Madrid

Luis

Luis remembered a little about himself. One day he woke up, found himself in a hospital bed with most of his memories gone. He still remembered a few things like the members of his family and who he was, but some inept information about his childhood and other important things eluded him. It's been six months since his accident. He had sustained a lot of injuries, but luckily for him, there were no major damages done. He had broken some bones, but everything had already healed perfectly, except for his amnesia. He forgot all about how he had been training from his waking moment to be the successor of Tegasol Construction. According to his parents and his brother, Eduardo, it had been his lifelong dream.

Luis couldn't find that dream anywhere within him. His mom had said he wouldn't need his memory to take over the company as it came naturally to him, but Luis didn't know how to be a man he barely remembered. From the time he snapped his eyes open in that hospital bed, there had been a constant reminder that he had to recover to take over from where his father stopped.

No one was interested in his ordeal. All he forgot was his humanity and the essence of his life. These weren't important as far as Tegasol Construction was concerned. But Luis had no conviction to do as his parents wanted. He didn't know what sort of person he used to be, how the world perceived him, and he couldn't for the life of him remember what he wanted in life. He didn't know how to take control of a company he barely remembered being a part of.

There was a nagging sensation within Luis from the moment he opened his eyes on the hospital bed with the white ceiling stretched across his vision. Luis felt like a part of him was missing. At first, he had chalked up the feeling of the fact that he had lost his memory and was confined within the four walls of the hospital. But as time went on, the emptiness stretched and the feeling expanded. There was something in Luis' life that was missing. He didn't know what it was.

After his recovery, Luis threw himself into work, trying to fill the void within him. He made a lot of achievements within a month of leaving the hospital, but they were not enough, and they were certainly not what he needed.

Luis concluded he needed to return to his roots. He needed to go back to the beginning. Maybe that way he could pin down exactly what it was he was missing. His mother had done her best in flaunting a lot of models and daughters of high-class business men in his face. Trying to entice him into falling for one of them. They were beautiful, no doubt. But they just didn't do it for Luis. He had this wild idea that everything would be okay if he returned to Spain. He had the notion that going back to his roots would have the way for the answers he craved.

Luis could feel a headache coming on. He popped two pills of aspirin into his mouth and swallowed without water. The bitter taste stuck at the back of his throat, but that was the least of his worries. He shut his eyes tightly and willed the headache away. With a groan, he picked up a remote control on his bedside and directed it towards the window. The blinds patted and made way for the sunlight to filter into the room and fill Luis's vision.

His parents had let him recuperate at their vacation home on the outskirts of Manhattan. The view of the ocean calmed him. He focused on the sound of the waters as they hit the rocks, trying to drown the blood thrumming in his head.

The doorbell rang, and Luis groaned one more time. He didn't know who it was, but if it was anyone of importance, then the person would have a spare key. He wasn't allowed to move around so much yet. He heard the front door close and a loud sigh trailed up from the front door through the bedroom door and into his ears. Luis smiled, knowing exactly who it was. There was only one person who could sigh as if he bore the weight of the world.

The bedroom door opened, and his brother stepped through the threshold. Eduardo stood before him with his hands in his pocket.

"Lazy bones." Eduardo retorted. Luis burst into laughter at his words. "When I was your age, I would already be up from the bed and would already have breakfast going for the rest of the family. But what do I find here? Look at you. Lazying around in bed all day."

"Shut up, man." Luis fired at him. But there was no animosity or hatred in his voice. His brother was his favorite person in the entire world. Maybe it was the accident that caused them to grow closer. Luis couldn't remember for sure what they were really like before his accident. Luis didn't know if they got close recently because Eduardo was a doctor and was always available to him, examining his wounds and making sure he was alright. He hoped that even when he got his memory back, he would still love his brother as much. He didn't want the good times to end, ever.

Eduardo's shoulders quaked with laughter as he sat on the edge of the bed, pressing down on various parts of Luis' body and asking if he could feel it. They couldn't afford any mistakes they would pay dearly for.

"Mom and dad are worrying about you," Eduardo said, while massaging Luis's feet. Luis sighed deeply at those words. The last thing he wanted was to worry his parents, but they were hell bent on pointing him in the direction he should go. He didn't want that. He wanted to decide for himself and know for a fact that he was on the path he chose for himself.

Sometimes, Luis vaguely wondered if he had been a placet son, doing whatever was expected of him. He had the slightest urge to ask his brother, but fought against it. He didn't want to appear weak. His body might not be all that strong yet, but his mind had the strength of ten thousand horses, and no motor accident would take that from him.

"They have more important things to take care of. Why would they spend their time worrying about me? Tell them I'm alright when next you see them." Luis bit out, feeling a little frustrated. Eduardo gave him an amused look. He wore a smug smirk, which Luis would love nothing more than to wipe off his face.

"You damn well know that's not what I'm talking about." Eduardo chided.

"What the hell is it, then?" Luis bit back.

"You're their golden son, Luis. And Tegasol is their golden empire. Dad's getting weaker as the days run by and they need you to take over. They would love nothing more than to see you sitting on the golden throne of their golden empire."

"That's so much golden in one sentence." Luis complained, trying to lighten the mood. Eduardo shook his head, but the smile on his face remained in place.

"What exactly is holding you back, brother? You already know everything you need to. I don't understand your aversion to giving into mom and dad's demands."

"We've gone over this, Ed. I can't be who they want me to be. Not yet, anyway. I thought you understood that." Luis whined.

"I do. It's just, I'm the one they keep mounting the pressure on. You don't know what it's like. They think I'm some sort of miracle worker and that I'm going to heal you with a snap of my finger." Luis blinked back at his words, feigning surprise.

"Are you not?" He asked. Eduardo flicked him on the forehead.

"I wish I was. You need to decide quick, else. I don't even want to think about that else."

Luis sighed again and stared at the window for a minute. He allowed Eduardo's hand to move over him as he massaged his bones and straightened his muscles. His headaches were subsiding, and he could finally see clearly.

"I want to go back to Spain." Luis announced. Eduardo's hands paused momentarily and resumed their movements. He didn't acknowledge his brother's words.

"Come on, Ed." Luis persuaded. "I feel this emptiness within me. It's like everything I know is not real and that I have to find my reality. And i keep getting the feeling that going back home would help me achieve this feat." Eduardo nodded.

"I feel you, man. You need to be around a familiar environment to make a full recovery. I mean, we just arrived here like five years ago. It's nothing compared to the lives we led in Spain from our waking moments. But there's one problem."

"What?" Luis asked, interested.

"Mum and dad would never allow it." Eduardo deadpanned. Luis was taken aback by the certainty in his voice. He flipped his head to look at his brother's face. The seriousness in his face told him all he wanted to know.

"Why? It's all part of the healing process, don't you think? You're the physician."

Eduardo shrugged at those words. Luis could see he had nothing to counter with. He just concentrated on straightening out the knots in his muscles.

"I just know that if you want to go back home to Spain, then you have a lot of convincing to do. But I think it will be good for you. You deserve some vacation after all. You probably wouldn't even have one if you hadn't been unfortunate."

Luis smiled and snuggled into the bed, clutching a pillow to his chest.

"I'm their golden son, remember? They can't refuse me." He waggled his brows at his brother. Eduardo nodded nonchalantly, as if bearing a secret Luis didn't know about.

"I wish you luck," Eduardo said.