Blurred Lines

Chapter 9 - I Want to Hold Your Hand

September 3, 1992

Salem University Hospital

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Oh yeah I'll tell you somethin'

I think you'll understand

When I say that somethin'

I want to hold your hand

I want to hold your hand

I want to hold your hand

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Marlena's eyes fluttered open staring into Dr. Hunter's dark brown eyes when she felt his cool fingers against her wrist. The sun was just rising, leaving the sky a rainbow of yellows and pinks, so she knew it was early. Roman had been with her the night before when she'd fallen asleep, but as she glanced around with tired eyes, she realized he was gone. Sadness swept over her, even though she knew it was unrealistic to have him with her the whole time. "Where is Roman?"

Marcus was quiet for a moment, feeling horrible about perpetuating this lie, but he said, "He had to run home to shower and change. He wanted to spend time with... the twins." He continued to take her pulse, holding her wrist in his hand for slightly longer than necessary. He was half in love with her. How could he not be? Those mossy green hazel eyes held secrets he wanted to learn. The way she smiled, and the softness in her voice. Laying her arm down, he told her, "I'm sure he'll be here soon."

"He's such a good father," she sighed. And he was. She couldn't, she wouldn't, have picked anyone else. "Sami thinks Roman hung the moon, and Eric... Eric wants to be just like his daddy."

"He is an excellent father," Marcus murmured. That wasn't a lie. He'd lived in Salem long enough to watch Roman Brady juggle parenthood and being a police officer. But John wasn't Roman Brady anymore, and eventually Marlena would find out. Finding out wouldn't mean that she would immediately get her memory back either. Instead, she would be left with a hole in her heart knowing that the man she loved more than anything was not hers. She would be left with days worth of memories - memories of Roman's love and care while she was hospitalized - only to learn that he wasn't her husband at all. Marcus knew Marlena loved John. She had to. Why else would her mind have omitted Roman and Isabella? Why else would she have clung so strongly to her memories of John as Roman?

Marcus recalled his conversation with Isabella the night before, and her resentment over the whole situation with Marlena and John.

"So she's confused?" Isabella asked in frustration. She shifted Brady in her arms, placing the bottle in his mouth. He grunted, rooting around as he started sucking down the warm liquid greedily. "I just think someone needs to set her straight. What is babying her going to do, Marcus? And, I'm just expected to sit aside, and allow my husband to pretend he's hers? This is ridiculous!"

"It's temporary, Isabella. Right now she's in an incredibly fragile state of healing. Any major upset could tip her towards another coma, or even a seizure. Marlena's history of disassociation makes her very... fragile. Tom thinks, and I'm in agreement, that waiting is the best option." Marcus stared into her eyes, hoping he was reaching her. Isabella could be impulsive, and she could be very jealous and possessive. He needed her to acknowledge what he was saying. "Don't go to her hospital room, and don't try to shock her into getting her memory back. It won't work. Confabulation is a very real diagnosis."