The Neon Sign

1

  A quiet groan escaped the blond man laying in the hospital bed as he woke up. He could hear shuffling and shifting from next to him, but didn't dare open his eyes. The lights in the sterile room were too bright for his liking.
  "Dale? You awake, buddy?" A hoarse voice called out softly. The man who spoke leaned forward in his seat, practically off of it.
  With that, the blond slowly opened his eyes. He brushed his long, unkempt hair out of his face. He attempted to sit up, but quickly realized stopped as he felt sharp pains all over. He grumbled a quiet string of curse words under his breath at the realization. Looking around the room, he realized he was alone with just a raven haired man who looked to be in his early thirties.
  "...Who...are you? Why am I here? What happened?" Dale's voice was rough and scratchy from not using it. The dark haired man's face saddened as he heard the response. Dale's eyes searched and scanned for anything he recognized before settling on the shirt Alan was wearing that had 'Alley Cat' in cursive along with a red vintage car on it.
  "Wait...Alley Cat...that sounds...Alan? Is that your name? Alley Cat Alan?" At the unusual name, Alan perked up. Tears welled in his eyes as Dale remembered him.
  "Yeah, Dale. It's me. I'm here. What else do you remember?"
  "Uhh...well I remember driving. I saw some kid running and I slammed on my breaks so I wouldn't hit 'im."
  "Okay. I think I know what we can do. We can go back to the malt shop to see if you can remember anything from there." Without another word, Alan stood and walked out of the room to see if Dale was cleared to leave.