Chapter 77

Chapter 77
KAIA

“Others never remember at all.”

Dr. Harrison's words echo relentlessly in my mind as I stare at the white ceiling tiles above my hospital bed. The sterile smell of disinfectant fills my room, but all I can focus on are those haunting words playing on repeat.

“Never remember.” What if I'm one of those people? What if these scattered fragments in my head are all I'll ever have?

I close my eyes, trying to piece together the broken memories that feel like puzzle pieces refusing to fit together, no matter how hard I try.

The door suddenly bursts open, and a familiar figure rushes in.

"Kaia!" Amy stands breathless in the doorway, her face etched with worry and anxiety. Her hair is disheveled—clearly she ran here.

The moment I see her, warmth floods through me. Amy—my best friend, my roommate. This memory is crystal clear, warm and real like sunshine.

The moment I see her, warmth floods through me, and a mischievous idea pops into my head. Maybe a little teasing will help lighten this heavy atmosphere.

I furrow my brow and look at her with confusion. "I'm sorry... do I know you?"

Amy's face goes completely white. "Kaia... it's me, Amy. Your roommate, your best friend..." Her voice starts to shake.

I maintain my confused expression, tilting my head slightly. "Amy? I'm sorry, I don't... the doctors said I might have memory loss, but I don't remember anyone named Amy."

Tears immediately well up in Amy's eyes. "No, no, no... Kaia, please. We've been friends for years. We're roommates. You have to remember me..." Her voice cracks, and I can see she's about to break down completely.

My heart clenches seeing her genuine panic, and I can't keep up the act any longer.

"Oh my God, Amy, I'm kidding!" I burst out laughing, immediately reaching for her hand. "Of course I remember you, you're my best friend!"

Amy stares at me for a moment, her mouth hanging open, then smacks my arm. "KAIA! That was NOT funny! I thought I'd lost you forever!" But I can see relief flooding her features even as she scolds me.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I giggle, squeezing her hand. "I couldn't resist. I needed to see if I could still make you panic like when we were freshmen."

Amy sits heavily in the chair beside my bed, putting her hand over her heart. "You nearly gave me a heart attack, you evil little..."

"Hey, at least I know my sense of humor is intact," I grin at her. "And speaking of panic, remember that time you thought you'd lost your student ID right before finals, and you turned our entire dorm room upside down? You even checked inside the refrigerator!"

Amy's face turns red. "You said you wouldn't bring that up anymore!"

"And then you found it in your back pocket the whole time," I continue, enjoying watching her squirm. "You'd been sitting on it for three hours while tearing the room apart."

"Okay, okay, I get it!" Amy huffs, but she's smiling now. "At least I know the real Kaia is still in there if you're already making fun of me."

We both laugh, and for a moment, it feels like nothing has changed. But the laughter fades quickly as Amy's expression grows serious again.

"Kaia," she says carefully, "the doctor said you have memory loss... what else do you remember?"

I furrow my brow, concentrating hard. "I remember some things, but they're scattered. I remember failing English composition, being assigned to some tutoring program... After that, everything becomes fuzzy. I can never remember it all."

Amy listens quietly, and I notice she's nervously biting her lower lip.

"What about..." her voice becomes even more cautious, "Adrien? Do you remember Adrien?"

"Adrien?" I repeat the name, confused. "Who's Adrien? Should I know him?"

Amy's face goes pale instantly. I see pain flash through her eyes, like something inside her just shattered.

"I don't understand," I continue. "There's a book on my nightstand, and on the title page it says 'To my dear Kaia, may you always find your happy ending. All my love, Adrien.' Why would this person give me a romance novel? Do we know each other?"

Amy doesn't answer immediately. She just grips her hands tightly together.

"Also," I remember this morning's incident, "when I woke up, there was this stranger who came to visit me. He seemed really emotional and just... hugged me."

Amy's body tenses.

"I was scared of him," I admit honestly, "but strangely, he felt familiar somehow, like we knew each other. He was tall, dark hair, green eyes... When he held me, I felt safe, but I don't know why."

I watch tears well up in Amy's eyes. She tries to hide them but fails.

"Amy?" I reach out to take her hand. "What's wrong? Do you know him?"

She takes a deep breath, then nods slowly. "I understand..." her voice is barely a whisper.

"Kaia, you need to rest first," Amy stands up, trying to make her voice sound normal. "Don't force yourself to remember anything. The doctor said this takes time."

"But Amy..."

"Trust me, everything will be okay." She kisses my forehead gently. "I'll be back to see you soon."

Watching her hurried departure, I feel an inexplicable worry. Amy knows something that I can't remember.

ADRIEN

I don't know how long I've been sitting on this bench. Pigeons in the campus park fly back and forth, occasionally landing near my feet looking for food, but I don't even have the energy to glance at them.

She doesn't remember me.

Six months. I waited for her for six months, praying every day for her to wake up, imagining our reunion every single day. I pictured countless possible scenarios, but never this one—her waking up with me as a complete stranger.

I close my eyes, and beautiful memories flood my mind. Her angry expression when we first met in the study room, her surprise when I first kissed her, the starlight in her eyes at the rooftop pool, and that night we said "I love you"...

All of it means nothing to her now.

I pull out my phone and call Amir.

"Dude, where are you?" His voice sounds concerned.

"Hockey rink. Now." I say curtly.

"Adrien, are you okay?"

"Now." I hang up.

Twenty minutes later, Amir appears at the empty hockey rink. He looks at me already suited up and standing on the ice, shaking his head in confusion.

"Here we go again," he mutters while changing into his gear. "Adrien, I know you're still blaming yourself for the accident, but torturing yourself like this won't change anything. Kaia's about to wake up, you need to..."

"She's already awake." I cut him off.

Amir freezes mid-motion. "What? That's amazing! How is she? When can she come back?"

I don't answer. Instead, I skate directly toward him, hitting with full force. Though caught off guard, Amir reacts in time to block my attack.

"Dude, what's gotten into you today?" he asks while defending. "I know you're excited, but this is..."

I charge at him again, more viciously this time. Then a third time, fourth, fifth... Each impact feels like punishing myself, each collision an attempt to transform emotional pain into physical pain.

"Adrien! Take it easy!" Amir finally loses it. "I'm good, but I'm not 'surviving-the-best-forward-in-Cali' good!"

Just as he's about to say more, the rink doors burst open. Amy rushes in, her eyes red and puffy—clearly she's been crying.

"Adrien, enough!" she shouts. "Stop spiraling like this!"

I stop on the ice, looking at my sister's furious expression.

"If Kaia remembered everything, would she want to see you like this?" Amy's voice echoes in the empty arena. "Now that she doesn't remember anything, you should pull yourself together even more! You have a responsibility to make up for all the time she's lost, not wallow in self-pity!"

Amir stares at us in shock. "Wait... what do you mean 'doesn't remember anything'?"

"She has amnesia," Amy says calmly. "She remembers me, her friends, school stuff, but absolutely nothing about Adrien."

Amir's stick slips from his hands, clattering sharply on the ice. "Jesus..."

I skate to the boards, pull off my gloves, and slam them against the barrier. Each hit is self-condemnation, anger at the version of myself who decided to get that motorcycle.

"This is all my fault," my voice comes out hoarse. "If I hadn't bought that damn bike, if I hadn't taken her out..."

"Enough!" Amy's voice becomes even more stern. "You think this changes anything? Kaia doesn't need a broken, self-pitying Adrien. She needs the Adrien who protects her, loves her, makes her happy."

I look up at my sister. There are tears in her eyes, but more than that, there's determination.

"She doesn't remember you, so what?" Amy continues. "That means you have a chance to start over, to do things right this time. You can either choose to give up and let her never remember you, or you can choose to fight and make her fall in love with you again."

Her words hit me like lightning. Yes, I have a choice. I can choose to drown in pain, or I can choose to fight for our future.

I slowly stand up, feeling air fill my lungs again. "You're right..." my voice grows steadier. "I've been selfish."

"Adrien..." Amir says softly.

"She doesn't remember me, so I'll start over." I wipe away my tears, looking toward the far end of the rink as if I can see our future. "I'll make her fall in love with me again. This time, I won't screw it up."

Amy steps forward and hugs me. I feel her body trembling. "I'll help you," she whispers in my ear. "We'll all help you."

In this moment, determination reignites in my heart. This time, I'll love her right.