As Iris raised the question about what would happen if she never got her memories back, Cas snuck a glance at Dr. Emett, hoping he would tell her that wasn’t something she needed to worry about. Unfortunately, the doctor glossed over the remark in a way that suggested to him that it was a possibility. He dragged his fingers through his hair, unnerved. The realization that just one blow to the head could take away a person’s identity forever was daunting to him. He might not have believed it if this girl wasn’t sitting in front of him now, barely able to scrap together her first name. He hoped for her sake that she would remember who she was eventually. At their continued conversation, he dropped his gaze to his shoes in thought. Where [i]would[/i] she go if she couldn’t get her memories back? They couldn’t get in touch with her family without her last name. Maybe her parents would get worried and call the hospital looking for her? That sounded likely enough. He knew his father would turn over every stone in Aspiria if he suddenly went missing. Even if her family didn’t have the resources to do that much, they would probably ask around to find out if anyone had seen her. The thought was relieving to him. All they had to do was wait for her parents to realize she was gone and think to check the hospital. She would be home in no time. [color=b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] he nodded gratefully to Emett when the doctor agreed to call his father and even offered to bring him a charger for his cellphone. After the crazy night he’d had, knowing he had a working phone in his pocket would definitely give him some peace of mind when he headed home later. Honestly, he had half a mind to call for a police escort. Not knowing how Iris had ended up in the woods, his tired mind naturally jumped to the worst conclusions: Maybe she had been jumped by a thief and tried to run away, or maybe she had been avoiding a stalker… or maybe she had spotted members of the Scourge outside the capital and tried to hide. Yeah, a police escort sounded good. Cas followed Dr. Emett with his eyes as he exited the room, leaving the prince alone with the girl once again. Even though he’d offered to stay with her for a little while longer, he wasn’t sure what to say. What was someone supposed to do to console a person who’d nearly bled to death in the forest? Luckily, he didn’t need to come up with anything when she broke the silence by thanking him for his company. [color=b97703]“It’s not a problem,”[/color] he shrugged nonchalantly, returning her smile. [color=b97703]“This wooden chair is too comfy to leave anyway.”[/color] Was humor appropriate in this situation? He wasn’t sure, but he had a habit of making bad jokes when he was uncomfortable, so the comment slipped out regardless. Right now, he was pretty uncomfortable. He had no idea how to behave around her. His first question about her [i]name[/i] had made her cry when he hadn’t meant to say anything offensive. He was clueless about which subjects were safe to touch on and which were off limits. Besides that, he couldn’t deny that he found her attractive. Normally, he was fine around women he thought were cute, but it felt weird to think that about a girl he’d found half-dead in the woods. He wished he could detach from the feeling to make it easier, but he couldn’t help noticing how good she looked with a smile on her face. It definitely didn’t do anything for his discomfort. [color=b97703]“Yeah,”[/color] he confirmed when she repeated the information he’d given her earlier. For now, he decided it was safe to just let her come up with the topics, so he wouldn’t say something that might make her cry again. As she thanked him one more time, he shook his head, a bit embarrassed by her high words of praise. [color=b97703]“Really, it’s not that big a deal… I just did what anyone would have done.”[/color] He turned toward the door at the sound of a knock, watching as the nurse stepped into the room with a charging cable for his phone. [color=b97703]“Thanks,”[/color] he took it from her and then stood up to scope out the edges of the room for an outlet while she left them alone again. Spotting one near the door on the wall across from where he had been sitting, he crouched down to plug in the device and ambled back over to his chair. At Iris’s next question, he shrugged again. [color=b97703]“Well, I was supposed to be home—”[/color] he glanced at the clock. [color=b97703]“Yikes. Three hours and fifteen minutes ago. It’s way too late for me to make curfew now, so I don’t think it matters how long I stay here anymore.”[/color] He leaned back in the hard seat and folded his arms over his middle. [color=b97703]“I’ll probably leave by four at the latest; just figured you wouldn’t want to be alone right after you woke up.”[/color] Noticing that she was feeling the cool air, he frowned, [color=b97703]“Want me to ask the nurse to bring you a blanket? There’s a pager on the back wall. They’re usually pretty fast about answering.”[/color]