Rockstar Lost

{Matt’s POV}

I woke up with a slight headache and a dry mouth. The clock read 10:58 am and I gathered from the lack of noise, Riley was still in bed.

I got up and decided to make some coffee to start the day and poured a small glass of water to take some Tylenol with. Silas came out of nowhere and followed me to the kitchen for his morning breakfast. I popped open the can and placed the meaty morsels into his little bowl.

Although I wasn’t sure how Riley liked her eggs, I scrambled some in a pan and put a few pieces of bread in the toaster. As I pushed the liquid around the pan, I thought about what we would find today, if anything at all. If I could just remember something about myself, it would give me hope but who could be certain of my future? What if I never figured out who I was? Would I start a new life never knowing my true name or what happened to me? Most important, could I let it go?

No, the answer was no. Riley, as far as I know, on her own and trying to make a living by going to college. I would just be a burden to her and she didn’t deserve that. Finding my true identity was something I had to do. Then who knows? Maybe Riley and I could have a secure relationship.

When the food was finished, I grabbed a tray and packed everything on it in a picturesque manner and poured a cup of coffee for her. I made sure Silas wasn’t under my feet before I carried the tray to her bedroom.

The door was slightly ajar so I pushed it open slowly.

“Hey Riley, are you up?” Yeah I know, dumb question to ask someone when they’re asleep, but blame the English language.

“Mmmh,” was her reply so I set the tray down her dresser top and sat down.

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

She rolled over on her back and looked at me a minute before realizing who I was or even where she was. “Oh, hey.”

“Hi. I didn’t want to wake you but it’s almost 11:30. I thought I’d make you some breakfast if you’re feeling up to it. I hope so because if not, we’d have to feed it to Silas and that wouldn’t be good for him or us,” I chuckled.

Riley grinned slightly and stretched. “So, where’s my wonderfully prepared breakfast I was told about?”

“Right here madam,” I said, standing up and retrieving the tray.

“How did you know?” she asked when I set the tray down for her.

“Know what?” I asked confused.

“That I like my eggs scrambled.”

“I didn’t. I just took a gander. Maybe I should try my luck at a casino…” I said teasing her.

“I don’t think you’re going to be running off to a casino anytime soon,” she answered before pulling a piece of egg off her fork and into her mouth. The eggs looked pretty good, I had to admit. I remembered mom always put a little bit of milk into the bowl with the yolks and stirred it before pouring it into the pan.

“Yeah, you’re right. I made you coffee as well if you want it,” I offered.

“You didn’t have to but thanks. If you wouldn’t mind though, there’s some French Vanilla creamer in the cabinet. Would you get it please? Oh and don’t forget the sugar either.” She smiled sweetly and I couldn’t help but to laugh. Before I got up, I stole a decent sized fluffy piece of egg and threw into my mouth.

“Hey, jerk, that was mine. Get your own,” she said, pretending to be offended.

“Excuse you, but I think the COOK can try their own finished product,” I said with a grin and got up to get her creamer.

“You’re lucky you have dimples. Even dearly loved Silas wouldn’t have been able to get away with that.”

I shook my head and grinned.

*!@@!*

“Well, here’s where I found you,” I told Matt/JD, looking at the slightly shaded alley.

“I vaguely remember getting here; it hurt too much to think about where the hell I was.” Matt looked around at the neighboring buildings.

“Do you recognize something from before I found you?” I asked, hoping something would come back to him.

“No, nothing except for basically stumbling here and just getting really tired. How did you find me anyways?”

“Promise not to lecture me on stupid actions?” I asked.

“Pinky swear.”

“I was getting gas and as I went to my car, I heard you. I thought you might have been an injured animal or someone who was hurt. I didn’t know I’d get you out of the situation. Don’t take that in a bad way. I was more concerned about getting you help.”

“Well, I’m glad you did or I’d probably be dead or homeless on the streets.”

“Me too. Now, let’s go talk to the store owner. He might remember you,” I told him, getting ready to leave the alley. The sun was losing its battle with the rain clouds and I knew before long, we were going to get soaked. Matt walked past me and when he did, a little gust of wind picked up, sending trash debris up off the concrete.

“Ewe, I think something got on my face,” I said, wiping as quickly as I could. I looked down to get the dirt out of my upper eye lid and gently ran my finger across it. While I did this, I noticed a small white piece of paper that had blown up close to my shoe. Normally, I wouldn’t have picked it up but it looked fairly clean and unscathed by the weather and dirt.

It was a receipt for a local bar and had a hefty total tagged on it. As I was examining it, I heard Jd come to side and try to see what I found.

“What is it?” he asked, arching slightly to read the contents.

“It’s a receipt for a local bar that’s like a block or two away from here. I think it may be yours…”

“Okay, why would this random receipt be mine by some cruel chance?” he asked, clearly thinking I was getting my hopes up.

“The night I found you, you reeked of alcohol. I think you actually passed out from that instead of your injuries.”

He stood there for a second before he said anything. “So how far is this bar again?”

“About a block or two. If you want to go check it out, we can drive as well as walk. It’s up to you.”

“It couldn’t hurt anything by going there. What do you say, Dorothy, should we go down this brick road?”

“To be honest, yes I do,” I answered, trusting my instincts. So far they hadn’t led me astray and I was willing to bet that JD had been there.

As we began walking in the direction of the bar, I noticed Matt was being quiet. There was nothing wrong with that but I would have thought he would be in better spirits. Then it dawned on me. He was frustrated and nervous. Frustrated that he couldn’t remember and nervous of what we might find. The things we take for granted are not as concrete as they seem.

I took his hand and rubbed it with my thumb, letting him know I sensed his dilemma.

Watching our steps almost sync at times, I felt the urge to talk to him.

“Look, whatever we find or don’t find, it will be okay. Rather we find out that you were in prison or that you sing in a church choir, I’ll be by your side as much as possible if you need me. I am involved in your life now no matter what the outcome. You’ll always have a friend so stop thinking you’re like an axe murderer or something. If you were, I wouldn’t be here.”

“Yeah, I know you’re right but I can’t figure out why I’m like this. I’m actually feeling angry for some reason. Not towards you or anything, just going here, or at least thinking about going here.” He tried his best to give me a smile but I could see he was putting a lot of effort into it.

“Well, let’s just see what we can find out,” I told him, dropping the subject and praying things didn’t turn out like the weather. I was at least hoping the rain would hold out a little longer.