Nick stopped dead in his tracks, staring back at Mark. "You're... awake." he said . "Mark, God, you're awake." He moved back over to the bed.

"My head..." he said softly. "It hurts..."

"I know," Nick said. "I know. Mark... what happened? Do you know? Do you remember?" Nick watched him try to flex his fingers, move his arm. "Mark?"

"I can't..." he said obviously frustrated by the minimal mobility.

"Mark? Do you remember who did this to you?" Nick leaned forward.

"I... I remember going for a swim" he said. "And I remember going to change... in the locker room and... that's it. That's all."

"You don't remember me meeting you?? Nick asked. "After your swim... in the locker room?.." Mark shook his head. "Damnit!" Nick said. "You don't remember who..."

"Nick... maybe... maybe it's better that way."

"Better that whoever did this can do it again? How can that be better?"

"I can hardly... move my arm." Mark said. "I am never going to swim again. I don't know how I'm going to finish this project with you guys. And I'm not going to be able to finish the year because without swimming, I lose my scholarship."

"You're smart, Mark," Nick said. "You can still stay at LU on academic."

"Not after failing chem." he said "Marcie lost her academic scholarship..."

"You know that this project is making up that grade."

"Forget it, Nick, OK?" Mark said. "I can't swim. That's one thing that... Coach was going to have me go out for Olympic trials. And he said I had a real shot. Me. Mark Solomon who never finds a reason to associate with anyone and always has his nose in a book. Me in the Olympic Games." He sighed. "Doesn't matter anyway."

"Don't give me that," Nick said. "You can still do all that. If you can get me to kick the habit then you can do anything."

Mark shook his head. "I'm never going to remember what happened and I'm never going to be the same."

"You never changed."

"They changed me!" Mark exclaimed. "Whoever did this to me changed me." He stared up at the ceiling, growing silent. Nick took a seat once again, remaining quiet, just sitting with him.

>>>>>>

"Hey Marcie..." John said walking into the LPD in the morning. "It's a little early for you to be here this morning, isn't it?"

"We're working at the site this afternoon, so the Commissioner said I could come in earlier." she said

"Well I'll let you get back to work" John smiled, heading over to his desk. He took a seat, beginning to sift through his papers as Michael walked into the department looking over to see Marcie at her desk.

"Marc," Michael said. "Marc, he's awake."

"What are you talking about?" Marcie said.

"Mark" he said "I had to come tell you in person. He's awake, he's talking..."

"He's OK?" Marcie said. "He's awake and he's OK?"

"I went down to the school, they're on the way to the hospital. Marcie... he's got limited muscle strength in his right arm and hand. He's going to need serious therapy..."

"You talking about Mark Solomon?" John asked stepping over. Michael nodded. "He alright to answer some questions?"

"I don't know how much he's gonna be able to tell you." Michael said. "He's got post-traumatic amnesia. Can't remember anything that happened. Trying to force him into remembering... could really complicate things."

"Can I go see him?" Marcie asked. "Does he remember us?"

"Yeah," Michael said. "Yeah, he just... doesn't remember that day very much. I can bring you down there." Marcie nodded, grabbing her jacket and purse. "Come on."

>>>>>>

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS

"And as you can see... the simplicity and straight forwardness of the layout add to the effectiveness of the as. It's a guarantee to catch the eye of the consumer, especially our target, women 18 to 34."

"That's all well and good, Mr. Walsh, but how are you proposing we do this?"

Eric stood from his seat at the end of the board room table. "Well sir... we start out by placing it in the magazines. Teen, Cosmo... and in the second wave of the campaign, we introduce the ad into a commercial spot. Air it during the daytime dramas. You'll have the housewives, the college crowd. Curiosity will peak, sales will skyrocket."

Glances were cast around the table and hushed conversation ensued momentarily. "Mr. Walsh..." the man said. "It'll be a pleasure doing business with you."

Eric smiled, shaking the man's hand, sealing the deal. As the boardroom emptied. He hung back a moment, organizing the presentation as the door to the room opened. "Eric?" the young secretary, Kelsey said. Eric looked up. "James is here to see you. He's waiting in your office."

"Thanks Kelsey" he said. Eric gathered his things, heading down to the office. He entered seeing James standing by Eric's desk. "What's the matter James?" he said closing the door.

"We need to talk" James said.