Page 67 of A Coffee Away

“I…” I held my breath as he closed the space between us. “Please, sir. I love him.”

He stopped, darting his eyes between us, and for a second, I saw it. He recognized it. Us.

“I should call security.”

The hesitation in his voice. The way he cleared his throat before threatening me. It was as if…

“Go, and don’t ever come back. You’re only making things worse. The doctor said there’s a high possibility he’ll have amnesia. That he’ll need time to figure things out. What do you think will happen when he sees a stranger standing by his bed? A man, nonetheless.”

My heart stopped beating for a second. A pang struck me so hard I almost dropped to my knees. Dr. Echevarría told me about the risk, but now, after three months, was it a certainty?

“He’ll remember me.”

“Are you that naïve?” He pinched his mouth. “I’ve already accepted the possibility that he might not even remember us, and we’re his parents.” His eyes glazed. “And you think he’ll remember you?”

I flinched as nausea churned in my stomach. Could he really think that lowly of our love? Could a person hate an idea so much to deny his only child and chastise him for whom he was?

Why?

What did we do to deserve this? The short glances. The muttering. The cold stares. The way some people drifted away from us, hiding us from their children. Were we that different from them? Or was it the idea of someone thinking and feeling differently that made them act that way? Did they think we were some kind of anomaly? That we were confused or in need of attention?

I had never figured out why. Why did some people hate us so much?

“I love your son, and I hope someday you’ll see how much you’ve hurt him by pushing us away. I’ll leave, sir, but know this: I’ll never give up on Robbie. I know he’ll remember me. He’s the love of my life, and I’m his.”

With that, I kissed Robbie on the lips and left without knowing when or if I’d ever see him again.

Chapter 18: I Forgot to Remember

Robbie

Arock lay on top of me. My body was heavy except for my eyes and my thoughts. An all-encompassing brightness surrounded me. I squeezed my eyes shut.

“Roberto?”

Mom’s soothing voice reached me.

“He’s awake!”

I blinked twice. Sandpaper covered my eyes as I followed her shadow.

“Where am I?” I cleared my dry throat. “Mom? Dad?”

A sudden coldness hit my core. Where am I?

Something beeped, and I jerked toward the sound. A monitor?

I grabbed my head. Fuck. It was pounding.

I tried to sit up, but my hands were numb. I flexed them, then glanced around the room. A hospital? What the fuck happened?

A nurse rushed inside, my mom following.

The nurse smiled. “Robbie? You okay?”

“My head hurts, and I’m a bit dizzy.” I coughed.

“Here.” She offered me water.