Remembering You

A SpongeBob SquarePants rerun was playing on TV as I walked into the kitchen to make supper. I had slept all day and if I had some money left, I would rather have ordered pizza than cook. I was never a good cook but anyone with a spatula could fry burgers.

I walked towards the refrigerator as I saw a burnt out cigarette resting over an ashtray. I had never smoked in my life, not even in my college days. But the ashtray was familiar, I had seen it from somewhere.

Who's was it and how did the cigarette get here. Had my roommate come back from his work? I What time was it? There was no clock anywhere in the house so I had to walk all the way across the living room to where I had kept my watch.

As I walked past the window the sound of waves rushing towards the shore kept playing in my mind. I was nowhere near the ocean, yet I couldn't get it off of my head.

The clock showed it was 3am. It couldn't be right. Had I overslept? What day was it?

I tensed as I heard footsteps coming from the bedroom.

"Jacob, What are you doing up this late in the night?"

Who was that, and how did she know my name?

I slowly walked away from the voice and towards the window, because I remembered I had kept an old baseball bat over there.

"Jacob, Come back to bed! And why is the kitchen light on? Are you trying to cook something?

I had almost reached the window.

Honey! Don't you remember? We had fish and Tartar sauce.

I reached the window but there was no sign of my bat there. The woman must have hidden it somewhere else.

I turned around slowly to where the voice was coming from. She was standing in her night gown.

"Who are You?" I asked

"I'm your wife" she said

"No, you're not! What are you doing here in my apartment?"

Tears started to fill her eyes.

"I'm your wife, Jacob, and this is not your apartment, this is our house, on the beach'

The sound of the restless ocean waves filled my ears again. I covered my ears with my hands. It can't be possible.

She was walking towards me now.

"No it's not possible"

She came upto me and, without caring for my protests, hugged me.

She was lying, I was sure. But there was something in the tightnesss of her hug made me forget. Her head on my chest was calm and assuring. The sweet smell of her hair reminded me of something I remember feeling. It felt like Home.

"Come back to bed"

She raised her head from my chest and her brown eyes looked into mine and I knew I had to follow her.

She led me to a bedroom. The wall was covered with pictures of penguins on the walls.

"I like penguins" The words left my mouth without knowledge.

"I Know" she said.

Maybe she was telling the truth after all.