Author's Note: Okay so I just realized I have two hospital stories. I PROMISE I AM NOT MORBID! LOL. Anyways, enjoy!

"Peter Gaskarth" I smiled, but it quickly faded to a frown. My happiness at a familiar name and face was matched with the fear and dread of the circumstances I was to be meeting him under. I stood outside his hospital door and peeked through the glass window. A quick glance around the room confirmed my darkest suspicions, and I choked back a tear. He was entirely alone.

I sucked in a sharp breath and knocked gently before entering the room. "Mr. Gaskarth!" I smiled cheerfully. I had yet to read his case file, so I hadn't the slightest idea why he was a patient at the hospital I work at. I silently prayed that it was curable.

He looked at me with a blank expression. It never occurred to me that he wouldn't remember me. While Alex and I dated for only a few short months, I met him many times. It has been a few years, I thought, washing my hands and slipping on some gloves. "What brings you here today, sir?" I asked.

"Alzheimer's." He sighed. My optimism was fading, fast.

"Well, at least I know why you don't remember me!" I giggled. The words slipped out of my mouth, and the instant they left, I regretted them. The tension built in the room as he stared me down.

"No, I remember you." He nodded. "I just chose to forget."

I felt my gaze stiffen and my words grew colder. "Ah, yes. Well, about your treatment…" I drifted off into a monotonous sprawl of medical terminology, big words and treatment plans. When I finished, I asked, "Do you want me to discuss your treatment with your wife? Or, Alex…?"

He laughed darkly. "My wife died 6 months ago from cancer. And I haven't seen Alex since his mother died."

I frowned and my cold-hearted display started to waver. "I'm so sorry, sir… I…" He cut me off and smiled grimly. "Life happens. I came here to discuss my options. The only things I have left are my memories." A tear came to his eye. "Sometimes I don't know who I am anymore. My son won't return home because this place reminds him too much of his mother." His voice shook. "Her death was short; it caught all of us off guard. I don't think Alex ever forgave himself for not being around when she needed him."

I nodded and hung my head. I was beginning to regret being so cold earlier.

He continued. "I hear you guys are offering a treatment option. I want to try it."

"Sir," I interrupted. "It's experimental, and the consequences could be grave. We don't have much knowledge of-"

He stopped me. "I want to try. What do I have left?" He gestured around the room. "A life with no one or nothing to comfort me? Maybe if he hears I'm sick, Alex will come back home for once."

My eyes began to well with tears and I wiped them quickly. I couldn't think of what to say, so I left it with a simple, "I promise, you're in good hands."

He nodded. "I requested you specifically, for that reason."

I left the room and began filling out the lengthy paperwork to get Mr. Gaskarth into the study.