One

The sunlight poured into my eyes as they slowly creaked open. It was morning, apparently. I found myself looking up at a grayish-white ceiling. My head seemed to be cushioned by something. I turned my head to discover it was a pillow. I was in a bed. But why? How did I end up here?

“Am I...in heaven?” I said to myself. “Or...am I somehow just alive?”

“I would say the latter, though the former is a pretty good thing as well,” An unknown, rugged voice spoke. I jumped up in the bed, the sheets tossed off to the side. I did not realize I wasn't alone. I turned to see where the voice came from. It was a big, burly man, with his head covered by his dark beard. From a distance, he's not the man you'd want to deal with. But when I looked at his eyes, they held a brilliant blue that revealed his character. His goofy smile also comforted me, and told me that he was someone to be trusted.

“Ah, I see you've still got some energy in ya,” the man said to me.

“Yeah, I guess so...” I replied to him. “I...ow!” There was a piercing pain in my side. I realized that my shirt was ripped and that my side was tightly bandaged. There were dried splotches of blood all over it.

“I'm sorry about that, m'boy,” the man said to me. “The doctor had to work fast, or the results may have been disastrous.” My mind went blank. What was he talking about? I put all the effort I could into remembering, but nothing seemed to arise from the blankness of my mind. Only one image stood out, and that was a cold, dark, and translucent body surrounding me. Streams of light seemed to be fading off into the depths below, and creatures whooshed around me. I was in water. Was I drowning?...

I opened my eyes. The man looked at me with concern, then as sure as he thought I was okay, he smiled.

“You got into a nasty accident, last night, if you can remember,” he said. “It was late, and I was in my library reading a passage from the Bible, when I head a sudden screeching noise outside my window. I looked out to see your car diving headfirst into the lake. I rushed out as quickly as I could and dived in to see if I could get to you. Luckily, the window was open and I was able to pull you out. Your car, however...” He looked towards the lake. “It's sunk,” he said to me. “But don't worry, we'll get a towing crew out in a few days, and it'll all be great...oh I've been so inconsiderate!” He let out a hearty laugh. “I never asked for your name. My name is Joseph, but you can just call me Joe!” He smiled and gave a peculiar wink.

I wasn't sure what to say next, considering the situation. “Well Joe,” I said to him, “It's nice to meet you, I'm...” I tried to tell him my name, but in my mind there was nothing but emptiness.

“I...don't know my name...” I said to him. Joe's smile turned serious as he stared into my eyes. He knew I wasn't joking.

“Do you remember anything, son...” Joe whispered to me. I tried to recall, but all I could remember was part of what happened in the lake. I then proceeded to tell him that.

“Looks like amnesia, most likely from the accident,” he said to me.

“No!” I exclaimed, “I can't have amnesia, can I?”

“I'm afraid you might, at least temporarily,” Joe replied. “And unfortunately all the information that might tell us who you are is at the bottom of the lake. Information, insurance, credit cards, driver's license...I'm assuming all of this is there because I couldn't find your wallet on your person.” Joe sighed. “Once the towing crew shows up, maybe we'll be able to get you some information...” But then his mouth then suddenly changed into a grin. “But until we get that, you might as well have some breakfast! I'm going to make some pancakes,” he said. “Now you just wait here a few minutes while I cook it up, and I'll let you know when it's ready.” He then walked out of the room, and I sat there alone.

“That was overwhelming...” I said to myself. I chuckled. Joe seems like a friendly guy. I looked around the room. It was rather empty, so I assume it is the guest room. The only object that stood out was a single crucifix on the opposite side of the room. Though I wanted to get out of bed, I could not help but stare at it. Something seemed to resonate in me...

“Hey, it's breakfast time!” Joe exclaimed as he walked into the room. He put his arm around me, then slowly helped me up. “Is this hurting you, m'boy?” he said to me.

I looked back at the crucifix one more time, then I looked at Joe's face.

“No, I'm fine,” I said.

* * *