Tom's POV

The rest of the day went well. In fact, I wasn't truly worried until she became tired. Her long bouts of sleep or coma or whatever you call it, seemed to happen not only during her dizzy spells but also when she slept. I wanted to stand guard over her once she fell asleep, but I knew I could not, at least not for long and succumbed to slumber about an hour after her.

I was woken up at some point in the middle of the night, her shaking me a bit.

"Are you alright? What's wrong?"

She looked worried. "I am here, right? This is real? You're still here."

Holding her hands, I kissed her palms. "I assure you, dearest. You are here. This is real, and I will always be here with you."

Your POV

Hearing him say that helped calm me down a bit. I was so afraid to wake up and him not be there, that I would be somewhere else. He held me, and we stayed up, watching the sun rise.

I'm not sure when I fell back asleep, but Tom woke me up when Dr. Shepherd came by a couple hours later.

"Good morning! And how are we doing today?"

I looked at Tom who then answered for me.

"She is doing better but has some memory issues. We haven't talked much about what she might remember yet, but when my friend brought our dog by, she remembered him but not our dog. She remembers my mother as well. She also woke up in the middle of the night, afraid that she wasn't really here."

Dr. Shepherd gave a reassuring smile. "That's good news. It's not unusual in these cases for the memory to take a while to come back. Honestly, some memories may not come back at all. With how her coma unfolded, I don't believe it to be abnormal that she may be confused as to if she really is awake or not. We don't know what happens in the mind of a patient when they're in a coma. It could be that she was dreaming or reliving memories. From what I've read in her file, she's had no memory of the past few years. It's entirely possible that at least some of the memories she has gained back is from you and your mother telling her stories of your memories together while she slept. "

If he only knew. I wasn't even sure right now.

"We have the MRI scheduled for later today. If it goes as well as I think it may, you could be discharged tomorrow."

Home. Now I'm pretty sure I remember that. I think. I hope?

Dr. Shepherd left as he had other patients to see. The nurse came by about an hour later to let us know she would be back at 1 pm for my test.

"I've got an idea. Since we have about two hours, would you like to visit the hospital garden? I think you might enjoy some fresh air."

I liked his idea and quickly agreed. I pulled out the hair brush mumma hiddles brought from home. I hadn't seen my reflection, but my hair felt like a mess. I spied a ponytail holder wrapped on the handle and used it to put my hair in a top knot. While I fixed my hair, Tom managed to procure a wheelchair, and then off we went.

We went at a leisurely pace, stopping by the nurses station to let them know where we were going and promised we would be back on time. There were so many turns before and after the elevator, but he seemed to know where he was going. Before we found the garden, we stopped at a small sandwich shop in the hospital. Tom picked a few things along with bottles of water, and then we went to the hospital garden. It was so lovely. The flowers and plants were thriving and it was only slightly overcast. What sun that did come through felt amazing.

"Would you like to stay in the chair? Or I could help you move to the bench if you would like?"

"The bench, please." Normally I'd get up and move myself, but I wasn't quite feeling full strength. Plus, I love when he holds me. If I could have him carry me everywhere for the rest of our lives, I'd be okay with that.

He gently picked me up and helped me to the bench. He even borrowed a little table to use for our picnic, taking the large plant off it and promised to put it back after.

I couldn't even tell you what we ate. I just enjoyed being with him in that garden for a while when something struck me. "Why does this feel familiar?"

Tom thought for a moment. "Now that you mention it, this does remind me of mum's garden. She has a number of similar plants she tends to. Perhaps we could go for a drive and visit her when you're feeling better?"

"I'd like that."

It's like he could tell I was holding in some frustration and held my hands gingerly in his. "We will figure it out together. I'll tell you anything and everything you want to know as many times as you want me to tell you."

His words were comforting, and I could tell he was being truthful. His mere presence was soothing, and I laid my head on his shoulder. I knew I had to tell him about my dreams at some point, but it frightened me. I didn't want him to think I was crazy.

Eventually we returned to my room in time for the MRI. I didn't want to go alone and hoped he could go with me.

Tom's POV

When they came to take her for the MRI, I went with her. She had been 'awake' for just over a day, and I didn't want to be away from her, in case anything happened. She held my hand firmly, seemingly to feel the same way.

It didn't take much convincing to be allowed in the room with her during the test as long as I followed the rules, and they brought me a plastic chair so I could sit by her while holding her hand, rubbing the back of it, unsure if I was doing that to soothe her or myself. Maybe a bit of both.

"Talk to me, please?"

"Of course, love." I could hear the nervousness in her voice. So I started reciting one of my favorite poems.

Let us go then, you and I,

When the evening is spread out against the sky

Like a patient etherized upon a table;

Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,

The muttering retreats

Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels

And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:

Streets that follow like a tedious argument

Of insidious intent

To lead you to an overwhelming question ...

Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"

Let us go and make our visit.

[See link for full poem as read by Tom Hiddleston:]

I traced invisible patterns on her hand and arm while I spoke. It seemed to keep us both calm. As the test was not finished, I started singing "The Bear Necessities", some Bon Iver, and then Hank Williams until the tests were completed .

I helped my wife back into the wheelchair where we then followed the kind nurse back to our room. Mum was waiting for us along with more flowers from her as well as other family and friends.

A nurse came by letting us know Dr. Shepherd should be by in the morning with the test results. My mum said she had a good feeling about it, as did I. It wasn't until dinner that mum left.

She just missed Sophie who dropped by to visit for a few minutes and bring some food and snacks. I could tell my wife knew she was familiar but couldn't quite place her. Instead of saying something outright that might embarrass her, I skirted around it. "Thank you so much, Sophie. How are Ben and the kids? We can't thank you enough again for helping take care of Bobby."

"They're great! And Bobby has been a gem, helping wear out the kids when we get to watch him."

Sophie asked how she was recovering and if there was anything she could do to help before she left.

Once it was just us again, the confusion became more apparent. Rather than wait for her to say something, I went ahead and explained.

"That was Sophie, Ben's wife. They've been married for a while, have a couple of kids. You and her started becoming friends about a few months after we got together. In fact, she was the one who told me to get my head out of my ass and put a ring on your finger if I knew what was good for me or she would slap me into next year."

Oh that incredible, angelic laugh. I was so afraid I would never hear it again, the most beautiful sound in the entire world.

"I knew she was familiar...."

"That's good! That's definitely good, and I think Dr. Shepherd would agree."

We ate the homemade chicken salad sandwiches Sophie brought before tucking in and watching old movies on tv while eating hobnobs before falling asleep somewhere around 11 pm.