The female nurse treated Gao Ming very well. Other than the daily care, she would read to Gao Ming, hoping that it would trigger his memory.
“Why would you call me a teacher? Where am I?” Gao Ming was weak but he subconsciously wanted to curl up his body as if his body needed to shield him from something dangerous.
“Have you forgotten about this place?” The nurse was shocked. Her eyes glowed with pain. “You’re the psychiatry teacher from Xin Lu First High School. You’re also the school counsellor. A few months ago, you followed a class from the second year on a school trip. The bus ran into an accident. You risked your life to save the children. You used your first-aid knowledge to save, but you fainted due to heavy injury.”
“How did I save the students if I were so heavily injured?”
“The students were thrown around on the bus. Some of them fainted, and others were trapped under the wreckage. You were wounded. Your bones even punctured your organs. Your brain probably thought you couldn’t survive, so it triggered adrenaline in your body. That shut down your pain receptors, allowing you to perform the miraculous deeds of saving everyone.” The nurse admired Gao Ming.
“Sounds like I’m a noble person.”
The female nurse sighed, hearing Gao Ming’s numb tone, “You did something incredible! It’s human instinct to run away from death. However, you fought death and even won!”
“Death…” Gao Ming’s eyes dimmed. His body pained.
“Teacher Gao, you need peace and quiet to recover, so you can’t leave the hospital yet. The parents of the students whom you saved were so excited when they heard that you had woken up. They wanted to come to thank you in person, but they were all denied by the doctor,” The nurse changed the medicine for Gao Ming easily.
“You…” The nurse hesitated before deciding to tell the truth, “Teacher, your memory is a blur. I know you yearn for a family, but you grew up in an orphanage.”
“Impossible!” Even though Gao Ming couldn’t remember anything about his parents, he was certain they were real.
“Of course,” The nurse looked at him with pity. After she helped him with the medicine, she tidied up the bed and left.
Gao Ming coughed and then looked at his hands. His fingers were riddled with wounds. Some of them cut into his flesh. The wounds on his limbs and face were better. The most dangerous wound was on his chest. There was an obvious knife wound near his heart. The doctor appeared to have extracted something out of his body. It could be metal fragments or stones.
His brain was empty. Gao Ming sensed the world around him. Like a newborn, he cried and touched the truth. He felt pain every time he breathed, but he liked the feeling. He didn’t think he had any special kinks, so why did he feel that way?
The sunlight filtered through the leaves and landed on the floor. Everything in his eyes filled with life… except for himself.
He picked up the newspaper beside his bed. With the advancement of internet, the newspaper had become more like a decoration piece than anything. Gao Ming saw the article about himself on the front page. The reporter knew how to write a good story. With the pictures of the car accident and Gao Ming saving the kids, even Gao Ming felt like he was a hero.
“Five students and the driver, Wei Tian, died on the spot. The school teacher, Gao Ming and two students fell into a coma…” The article didn’t do much for Gao Ming. Even when he read his name, he felt it was unfamiliar, “Is this really my name? Who are the two students who are unconscious?”
Gao Ming’s body didn’t allow him to leave the bed. He lay in bed quietly. However, internally, he was filled with anxiety and complicated emotions. Thankfully, he was born with the instinct to hide his emotions.
“I think I can hear the dripping of water. It sounds like the ticking of clocks.” Gao Ming looked around and didn’t spot any leak. In the end, his eyes landed on the clock. He looked at it for an hour until the door opened again, and a female doctor walked in.
The white coat did nothing to hide her voluptuous figure. Her shoulder-length wavy hair separated her from the other doctors. Gao Ming didn’t even see her face; He was drawn in by her aura.
Confidence, gentle and beauty.
“She’s familiar, but I can’t recognise her.” Gao Ming studied her face and felt like he had forgotten something very important.
“Yes.” Gao Ming nodded. His lips opened like he wanted to say something.
“If you have any questions, just ask. It’ll aid in your recovery.” The doctor stood beside his bed. She checked his report. That was something she had to do daily.
“My brain is injured, and I’ve forgotten many things. Forget is probably the wrong term. Everything feels unfamiliar to me. I have no impression of the stuff the nurse has been telling me, but…” Gao Ming tried to describe it.
“I believe I was in a very horrible nightmare when I was unconscious. Compared to this world that I woke up to, that dream felt more real.” Gao Ming felt something familiar from the doctor. This was why he was willing to confide in her.
“That might be an issue with our treatment. To wake you up, we employed some new technology.”
“I fear my memory will keep disappearing until I forget myself.”
“Then, I’ll help you record everything from this moment on,” The doctor put down the record, “I’ll keep reminding you so you will never forget.”
“Thank you,” Gao Ming felt like he had said that many times before.
“It’s my job.” The doctor hurried to the other room after she was done with Gao Ming. At that moment, the nurse entered with the tray of lunch.
“Hey! I’ve been the one who has been looking after you. Your soul got hooked by Doctor Xuan after one conversation with her!” The nurse joked to hide the thin jealousy in her tone.
“Doctor Xuan?” Gao Ming thought to himself, “What is her full name?”
“Xuan Wen,” The nurse put the tray down, “When you first arrived here, you were very unstable. It was Doctor Xuan and a few experts who pulled you back from the edge of death.”