we'll go for an X-ray and undergo some tests, to see where to from there, ok?" he said.

"Ok. Doctor, I'll be persistent," I said.

"Yes you need too and also have a positive attitude," he said.

"So" clears throat. "What kind of a person I was before the accident?"

They all looked at each other like they were seeing a ghost and they began to laugh and wiggled their heads at the same time.

Clears throat again. "Um… did I say something funny guys?" I probed.

"No, not at all," said Trevor.

"So what are you all laughing at?"

"I have missed the funny, vibrant and caring J.R" said Mercy. "But this new one seems like he's got issues, I don't know if Lindy would have been able to handle this?"

"You can say that again," said Trevor.

"But I hope, he'll turn around again at some point and be the J.R we all loved and cared about." said Musa.

"Would you guys please STOP, what are you doing? You pretending as if I can't hear you…. in any case I'm still on the same room as you."

"We apologize for the inconvenience." said Trevor.

When all of this happened, I wished I was never hit by a car, I wish, I could turn back the sands of time, perhaps things would be different they wouldn't act as if I'm not in the same room with them, but then if it did not happen to me who else would it have happen too, who would have handled this situation better than I do. God would never give us loads that weren't easy to carry. He says on his Book of life 'take my yoke for it is lighter and carry it, and give me all your burdens I'll carry them for you' these verse has encouraged me to press on and have faith in God. I had to trust in him and only him alone, after all he is my pillar of strength, where would I go if I were to depart or move away from him? Simon Peter wouldn't have said these words better than anyone else in the bible, healing words come from you Lord.

"Where is this young man who has been said that he has awakened?"

I smiled when the lady walked in, I didn't know that I had a great impact on so many people. The woman who had just walked was dressed in Matron's uniform, she kept on smiling at me and hugged me, just the minute she hugged me I looked at Trevor and Musa and gave them an agitated gesture. Mercy moved her lips and the way I could read and understand her lips it was like she was saying 'Lindy's mom' but then, if she is here, where is her beautiful daughter, why isn't she here with her mom?

"How are you my dear son?" she asked.

"Am good," as I was told that she's Lindy's mom, why shouldn't I continue entertaining her visit? I needed to know, where her daughter was, perhaps if I were to see her I would regain my memory and resume where I had left off.

"Where's Lindiwe?" I probed.

Not everyone else in the room was expecting to hear this kind of question so soon, judging from their facial expression. They assumed that I had changed, the Coma had an effect on my motives, morals and values, it's probably not the long sleep that changed me, but the medication. Drugs can change a decent person to a junky and changed the integrity of a particular person.

I've been unstable for a year and two (2) months, that solemnly means I've been a drug addict for all this time i had been admitted to the hospital and all this time as they have been trying hard to resuscitate me. Just after I had probed this, she was then uneasy.

"Have I asked you an inappropriate question Mrs. Langa?"

"No… its just that… um… I wasn't expecting this kind of question so soon?" she said.

"Oh, so when were you expecting it?... next year maybe?"

"J.R please" she said "I'm here to check on you like everybody else." She was in denial.

"Ok, am great full for that…. So are you going to tell me where is she or not?"

"Um… J.R… I think we should probably be going by now." said Trevor.

"Why does it look like, you are all avoiding my question…"

"No… No… No…" they all disagreed. I tried to keep my cool but if you could see that there's something that they are hiding, why keep yourself calm, if you continue with your calmness they'll never tell you what you desire to hear.

"Well then where is she, where's Lindy?" I yelled.

They all looked at each other like they were seeing a Lion and they didn't know what to do, its either they run away from it or they wait for it to attack.

"Um… J.R…" said Musa "…why are you so anxious to see her?"

"Have it occurred in your tiny brain that if I would see her, perhaps it might be easy for me to regain my memory?"

"Oh… so that's your reason Mon…" said Trevor.

"Yeah… what else have you thought about?... unless there's something you guys aren't telling me and you probably hiding it away from me."

"Well um… bro… mom and dad taught us not to hide secrets from each other and we should always come clean no matter what the circumstances right….?" He said.

"Musa please don't" said Lindy's aunt. "It'll break his heart; you do remember what the doctors had said right?"

"What's the use of hiding the truth from him, if it'll come out eventually?" he said.

"But…" she said.

"… I think Musa's right" agreed Mercy. "We have to tell him, we can't hide it forever!…"

"… Kids please listen to me!" she said.

"… Come on Ncane… we have to tell him," said Mercy.

"Guys, guys I'm still here and my ear drums are very sharp,"

"Ok… the… thing… is… Lindy is not around," said Musa.

"Well, if she is not around, we could make a phone call and tell her to come over, over the weekend right?"

"She is not here, in South Africa bro…" said Musa.

"What? Where is she then?"

"Well… um…" Trevor said.

"She's in Paris" said Ncane "I'm sorry, her parents had to take her."

"Her parents… this isn't making any sense… if her parents took her… who are you then?"

"I'm her mother's younger sister…. Wait, your memory hasn't come to full term…" she said.

"Yes…. So?"

"So… if your memory hasn't, then somebody on this room must have told you who I was." she turned around, she was so furious and fuming.

"We are sorry." they apologized.

"If Lindy is on the other side of the ocean, how am I going to regain my memory?"

"Please don't stress yourself up my friend" said Trevor "You will gain it back all in good time." He assured me.

"Didn't the Psychiatrist mention something… about pictures?" said Mercy.

"YES, thanks M.Grey…" Musa was ecstatic.

The way he likes to come up with silly names, he has found a name best suitable for Mercy, he now calls her 'Mercy Grey' or 'M.Grey' in short or sometimes shorten it to 'M.G' just like my name, he's lazy to say our names in full.

"I had forgotten… I have always known that you were going to wake up…" he said.

"Really" I said. "That's faith bro…"

"Yeah… after a few days from the accident… I planted a spy camera to record everything…"

"What?" exclaimed Mercy and Trevor.

"I didn't see that coming…" I said.

"Yeah… its quite a shock hey… I'll bring you… my laptop with the recordings and pictures of everyone who made sure they paid you a visit." He said.

"For real,"

"Yeah for real… why didn't I think of that last night?" he said.

"Perhaps you were overwhelmed" said Trevor "Mon… having a smart little bro… does pay hey,"

"He must have been watching too much movies… you could only see that on movies." I said.

"At least you'll have a chance to remember and for sure, I know that Lindy's face does appear." said Trevor.

"It does" he said "I hope you do bro…"

"That was very thoughtful of you Musa" said Trevor "I'll call you with the name you nicknamed yourself from now on,"

"Cool" he smiled.