I know everything in the finale happens the day when and the day after Michelle gets home. But, except for the fact everyone wears the same stuff, how I'm doing it could be how it happened in the TVU from here on. And the clothing change isn't all that odd. If Gilligan and the others could have that many changes of clothes packed away for 3 hours, the opposite can be true, too. :-).
CHAPTER NINE
Michelle stared blankly ahead. Suddenly, a large dog ran up to her, scaring her. She backed up instinctively. "Do I like dogs?" she asked, with some hesitation. She couldn't tell if what she'd done came out of a natural fear or not.
"Honey, you love dogs," Jesse assured her.
She petted him warily. "Hi, little girl."
"Ehm, uh . . . boy," Jesse stammered.
"Oh, no. I don't even know if this is a boy or girl. How will I keep all these things straight?" "Oh. So, do you all live in the neighborhood?"
"Uh, we all live in this house," Becky told her somewhat hesitantly. She tried hard not to frustrate Michelle. However, she knew there were some things Michelle had to be told.
Michelle was amazed. She'd thought all those people were just neighbors like Lisa and Denise. What else did they have in store for her?
"Michelle, does anything look familiar?" D.J. asked hopefully.
"Well, it looks like a nice place to live, but I just don't remember living here." The house felt just like the family. Everything was quite unusual to her.
Danny suggested that the girls take her on a tour of the house. Stephanie led them with a joke. "Michelle, please keep your hands and arms inside the tram. Follow me.," she said.
Michelle wasn't sure if this was one of Stephanie's jokes or not. She'd finally grown accustomed to the hospital. But now, she was in a totally different foreign place. Anything seemed possible now. "Do we have a tram?"
"Just stick with us," D.J. suggested.
As they walked, Michelle tried hard to remember things. She wracked her brain as much as she could without getting a headache. That was quite a lot, she discovered.
If this family was so nice, she would certainly want to remember them. The problem was, she had no idea where her memory was. She couldn't even remember herself. She'd hoped her memory would come back upon her return home. But, it hadn't.
They finally entered a room with two beds. "And, this is our room," Stephanie said.
"Are you sure it's not that one with all the toys?" Michelle asked expectantly.
. "No, that's Joey's room. But, he's very good about sharing," Stephanie said.
Michelle decided it was time to get the names straight. "He's my uncle, right?"
"No, Jesse's our uncle," D.J. explained.
Michelle's face brightened. She remembered which "J" name was which. "The guy with the hair," she spoke excitedly. She was starting to put faces with names. But, that was just memorization. There were no real feelings. On the other hand, she was elated to remember anything right now. Maybe this would lead to more.
"Right, and he's married to our Aunt Becky, and they have two kids, our cousins Nicky and Alex," D.J. spoke swiftly.
"How many bathrooms does this place have?" Michelle wanted to know.
"Not enough," answered D.J.
Joey walked into the room. He was carrying a large, brown, spongelike puppet. "Hey, Michelle, look who's here. It's your old buddy Mr. Woodchuck."
Joey moved the puppet's mouth while keeping his own closed. The puppet spoke. "Hey Michelle, remember me? I hoped you . . . " It looked all around. ". . . wood! I've really been pining for you."
Michelle
caught the joke right away. "How come everything he says is about
wood?"
"Well,
because that's the bit we do, remember?" Joey remarked.
Michelle said "clever," then walked away, making a face. "I should have known things would get weird after Stephanie's joke about the tram."
Becky walked in with Danny and Jesse. Stephanie's desire to re-create something had given Danny and Jesse an idea. They knew right away what would work best. "Michelle," Becky began, "we were just talking, and we thought maybe if the guys sang you your favorite bedtime song, it might help bring back some of your memories."
Michelle grinned slightly. Stephanie saying "ouce cream" hadn't helped. But, maybe this would. After all, her dad had told her Stephanie didn't say "ouce cream" herself. Only Michelle had. "Sure, give it a shot."
Jesse called Joey over, interrupting his daydream. He'd been looking lovingly at Mr. Woodchuck. Jesse thought Joey was simply gazing at the "sponge with eyes." Actually, Suzie had seen his act with Mr. Woodchuck several times. She really enjoyed it.
Joey walked over to Jesse and Danny while Jesse spoke to Michelle. Jesse explained how they would always sing this to her at bedtime when she was little. The three men sang "Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear."
Michelle liked the tune. She smiled, enjoying the harmony. It certainly sounded pretty. She felt good listening to it. Unfortunately, it failed to stir any memories. "Doesn't ring a bell. Can I ask a question?" she wondered.
Danny moved closer. "Sure, anything."
"You're my dad, right?" He was. "So . . . where is my mom?"
She didn't know how to interpret the uncomfortable silence. Everyone looked at their neighbor. Finally, Danny spoke somberly. "I'm sorry, but your mom died when you were just a little girl."
Michelle was very disappointed. "So, even if I do get better, I won't remember her?"
"Well, Michelle, we will tell you everything about her you want to know," Joey said.
Michelle asked if she was pretty. "Michelle, she was very pretty," Jesse remarked. "You see, your mommy was my sister. And you know what? You look just like her."
Michelle recalled looking at her face in D.J.'s mirror. At least that helped a little. But, as much as these people were doing, it wasn't making her feel any better.
Besides, she was getting tired. Her brain still needed to rest. "I know you all want me to remember, but I can't. I'm sorry," she spoke sadly.
"Oh, don't worry about it honey, it's fine," Danny said.
Michelle didn't mind her amnesia that much in the hospital. But she, like Stephanie, thought coming here would jog her memory. It hadn't. "It's not fine, I don't know who I am. I'm just giong to lie down in my own bed."
She thought she heard something about it being Stephanie's bed. Becky said something about it not being a good time. She didn't care what that meant. She was too weary, and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Stephanie sighed as she left the bedroom with the others. "Aunt Becky, don't you think she'd be helped more in her own bed?"
Becky smiled. She realized Stephanie wasn't going to pick a fight. But, that wasn't the problem. "I know you don't want to argue. But, it's a lot scarier for her than you realize. And, telling her she's wrong about any of her guesses might agitate her more, and make it harder for her. I stuttered a little before telling her we all lived in this house."
"I didn't know how to explain Comet was a boy either, Steph," Jesse added.
"Hey, but you have to look at the bright side," Joey remarked. He put an arm around Stephanie. "She got sleepy soon after we sang her that bedtime song."
Danny chuckled. "Well, it may sound silly. But, Joey's right. We need to look at the bright side. That may have triggered something, if only deep down inside. And, she needs to find a few pieces first before she can start putting the puzzle together. Besides, I think Michelle has slept in your bed a couple times, Steph ,when she was little and had a nightmare."
"And, this is a scary time for her," Joey stated slowly. "So, it's to her benefit to sleep in your bed, Steph."
Becky laughed. That wasn't quite her reasoning. But, it made sense. Who knew? Maybe some strange idea like that held the key.
Michelle awakened in a strange room. She knew it wasn't the hospital room. It was one of the rooms in the house. She got up, and walked out the door. She hoped to find one of those nice people who kept coming in at the hospital.
She saw Danny walking up the steps. He was glad she was sleeping less and less. She'd only napped for about half an hour. "Oh, hey, honey. We're just about to eat. Are you hungry?"
"I guess I'll eat a little." She wearily followed Danny to the kitchen table.
Michelle was rather quiet as everyone talked during dinner. She enjoyed listening to the lively conversation. But, most of all, she enjoyed eating. It was something, in this mass of confustion, that she still knew how to do.
Stephanie could tell her little sister was frustrated. And, the others felt the same way. She walked up to D.J. after dinner. She made sure they were out of Michelle's hearing range. "You sounded pretty depressed talking about the prom. I know you think Wayne might be as boring as Duane. But, was the date the only reason?"
"No." D.J. sighed. "You know I'm thinking about Michelle. I don't know what's going to work. For instance, if Joey was right, that the bedtime song jogged her memory, something else should have come back. But, Michelle didn't even recall things we talked about from that time period, like being flower girl in Jesse and Becky's wedding."
"I know what you mean. Say, did Aunt Becky tell you my plan?" Stephanie wondered.
D.J. snickered. She opened the kitchen door, and pointed at the living room couch. "Michelle's reading to Nicky and Alex. It seems that would be more likely to jog her memory," she whispered. The door closed.
"I know. She loves that, and they love having her do it. But, the song didn't jog her memory. And, the doctor says earlier memories often return faster than later ones," Stephanie said.
D.J. held up a hand. "Wait a minute. I have a feeling you're about to ask me to do something crazy."
"Come on, Deej," Stephanie pleaded. "Look, if you take me to get that fish, I promise I'll accept sleeping in Michelle's bed for as long as she needs." She knew she should, anyway. Aunt Becky was right. Michelle felt badly enough not remembering anyone. She didn't need to feel worse. And, telling her she didn't even know what bed was hers would almost certainly make her feel worse.
Maybe now, Michelle would at least think she remembered something. If it lasted too long, they could simply pretend to move furniture for a "change of scenery." Then, her bed would be in its old position.
She chuckled. Even Joey's words made sense, in a way. But, she wasn't about to share a bed yet. Michelle felt strange enough without her doing that. She would take Michelle's bed tonight.
D.J. relented. "Okay, fine. But, we're not doing the goldfish thing tonight." She pulled her car keys out of her pocket. "It's only Tuesday. We'll give her till the weekend, at least." The girls left for the store.
Stephanie laid in Michelle's bed and thought that evening. Michelle still had amnesia. Nothing sounded familiar to her.
Would the goldfish idea work, then? Stephanie thought it could. The incident was something specific in her mind. It wasn't a general, "this always happened" kind of thing. Plus, Michelle's personality was there. She cared about others. Maybe having to save a goldfish would bring back her memory. It was no sillier than what Joey had said.
Stephanie awakened the next morning to the twins' voices. They crawled into her bed shouting "Michelle." She pointed them to her bed. She listened as they asked if Michelle remembered. Michelle couldn't even remember their names.
Stephanie knew she should say something about their fight. She still felt terrible. Although she'd forgiven Michelle, her own behavior had been even worse. And, she needed to apologize.
"You said we could have this," she heard Alex say. He held up Michelle's stuffed orange rhinoceros.
"Well, if that's what I said, go ahead. Take it," Michelle said evenly.
As the boys left, Nicky told Alex, "Michelle didn't say that." Alex shushed him.
Stephanie walked over to Michelle's bed. She sat beside her in it, feeling she had to get this off her chest. "Hey, Michelle. Before your accident, we had a fight."
"Really?" Michelle was a little surprised. She thought they had always been really close.
Stephanie spoke remorsefully. "Yeah. I feel awful about what I said. I said I was never going to forgive you."
"Why? What did I do?"
Stephanie didn't want Michelle to blame herself. Later, they could talk about what Stephanie wanted and didn't want to hear around boys. And, she could tell her - and show her - how she'd be more forgiving and understanding.
But, for now, Stephanie wanted to forget the entire thing. "It was nothing really. It was just a stupid argument." She smiled. She hoped this made Michelle feel better. "But it turned out okay. Thanks to you, I found out that Andrew really likes me. In fact, he finally kissed me."
"Well, I'm glad everything worked out."
"I'm
really sorry about what I said. So do you accept my apology?"
Stephanie wondered.
"I
guess so. Do you feel better now?" Michelle wanted to know.
Stephanie paused. Did she? What good was an apology if the person didn't remember why you were apologizing? "I would feel better if you knew what I was talking about."
"I would feel better if I knew what everybody was talking about," Michelle admitted.
Stephanie wished she had an answer. She couldn't think of one. She simply snuggled with Michelle. "I can't remember being much happier than I am right now, seeing her back home. But, it won't feel complete till she can remember."
She began reliving the fun times again. There were so many great moments. Michelle's circus party, for her third birthday, was super, but quite complex. She doubted she could remember enough to recreate it. A flight somewhere would be too expensive. The goldfish scheme was the best, in her mind. It was a first. It was cheap. And, there weren't many speaking lines.
Her Aunt Becky was right about one thing, though. Nobody wanted to eat goldfish. In fact, as she thought about it, she got queasy. She didn't care to try it, either.
The twins returned at that moment. "Michelle, why weren't you in your bed?" Nicky asked.
Michelle ignored the harsh look Stephanie was giving them. "I thought you said this was my room," she said, obviously very hurt.
"It is. It's just that...well..."
"That's your bed," Alex declared.
Stephanie could tell Michelle was about to burst into tears. Why had this happened now? "Michelle...it's okay..."
"No it isn't! I don't even know my own bed? I thought coming here would help me!" she cried, becoming even more frustrated. She'd thought coming home would help her. But now, she wondered if anything would.
