Chapter 1:
They all said I was the person who loved Ethan the most, from childhood to adulthood. When Ethan demolished the house, I kept watch; when he dated, I covered for him. I finally managed to get Ethan to agree to be my boyfriend, but less than half a month later, he lost his memory in a car accident.
"Ava, I really am your boyfriend. You used to love me so much you'd even die for me. Please, try to remember, okay?"
I looked at the haggard man in front of me, his face covered with stubble, and sighed softly, almost inaudibly,
"Mr. Grant, I'm about to get engaged. Out of respect for our parents' relationship, I won't hold this against you, but I hope you won't disturb me anymore."
(1)
Arguments, a highway at night, a truck that suddenly appeared... shattered like broken glass in my mind.
"The patient in bed 12 is awake! Quickly call Dr. Xavier!"
I had just opened my eyes and wasn't used to the glaring white ceiling when an excited female voice sounded beside my bed.
Doctor? Am I in a hospital?
I struggled to get up, and the excited young girl next to me noticed my movement and hurried to support me.
"Hello, Ms. Lowder. You have been in a coma for ten days. Dr. Xavier will give you a detailed examination later."
I glanced at the badge on her chest; she was a newly appointed intern nurse.
"May I ask... Why am I here?"
The young nurse was stunned for a moment, widened her eyes, leaned over to look at my head from left to right, then backed away, covering her mouth while looking at me,
"Don't you remember? Twelve days ago, you had a car accident and were brought here. There was a gentleman brought in with you, but he was less injured and was discharged not long ago."
Discharged? A gentleman? I frowned but couldn't remember anything, as if a part of my memory had disappeared into thin air. Seeing my furrowed brow and silence, the nurse who was just a moment ago so excited now stood with pursed lips at the side, until a refined male doctor walked in at the door, and she quickly ran over, whispering in his ear while pointing at me.
"Dr. Xavier, the patient is awake, but she seems to have... amnesia."
"Amnesia?"
The man known as Dr. Xavier stopped in front of my bed and looked up at me with a worried gaze. The light reflecting off the gold-rimmed glasses on his prominent nose hit me hard.
"Do you remember your name?"
Dr. Xavier sat down beside my bed, taking notes while asking questions in a gentle voice, like a few pearls sliding over soft silk. I leaned obediently against the bedhead and nodded at him. He glanced at me and lowered his head to continue asking,
"Do you remember your home, your parents, and your friends?"
Hmm... I propped my chin and thought carefully. I seemed to remember all of that. Seeing me nod, Dr. Xavier closed his notebook, stared at me, and asked the final question,
"Then... Ethan, do you remember him?"
Ethan? This name seemed familiar, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't recall this person. After a futile effort, I pursed my lips, looked at Dr. Xavier, and shook my head.
Dr. Xavier looked at me for a moment before putting away his pen and telling me,
"Preliminary diagnosis is selective amnesia. I recommend staying in the hospital for observation and doing a concussion check tomorrow."
Seeing him about to leave, I hurriedly grabbed his coat. When he looked at me with slight confusion, I blushed a little and stuck out my tongue,
"Dr. Xavier, this room is so big and I'm all alone... It's really scary at night..."
I admit that such strongly suggestive words would be hard for any normal person to understand, but my gut told me he would definitely fulfill my request.
Through the reflective glass lenses, I couldn't see his eyes, only the mocking curve at the corner of his mouth,
"Ava, some tricks are enough to use just once. Too much—and they become annoying."
(2)
Dr. Xavier's words left me bewildered. Watching his resolute back as he left, I retracted my outstretched hand and curled back up under the covers. But his words caught my attention. What did he mean by "some tricks"?
Could it be that we knew each other before?
As I lay bundled in the blankets lost in thought, I suddenly heard the sound of a chair being dragged across the room. Peeking out carefully, I saw Dr. Xavier had returned without me noticing and was fiddling with his laptop.
"Huh? Dr. Xavier? Didn't you say..."
"Taking care of patients is a doctor's duty."
Without lifting his head, his light comment blocked anything I wanted to say. Before I could respond, his voice sounded from behind the laptop,
"Rest early. It's good for your brain."
I rolled my eyes, turned over, and prepared to sleep. The sound of the keyboard rising and falling in the large ward didn't disturb my sleep; instead, it made me sleep even more soundly. Just before I fell asleep, I couldn't resist asking,
"Dr. Xavier, did we know each other before?"
The keyboard sounds stopped abruptly, and after a long while, when I was almost asleep, I heard his deep voice vaguely,
"Ava, you'd better truly not remember."
The next morning, when I woke up, Dr. Xavier was already gone. I was enjoying my hospital breakfast while eagerly inquiring about Dr. Xavier from the nurse who came to check the ward. The young nurse gave me a blank look and poured cold water on me,
"Our Dr. Xavier is indeed very popular, but I advise you not to set your sights on him. I heard he had an ex-girlfriend who hurt him deeply, resulting in him having absolutely no interest in women now."
What? Is he impotent? Isn't that... such a waste.
Feeling dejected, I pushed my food around, lamenting the loss of another handsome guy to ease my boredom. After checking the ward, the nurse looked at me with an unsurprised gaze before leaving.
Just after finishing breakfast, a fiery woman burst into my ward with... a man in tow.
"Ava, you're awake! I caught this jerk for you!"
"Sis, sis! Look, she's fine, isn't she?"
"Lying in the hospital isn't fine? She's your girlfriend, and she's been here for more than ten days, and you didn't care or ask, and instead went off with other women? Is that how you are as a boyfriend?"
"I've always been like this, Ava knows that. Besides, she's fine now, isn't she!"
I stared at the quarreling couple by the hospital bed, a bunch of question marks over my head, while I secretly reached under the pillow to call Dr. Xavier.
"Ava, I heard from the nurse that you suffered a severe head injury, are you okay?"
The woman let go of the struggling man and rushed to my bedside with a worried expression. I stared at her face for a long time before finally stammering,
"Hi… may I ask who you are?"
Almost instantly, the faces of both the woman by my bed and the man beside it changed. Unlike the woman's increasing worry, the man sneered and mocked,
"Humph— Is this your new trick, Ava? Come on, come on! Let me see how good your acting is!"
Nutcase!
My hand under the pillow pressed the call button repeatedly, hoping someone could come and get these two out.
The woman by the bedside grabbed my hand, almost crying, and asked me,
"Ava? Ava, you don't recognize me? You really don't recognize me? I'm Claire Grant! We've been friends since childhood!"
Claire's eyes were big and round, and at that moment, she looked at me with tears, and something hot dripped onto the back of my hand, making me a little anxious. In her sobs, fragments began to emerge in my mind.
"Claire..."
She grabbed my hand that was trying to wipe her tears, excitedly saying,
"Ava, you remembered me? That's great, Ava—"
She threw herself into my arms, and my hand instinctively reached over to gently stroke her back. Although those memories were fragmented, they slowly formed a puzzle in my mind. Claire Grant, my best friend since childhood, our families lived next door and are very close.
The man's former look of surprise turned into an "I knew it" mocking face,
"Oh— remembered that quickly? Let's see... not even five minutes, Ava, that's all you can do?"
I felt my temple throbbing; calm down, calm down, Dr. Xavier said this isn't good for my head.
After calming Claire, I crossed my arms and tilted my chin up at the man,
"Excuse me, Mr. Nosy, who are you?"
With that said, not only did the man freeze, but so did Claire. The man pointed to himself and brought his face close to me,
"You don't know who I am?"
"Tsk—"
The smell of smoke and alcohol was overwhelming, making me "tsk" and turn away, pinching my nose.
"What divine emperor are you that I should know you?"
Apparently angered by my action, the man tried to rush forward but was stopped by Claire.
"Ava, this is Ethan Grant, your boyfriend."
"What?"
I already have a boyfriend? Doesn't that ruin my plans with Dr. Xavier and my night of eighteen male models?
I was devastated. Luckily, Dr. Xavier arrived just then. Seeing me leaning on the bed looking very hurt, he quickly ran over to shield me.
"The patient is not fully recovered and is emotionally unstable, please do not agitate her."
Exactly! I sat up and hid behind Dr. Xavier, clutching his white coat, and raised my voice to complain.
"Dr. Xavier, it's him, he agitated me—he actually claimed to be my boyfriend! Please, there's no way I'd like someone like him! It's ridiculous!"
I wasn't sure if it was just my imagination, but I felt Dr. Xavier stiffen in front of me, and then his protective stance drooped.
"So you're Ethan Grant? Nice to meet you, Mr. Grant."
Ethan Grant? I remember Dr. Xavier asking me if I remembered this person when I first woke up, so that's Ethan Grant, huh?
Perhaps upset by my glare, Ethan's line of sight bypassed Dr. Xavier and turned to me,
"Ava, what do you mean? What do you mean there's no way you'd like me? Have you forgotten how you've been pining over me since we were kids?"
What? Pining over this guy since we were kids? Did I have such poor taste back then?
"Sorry, I really forgot. If that's the case, then let's break up now."
"What did you say? You want to break up with me?"
Claire wanted to rush forward, but Dr. Xavier blocked her tightly, so she could only open her mouth and earnestly advise me,
"Ava, don't act on impulse, we all know how much you love Ethan. Don't regret it once you remember."
Regret? Not a chance!
"You don't need to persuade me, I won't regret it because I don't like him now, I like Dr. Xavier!"