The Man Without a Name - Assignment Example

The Man Without a The tall, slender, fair skinned man stumbled onto the fishing docks at 3 A.M. Although able to stand, he was obviously not steady on his feet. Dressed in a disheveled tailor made suit that was missing a tie, he tried to remember who he was, where he was, and what he was doing there. His ribs were throbbing in his chest making him wonder if that is what it felt like to be hit by a bus. He grabbed onto one of the ropes helping to anchor the fishing boat to the pier as his head began to spin. Thoughts, memories, events, all swirling in his mind, never making any sense. Clutching his head he tried to remain conscious. He wasnt sure but it sounded like there was a man speaking to him. “Are you alright son? You look like youve been robbed.” the elderly fisherman asked of him. The man without a name looked up and tried to form words in his mouth but all he and the fisherman heard was a scream of fright as he tumbled over the wooden pier and into the dark waters. He regained consciousness at an infirmary. He felt some pain a little to the right of his forehead. The bandage was the first thing he felt when he held his hand up to the swollen area. His chest felt even worse now. But it could never match his current inner turmoil. Still without any memory that could help him feel more confident about his current plight, the man wondered what else could happen to him. Could things get any worse? “Glad to see you finally awake.” a man dressed in a white coat was standing over his bed. Judging from the white coat and stethoscope around his neck, the stranger surmised that he was probably the doctor in charge of his case. The doctor was slightly balding, pudgy, and smelled like cigars. He reminded the stranger of the old Sunday funnies. Wimpy from the Popeye comics for some reason making him crave for a Deluxe Bacon Mushroom Melt sandwich from Wendys for some reason. “Can you tell me your name?” the doctor posed his pen over the patient chart he was holding. “Im going to help you fill out some forms.” The question filled him with dread. How could he provide a name to the doctor when he did not know what it was? “My name...?” he stalled as he tried to will his brain to spit out a name, any name that he could give this man. “I would not be asking but we could not find any identification on you. Just a calling card. We already called the woman listed on it and she will be coming over to sort this out. In the meantime, your name please?” he had other patients waiting in the wing and this John Doe was one case he could have done without. “I wish I knew.” was the only weak response that the unknown person could give. The doctor gave him a look that told him he did not have the time to deal with a difficult patient. “Im not lying. I really dont know who I am.” he pleaded. “Are you hiding from the police?” the doctor inquired. “You can tell me. I can try to help you.” “I dont know.” the patient answered with a puzzled look on his face. He seemed to have a memory creeping into his mind. There was a woman, dressed in a red skirt with a matching red long sleeved blouse. She was standing in an office before a desk. A red velvet rectangular shaped box sat on the table. She picked it up and handed it to... was it him? “Dont lose that. Its Lauries birthday gift. Ill see you at the house.” she said. Was that instruction given to him? He looked at the doctor who was staring at him. Possibly wondering if he was going into some sort of seizure. “There was a box...” he began to relate. “I... think... I... was going... to a house.” “Thats not what I was asking you about.” “But the box, this woman...” “Stop wasting my time and give me your name!” the doctor finally demanded of the patient. Xenos. For some reason that name struck him as his own. It was the name that uttered from his lips. “Now that wasnt hard was it? Can you spell it for me?” he listed the name down on the patient sheet. The patient nodded nervously. “X-E-N-O-S”. Why did he know how to spell a such a complicated name? He wasnt even sure if that was really a name but it was something that would get the doctor off his back. “Last name?” “Araminta.” the stranger uttered the first words he could make up in his mind. “Are you Greek?” “I guess so.” he responded nervously. “You dont look Greek. American or British but definitely not Greek.” “I thought you just wanted a name?” the patient was not willing to submit to any third degree from the doctor who was proving to have the bedside manner of an ass. “Right, right.” A page for a doctor with an inaudible name came over the loudspeaker. “Thats me. Ill be back in a few hours to check on you or if the woman we called gets here. Whichever comes first.” With that the Xenos was left to ponder the reasons why he had no memory. Alone in his heavily sanitized room he tried to separate the factual thoughts from the fictional thoughts in his brain. The only problem was he wasnt sure which was which. He reached for the bedside light switch and flicked it off. Sending the room into immediate darkness. He palm wiped his face and tried to stop shaking. He shivered but knew that he was not feeling cold. He was afraid, very afraid. Where was he? How did he get there? Who was that woman from his memory? What was the red box? What was in it? He wished morning would finally come. He hated being in the dark. “Xenos...Xenos... wake up Xenos.” the doctor shook the patients slumbering figure lightly. Xenos stirred in his sleep. “The woman is here. Get some clothes on, the nurse will help you. Ill take you to her.” With that the doctor walked towards the door and exited the room. His voice was different now. Xenos detected a sense of pity in it. What did the doctor know about him that he did not? The nurse ushered him into a well lit room that reminded him of those old style libraries in mansions of the olden days. Medical books were piled high on the shelves lining the room. The leather guest chairs and the massive oak desk in the middle of the room told him this was the office of an important man. Xenos walked towards one of the wide windows in the room and looked out of it. “I hope she has some answers for me.” he prayed as he looked out onto the driveway. He saw her alight from a Virgin Blue Suzuki Alto. A doctor had greeted her at the driveway and ushered her into the hospital doors. There was a teenage girl with her. Both women had worried looks on their faces. Stephanie Gleason knew something was wrong when her husband dropped off their daughters Sweet 16 birthday gift and then headed out again. The worry about what might have happened to him cramped the nights festivities but she went on with the celebration for their daughters sake. The call from Lindbergh Infirmary came before she had a chance to start calling the local hospitals and morgues to check on what happened to him. She woke their daughter, heading for the infirmary soon after the call. “Mrs. Gleason, I am Dr. Flynn. Thank you for coming so promptly.” the physician shook the hand of the older woman then he turned his attention to the patient file of one Xenos Araminta. “Your call sounded so urgent doctor. I believe you have my husband confined here?” the concern and worry in the womans voice could not be camouflaged by the professional front that she put up for the doctor. “Your husband? Can you tell me his name?” the doctor asked as part of the screening process. “Kyle Gleason.” she responded without batting an eyelash. “What happened to him? May I go see him?” “Im afraid I cant let you see him just yet. The situation is kind of complicated.” Dr. Flynn finally realized. “How so?” she took a step towards the doctor as she tried to get a glimpse of her husbands file. “He doesnt remember who he is. He has amnesia.” he turned on his professional facade and was about to explain what had happened but he was cut off. “What? Amnesia? What the hell happened to him?” She screamed as she tried to grab the file. “Mom! Will you please calm down!” her daughter who was sitting on the guest couch, listening to her iPod until that time interrupted them. “Hysterics wont get us any answers.” She heeded her daughters warning. She needed to hear what the medical explanation was. “You are right Stana. Talk to me doctor.” She took a deep breath to calm herself down. “He doesnt remember anything about being Kyle Gleason. He told me his name was Xenos Araminta. Do you know where he could have possibly gotten such a name?” Stephanie let out a stifled laugh. Xenos Araminta. A name she knew very well. “Doctor Flynn, my husband and I are private investigators. Xenos Araminta is one of the names Kyle uses during his undercover operations.” she explained. “Where did they find him?” “At the fishing docks. The fisherman who brought him in said he seemed to have been roughed up and injured. He fell into the waters and was brought here unconscious.” Dr. Flynn related as he referred to the patient file for accuracy. “We are working a case right now, part of our undercover work includes checking on some activities at the fishing dock. He may have been attacked while he was working.” she explained. Stephanie now regretted asking him to go back to the docks before heading home. His amnesia was all her fault. The doctor took dutiful notes in the patient chart before offering to escort Stephanie to where Kyle would be waiting for her. Her daughter made a move to go with her. “It would be a good idea for him to see you one at a time.” the doctor warned. “The shock might be too much for him.” “Of course doctor.” Stephanie turned to her daughter. “Just give me a few minutes Stana. Then you can go see him.” “Mom...” “Stana please! This is going to be hard and complicated enough!” her mothers voice was raised by a few decibels as she walked into the next room. The nameless man turned towards the door when he heard the knob turn. In walked the good doctor and the woman who instantly took his breath away. The attraction he felt to her was instant. She seemed so familiar to him. If only he could remember who she was. Those eyes. Those glimmering eyes. Had he stared into her eyes before? “Hello.” he beamed at her. He wiped his right hand on his coat tail and held it out for a handshake. “Kyle!” She blurted out completely forgetting the doctors warning about easing him into the reality of his situation. He curled his face in thought. The name did not ring a bell. “Is that my name?” he asked. “How do I know you?” “Im Stephanie, your wife.” she explained in the sweetest voice she could muster, trying to cover up the reality that she wanted to cry. “My wife?” he walked over to her and held her by the arms, assessing her words and facial expression for truthfulness. “Your wife. Our daughter is waiting outside.” she continued freeing her arms and closing it around him for a hug. “We.. have a daughter?” he asked incredulously. For a man without a memory, this was too much information too soon. The doctor cleared his throat before speaking. “I think it is best that you start at the beginning. But not here. Hes been cleared for release. You can take him home.” After settling her husbands medical bill, the pair headed out of the hospital and over to the car which their daughter had brought around front for them. “Hey!” Stana greeted her father in her usual manner. She had gotten out of the car to help her mother settle him into the back seat. “Hey back.” he responded as he opened the back door. “Who are you?” Stana turned to her mother with a quizzical expression on her face. Her mother mouthed the word amnesia to her. She nodded and sighed. Her father had always been a klutz as far back as she could remember, but it never resulted in amnesia until now. “What happened here?” Kyle asked upon entering the house. They were greeted by the remnants of the boisterous party the night before and the house looked like a tornado had blown through it. “Im afraid Stanas friends got too excited last night and may have gotten out of hand a bit.” Stephanie explained as she tried to pick up some used cups and plates for stuffing into the nearby trash bag. “A bit? Stephanie, this place looks like a riot just took place! No! This will never do! Stana, you will clean this up at once.” he commanded while he took an empty litter bag and did his part. “Well mom, one thing is sure.” Stana joked as she cleared a table. “Whats that honey?” “Even with amnesia Dad is still a neat freak.” she joked. Kyle watched his wife clean up in the kitchen as she tried to help him regain his memory. He did not particularly relish not being able to recall important people in his life. “Dont worry love, itll come back to you.” Stephanie reassured him with a kiss to his lips as she dried her hands after washing the dishes. He deepened the kiss by pulling her back in. It took a few moments before he finally released her. “Now that feeling I remember very well.” Yep. With enough time and possibly with a blow to the head, Kyle Gleason would finally remember everything about his past. Just not tonight. Commentary I had to spend a few days watching various films and reading different genres of books before I came up with the plot for my short story. It was a story that came to my mind as I began to be influenced by the mystery movies and books that came my way. I was inspired to try my hand at writing a short and simple mystery about a man who lost his memory and could not remember his past. What events could have led up to this? What was he like before he lost his memory? Who was he? I thought that it would be intriguing to see how his story might develop if he was given an instant family to come home to. This was the movie in my mind. Every action was real in my my imagined eye. Every piece of dialogue carefully chosen to advance the story and every character set into place for potential development. This was my fictive dream. I tried to write the story as a short movie. Using various camera angles and shots to show the perspective of the character and how it might influence his thoughts and feelings. It was a bit hard to do at first because I had to imagine myself as the character. I sometimes found myself actually doing the actions I wrote down in order to make sense of where the story and dialogue would go next. Indeed, I found myself using various shot and cuts while writing my story. A technique which I discovered later on to have actually helped in my character development and story progression. I had a montage section in the early part of my story. I felt it was important for me to present the thoughts of the character in his confused state in order to hook the readers into the story. He was lost and remembering things that did not make sense to him because of his memory loss. The thoughts, instead of comforting him, served to make him feel fear instead and quite logically so. All of the fragments of his memories told him that something happened to him but as to how and why, that is what made him feel the confusion. I felt that keeping my main character confused about his memories and allowing portions of his old self to come out later on helped solidify the character and the struggle that he would be undergoing to regain his memory. Although it would sound like my story was veering into the world of drama the reality is that my story was more static as the opening scenes described the area where the confused man found himself. the activities on the dock were represented in relation to the future events. The hospital scene was meant to be static as no changes happened while the patient was being diagnosed. Each scene in my story is carefully chosen to help set the stage for the way the characters in the scene interact with each other. At the infirmary, the doctor is somewhat rude and abrupt. But upon meeting the wife of the patient, he seems to develop a clearer understanding of what happened to the patient and why. Thus changing the dynamic of his character relation with the patient. I wish that I had more pages within which to write the story that I wanted to tell. What I have written as the short story is a mere start to the actual events that could truly occur for the characters I have written. There is plenty more room for character development. The blend of static and drama also has further to go in terms of setting and events that move the story along. I truly enjoyed this writing assignment because my mind is constantly filled with story plots and characters that are just begging to be released from the inner recesses of my creative brain. With this particular story, I learned how to tell a story with only a limited number of pages. Although I have written a few stories in the past, this is the first time I have actually written a short story covering only 7 pages long. It was an interesting exercise in telling a sharp, strong, and crisp story without the benefit of unlimited pages. Short story writing in my opinion, is one of the best exercises that writers can do in order to improve his writing and his craft. Maybe I can write more short stories soon. Read More