June 23, 2013, 6:50 a.m.
I'll Remember: Chapter 4
T - Words: 4,129 - Last Updated: Jun 23, 2013 Story: Complete - Chapters: 10/10 - Created: Jun 17, 2013 - Updated: Jun 23, 2013 496 0 2 0 0
After talking with the doctor and spending a little time with Blaine in his hospital room, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson returned home to take care of "important issues that had to be dealt with immediately", which from what Blaine could remember usually meant something they had to do for his father's company.
When they arrived to the house, the first thing Mr. Anderson did was go up to Blaine's room with a big moving box. He went around his son's room picking up every picture and thing that had to do with Kurt and placed it into the box, he also took Blaine's romance novels and anything else he had considered to be feminine or gay, which mostly consisted of bowties and Katy Perry posters. Mr. Anderson went up to the attic, being careful to not cross paths with his wife, and put the box in there then left.
Blaine sat in the small and depressingly white room. He was alone and couldn't stand the silence that was surrounding him and filling the room. He started to wonder if he still had friends and if they would come visit him, or if they even knew where he was. The only people that had visited him were his parents and that other guy, what was his name? Something with a "K", like... Karl, that was it. He was crazy. He probably was from the crazy person section. Maybe what Karl said was true, he just had the wrong person. Maybe...
Blaine's thoughts were interrupted by a light knock on his room door. Not sure if he should say anything, he settled for an awkward, half hearted "come in?" The small candy striper from earlier appeared in the doorway.
"Hi, Mr. Anderson. Sorry to disturb you, but it's time to change your bandages."
"Bandages?" Blaine hadn't really gotten the chance to examine his injuries or current state.
She reached out and lightly touched his left arm, "here and," placing her hand on his head, "here." She got out a brown bottle that Blaine recognized. It's the same bottle his mom would get out whenever he got a cut.
"Is it gonna sting?" He asked. She knelt down beside him and started to remove the bandage on his arm. Blaine tried not to look, but couldn't help getting a peek at the deep cut on his bicep. The sight of it made him nauseous.
"Only a little, and it shouldn't last long." She poured some of the rubbing alcohol onto a cotton ball. "Besides, I think you'll be tough enough to handle it." She made eye contact with Blaine, and the two smiled at each other.
"What's your name?" He asked.
"Kate." She replied, as she pressed the cotton ball down on Blaine's cut. The sting was way worse than he was expecting, he found himself griping the bed sheets. "Sorry, I guess a warning would've helped."
"It's okay." Blaine was thankful when Kate got out a fresh bandage to cover his wound, but not for long when she moved on to the bandage on his head. "Did you know me? Like before the accident?" She shook her head. "Oh, I just want to know what I was like."
"Well, the doctor said that if you surround yourself with things from your life, your memory should return soon." She said. "Ready for the alcohol?" Blaine nodded. A warning did help a little with the sting. "I guess when you get to go home to your house and go back to school everything will start making sense again."
"I hope so."
"Alright, I'm done." She got up to leave.
"Wait.. Can you stay longer?" Kate looked hesitant. "I'm mean, if you have to get back to work, I understand."
"No, I can stay. Maybe, we can try to bring your memory back." She said, taking back her original bedside position.
This made Blaine hopeful, "you really think so?"
"It's worth a try."
"Ok... How?"
Kate hummed, thinking about their choices. "Well, have they read you the accident report yet?" Blaine started to shake his head, but was cut off by Kate's next thought. "And.. Maybe we could find a video of the news report online, or some pictures or something..." Blaine nodded slowly, overwhelmed by the idea of all this knowledge of his accident. "Or, we could do like what different pictures and words make you think of. Or I could ask you questions and you can say the first answer that pops in you head. How does that sound?"
"It all sounds great. But can we do something else first?"
"Sure!" Kate nodded eagerly.
"Can I see what I look like?" Since Blaine had woken up in the hospital, he had been trying to put a face to his significantly larger body. However, Blaine hasn't even left his hospital bed yet.
"Yeah." She scanned the room for a mirror and even checked her small uniform pockets for one, but came up empty handed. "I guess, I can help you to the bathroom? I don't know if your up for that, I mean it's only a few steps, but.."
"I can make it."
"Are you sure?" Kate was still uncertain, "I can get a wheel chair or crutches or something."
"No. No, I can do this." Blaine nodded, trying to convince himself he didn't need help.
Kate sighed, glancing uncertainly at the door. "Okay." She gave in. Rising from her place next to Blaine's bed, she took his hand and helped him out of the warm bed. Already Blaine felt dizzy, but determination triumphed the overwhelming desire to lie back down. Once fully standing, Blaine realized how tall he had become. "Ready?" Kate asked, her hand now tentatively placed on Blaine's lower back. He took in a deep, steadying breathe, before nodding. Inch by inch, they made their way to the bathroom, Blaine gripping anything and everything he passed, desperately seeking any form of stability he could find. Slowly, Blaine had made his way to the bathroom, then he stopped. He stood frozen in the doorway, mentally debating whether or not he really wanted to see himself.
"You don't have to do this if you aren't ready." Kate gently reminded him.
He swallowed the lump in his throat, "I'm ready." Kate nodded and led him into the bathroom. When she flicked on the lights, Blaine saw Blaine. For the first time in seven years, for all he can remember, he saw his bruised hazel eyes. He pulled his stitched lips back into a snarl to reveal his straight, white adult teeth, which replaced his old, crooked baby teeth. Lifting a strong, scraped arm, he ran his hands through his curly, damp hair as a tear rolled down his scarred cheek. All he said, in a broken whisper was "why is my hair wet?"
"It was raining when you crashed." Kate explained. Blaine nodded slowly, still trying to take in the broken stranger that stood before him. Kate was right, he wasn't ready. He wasn't ready to see the damage from his accident, to see how much growing he forgot, and to accept that he really has no idea who he is. He refused to accept that the man in the mirror was him.
"I want-" he tried to get, but was stopped by a flood of tears that came rushing out of his eyes.
"It's okay." Kate whispered, as she read Blaine's mind and led him back to his bed. "It's all going to be okay."
Once returned to the warmth and comfort of his hospital bed, Blaine sat staring at his hands, waiting for his quick breathes to return to normal and the tears to stop rolling down his face. Kate just sat patiently, letting him get it out.
"What happened to me? How long have I been here?" He asked.
"You got to the hospital last night around ten or eleven. You've been conscious since midnight."
"What happened?" Blaine repeated, this time with more force.
"Blaine, I don't know if you're ready." She warned him.
"Please. I need to know." Silently, Kate stood up and walked over to where the accident report was sitting.
"You were a hit and run victim. When the van hit you, it imobilized your engine and knocked out your headlights, making your car almost invisble in the night. Then, a truck rammed into the driver side door,-" Kate narrated, but Blaine stopped her. He knew the end of the story.
"Where I was sitting." He finished.
Kate nodded. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I needed to know."
"Right. Well, I should probably be getting back to work."
"Right. Bye, Kate." She gave him a small wave as she left his small room to head back to work.
Kurt sat down with his dad to talk about what happened, while Carol made them tea.
"Alright, buddy, are you ready to tell me what happened?" Burt look encouragingly to his son.
After a steadying breathe, Kurt began. "When I heard that Blaine was in the hospital, I went there immediatly." Burt nodded. " But, when I went into his hospital room, he acted like he had never seen me before in his life."
"He probably just has amnesia." Carol chimmed in, setting the tea cups on the table in front of them.
"But it wasn't just me he didn't remember. He seemed to have forgotten who he was entirely."
"What do you mean?" Burt asked.
"I think he forgot he was gay." Kurt got out slowly.
"Impossible." Was his father's immediate response.
"Not nessicarily." Carol eased in. "He obviously didn't know he was gay his entire life. He went through something, a milestone, that finally made him relaize. Maybe he forgot that."
"But what do I do?" Kurt whined.
"Give him space and be patient. His memory will come back eventually." Carol adivsed her step son. Kurt was never fond of waiting, but he was going to have to for Blaine.
That night, when visting hours were over, Blaine slowly climbed out of the bed. He inched his way to the bathroom, again wishing he had something stable to grab. Silently, Blaine creaked the door open and stepped into the small bathroom. Then he just stood there, looking deep into his own hazel eyes, even they seem to have aged without him. He scanned his eyes over his entire face, trying to soak it in, trying to remember it. This became a nightly routine for Blaine while he was in the hospital, looking in the mirror and trying to trust it.
Another thing that became routine at the hospital was visits from Kate. She came to see Blaine at least twice a day. Their meetings would begin with a medical check up, then they would just sit and talk about what Blaine missed, like movies and books. Sometimes, Kate would tell Blaine stuff about her life or something that happened in the hospital that day.
On Blaine's third full day at the hospital, Monday, Blaine's visit with Kate took an interesting turn. They were disscussing Disney movies, Blaine's favorite topic, when Kate interrupted the conversation with an irrelevant question.
"Has anyone ever kissed you?" She blurted.
Blaine considered the question for a second. "I don't know."
"Do you want someone to kiss you?" She asked.
Blaine wasn't sure what it felt like to want to be kissed. He was aware that he had lips and she had lips and it was normal for boys and girls to kiss, so he based his answer off of that. "I think so."
Kate started to lean in towards Blaine, closing her eyes and puckering her lips. Blaine, unsure of what to do, mimicked her actions. He felt her hand lightly rest on his cheek, followed by the feeling of her lips on his. Again, Blaine was unsure of how he was supposed to feel. He just assumed that was it. Kissing wasn't as amazing as people had made it sound. When she pulled away, all Blaine thought was that her lips tasted like watermelon.
"Now you know you've been kissed." She said softly.
Blaine nodded. "So.. Are we like dating now?" He asked.
Kate laughed and grabbed Blaine's hand, "If you want to be."
"Uh, yeah. I do." He answered, not sure if he really did. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Yes?"
An older nurse stuck her head in the door. "Blaine, you have visitors and Kate, you need to get back to work."
"Yes ma'am, sorry." Kate replied hurriedly. She got up and left, turning back to wave at her new boyfriend.
Blaine wondered who his visitors were. Maybe his parents, he thought, he hasn't seen them since his first night. And it appeared things would stay that way, when two boys in matching outfits, probably uniforms, strolled into Blaine's small room.
"Oh thank God, you're alive!" The blonde boy cried.
"Jeff, they wouldn't let us see him if he was dead." The other boy whispered. They both took cautious steps closer to Blaine, stopping when they felt they had reached an appropriate distance. "Hey, Blaine," one whispered. "Do you remember us?" Blaine shook his head. "Okay, I'm Nick," he said, "and he's Jeff." He gestured to the blonde boy.
"We're your friends from Dalton Academy." Jeff continued, judging from Blaine's blank expression, he concluded he needed to elaborate. "It's an all boys, private high school. All three of us have been students since freshmen year, well actually you transferred part way through freshman year, but yeah. We're also part of the school's glee club, the Warblers, well you were part of it, but then you transferred to McKinley and are now part of the New Directions, their glee club. But.. Yeah."
"Okay..." Blaine said, taking it all in. "So, are we friends or ex friends or enemies?"
"Best friends." Nick answered.
"Oh, alright, cool. I was honestly starting to think I didn't have friends anymore." Blaine said, sheepishly.
"Ha, Blaine Devon Anderson? AKA Mr. Dapper not have friends? Never!" Jeff chuckled.
"What does dapper mean?" Blaine asked.
Jeff's jaw dropped, but Nick just dismissed the question. "Not important." He said, Jeff tried to protest, but Nick put his hand on Jeff's shoulder to quite his boyfriend. "But, everyone loves you, Blaine! You were our lead soloist and everyone thought you were like a Gleek God!"
Blaine smiled at the thought of still having friends, "then why hasn't anyone visited?"
"Busy?" Jeff offered. "I really don't know. But, all the Warblers send their love, Wes and David too. I'm sure they would've come to visit but, they're in college so..."
"Do you remember Wes? You've known him like your whole life." Nick asked.
"Yeah, we've been best friends since kindergarten. He's in college now?"
"Yep, freshman at Yale. He graduated second in his class and president of the Warblers." Nick said with pride.
"You cried at his graduation." Jeff snickered.
"Me?" Blaine asked, Jeff nodded. "No way, I don't cry!"
"You did then!" Jeff laughed, earning him a hit from Nick.
"Do you have any pictures?"
"Of you crying? Of course!"
"Haha, very funny. I meant of the Warblers."
Nick pulled his phone out of his blazer pocket. "I do." He handed Blaine his phone,on the screen was a picture of the Warblers last year. Blaine was able to find Wes, Nick, Jeff, and himself. He looked like the Blaine he sees in the mirror every night, but without the scratches and bruises. Everyone in the picture had on the same attire that Nick and Jeff were now in.
"Are those school uniforms?" Blaine asked, gesturing to Nick and Jeff's clothes. They both nodded. As Blaine continued to observe the picture, he found someone who caught his eye. It was the man who visited him his first night in the hospital. "Who is that?" He asked Nick.
"That's Kurt, he's your boyfriend. Or did you guys break up? You wouldn't know." he said, turning from Blaine. "Jeff did they break up?"
"No, I don't think so. Wasn't he with Kurt on Friday. That's why he didn't going bowling with us."
"So, yeah. That's Kurt, your boyfriend."
Blaine shook his head. "No, no I'm dating Kate. We just started dating."
"Wait," Jeff chuckled. "Blaine you're-" another knock on the door interrupted them again.
"Visiting hours are over." The same nurse from earlier informed them.
"Alright, thank you." Nick said. "Wait, Blaine, how are you? We never asked."
"Not too bad, clearly I have amnesia and bruises. I have bad cuts on my head and arm, nothing broken. I'm really dizzy, though."
"Well, we hope you feel better!" Nick said, grabbing Jeff's hand to leave.
"Yeah. Oh, and Sebastian said hey, too." Jeff added.
"Do we like him?" Blaine asked.
"No." Jeff said, before exiting the room, leaving Blaine alone again.
Blaine spent the rest of his night thinking about everything Nick and Jeff had told him. How he was popular and Wes is gone and Dalton and McKinely, but mostly Kurt. Blaine can't be gay, he's dating Kate. Not that he found anything wrong with gay people, he assumed Nick and Jeff were dating and he's okay with that. But, he just didn't think that was him.
On Tuesday, Mercedes found Kurt curled up on a bench in the courtyard, ignoring the lunch tray he had discarded on the ground, headphones in, deaf to the world. She walked up and lifted her friends feet, sitting in their spot, then gently placing his designer boots onto her lap. Kurt took out one earbud and looked at her expectantly.
"Whatcha listening to?" She asked.
Kurt tilted his chin up and sucked in his cheeks, "nothing."
"Kurt, if you keep listening to your playlist for him, you'll go insane! You're only hurting yourself."
"I'm fine Cedes, but thanks for your concern." He put the earbud back in.
"I'm not done talking to you." Mercedes announced in vain, Kurt couldn't hear her over his own music. Irritated, she reached over and yanked the head phones out of his ears. "Listen, Hummel, me and bunch of Glee girls are going to visit Blaine tonigh after practice and I think you should come." Kurt opened his mouth to protest, but Mercedes cut him off. "Now before you say anything, hear me out. I think it's best if you see him and at least talk to him, even though he doesn't remember you-"
"It's not that he doesn't remember me. He is disgusted by me! And I don't want to see him."
"You're going to have to sooner or later."
"I choose later." With that, Kurt got up and left, leaving Mercedes and his tray still on the ground.
The next day brought another visitor. He was tall and bulky in a fit, athletic sort of way. But all little Blaine noticed was he was tall.
"Hey." He said awkwardly, hulking in the doorway. Blaine gave him a half hearted smile, an expression that he now uses to notify people that he doesn't know them. He clearly got the message and slowly made his way to the midpoint of Blaine's bed and the door. "I'm- I'm Finn and this is my girlfriend Ra-" he gestured towards a girl, whom he realized was not there. "Hang on." He went back into the hallway. Blaine overheard his conversation of hushed whispers.
"It's okay, he's fine. You can see him," Finn told the girl.
"No, Finn I can't! What if I say the wrong thing or cry and make him feel bad!"
"It's okay, I'm right here." Finn returned to the room, this time holding hands with a small brunette girl, who looked absolutely minuscule next to the over sized teen. "And this is Rachel." He informed Blaine.
"Hi." Blaine said. That one word triggered something in Rachel. She broke out of Finn's grasp and sprinted to Blaine's bedside.
"I am so sorry!" She cried. "This is all my fault! If I had just driven you home instead of leaving you at Kurt's house on Friday, then you would have been home safe when the rain came. Then you wouldn't have gotten in the accident, but you did and it's all my fault!" She embraced Blaine in a tight hug. "You don't even know how sorry I am, I just wanna stop feeling like I'm a bad person!"
"Oh, um... I forgive you?" Blaine awkwardly patted the girl's back, give Finn a pleading look.
"Rachel, let go of him, it's okay. You're being a little too- it's not the time for- he doesn't-" Finn struggled to find a nice way to say it. "You're scarring him."
Rachel got up, wiping away her tears. "I'm sorry, I'm just- I'm sorry. I'll just go wait in the hall." Finn nodded. "Feel better, Blaine." She called on her way out of the room.
"Sorry, she's pretty high strung." Finn apologized. Blaine noticed that they both were very apologetic.
"It's okay. I understand, I guess."
"Yeah." Finn sat in one of the few chairs strategically placed around the room. "So, what's the damage?"
"Amnesia, obviously and a few cuts and bruises. Nothing too bad."
"Good, good. Um.. When do you think you'll be back, Mr. Schue really wants to know."
"Mr. Shoe?"
"Mr. Schuester, he's the director of our school Glee club, the"
"New Directions?" Blaine finished.
"Yeah, you remember?" Finn looked so hopeful, Blaine almost wanted to say yes just to humor him.
"No, some of my Warbler friends came by yesterday and filled me in."
"Ah, of course." They both nodded.
"But the doctor said I can go home tomorrow and be back in school on Thursday."
"Oh, great! Are you excited?"
"To get out of here? Yes!" Blaine chuckled. "This place sucks!"
"Yeah, it looks like a little white hell hole in here." Finn agreed. "Oh, and I talked to Figgins, the school principal, and I'm going to be your guide when you get back. I'll help you find your classes and get caught up."
"Great, so will I meet you in front of the school or?"
"I'll pick you up at your house, I know where it is." Finn said, rising from his seat. "I should probably get Rachel home before she scares anymore patients. I'll see you Thursday, Blaine." Blaine waved from his bed, he was tired and ready for a nap. But, right as Finn left, a group of girls entered.
The five girls stood huddle at the end of Blaine's bed, waiting for the other to speak.
"Hi, girls." Blaine said.
"My little dolphin! He can still talk!" One of the girls ran over and ruffled Blaine's hair, placing a kiss on his forehead.
Blaine chuckled, "um dolphin?"
"Yes! My magical dolphin!" She cheered.
Another girl cleared her throat and turned to the Hispanic cheerleader next to her. "Santana, control your girlfriend." She murmured.
"I'm sorry, but he clearly doesn't seem to have a problem with it, right?" She, Santana, turned to Blaine.
"Uh.." Was his only response.
"Would you all cut it out! Scare the poor baby!" The Asian girl cooed.
"Tina is right. Blaine, I'm Mercedes, that's Tina, that's Santana, Quinn and Brittany." She pointed at the girl who was now on Blaine's lap on his hospital bed, twisting her fingers in his black curls.
"Brittany, Brit stop!" Quinn commanded her, to no success.
"It's okay, I don't mind, I guess." Blaine sighed.
"Do you remember us?" Tina asked. "From McKinley?"
Blaine shook his head and watched as all of their hopeful faces twisted into looks of disappointment, which they immediately tried to hide. "But I'm guessing you guys are in the New Directions?"
"Yeah! Do you remember that?" Tina asked.
"No..." Blaine said, apologetically.
"How did you know about us then?"
"Frankenteen probably told him, did you guys not see him and Berry in the parking lot?" Santana asked, sitting in one chair and swinging her legs over the side of another.
"Oh, yeah Finn and Rachel did say they were coming." Mercedes remembered.
"Wait, Finn is Frankenteen?" All five girls nodded. "Priceless. He's huge."
"Trust us, we know." Quinn sighed. She knocked Santana's feet off the second chair and sat in it, earning a glare from the other girl.
"Don't get too comfy guys, we probably should go soon." Tina warned the other girls. "We just wanted to stop by and make sure you were alright."
"Of course, Tina." Blaine reassured her. She smiled and nodded, proud that he had remembered her name. All of the girls got up, heading towards the door.
"Will I see you at school soon, dolphin?" Brittany asked.
"Yeah." Blaine nodded. Satisfied, Brittany climbed off Blaine's bed and followed her friends out of the room.
Comments
Hy hasn't anyone told him about himself an why has he started to ask questions? How old is that nurse Kate? Nurses ant date their patients?!!!? What is Mrs.anderson going to do about er husband trying to change her son? What is Kurt going to do when Blair goes back to school? Is Burt or Carole visiting Blaine? More ASAP
Kate is around Blaine's age and she's just a candy stripper. She might be a college freshman intern, but not too old. I'm not sure if they're allowed to date...but breaking the rules is what makes it fun!