“Listen, I realize I fucked up a lotta things. Either let down or used every single person who gave me their trust. Blind, selfish bastard that I was. But I’ve managed one thing for now. Not to fuck this up, what we have.”
Summary:Keanu found the girl almost dead, in the wrecks of what was once her car. While she was in surgery, stuck in a coma, he gathered the best doctors of New York to attend to her. They told him she is likely to have some kind of brain damage, what may lead to memory loss. And this possibility added up wit the fact that she’s pregnant, made the council come up with an odd idea. They asked Keanu to pretend to be her husband, since the stress of finding out everything that happened could put the baby in danger. He reluctantly agreed, but only if she does has some kind of memory loss. He still goes she’ll wake up soon, with her memories intact.
But when you finally wake up, there’s nothing inside. You’re quick to find your head is empty, void, like a blank canvas. The only thing that brings you some relief, that makes you feel less lonely is the mention of a husband. And you can’t wait to meet him, because you know you can’t deal with this by yourself.
Life has a weird way of turning things around. Of putting people in the most unlikely scenarios, and leaving them on their own to try and figure out what to do next.
Keanu’s mind has been restless since the moment he saw the bleeding, unconscious girl inside that wreck of a car, four days ago.
It was on the side of the empty road, and he was just about to drive pass it when something made him stop. Whoever caused it was gone, and there were no words to describe the sting on his chest when he saw her. The next moments happened in such a blur that he still has a hard time trying to put everything together. He remembers carefully lifting the girl’s body off the wheel. He remembers checking her heartbeats, so faint and weak. And he surely remembers calling an ambulance and staying there, hoping, praying she wouldn’t be just a corpse when they got there.
He couldn’t quite see the extension of the damage since he was too scared to move her around. The girl wouldn’t wake up, it didn’t matter how many times he called, and as time passed, minutes passing by impossibly slow, he felt his heart sinking. Over and over again, he placed two fingers on her neck, just to make sure she was still alive. Her breathing was shallow and fast, and Keanu couldn’t even notice in his agitation. There was way too much blood coming from a wound on her forehead, and more staining her light blue blouse. He couldn’t believe he’d watch her die, right there before his eyes.
A wave of relief washed over him when the ambulance came, and he watched, helplessly, as they put her on the stretcher, pushing it to the back of the ambulance. A man had spoken to him, he’s not sure what, but his legs carried him to the ambulance with her, and there, seated between two paramedics, he looked at the girl, once again praying she’d survive the ride.
She did. She was strong, the doctors said, and had successfully recovered from the two surgeries she had to go through. There was a lot of internal bleeding, they said, and now, the girl was in a coma. And nobody could tell how long it’d take for her to wake up.
But that was four days ago. Today, still at the hospital, Keanu tries to focus on whatever the council of doctors are saying. He had paid for everything, and he wouldn’t have anything less than the best health care for the girl. (Y/N), he had found out. A beautiful name, that he thought suited the girl perfectly. Seated on the head of the table, Doctor Wright speaks of her condition, but Keanu’s mind has drifted away a while ago.
“Mr. Reeves?” The woman, Alice Harris, gets his attention. She’s the psychologist involved. The only reason why she’s here is that there was damage on (Y/N)’s brain. There’s a sixty percent chance that her memories were affected. They don’t know how much yet, but they’ll be ready to deal with whatever happens when she finally opens her eyes again. If she ever does. But Keanu won’t give this possibility any thoughts. “Are you willing to do this?”
“Do what?” He didn’t want to come out as not being interested in this. He was. But he can’t pretend he knows what he would be agreeing with.
“Mr. Reeves, I know you’re also affected by this. We all can see it. But we need you to have your mind clear.” The surgeon speaks, his hands cupped together, lying above (Y/N)’s papers. “If not, we’ll place her under our care until we can contact her mother-in-law.”
“Mother-in-law?” How much of the conversation did Keanu lose?
“Let me.” Dr. Wright says. “Mr. Reeves, we have made some research on our patient’s life. (Y/N) had just moved here, and unfortunately, she lost her husband only two weeks ago in a work-related accident.” This time, Keanu pays attention, his eyes focused on the man. “The only other person she has here is a friend named Laura Thompson, and her mother-in-law lives in Argentina, Lucia Davis. A few friends from her hometown, but nobody else. Nobody here who can help her through… Her condition.”
“There’s still a chance she’ll remember, right? Forty percent.” Keanu could only imagine what it’d be like. He’d never wished that on anyone, waking up one day with nothing inside. No record of who you were before. And he didn’t want this for her. Not after what she’s been through. “If she’s alright then–”
“It wasn’t about this condition I was talking about.” He cuts off, sighing and exchanging a glance with the neurologist. “Mr. Reeves, (Y/N) is three weeks pregnant.”
There’s a sudden buzz on Keanu’s ears, as his brain tries to process what he just heard. He’s quick to make the math though. Three weeks pregnant, lost her husband two weeks ago… She was just starting to plan everything, probably just about to break the news to him or the family, and then, he died. That was probably the reason for her accident. Driving fast, tears clouding her sight, wondering what she’d do now, all alone, with a kid on the way. “Everything you need me to do, I will. I’ll pay for anything she needs, it doesn’t matter how much.” The words flow out, almost a living thing.
“Dr. Harris raises a hand to stop Dr. Wright, who was just about to say something. “Mr. Reeves, as we already said, we fear that our patient will have some kind of memory loss if she wakes up. And people on her position are always scared, and the feeling of being lost may drive them into self-destructive behaviors.” The woman speaks slow, and Keanu sighs. He’s suddenly angry, wanting people to just spit everything out so he can understand what’s going on and decide what to do with it. Bouncing his leg under the table, he nods, urging her to continue. “In that scenario, knowing about a pregnancy can make things take a bad turn, and even put the unborn child in danger.”
“What will you have me do?” He bursts out, impatiently. “If you need another specialist, or transfer her to some other hospital, do it.”
“What we need is far more complicated than that.” She continues. “A little unusual, but I believe it will work.” She takes a deep breath, fixing her glasses. “Mr. Reeves, we need you to introduce yourself as being (Y/N)’s husband.”
“What?” He inquires, unable to believe his ears.
“If she wakes up–”
“When.” Keanu is quick to correct her, his voice letting it show how anxious he is.
“When, forgive me.” Dr. Harris mutters. “It will be better if she has someone close. And a husband, since she’s with child, will certainly give her peace of mind until… Until she remembers. If she remembers and if she does have a memory loss in the first place.”
Keanu looks down at his hands, resting on the wooden table before him. He should say no. This is way too much, too much of a crazy idea to follow up. But these are the best doctors money could pay for, and he did say he’d do anything that could help her. But he’d never thought this would be what she needed. There was no other option to him, that much was obvious, even if he didn’t want to admit it right way. “Alright then.” He agrees, nodding.
“Good. We’ll contact her friend and mother-in-law to let them know about this.” Dr. Wright says, getting up. “I’ll need you to attend some meetings, Mr. Reeves, there will be some things we’ll need to discuss.”
“Sure.” As if he hasn’t been coming to the hospital every day to visit the girl.
The days start passing a little faster now, as Keanu meets up with the psychologist to make things ready in case she wakes up. They said there’s no need to rush, that it may take several weeks, months even… But Keanu won’t share their skepticism. He believes she’s coming back soon, so he’ll have everything in place for the biggest lie he’d ever tell. He has the excuses in place, the backstory, everything. He even has the fake ring already, and he never felt so bad as he did when buying it. But still, he carries it in his pocket every time he goes visit her, hoping she’ll wake up.
Two weeks have passed, and today, as usual, Keanu looks through the open blinders, his eyes set on her sleeping figure. (Y/N) looks so peaceful in his eyes, as if she’s simply sleeping. He can’t help but admire her beauty, even in a simple hospital gown, with her hair a little messy, she looks pretty. His eyes drift a little, all the way to her stomach. It’s still flat, but he knows there’s life in there, growing. A life that will need their mother. “C'mon, (Y/N). Wake up.” Keanu mutters, his voice barely a whisper.
After a few more minutes, he leaves, walking slowly through the hospital, all the way to his car in the underground parking lot. On the drives seat, he looks at the wheel, the door still open, and he thinks. About everything at the same time. The wrecked car, the blood, the girl, the pregnancy, the lie… It all comes flooding his mind as he runs a hand through his dark hair. He’s so drowned in his head that he almost doesn’t hear the phone ring. But when he does, Keanu easily finds it in his pocket, not even looking at the screen before picking up. “Hello.” He mutters, ready to dismiss whoever it is. He needs to go home, to sleep, to put his mind in place.
“Mr. Reeves. She’s awake.”
You still can’t put things together. The woman has been talking you through it since yesterday morning when you crawled back into consciousness. She told you everything. How you ended up here, to begin with, but it doesn’t matter how hard you try, you can’t remember it. In fact, you can’t remember anything. When you began to freak out yesterday, a nurse came and gave you something that now forced you to calm down. So you just lie there, staring at Dr. Harris as she tries to help you. But she’s failing because your mind is completely empty. The tears keep rolling down, one after the other, and it doesn’t matter how much you dry them, more come soon after.
How is it even possible? How can someone lose everything they were? Everything they had? Shaking your head no, you close your eyes shut, not wanting to listen anymore. Her questions remain unanswered because you just don’t know the answer them. The only reason you know your name and age is because she told you. But all the rest… It’s a mystery. It’s gone.
“I can’t.” You mutter, running a hand through your forehead. “I can’t remember. You’re not helping.” Crying again, you bite back a sob. “Please, just… Don’t I have anyone? Parents? Friends? Anyone… I…” You can’t be alone in the world. There has to be someone, a familiar face who will bring something back.
“You’re parents passed away when you were young, sweetie.” She says, and another sob erupts from your mouth. “But you have a husband.”
You’re not sure how you feel about it, with too many conflicted sentiments flooding your heart. But you do feel… Relieved? You’re not alone. There’s someone who could help you through, who knows you. “I-is he here?” You stutter. “Can I see him?”
“Sure.” She stands up from the armchair she positioned next to your bed. “I’ll call him.”
Nodding, your eyes are on her back as she leaves. Using the bed’s remote control, you move it up until you’re in a seating position. The minutes go by and you’re still alone. The blinders are closed, so you can only see shadows passing by. Maybe he got tired of waiting. Maybe he–.
“(Y/N).” The strong, deep voice calling your name gets your attention, and your eyes find the man standing some feet away from the bed. He’s… Gorgeous. Tall, with long dark hair, which falls on his face, hiding his eyes a little. His beard gives him an atmosphere of mystery but makes him even more handsome.
Is that him? Are you really married to this man? “Are you…” The words fail you, and your voice fades.
