After a robbery left me with amnesia, I woke up to a girl claiming to be my fiancée. Back home, odd clues piled up: my dog's hostility towards her, her ignorance of our home, and hidden photos of a stranger in the attic. Something wasn't right.
My name is James, and I'm a 30-year-old banker. My life was a series of daily routines until one Tuesday changed everything. I arrived at the train station at 8:30 a.m. as always, cherishing the calm before my day started.
I found my usual spot on the platform, away from the crowd, and started reading a book. My phone buzzed in my pocket. It was a message from my fiancée, my main source of love and support since I had no family left.
Train station background | Source: Shutterstock
She wrote, "I miss you."
I replied, "I miss you too," and went back to my book.
Two men approached me as I read. They looked rough and made me uneasy, but I tried to remain calm.
"Hey, man," one of them yelled. They moved closer, scanning me.
"Any problems, guys?" I asked, trying to keep the tone polite but firm.
"That's for you to tell us, man," the taller one said mockingly. It was clear they were not here for a friendly chat.
The shorter guy tried to grab my bag. "What's in here?" he demanded.
Robber snatching bag | Source: Shutterstock
"Listen, guys, I don't want any trouble. Let's just walk away," I said, my hand tightening on my things.
"No, it doesn't work like that. Give us the bag," the shorter one insisted. I refused to give in. This was about principle. As we struggled over the bag, a girl approached, looking concerned.
The men panicked at her approach, briefly loosening their grip, but it was such a sudden movement that I lost my balance and fell onto the track, my head hitting the ground hard.
Pain engulfed me, and my vision blurred…
Abstract blur of a hospital room | Source: Shutterstock
***
I woke up in a hospital. Everything was blurry at first. A man in a white coat leaned over me. A doctor, I realized. The room was stark and sterile.
Then I saw her, a beautiful girl holding my hand. She was a stranger, yet she held on as if we had a lifetime of memories together.
The doctor shone a light into my eyes, but I was distracted by the girl's worried expression. She tried to comfort me, but her name was a mystery to me.
Words started making sense gradually, like a radio finding its frequency. "Sir, do you understand what I'm asking?" the doctor inquired.
Health care | Source: Shutterstock
"I didn't hear you," I replied, struggling with each word. I tried to swallow, but my throat was a desert.
"Do you remember your name?" he persisted.
"James," I answered, a sliver of relief cutting through the fog of confusion.
"And your date of birth?" he continued. The numbers came to me surprisingly easily.
As the doctor probed further, asking about the sky's color and the current president, some answers came quicker than others, making me frown. Bits of my life, like my street and the touch of a dog's fur, came back to me, but many details remained out of reach.
Engagement ring | Source: Shutterstock
The doctor then explained, "You've been in a coma for five days due to a traumatic brain injury." He went into some more details, but I didn't get all the medical jargon.
Turning to the girl beside me, whose presence was both comforting and confusing, I asked, "Who is this?"
Tears flowed as she answered, "James, it's me, Lucy," but her name sparked no recognition.