Chapter 51 - I don't remember a lot of things

"Rie chan?"

She looks at him weakly. "Ren, is that you?"

"Yes." He is relieved to see her clear eyes. "How are you feeling now?"

"Sleepy." She rubs her eyes and gets up. She looks around and wrinkles her nose. "Where is this?"

"Rie chan, I brought you here because you got hurt during the accident." Ren strokes her head. "Did you have a good sleep?"

Rie blinks at him with surprise. "Ren, how did we get into the accident?"

"That..." Ren doesn't know what to say. "Rie chan, what do you remember?"

"I was... " She scratches her head. "I was coming back after giving you the letter. Ren, is your brother feeling better now? I am sure that you will win the world hacks series. When you get the money, make sure that he gets the surgery as soon as possible. You didn't read the letter, right? You promised me that you would read it only after the world hack series is over."

Ren stares at her face blankly. She is smiling at him with blushing cheeks. That's the eighteen years old Rie who gave him the letter that day. That's how she looked at him back then.

He can't feel happy.

"Rie chan, you are playing a prank, aren't you?" He grabs her hands. "Stop playing this sick joke."

She furrows her brows. "Ren, you are the one who is always playing pranks on others. I don't play pranks. Wait, you don't want my games. I won't give them to you."

She turns her face away from him and raises her chin high.

"Do you remember Kiyohira?" He asks her with desperation in his voice.

"Who?" She scratches her head again. "This name sounds familiar."

"Yes, Kamiyama Kiyohira." Ren takes a breath of relief. "You remember him."

"Ren, I told you that you can't speak about the Kamiyama family." Rie glares at him. "I hate that family the most. They broke my family apart."

"I hope that Kamiyama Shintaro and my mother gets a divorce. Maybe then, she will remember that I also exist." She adds, "I hate that Kiyohira the most. How dare he treats her so roughly? When it was my 9th birthday, I sneaked into the mansion. That boy and I have the same birthday. She made my favorite cake for him. But, he threw the cake on the ground and called it disgusting. He told her that he would never accept her as his stepmother in front of everyone. It was a birthday party. He didn't think how much she must have been hurt."

Kiyohira stops at the door. He did something like that on his 9th birthday. He didn't like Kamiyama Hitomi. He always saw her as Takeshi's mother. It was hard to accept a woman as his mother who was called a gold digger by other people during his birthday party.

"Rie chan, why do you speak like that?" Ren is terrified. "I will call the doctor. Don't go anywhere. Promise me that you won't run away."

Rie chan grasps his hand. "You are overreacting, Ren. You are the one who should see the doctor."

He looks into her eyes. "Promise me."

"Fine. I promise." She shrugs her shoulders and lets go of his hand. "Ren, bring me a drink. I feel thirsty."

"I will." Ren points at her as he walks away. "Don't leave this place. If you do, I will not forgive you."

"I won't leave. I won't forgive you if you don't bring my favorite drink," Rie yells at him when he closes the door. "What's wrong with him?"

***

Ren locks the room. This must be temporary. She won't forget 8 years of her life.

"What's going on?"

He stiffly turns around and finds Kiyohira looking at him calmly. He promised to call this man after Rie chan has calmed down, but he forgot about it.

"I don't know what's going on." Ren laughs nervously. "She is acting strange as if she is eighteen again. Is it possible? She was still fine after the accident."

"Stay here." Kiyohira's expressions are unreadable. "I will call the doctor. Guard the door. You can't let her escape."

Ren paces outside the room with an ominous feeling. Rie stretches her arms. She feels sleepy, but she doesn't want to sleep. She walks to the window and looks out. This city seems unfamiliar. When did T city become this green? Where the hell is she?

Kiyohira returns with two doctors. Ren slowly unlocks the door and pushes it. Rie is sitting cross-legged on the bed with a deep frown.

"Ren, where the hell I am?" She shouts at him when she sees him.

"Hospital?" Ren smiles awkwardly. "Rie chan, I told you that we had an accident."

"Even if we had an accident, we should be in T city."

"Rie chan, you forgot. You and I came here for a vacation. Remember you wanted to see H island? We were on our way when we got into an accident." Ren sits beside her and keeps her attention on him.

"That's bad." She looks nervous. "Ren, what will happen when my grandmother finds out? I never left her alone. Who is looking after her?"

"Rie chan." He pinches her cheek. "Did you forget? Grandmother went to see your father. She will come back after a few months. You told her to go before you come here with me."

"It's strange." Rie narrows her eyes on him. "I don't remember a lot of things."

"It's a temporary amnesia." One of the doctors explains to her. "You bumped your head and forgot some things. Your memories will come back after some time."

She looks at them suspiciously. "That sounds like a plot of a drama."

"Hahaha!" Ren pats her head. "Rie chan, you are so funny. In the drama, the one with amnesia always forgets about the lover. You didn't forget me, right?"

She grins at him. "You are right. Wait, who are you calling your lover? You read the letter, didn't you? You couldn't wait until the end of the world hack series."

Ren pauses his actions when he sees her pouting sullenly. "The world hack series is canceled. So, I read it."

"It's canceled. Did I forget about that too?" She closes her eyes and puts her head back. "How will you get the money for the surgery then?"

The doctor leaves after observing the patient. Ren stays beside her to keep an eye on her. Kiyohira meets up with the doctors.

"What's wrong with her?" He steels his heart to listen. "Why is she like that?"

"She did bump her head, but it shouldn't affect her memory. It wasn't serious." The first doctor looks at him solemnly, "We think that the reason is more psychological than physical. We have called a doctor to check on her. He was on a vacation and he was supposed to come tomorrow. After hearing about her case, he is going to see her today. Until he comes, it's better to not break the illusion. We can't tell how it will affect the patient."