Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue.

A/N: Well, that last chapter was fun. Not. lol Anyway, we had a major blizzard here today, and I just spent half the day shoveling the driveway. Woohoo! Just kidding. So yeah, there's no school tomorrow because of the snow, so I should be able to get another chapter up tomorrow. Maybe. No promises.

So, this chapter deals with everyone's reactions to Troy's amnesia, and also with Troy's numerous other medical problems as a result of the coma.

Enjoy!

"I-I'm s-sorry. Wh-who are you?"

Gabriella's face fell. "Troy?"

His face was completely blank as he looked at Gabriella, then at his mother, than back to Gabriella. "M-mom?"

Kellie stepped up, gently pushing Gabriella to the side. "Troy, sweetie, this is Gabriella. Don't you remember-?'

He shook his head, causing tears to spill over Gabriella's cheeks.

"I'm getting Dr. Andrews," Jack said, his voice strained with his obvious fear.

"I-I'm s-s-orry," Troy whispered, his eyes still blank as he watched Gabriella run from the room.

She reached the hall, holding her hand over her mouth as she cried. A pair of hurried footsteps coming toward her forced her to look up. Dr. Andrews was striding quickly into Troy's room, forcing Jack to take longer strides to keep up with her. Gabriella stood slowly, walking to the doorway.

Dr. Andrews was shining a pen light into Troy's eyes, watching for his reaction. She clicked the light off, putting it back into her pocket. "What is today's date?" she asked Troy, motioning for his parents to step away from the bed.

Troy bit his lip, clearly thinking. "I-I d-don't k-know," he whispered.

Dr. Andrews paused, clearly worried. "Do you know your name?"

"T-troy B-bolt-ton," he replied. For the first time, Gabriella noticed that he was stuttering every time he spoke, clearly struggling with the words. Dr. Andrews also seemed to notice.

"Troy, are you having trouble speaking?" He nodded, his cheeks reddening. He was clearly embarrassed.

Dr. Andrews sighed audibly, putting her head into her hands. "Do you remember what happened to you? You can nod or shake your head."

He shook his head, looking down the soft blanket of the bed.

"Do you know how old you are?"

"14."

Gabriella let out a choked sob, unable to control herself. Jack paled visibly and Kellie began to shake.

"W-what-"

"You're sixteen, Troy. Almost seventeen."

"I want to go see him," Chad said, looking at his mother, who was stirring a pot on the stove.

"Chad-"

"Mom, I have to make sure he's okay. Then you can call Dr. Whitman."

"Let me call his mother first, then we'll see."

Chad nodded, and his mother put down the spoon, reaching for the phone. Dialing Mrs. Bolton's cell, she waited for her friend to pick up.

"Kellie? How is he?" There was a long pause, during which Mrs. Danforth's smile turned into a frown. "Do they know how much he's forgotten? What about the speech problems?" Another pause. "Take care of yourself, Kellie. I'll tell Chad the news."

She hung up the phone slowly, turning to Chad.

"Mom-"

"Chad, Troy's suffered some complications from the coma."

"Complications? What do you mean complications?"

"Chad, Troy lost part of his memory."

"He-what?"

"He thinks he's fourteen."

Chad cursed quietly, putting his face into his hands.

"He's also having trouble speaking."

Chad remained still, his mind racing.

"Chad-"

"Mom, I want you to call Dr. Whitman."

Gabriella sat in the hallway outside Troy's ICU room, her head in her hands. Troy's parents and Dr. Andrews were in with him, trying to see how much he did remember. Gabriella was still shaken from the revelation of Troy's amnesia, to the point that she wanted to slide onto the floor and cry herself to sleep.

If Troy thought he was fourteen, that meant that he didn't remember anything from the last year. He didn't remember New Year's Eve at the ski lodge, winning the championship, the musical. He didn't remember her.

A sob found its way out of her throat, choking her. It seemed so unrealistic that Troy could forget her. She held her necklace in her hand, fingering the small charm absently. She kept trying to assure herself that it was a fluke, that Troy would be okay. The analytical side of her brain kept overpowering her thoughts, telling her that it just wasn't true.

Dr. Andrews was holding her finger in front of Troy's face, commanding him to follow it as she moved it around. Troy's parents were holding each other, standing by the window. She nodded, scribbling a note in Troy's chart.

"Your reflexes are good," she said aloud, taking out a small pointed instrument. She flipped the blanket off of Troy's legs, gently pricking his left leg. "Can you feel this?"

Troy nodded, and Dr. Andrews moved to the other leg. "This?' Another nod. Dr. Andrews flipped the blanket back over his legs, scribbling in the chart again. "Motor sensation is intact."

She placed her pen back in her breast pocket, coming to stand on the side of Troy's bed. "Alright, the last thing I need you to do is stand up for me." Troy nodded, and Dr. Andrews helped him out of bed, careful not to jar his broken arm. "Take it easy," she advised, stopping Troy as he came to sit at the edge of the bed. "I want you to stand up very slowly. I'm going to take the IV pole and come around behind you. Do not move after you stand up, do you understand?"

Troy nodded, and Dr. Andrews gently lifted him to his feet, taking the IV pole and standing behind him, ready to offer her support.

"Alright, I want you to take a few steps toward the door, but slowly. If you feel like you can't handle it, just tell me and we can finish this later." Troy nodded again.

"Go ahead." Troy lifted his right foot from the floor placing it uncertainly in front of him. Next followed his left. As he shifted his weight onto his left foot, he lurched to slightly to the side, much to the surprise of everyone present in the room. Troy, however, didn't seem to notice, and he continued walking. When he put his left foot forward again, the same thing happened.

"That's good enough," Dr. Andrews, said, keeping her voice even. She helped Troy back into bed, adjusting his IV and throwing the blankets back over the bottom half of his body. "Get some rest, Troy. I'll be back in about half an hour." She motioned to Troy's parents. "I'd like to speak to you outside."

They nodded, and followed the doctor into the hall, Kellie pausing to kiss Troy on the forehead. Gabriella was sitting against the wall, and Dr. Andrews motioned for her to stand and join them.

"Apparently, Troy has suffered some post-coma complications which we hadn't really counted on. Obviously, there's the amnesia. He appears to have lost at least 2 years, but we can't be sure yet. Now, the memory loss could be permanent, but it could also be temporary. It's too soon to tell."

"What else?" Jack asked, wrapping his arm around his wife.

"He appears to have suffered some problems with his speech. The stutter is the same as the amnesia. It could remain for the rest of his life, or it could disappear with time. Then there's the problem with his walk."

"What problem?" Gabriella asked, her voice frightened.

"Troy appears to be walking with a limp. This means that several parts of his brain were affected. We'll only know how badly with time. He's going to require intensive speech and physical therapy in the future. In the meantime, however, we're going to move him to a private room tomorrow."

"Will he ever remember?" Kellie asked, holding on to her husband.

Dr. Andrews sighed. "We can't know. What you can do is talk with him, tell him stories from the last few years. In time he may begin to remember. It's our best hope."

Chad sat in Dr. Whitman's office, watching the doctor across from him.

"Your mother said that you were ready to talk," the doctor began, his pen poised over his notepad.

Chad nodded. "My-um-my best friend, Troy, he was in a coma. It was my fault."

"How was it your fault?" Dr. Whitman asked, peering into Chad's face as the teen began to open up to him.

"I set him up to fall. On the stairs outside of school. I never expected him to get hurt. When he started to fall, I tried to help him. My fingers brushed his, but I couldn't save him." Tears glistened in Chad's eyes, but they didn't fall. "I failed him. All I keep seeing is his head bouncing off the concrete, then the blood on my fingers, then seeing him in the hospital."

"Is that why you tried to kill yourself?"

Chad felt the tears spill over. "I didn't think he'd ever wake up. I didn't think I could deal with the guilt."

"But he did wake up, didn't he?"

Chad laughed bitterly. "Yeah, and he doesn't remember anything from the last two years. And it's all my fault."

"You can't blame yourself, Chad. Yes, you had a part in this, but it's unhealthy to blame yourself. Troy wouldn't want it."

Chad sighed. "It's still my fault."

Dr. Whitman put down his notebook. "What you need to help get over this is closure. I want you to go and visit Troy tomorrow, to see for yourself that he doesn't blame you."

Chad nodded slowly.

Troy lay asleep in the bed, his mother clutching his hand. Jack was standing behind her, his hand resting on her shoulder. Gabriella had gone home, but had promised to return first thing in the morning.

"He looks so peaceful," she whispered to her husband, gently stroking Troy's hair. "It's so hard to believe that he's not okay."

"He will be, though," Jack replied, his eyes betraying his true feelings. "He has to be."

A/N: I added that last scene because I didn't like the way the Chad/psychiatrist scene ended. It was really kind of pointless, but whatever. Anyway, reviews greatly appreciated!

Coming in Chapter 8: Chad visits Troy! Troy begins his recovery! Gabriella tries to help Troy remember!