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A N A S T A S I A . W O O D S
"Forgetting is like lighting
a candle. The candle might disappear.
But the wax is always there."
~imhisthoughts (anonymous)
"Forgetting is like lighting
a candle. The candle might disappear.
But the wax is always there."
~imhisthoughts (anonymous)
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Song Where's My Love
Anastasia's Outfit here
Location Legacy Emanuel Medical Center
Dialogue coral2
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xxxxxAll eyes were on Anastasia, scrutinizing her in close proximity. She felt like a foreigner in the face of those who eyed her, like a piece of china lying vulnerable with a high possibility of being destroyed. The questions that the doctor were asking were absurd as they were simple, "Ms. Anastasia, could you please explain to me the last thing you can clearly remember as well as state your age, and current residence." Ana had nothing to hide. She made it clear that she knew nothing of having been married to the man before her that called himself Sawyer Woods. However, the more she denied the fact the more he continued to press onto the subject matter.
xxxxxHer mind was a blur. Bits and pieces of her memory were like a jigsaw puzzle whether she finished the grand design, there was an empty space inside of her that was missing. Somewhere along the line she felt it, that sense of incompletion. As much as her headache allowed her she gave the doctor an answer of what she knew to be true. "I- uh, was in my dorm studying with my roommate, at Harvard. We're both undergraduates, first year students, and we were a week into midterms." Ana remembered clearly how her roommate, Rachel, was upset with their Psychology professor for assigning them with a three page research paper about the Fundamentals of Human Development. She referred to him as a total bozo afterwards. Aside from her father, Ana on the other hand, thought he was the most intelligent man she ever met. He had been the reason why she chose to pursue a major in Pre-law.
xxxxxThe doctor nodded, registering Ana's words as she spoke. "And do you mind stating your age?"
xxxxx"I'm eighteen." Anastasia replied although she was a bit perplexed with the bizarre questions she was being asked. She was aware that hospitals were accessed records to identify their patients upon every visit, so why was Dr. Antonini asking such questions? However, Anastasia noticed something about her answer that threw him off. He eyed her with uncertainty, his forehead creased. "Anastasia, do you know why you're here? How you ended up in the hospital?"
xxxxxTruthfully, Anastasia couldn't remember. It was that part of her memory that was suddenly dug up and left a ditch in her mind. She shook her head which made Dr. Antonini pull out a chair beside her, and reach out for her hand. He held it in his carefully as if she were a delicate bird and at any moment would be crushed against his grasp. His eyes never leaving Ana's, he took a short exasperated sigh before speaking, "You were in a fatal car crash on your way home from work. It was a drunk driver unfortunately, the other driver and the passenger didn't make it. We didn't think you would make it either because you were pretty beaten up by the time we brought you in, and you lost a lot of blood. By then, we were putting your fate in the hands of God. You were still breathing with the help of the ventilator, but you wouldn't wake up," Somewhere in the midst of his sentence, he squeezed her hand for reassurance noticing it went limp, but Ana hadn't felt it. She was frozen, a lump was caught in her throat though she didn't feel the need to cry. How could she when the doctor wasn't making any sense of it all?
xxxxx"I-I don't understand." Her words fumbled on her tongue. The doctor continued, "Anastasia, you were in a coma long enough to forget the last 10 years of your life. You’re twenty eight not eighteen, you graduated from college seven years ago, became a lawyer thereafter, and during that time you married,” his free hand gestured toward Sawyer, "you have two, beautiful children and a loving home here in Oregon."
xxxxxJust like that, her heart stopped. And everything went still. There were no doctors, no nurses, and no Sawyer Woods. Only Anastasia. Nothing made sense anymore. The person that Anastasia thought she knew, she didn't instead there was a new identity that took its place. For years, Ana had her life planned out, she would graduate high school as valedictorian, attend an Ivy League, and become a successful lawyer living in the big city. However, marrying and having children was not in her favor.
xxxxxShe allowed her hand to slip from Dr. Antonini's before her head turned to Sawyer, staring at him, she struggled to find some sort of remembrance. But, there was none. She didn't know Sawyer Woods, and the worst part is it didn't hurt her to know this. Quickly, she veered her head down to look at her palms noticing the bruises and scrapes, and bit her bottom lip until she tasted metallic, until the pain she felt was no longer. A tear stung her eye before rolling down her cheek and into her palm, she closed it, clasping it in her hand as if it were the only part of her she didn't want to lose. She looked up at the doctor "Why can't I remember? What's happened to me?" She knew exactly what was wrong with her, but she wanted someone else to speak for her.
xxxxxThe doctor exhaled a breath he hadn't known he had been holding in for so long, "What you may be suffering from is a medical condition; Amnesia. Facts, experiences, and memories that were once there in your brain are no longer. Think of it as being a hard drive in your head, you store bits of important information in there, now imagine if that hard drive have been unplugged, or misplaced. That's what I believe is the problem here. You don't remember anything that happened to you within the last 10 years because you simply cannot remember. Your life is paused to the time you were in college-"
xxxxx"-But, how long until this all ends?" Ana interrupted "When will my memories come back to me?"
xxxxx"That's the thing. It could be months, years even. It's likely these memories won't ever return to your conscience. Your best solution is to wait it out."
xxxxxThe doctor watched Anastasia bury her face into her hands, then turned his attention across to Sawyer, "Can I have a moment with you?" He said, rising from the chair, and making his way outside the room.
xxxxxHer mind was a blur. Bits and pieces of her memory were like a jigsaw puzzle whether she finished the grand design, there was an empty space inside of her that was missing. Somewhere along the line she felt it, that sense of incompletion. As much as her headache allowed her she gave the doctor an answer of what she knew to be true. "I- uh, was in my dorm studying with my roommate, at Harvard. We're both undergraduates, first year students, and we were a week into midterms." Ana remembered clearly how her roommate, Rachel, was upset with their Psychology professor for assigning them with a three page research paper about the Fundamentals of Human Development. She referred to him as a total bozo afterwards. Aside from her father, Ana on the other hand, thought he was the most intelligent man she ever met. He had been the reason why she chose to pursue a major in Pre-law.
xxxxxThe doctor nodded, registering Ana's words as she spoke. "And do you mind stating your age?"
xxxxx"I'm eighteen." Anastasia replied although she was a bit perplexed with the bizarre questions she was being asked. She was aware that hospitals were accessed records to identify their patients upon every visit, so why was Dr. Antonini asking such questions? However, Anastasia noticed something about her answer that threw him off. He eyed her with uncertainty, his forehead creased. "Anastasia, do you know why you're here? How you ended up in the hospital?"
xxxxxTruthfully, Anastasia couldn't remember. It was that part of her memory that was suddenly dug up and left a ditch in her mind. She shook her head which made Dr. Antonini pull out a chair beside her, and reach out for her hand. He held it in his carefully as if she were a delicate bird and at any moment would be crushed against his grasp. His eyes never leaving Ana's, he took a short exasperated sigh before speaking, "You were in a fatal car crash on your way home from work. It was a drunk driver unfortunately, the other driver and the passenger didn't make it. We didn't think you would make it either because you were pretty beaten up by the time we brought you in, and you lost a lot of blood. By then, we were putting your fate in the hands of God. You were still breathing with the help of the ventilator, but you wouldn't wake up," Somewhere in the midst of his sentence, he squeezed her hand for reassurance noticing it went limp, but Ana hadn't felt it. She was frozen, a lump was caught in her throat though she didn't feel the need to cry. How could she when the doctor wasn't making any sense of it all?
xxxxx"I-I don't understand." Her words fumbled on her tongue. The doctor continued, "Anastasia, you were in a coma long enough to forget the last 10 years of your life. You’re twenty eight not eighteen, you graduated from college seven years ago, became a lawyer thereafter, and during that time you married,” his free hand gestured toward Sawyer, "you have two, beautiful children and a loving home here in Oregon."
xxxxxJust like that, her heart stopped. And everything went still. There were no doctors, no nurses, and no Sawyer Woods. Only Anastasia. Nothing made sense anymore. The person that Anastasia thought she knew, she didn't instead there was a new identity that took its place. For years, Ana had her life planned out, she would graduate high school as valedictorian, attend an Ivy League, and become a successful lawyer living in the big city. However, marrying and having children was not in her favor.
xxxxxShe allowed her hand to slip from Dr. Antonini's before her head turned to Sawyer, staring at him, she struggled to find some sort of remembrance. But, there was none. She didn't know Sawyer Woods, and the worst part is it didn't hurt her to know this. Quickly, she veered her head down to look at her palms noticing the bruises and scrapes, and bit her bottom lip until she tasted metallic, until the pain she felt was no longer. A tear stung her eye before rolling down her cheek and into her palm, she closed it, clasping it in her hand as if it were the only part of her she didn't want to lose. She looked up at the doctor "Why can't I remember? What's happened to me?" She knew exactly what was wrong with her, but she wanted someone else to speak for her.
xxxxxThe doctor exhaled a breath he hadn't known he had been holding in for so long, "What you may be suffering from is a medical condition; Amnesia. Facts, experiences, and memories that were once there in your brain are no longer. Think of it as being a hard drive in your head, you store bits of important information in there, now imagine if that hard drive have been unplugged, or misplaced. That's what I believe is the problem here. You don't remember anything that happened to you within the last 10 years because you simply cannot remember. Your life is paused to the time you were in college-"
xxxxx"-But, how long until this all ends?" Ana interrupted "When will my memories come back to me?"
xxxxx"That's the thing. It could be months, years even. It's likely these memories won't ever return to your conscience. Your best solution is to wait it out."
xxxxxThe doctor watched Anastasia bury her face into her hands, then turned his attention across to Sawyer, "Can I have a moment with you?" He said, rising from the chair, and making his way outside the room.