Drown 'Em Memories

Chapter 1: "First Rain in a While"

    A calm and soft drizzle of rain starts the day as the 27-year old man named Cole Jeffrey woke up from his bed at the hospital. He had no idea how he ended up being there but one thing he knew is that his body aches like a pile of hard rocks were being bombarded on it.

    Barely getting out of bed, he then sat on the chair next to it and gazed out the clear window. Almost like staring at a blank space with those sparkly eyes and mind full of wonder, he is admiring all the beautiful things that co-existed together. Like the birds chirping happily on their nests, the people covered by various colored umbrellas passing by, and even the tiny raindrops racing down the window pane.

    Cole turned on the radio to make the moment even more blissful and relaxing. The song playing was an alternative country tune, "Getting By" by Flatland Cavalry. As the chorus played, a memory flashed through his mind. "Wait, do I know this song?" he asked himself, feeling as if he recognized it from the past, or at least had heard it before.

    This spark of recollection made him stand up and pace back and forth, knowing the song was significant to him. "I really know this one. But I can't seem to remember." He bit his index finger, trying to place the song.

    Suddenly, a loud thud came from behind his room door, and the noise broke his focus. "Cole, can you open the door for me?" called a sweet voice from outside. "Mary?" He turned off the radio and opened the door, shocked to find his best friend, Mary Cooper, standing there. She was about 25 years old, with stunning blonde hair and fair beauty.

    Mary looked exhausted, carrying an old box labeled "Us" in red marker, struggling with its weight. "Woah! That's one heck of a box there!" Cole exclaimed, helping her with it. "Thanks. It was so... so tiring carrying that thing all the way here, you know?" Mary replied. "Why didn't you get some help, then?" Cole teased. "Who do you think would help me, you dimwit? A person out of his mind? Someone with a disability? Or somebody on the second floor who didn't always expect visitors?" Mary responded sarcastically.

    "Okay, okay. I was just kidding," Cole interjected, placing the box on his bed. "Why don't we sit down and see what's inside?" he suggested gently. Mary excitedly replied, "It's gonna surprise you!" They both sat on the bed and opened the box. But before they started, Cole noticed the label and asked, "What does this mean? It says... 'Us'?" "Oh, that's 'us'—a collection of our friendship memories," Mary explained.

    "Okay then," Cole said, eagerly picking up a photo book. Mary smiled, happy to see Cole in good spirits. As he turned the first page, he remarked, "The smell reminds me of something." Mary was startled and asked, "What? What does it remind you of?" The atmosphere around her was a mix of nervousness and anticipation, firmly gripping her dress. But why?

    Cole quickly replied, "Never mind..." and continued looking through the pictures. Mary felt slightly relieved but still anxious,  and the tension eased a bit, slowly letting go of her dress. Cole saw countless photos of him and Mary. As they reached the last page, they found a special picture of the two of them, with a caption at the bottom: "A toast for forever!"

    "Wow, you look stunning here! When was this taken?" Cole complimented, then added a question. Mary responded with another question, "Do you remember any of that?"  growing more antsy about Cole remembering a particular day. She even asked her directly, "Do you even remember why you were here?" Cole shrugged his shoulders and told Mary he was clueless about it all.

    Mary felt so down and questioned herself if what she did was enough or is she not helping at all. With a gloomy cloud shrouded all over her face, Cole noticed her and asked if she's okay. Mary calmly answered, "Yes, I am.  Hahaha!" and made up something to cover herself "It's just a speck of dust got into my eye." Cole then closed the book and put it aside and he asked, "Is it still there? Let me help." He crept closer to Mary's face and their eyes bonded like it was their first time meeting each other.

    Mary's heart skipped a beat and was hesitant to do anything. "Don't move." Cole suggested and blew the dust off of Mary's eye. "Now, it's gone!" Cole innocently claimed and went back to where he was sitting before.

   Mary was hoping for something else and she was a little bit disappointed. She then said, "Haha, Thanks! Now, it's gone!" but she was actually lying twice in a row. They both laughed and Mary even shed tears of joy for all that happened in the moment.

   The rain outside is getting stronger and stronger that they can hear the sound of the rain hitting the roof in that closed-space room.

    Not long after, a nurse came by and checked up on Cole. Mary was forced to get out of the bed and tidied up the box. She then placed it down under the bed so that the nurse can have better inspection.

    Cole was asked to lie down on the bed and the nurse checked his vitals. After a while of checking up, the nurse advised him to take a rest and then left the room.

   "I guess that's it for today, I'll be heading home now. Take care, Cole!" Mary bid farewell to Cole and stepped outside of the room. "Wait!" Cole yelled. Mary stopped for a second and turned his back from Cole. "Yes? What is it?" She asked. Cole opened his arms wide and asked Mary for a hug, "Bring it in before you go!" Mary smiled and approached to him saying, "Okay, big guy."

    They both hugged each other for like ten seconds and Cole didn't seem to let go. "Mary?" Cole asked while still going on with the hug. "Can you stay a little longer? I'll miss you"

    Upon hearing this, Mary chuckled softly and said "I really have to go now." Cole let go of her and she added, "Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow, you take a good rest like what the nurse told you." "I will." Cole answered and layed back down to his bed. Mary finally gets out of the room, waving goodbye to Cole. Cole did the same thing as well.

    Cole fell asleep while listening to the sound of the rain. As he fell deeper and deeper in his sleep. An image of him driving a car flashed in his dreams and the song he listened a while ago was playing on that car's radio.

    And then everything turned pitch black. Cole was scared in his dreams, shivering from the cold he felt creeping up from his head to the tip of his toes.

    Another image then appears. It was him in the same car but this time there were no song played. Instead, he heard a gunshot that waked him up from that deep sleep. "What was that gunshot about? Was that the reason why I winded up here? But I don't feel anything the shots could've done at all. What's going on?"