Does He Know Your Name?

The two-hour drive was extended for another hour. Rhodes and Deresita ate lunch at a streetside restaurant. They had nothing much to speak about… only Rhodes's amnesia. No wonder he didn't recognize Deresita, despite his supposed photographic memory. However, regardless of how Deresita looked at him, the doctor didn't seem any different.

"This is the first time I heard of someone losing their memories like this. It sounds selective." Deresita scooped at her ice cream. "Don't you have theories? Wait, how much science did you retain?"

"How much science?" Rhodes chuckled and leaned on his palm. He lazily ate his cheesecake. "I've read through some of my published works. I didn't realize I used to know too much. Everything sounded too complicated. Anyway, the accident might have only damaged the part of my brain responsible for those. Lionel mentioned surgery. The loss of blood and oxygen could have deteriorated me…"

Deresita smiled, even if she looked unwilling to show it to him. "You know… the longer I talk to you, the more I remember how you were before. Not the highly intellectual Dr. Huxley… just… Rhodes. Professor Wester liked parading you. A blooming genius, he said…"

Rhodes looked up at her. "How long have I known him… Professor Wester? Shucks, even saying his name makes me a little upset…"

"You must have been so devastated when he died on your table." Deresita pursed her lips. She didn't want to sound insensitive, just because the other person couldn't remember. "Everyone said it was a freak accident, but you were adamant that it wasn't. I only heard about it from mutual acquaintances. After that accident, you were never the same."

"He died on my operating table? I can imagine how awful I must have felt…" Rhodes closed his eyes and tried to recall the matter. If it was connected to emotions, something must have stuck. However, he still couldn't remember anything at all.

"I'm so sorry, Rhodes. It's months too late… but I offer my condolences." Deresita slowly reached out her hand to pat his hand on the table. She was unsure if she was allowed to touch him right now. "You never showed up at the funeral. Joan and the others blamed you for a few days… and then they announced about your wedding."

Rhodes opened his eyes and stared at her fingers, which were lightly touching his knuckles. "I inherited everything Professor Wester owned. Nothing was left to his other family members. It's easy to see why they hate me so much."

Deresita flinched and softly took his hand into her palms. "Rhodes, if you burn bridges with the Wester family, I don't think you will have anyone left. You didn't want Dr. Perch to know where you were going. If you lose the people whose family gathering you attend, who will you be left with in the future?"

His grip surprisingly tightened in her hands. He laughed mockingly. "I only recall a few people in this life. Imagine how lightly I regarded everyone else in the one before this. Who am I left with? Who did I have in the first place?"

Silence ensued for the next few seconds. Despite the symphony of people eating in the background, the silence between them felt so shrill. Deresita's ears got so uncomfortable. She only held his hand, but her words wouldn't flow. Their hearts were just too far apart for her to offer sincere promises to this man.

"We should continue moving. I want to reach your Flower House before sundown." Rhodes slowly pulled his hand away and continued eating. "The woods get so dark even before the sun completely sets…"

"You can remember the woods?" Deresita chuckled, looking down and missing Rhodes's shocked expression. "You're right. The woods around La Calderon are the worst to navigate. It could become pitch-black as early as seven in the evening. Since we still take the old road to the Flower House, we would have to pass that place…"

She flinched and looked up. "You seem to have a strong attachment to that place. You remembered it. Can you also remember strange things about yourself?"

Rhodes pursed his lips and looked away. A faint blush tinted his cheeks. "I have a black dog named Vanya. I remember teaching him a few tricks… Though I can't remember what he looks like at all."

"You never had a dog, Rhodes." Deresita flattened a palm against her cheek. "Professor Wester is allergic to dog fur. Your mother's apartment also banned pets on the premises. Are you sure it was your dog? Was Vanya really a dog?"

"What?" Rhodes frowned. No, he was so clear about the dog. Then again, he couldn't even recall anything he did with the canine Vanya. Just the name and some commands…

Deresita watched as Rhodes had a little breakdown from the realization. She looked around a little, in case someone was watching them. Her smile tried to break the scene. "R-Rhodes? It shouldn't be that bad. What's wrong? Did you connect with someone through your vague memories of a dog?"

Rhodes slowly faced her. His voice had never been any softer. "I nicknamed someone by my dog's name. Now, I don't know how to tell him Vanya was never my dog…"

"…why would you even nickname someone with a dog's name? What's wrong with you?" Deresita instantly shifted her expression. "You deserve this."

Rhodes laughed and hid behind his arm on the table. "I don't know… Trying to be cute, maybe? Dammit, I should rescind that nickname fast… but it was so good… and he liked it. Mind you, I did say I had a dog with that name…"

Flinch. Another flinch broke their shallow trances. Rhodes continued hiding, but Deresita dropped her frowning brows. She leaned closer to the table. "Rhodes, are you…?"

"Gay?" "Crushing on a man?"

Deresita pursed her lips. She tried to say it gently, but Rhodes cared less. The woman only sipped her drink to wet her mouth again. "I guess it's not surprising. You never liked any girl who came to you. You're also not the type to lay your eyes on female celebrities. What kind of person is he? Is he nice? Does he know about your situation?"

Rhodes lifted his gaze just above his arm. He murmured, "It's complicated… but he is the nicest person I've seen after my accident. He's also not trying to remind me of what I lost. He doesn't call me Dr. Huxley or Rhodes… It's always 'my dear'… and he says it so warmly…"

"Does he know your name, though?"

"…yeah, he knows me." Rhodes finally sat up properly and leaned his back on the seat. He looked outside the restaurant. "I'm the one who doesn't know his name. I only know his face."

"Where did you meet him? Maybe he lives in the area." Deresita hummed, scraping the cup's sides for the last scoop of her ice cream.

Rhodes glanced at her for a second. "…at First Sunday, during my wedding."