CHAPTER 23

Iris walked out of his room and began her search for Meg. Finding her in her office she tapped on the door to get Meg's attention. Her answering smile welcomed her in.

"So, how did things go? Did John handle things like you had hoped?"

"I was very pleased at the way he accepted what I told him. I didn't go into detail but I did talk to him about his job at NYPD and how we met. None of which seemed to register with him, which I expected. But at least now he has 'heard' how things were. I'm hoping the more familiar I can make him with moments of his past, the easier it will be for him when his memory does return."

"Then you really do believe he will recover his memories? All of them?" asked Meg hopefully.

"There were some very encouraging moments during our talk. A reaction here and there to what I'd told him. Maybe not complete understanding, but a reaction. Yes, I think his chances are very good. Now that his actual LIFE is out of danger, thanks to you, I think his mind is ready to heal also."

"That is the best news yet!" said Meg with a big smile. "What's next on the agenda?"

"I am so glad you asked that. Do you realize that John has no idea he's leaving here tomorrow? No idea that he's moving in with Zoe?"

"Oh my God! You're right! We've all been so wrapped up in meeting you and Zoe and finally getting him some help. Do you think that will be a problem?"

"I honestly don't know. I think we need to tell him today. Tomorrow will be too late. He'll need some time to adjust to leaving here. I have a feeling he will be…resistant." Iris explained. "Not about the leaving but probably about moving in with Zoe. Remember, to him she and I are strangers. It might be best if we, you, me, Zoe and Joan, present a united front. That we all feel this is the next logical step for him to take." said Iris hopefully.

Meg nodded her head in agreement. "I agree. We need to tell him today. Might be best coming from me as his doctor and since he'll be helping me by giving up his room."

Iris smiled. "It would seem we are on the same page. Let me get back to him. You'll bring Zoe and Joan to his room? I still believe his room provides him with that sense of security, familiarity which will help with this kind of major change for him."

"Let me finish making my notes about my last patient and I'll bring the others along." said Meg as she turned back to the chart in front of her.

Walking back to John's room, Iris detoured to check on Zoe and Joan in the courtyard. Stopping inside the door she had to smile. Seeing Zoe and Joan relaxed and enjoying each other's company was interesting. John had so many people, from so many walks of life, that cared for him. She hoped he'd regain his memory soon, so he could appreciate all the love that surrounded him. Talking to Harold, Sameen, Lionel and Zoe, to Meg and to Joan, she found each had a deep but profound love and admiration for John. He probably never knew just how much he meant to others. She could only imagine what the people he had helped felt about him. He was important to so many people….including her.

Opening the door she walked outside. Zoe and Joan both turned to her with smiles. Both looked at her expectantly.

"Things are moving along very well. I had a very nice talk with John. He's coming to realize just how much he does NOT remember and that is becoming almost as much of a problem as the lack of memory itself. But I think we've got a more immediate concern."

Iris reminded them both, like she had Meg, that John had no idea he was leaving the clinic tomorrow. Much less that he was moving in with Zoe. Zoe and Joan both looked chagrined. Everyone was making decisions for John without discussing it with him. They all agreed he might be resistant to moving in with Zoe but they also thought he'd understand why he needed to vacate his room at the clinic.

Looking at Joan, Iris said, "I believe his acceptance of the situation actually is dependent on you Joan. I've called you his anchor before and I believe it even more so now, after talking to him. This clinic has been his sanctuary while his body healed but your presence has helped his mind and his heart heal. I think he will be concerned about losing contact with you."

Zoe immediately spoke up, "Joan you are more than welcome to visit any time, as often as you like, for as long as you like. I will bring you to my home myself." Looking over at Iris and then back at Joan, "I agree with Iris about how dependent he is on you Joan. He needs you."

Joan smiled at the two women. It eased her mind about losing contact with John. He may be dependent on her, but she had also become dependent on him. She felt she was giving him the love and support she had not been able to give her son.

"Give me a minute before you come to his room. Make sure Meg is with you. We need to make sure we show him that we all feel this is best for him."

Smiling to herself, Iris made her way back to John's room. Once again, she tapped on the door, waiting for him to answer. He took a little bit longer to answer than she'd expected which made her heart jump. But he did and she opened the door. He hadn't moved since she'd left the room.

"Are you ok?" she asked softly. Concerned about his slumped shoulders, and bowed head.

"I'm not really sure." he answered. "There is so much I don't remember. That I can't remember. Almost five years….of people I've met, of things I've done…."

Sitting down across from him Iris waited for him to look at her before speaking. "John, I do think you will recover your memory. To be honest, I can't say I'm a 100% sure but I truly do believe you will. You just need to give yourself some time. Your body needed time to heal and your mind will also need time to heal." Iris said, watching him closely. "You have only realized, in the last week, how much time is missing for you. You need to give your mind a chance to heal also. Amnesia is usually a self-preservation reaction. Your mind was overcome with more than it could accept so it locked away those memories until you are better able to handle them. And you will be able to handle them, when you are ready."

John looked up at her with doubt in his eyes but also hope, that she was right.

Another tapping on the door and John called out "Come in".

He was surprised to see Zoe, Meg and Joan all come in together. Looking at Iris and then back at them he raised one eyebrow. Everybody came and spoke to him and chatted among themselves. John continued to watch. Once everybody seemed to be comfortable the talking quieted down to nothing.

Taking in the 'united front' they seemed to be displaying, John cleared his throat and said, "This looks like an intervention of sorts. Are you all here to convince me to do something I may not want to do …..or to tell me something I may not want to hear?"

He was in full watch and observe mode, gauging their reactions to his question. He was impressed that none of them looked at the other. So whatever was going down had apparently already been decided beforehand. He didn't think he'd said or done anything to make any of them angry….or, and he hated to even put this thought into words, had he done or said anything that would make them afraid of him?. There were still enough gaps in his memory to give him pause. So, who was going to speak first? He tilted his head slightly to the side and decided to outwait them.

Meg finally bit the bullet and began speaking. "Yes John, it is a type of intervention but not in the way you think. You have come a long way since you were brought in here, more dead than alive. I've been able to patch you up physically but it was your own stubborn will to live that let you survive all those injuries."

She paused for a moment, making sure he was truly listening to her. "You have been staying here where I could keep an eye on your progress AND because you had nowhere else you could go." Looking over at Joan she continued, "Joan insisted you wouldn't want to be taken to a hospital. There were quite a few times I regretted that decision but thankfully you did survive."

John continued to sit there, not speaking. Meg was leading up to something but she hadn't spelled it out yet. A slight frown appeared on his face as he tried to puzzle it out.

Taking a deep breath Meg continued, "But now it is time for the next step in your recovery. You have been welcome here while you recovered physically. But now I really need your room back for my patients. The weather is getting warmer and that means tempers are getting hotter and you know what happens with that."

That caught him by surprise. He was not expecting to be told he had to leave. But it made sense. This was a small clinic and he knew that Meg had given up her 'room' long enough. It had not even crossed his mind that his presence here may have been a burden on her.

He straightened up in the wheelchair and looked Meg in the eye. "I'm sorry. I didn't even think about the space I was taking up in your clinic. I can leave today if you need me to…." was all he got out before he was interrupted.

"John, it's ok. I needed you here so I could take care of your injuries. You really should have been in a hospital but being here allowed me to keep a very close eye on you. As far as the room, I was able to handle my patients fine with a little creative maneuvering." she said with a smile. "But now I think you've reached the point that you need somewhere different, somewhere bigger, with better scenery, to continue your progress. AND I do need my room available for the coming weekend."

"Like I said, I can leave today if you need me to." Repeated John. But then he looked down at the wheelchair realizing he couldn't just walk out of the clinic. "But I guess I need to borrow this wheelchair for a while….." his voice drifted off as he realized there was more involved than just leaving.

Zoe realized it was time to make her offer. "John, I thought you could come stay at my place. I have an extra room available. And I can get you the wheelchair and other things you may need."

She waited to see his reaction before continuing.

Looking up at Zoe, shock was clearly evident on John's face. "Stay with you? At your place?"

After a lot of talking and explaining and reassuring, John finally came around to the fact he had no place to go but Zoe's. He completely understood Meg's needing his room. It was moving in with someone who knew him but that he did not remember that he resisted. Attractive as she was, Zoe was still a stranger. He knew physically he was in no shape to argue with the decision that had been made for him. Being the naturally stubborn man that he was, it took a lot of convincing from all sides that this was the right thing to do. It was the ONLY thing to do.

Zoe explained to him that he'd have his own bedroom and bathroom, that there would be a nurse to stay over night the first couple of nights til he settled in and would be helping him with physical therapy for his arm and his leg. Assurance that all the necessary medical equipment he needed was already delivered and set up per Meg's instruction helped in getting his compliance. The biggest element, that seemed to be a barrier, was overcome when Iris brought up that Joan would be visiting him often. She would bring her to him herself. That finally eased the last bit of apprehension that John had about the move.

The rest of the afternoon was spent making sure all the necessary medical supplies were on hand. The checklist was getting longer by the minute. Zoe and Meg were deep into logistics. Joan and Iris spent time with John helping him navigate between the wheelchair and the walker. His left leg was very weak and taking a much slower time to heal than his right one. Two bullet wounds don't heal as fast as one. He thought sardonically. Needing two hands for the walker was not easy when one of his arms was still in a sling. He was unable to use it at all. For the moment the walker was mainly used stand up but not to actually walk with. The physical therapy would help with that.

Saying goodbye that evening had been different. A whole new world was going to open for all of them tomorrow. Meg would have a 'long distance' relationship with John, visiting him when needed or when able versus everyday. Joan would not be with John every moment of every day. John would be out of his protected environment that had been his home since he 'woke up'. Zoe's home life was going to change in a major way by having John as a roommate. Iris was going to be fighting three battlefronts: Helping John with his memory but keep their previous relationship out of it if at all possible, continuing to stay in touch with Sameen and Lionel but not let on about John and working with Zoe to help John reclaim his life.

John, Joan and Meg spent their last evening together on the patio. It was a quiet evening and Meg only had two patients needing her help. Joan and John talked about their time together on the street, what Joan was going to do when John moved out of the clinic and other things just between the two of them. Their time together these last couple of weeks to strengthen their bond.

Sleep that night was long in coming for everybody.