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He didn’t even know how long he’d been sleeping when he felt a hand slowly move over his face. His eyes slowly opened and focus on the face that was now looking at him.
“ Baby your awake.” AJ said smiling at her.
“ Yes I am” She said with a huge smile on her face. AJ leaned forward and kissed her passionately, the smile that spread on his face as he ran his fingers over her face. He couldn’t believe it. It was a few short hours ago that he had come in there and was weeping over his wife. Hoping she would be all right. Now he was holding her hand and seeing that she was all right and wide awake and smiling at him.

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AJ’s eyes snapped open and he looked towards Katherine, her eyes still closed the tube down her throat helping her breath. AJ closed his eyes and let a few tears run down his cheeks.
“ It was only a dream. Baby, please come back to me. Now I know how you felt when I was gone.” AJ said running his fingers over her cheek. “ My love.” AJ said kissing her cheek. He looked up to see the doctor come into the room.
“ Good morning Mr. McLean.” The doctor said looking at him. AJ rubbed his eyes and looked at the doctor.
“ Morning?” AJ asked looking at him.
“ Yes you’ve been sleeping here all night. We didn’t have the heart to wake you.” The doctor said. “ I am Doctor Simon I was put in charge of your wife’s care. She seems to have started to wake. I am going to remove the tube and be back in about an hour” Dr. Simon said looking at him. AJ nodded and whipped the tears away from his face.
“ I am warning you when she wakes we aren’t sure what is going to happen.” He said looking at AJ. AJ looked at him expectantly. The doctor removed the tube and checked Katherine’s vitals and then left the room, leaving AJ alone in the silent room. The only noise braking the silence was the machine that keep up the rythem of Katherine’s heart rate. AJ laid his head down on the bed again and closed his eyes. He woke with a start when he heard the door open.
“ How’s she doing?” Howie asked in a whisper.
“ They removed the tube this morning.” AJ said noting that it was later in the afternoon.
“ I noticed, come on Linda said she would sit in here with Kathy while I took you out for a while. I know you haven’t eaten since last night.”
“ I can’t leave her not alone.”
“ You’re not leaving her alone. Alex she’s going to be here with Linda.” Howie said to his friend. AJ looked at Katherine again and then at Howie. Howie placed his hands on the back of AJ’s chair and pulled him away from the bed. AJ was about to protest when he decided against it. Howie looked at his wife and shook his head, he knew this was hard on AJ. Everything lately was hard on AJ.




“ J, come on talk to me.”
“ My life is falling apart.” AJ said looking at his friend.
“ Your life isn’t falling apart.” Howie reassured his friend.
“ The hell it isn’t D. My wife is in the ICU ward cause we went out last night. I should have stayed home.” AJ said
“ Alex listen to yourself. Your making it sound like this was your fault.” Howie said.
“ It is my fault. My life spun out of control when I went out with Nick that night almost a year ago. I nearly lost my life instead I lost the use of my legs.” AJ said a mixture of anger and sadness in his voice. Howie wasn’t sure what to do for his friend. It almost seemed if AJ’s depression was getting worse. They had been sitting there close to two hours when Howie looked towards the doorway and saw Linda standing there. Howie stood and hurried towards her.
“ What’s wrong?”
“ She’s awake.” Linda said. Howie looked at her and smiled but that smile faded when he saw she wasn’t smiling.
“ What’s wrong? Linda if she’s awake that’s good.”
“ She can’t remember anything.”
“ As in what happened at the house?” Howie asked.
“ As in absolutely nothing. Her memory is whipped clean. Gone completely. The doctor is hoping it will return on it’s own. Howie she didn’t even know who I was, or even who Brandon was.” Linda said bursting into tears.
“ Oh god. How do I tell Alex?” Howie said turning and looking towards his friend. AJ turned around wondering what Howie was doing and he saw Howie holding Linda in his arms and he could see Linda was crying. AJ wheeled himself towards them.
“ What happened? Linda what happened?” AJ said looking at her. Linda looked down into AJ’s concerned brown eyes, she wasn’t sure how to tell him.
“ Kathy is awake. But she’s got amnesia. She can’t remember anything at all.”
“ Nothing?” AJ asked looking at her. If she couldn’t remember him, he had truly lost everything.
“ Nothing at all. I am so sorry Alex.”
“ I have to see her.” AJ said wheeling himself down the hall towards Katherine’s room. He saw the doctor exit the room.
“ How is she?” AJ asked looking at the doctor.
“ She’s awake, very weak but awake. I am sorry to say she’s got Amnesia, I am thinking it happened when she received the blow to the head. I am hoping it’s temporary. But only time will tell. I am very sorry Mr. McLean.” The doctor said placing his hand on AJ’s shoulder. AJ nodded and wheeled into the room. He let a small smile play on his face as he wheeled to the bed, she was awake, she was alive right now that was all that mattered.
“ Hello my love.” AJ said taking her hand in his. Katherine looked at him with confused eyes but smiled.
“ Hello.” She said sweetly. AJ brushed her hair from her face and kissed her hand. “ And you are?” She said. With that response AJ’s heart sank.
“ I am your husband, Alex. We have a son together named Brandon. And we’ve been married for 4 years now.” AJ said looking at her, his finger tracing the gold band she wore. He was happy the medical people where kind to leave the ring in place, but her lovely engagement ring was gone he had that in his pocket.
“ Really? That other woman said I was Katherine McLean and I was injured in my own home.”
“ That is true. Someone broke into our home, while I was out and you must have spooked them, they struck you over the head and now you’re here.”
“ My arm is in a cast.”
“ Yes my love, the people that broke in broke your wrist and three of your ribs. You will heal, but I want that to be in our home with me.” AJ said running his finger over her ring. Katherine smiled a bit and raised her hand and moved her fingers over his cheek.
“ We have a child?”
“ Yes, a son that will be a year old very soon. He’s just learning how to walk and can say daddy.” AJ said with pride in his voice.
“ His name is Brandon that is what I was told.” Katherine said to him.
“ Yes that is his name.” AJ said. He noted she never once asked about the chair he sat in or even how it happened.
“ You haven’t always been in that.” Katherine said her fingers moving over the edge of the wheelchair AJ sat in.
“ Nope. I am a singer and dancer by trade. But an accident took away my dream of dancing ever again.” AJ said looking at her. Katherine whipped the tear that had moved down his cheek.
“ Yes you will. You’re a strong man and you will walk again.” Katherine said with confidence in her voice. AJ noticed the way she had said it, he could hear a bit of his Katherine in her voice the way she had been.
“ I only wish that to be true some day.” AJ said a touch of hope renewed in his voice. “ I will be right back you rest now. I am going to call my mother and see if she can bring Brandon over. He’s probably wanting to see his mommy.” AJ said kissing her hand again.
“ Alright I will rest. Hurry back, I feel alone here.” Katherine said watching him wheel from the room, Katherine closed her eyes and let tears run down her cheeks. She didn’t remember him, but she could feel the love he had for her, it was deep and pure. She hoped she would remember him and the loved they shared.


“ How is she?” Kevin asked standing in the waiting room.
“ She’s awake, but she remembers nothing.” AJ said looking at them sadly.
“ Where are you going?” Nick asked.
“ Calling Gretchen to see if she’s still got Brandon or if my mom has him.”
“ Kathy remembered him?”
“ No, but I thought he might help her remember.” AJ said going towards the phone. He dialed his mom’s number first.
“ Hello?”
“ Hey Ma is Gretchen over there?”
“ Yeah hon she is what’s wrong?”
“ Kathy is awake but she’s lost her memory ma.” AJ said trying to keep the tears from his voice.
“ Oh baby, Gretchen and I will be there shortly.” Denise said hanging up the phone. AJ hung up the phone and closed his eyes, tears rolled down his cheeks thinking that his world had just come to a crashing halt. AJ sat there near the phone and cried harder as he thought about what was happening with Katherine. Howie looked towards his friend and moved closer to him.
“ Hey it’s going to be alright.” Howie said hugging his friend. AJ looked into his friend’s concerned brown eyes and let the tears flow more.
“ How can you say that?” AJ asked. “ How can you think that everything will be alright? You can’t promise something like that.” AJ said anger replacing his sadness. Howie stepped back and looked down at his friend. He could see the anger that was in AJ’s eyes, something that hadn’t been there in a very long time. AJ turned and wheeled himself from the hospital, leaving Howie standing speechless watching him leave. Linda exited Katherine’s room to see her husband standing alone in the hall.
“ Where is Alex?” Linda asked stopping next to him.
“ He’s mad and he’s gone.” Howie said looking at Linda. Linda sighed and closed her eyes.
“ She’s confused, I’ve seen the look on her face, I think she’s remembering but it’s all cloudy.” Linda said looking at him.
“ She will remember. But Alex isn’t willing to wait that long. He thinks that he’s lost everything. He was crying that is the first time I’ve seen him crying at all.” Howie said. Kevin, Brian and Nick walked over to them and looked at Howie.
“ He’s so upset.” Nick said looking into Howie’s concerned brown eyes.
“ I know but what can we do?” Howie asked them.
“ We can be there and support him. There isn’t anything else we can do for him.” Kevin said. Howie nodded and looked towards where AJ had gone.
“ I’ll go talk to him.” Nick said heading down the hall to where AJ had gone.



AJ sat outside, he had wheeled himself away from the hospital as far away from it as he could get. Everything in his life had come to this moment and it had all changed when he had that accident months ago. And now his own wife didn’t know who he was. AJ put his face in his hands and broke down in sobs. His body was wracked with sobs as Nick came up behind him. Nick placed his hand on AJ’s shoulder as he sat down on the bench beside him. AJ raised his eyes and looked at his friend, whipping his tears away with the back of his hand he looked down the road.
“ Alex you cant keep hiding from everything that is going on.”
“ Why not?” AJ said looking at him. “ Why couldn’t I have just died in that crash, I am worthless to her, I can’t do anything.”
“ The hell you can’t. You’re a wonderful friend and wonderful husband and father.” Nick said. “ Alex, we’ve been friends for over ten years, you’ve been helping me with my solo album. I’ve been helping you with yours. Everything you have worked for is perfect.” Nick reminded him.
“ I know, but I feel that I am letting her down. I can see what my not being able to walk has done to Kathy. She’s so sad, I’ve seen it in her eyes.”
“ She’s sad because you’re sad. Alex, have you stopped to think that we are your friends we are your family. And we support you threw everything. Alex please believe me. We are here for you and your family. Maybe it’s time we had a family meeting?” Nick suggested. AJ nodded and turned his chair so he was looking directly at Nick.
“ Maybe it’s time. We used to do things like that when we knew it was time to help another. Alright lets go get the others it’s time for a talk.” AJ said heading back towards the hospital. Nick followed behind him closely, his eyes down cast as he followed behind AJ.


“ Looks like Nick talked him into coming back.” Kevin said seeing them coming towards them. AJ looked up at Kevin, tears in his eyes as he looked at his friends.
“ Excuse me can we get a room so we can talk?” Brian asked the nurse.
“ Sure there is a private waiting room over there you can use.” The nurse said pointing down the hall. Brian smiled and thanked her and motioned for the others to follow him. Once inside the room Kevin closed the door and then sat down closest to it.
“ Alright we are here what’s up?”
“ Our brother needs us.” Nick said looking at them. AJ’s eyes where down cast as Nick spoke first.
“ We are here for you Alex.” Kevin said placing his hand on AJ’s knee. AJ looked up at him and then down at his knee.
“ What’s wrong?” Howie asked.
“ I felt that.” AJ said
“ What?” Kevin said looking down at his hand and then back up at AJ.
“ I felt your hand on my leg. That’s the first thing I’ve felt since the accident.” AJ said tears flowing again. Kevin stood and pulled AJ into a warm hug and held his young friend close and let him cry.
“ Alex remember we are all here for you, no matter what we are here for you.” Kevin said, his voice low and soothing. AJ calmed his crying and looked at his older friend, his older brother and smiled. A genuine smile, the first they had seen since the accident. Howie looked towards the door and saw Denise standing here with Katherine holding Brandon.
“ My love why are you crying?” Katherine asked walking into the room. She knelt down next to him and looked into his red puffy eyes.
“ I feel so lost. I’ve lost you.”
“ You haven’t lost me Alex, I am here and will always be here.” Katherine said whipping the tears away from his face. AJ pulled her into his arms careful not to crush their son.
“ I have lost you, you can’t remember me or your life.”
“ Alexander James McLean Born January 9th 1978, your natural hair color is brown, your eyes sparkle every time we talk about your mom. Your greatest love is your singing. Your love and admire each of the boys for all they’ve done. Your proud of Nick for doing something you’ve always wanted to do.” Katherine said with a huge smile. AJ’s eyes got wide and he smiled
“ You remembered?”
“ She remembered the minuet I handed her Brandon.” Denise said.
“ Really?” AJ said running his finger over her cheek.
“ Yeah really, I know how much it scared you to think I would never remember you. But never ever think that I would ever leave you.” Katherine said kissing his lips passionately, she giggled as she felt his hands moved over her back.
“ Oh someone is really happy.”
“ Yes I am.” AJ said with a twinkle in his eye. “ Baby I can feel my legs.”
“ What?” Katherine and Denise said at once.
“ I can feel my legs. Just now Kevin was being a big brother and placed his hand on my leg I felt his hand.” AJ said tears rolling down his cheeks. Tears of joy it was as if maybe his life was getting better.
“ Oh god Alex that is great.” Katherine said kissing him again.
“ Daddy.” Brandon said hugging AJ.