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“Hello?”
Nia gasped. She recognized the voice. But…why?
“Hello? Is anyone there?”
“Um, yes! Hello! My name is Choi Nia. I-I found your number on an old belonging of mine. I lost my memory 8 years ago after having surgery to remove a brain tumor. I…I wasn’t sure if this number would still be used by the same person, but I thought I’d try it.”
“Ah…Nia. Yes. I know who you are.”
“Really?” Nia nearly fell off her bed she was so excited.
“Yes. May I ask where you found my number?”
“Um…it was on a pin cushion. It was heart shaped. I’ve been trying to remember…something. My parents won’t tell me much about my life before my surgery.” She paused. “Oh! What’s your name?”
Another beat of silence. “I think…it’s best if I remain a mystery to you for now. I can try to help you recover some of your memories, though.”
“Really? Wait- why can’t you tell me who you are?”
“For the sake of peace, I cannot tell you that, either.”
Nia sighed. “Well…I suppose that’s ok. I have one question for now and then I’ll leave you alone.”
“Go ahead.”
“Did I have any friends?”
“Yes. You had two friends. I can’t tell you about one of them, but the other was a girl named Moon. You rarely saw her. She lived three hours away. But every few months you would get together and do something. Your favorite place to go together was the cherry blossom orchard. Many times, you got ice cream and would just go there and sit under the trees and talk about life. Even during the winter.”
“What happened to her? I’ve never heard of her.”
“She moved to France the summer before you were diagnosed. You rarely talked to her after that because of the time difference.”
“Oh…” Nia frowned. “Does she know about what happened?”
“Nia…we were told you were dead.”
Nia’s eyes widened. What? Had her parents lied? Had the doctors lied? Was this why she had no memories? Because all the people in them had disappeared?
——————–
Nia couldn’t sleep that night. She spent it rolling around in bed. Thankfully, she didn’t have work tomorrow. She wondered if Hobi knew anything. But he didn’t keep secrets from her, right? He was the only person she could trust at this point. And if she couldn’t trust him…, who could she trust?
——————–
“Hobi?”
“Hmm?”
“Is…is there something you’re keeping from me?”
“What do you mean?”
“I had friends before my surgery. Why did they leave?”
“You didn’t have any friends that I knew of…. What are you talking about?”
Nia took a deep breath as tears started to spill down her face. “Someone is lying to me…and I think it’s my parents….”
“What?” Hobi asked, alarmed. “Your parents?”
Nia nodded. “Something’s been off with them…but I couldn’t figure out what…but last night…” she took a deep breath. “I found a key to some of my memories.”
Hobi was very confused. He was sure whether to rejoice or be nervous. He’d known her parents were hiding something. But he hadn’t been told what. They had told him it was his job to make sure she didn’t regain her memory…and now…it appeared he was failing at that task. But what did it matter? It was clear she wasn’t really in love with him. He’d always known she wasn’t. And all he wanted was her happiness. So now he had to make a choice. But was it really so difficult to choose…?
