Andy -- your alternate interpretation doesn't seem likely given the protagonist's later comments in voice-over, but it is a possibility.  That's not what caught my attention in this episode, though.  What did is the implausibility of the mystery ailment, and its onset, severity, and treatment.  The story is compelling enough anyway, and I didn't see the ending coming, though perhaps I should have.  Clairvoyance and clairaudience feature in a love story that raises questions about the nature of mercy.