Page 70 of The Way Home

I’ll be home and ready to leave at 6. What should I wear?

It was Saturday, and Jamie had a reservation at the perfect restaurant for tonight. Remembering JB’s words of advice about keeping the restaurantmysterious,Jamie typed back.

Nothing formal needed. Denims are fine.

Caleb

Can’t wait :)

“Hello, James.” Doctor Wilson strode into the exam room and immediately took a seat at her computer. “Looking at your scans, everything looks to be in good shape. I’ve also reviewed notes from each of your therapists, and they all report improvement. Any new symptoms? Any significant memories returned?”

“Uh… no and no.”

The doctor gave a curt nod and started typing on her laptop. Jamie was used to her no-nonsense methods at this point, and he already had his answers prepared before he got there.

The last four appointments were the same. No new symptoms—though some had improved—and no significant memories returned.

“Any muscle memory improvement?”

Huh, that’s a new question.

His confusion must have shown on his face because she turned to him and clarified, “Are you doing things automatically withoutthinking? Reaching for the sugar, for example, and finding it right in the spot you reach for it.”

Jamie’s eyebrows pinched together. “Oh. I suppose a bit. I’ve been able to pick up directions around SoHo much faster than I usually would. And I’ve never lived there before.”

She nodded and typed away.

“And I…” He paused, suddenly embarrassed. “Well, sometimes I reach for things automatically. Without thinking.”

Like Caleb.

Her keyboard clacked away. She asked a few more questions and stood.

“I’m happy to see you improving, Jamie. I know it’s disappointing not to see your memories come back. But the most important thing right now is your brain health.”

“So is there no chance my memories will come back?”

“There’s always a small chance. But in cases like this, I rarely see cognitive memories come back. Your brain has those memories locked away. It’s more likely that, if anything, yourbodywill remember things. So I would focus on that. Listen to your instincts and be curious when your body gives you signals that maybe don’t match what your brain is telling you.”

So basically, he’d never remember?

Jamie tried to hide the tremble in his voice.“Oh…okay.”

She gave a rare, soft smile. “I’m proud of you, James. I’m glad you’ve really committed to long-term therapy sessions. I know it’s not always easy to make it work with insurance, but I can see it is helping you drastically.”

“Right.” Jamie looked down at his phone. One hour until he left for dinner with Caleb. “Thank you.”

“I’ll see you in a month.”

A tiny thought from the back of his mind niggled its way forward and, as the doctor turned and reached for the door handle, he stopped her.

“Doctor Wilson?”

“Yes?”

“What do you mean? It’s not always easy to make therapy work with insurance?”

“Oh. I just mean for some people, the cost is prohibitive.”