The doctor that came in the next day was different
from the others.
He did not wear a stethoscope. He did not check her
ears or eyes and he did not ask her to say 'aaah' so
he could look at her throat. In fact he did not touch
her at all.
He was a kind gentleman with greying hair. Not quite
old, but definitely not a young man anymore. His
reading glasses poked out from the breast-pocket of
his labcoat along with a mechanical pencil made of
polished wood that belonged in the same set as the
pen he was currently using to write on his chart. The
skin on his face looked soft and smooth, as if his daily
shave renewed its youthful appearance.
He stood at the foot of Azusa's bed as he questioned
her with his soft, gentle voice.
"What is the last thing you remember?"
"I remember waking up here. What happened?"
"I can't answer that. I am trying to find out if your
memory is coming back. Now, what have you been
doing since coming to the hospital?"
Azusa sighed at his response and rested against her
pillow.
"Nothing really. Just passing the time with my friends."
"What are your friends' full names?"
"Mio Akiyama, Tsumugi Kotobuki, Ritsu Tainaka, and
Yui Hirasawa."
"All your friends from the Light Music Club?"
"Yes sir."
"You seem like a close group."
"We are sir."
He wrote a few things down on his clip board and
looked up.
"Have you seen your teacher yet?"
"No sir. Has she come when I was asleep?"
He gave a weak smile, "Not that I know of."
"What about my parents? They had to have come."
The weak smile disappeared for just a moment before
he could compose himself.
"Nobody else has come to see you. I'm sorry."
There was a brief silence as his words sank in and the
girl tried, for only a few seconds, to uncover the true
meaning in his words. It was not long before she
broke the quiet again.
"I've also been having strange dreams. Should I be
worried?"
"'Strange?' How 'strange?'"
"I imagine I'm back at school, but my friends don't
exist."
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if
contemplating his response.
"Dreams occur when the mind is resting. Everyone
has strange dreams. They might be memories you are
trying to remember or forget. Don't let them bother
you too much."
"But they seem so real."
The doctor made a few more notes and then tucked
the board under his arm and put the pen in the pocket
of the lab coat next to the pencil.
"I think for right now you shouldn't worry. I will see
you again in a few days. Let the nurse know if you
remember anything."
"Yes sir."