The Witness

31

I woke up to the gentle sounds of birds chirping and the sunlight shining through my closed eyes. Getting out of bed, I looked around the unfamiliar room.

"Where am I?" I said quietly, rubbing my eyes to wake up more.

Suddenly, the door made a faint noise, and I looked at it with anticipation. Blaire walked in through the slightly open door.

"Kosta? Are you finally awake?" she said with a mix of relief and amusement. That's when I remembered that I had fallen asleep in their house.

I realized that I had drunk too much the previous night, which explained the blurry memories from then.

"I...I'm sorry, I drank too much last night," I apologized to her, sitting on her bed and massaging my head due to a headache.

"It's alright, I didn't mind," Blaire reassured me, her smile nearly perfect.

"Anyway, what's that luggage for?" I asked, pointing at the suitcase on the floor.

"Oh, I'm packing my stuff for tomorrow's school field trip," she replied, putting her things into the luggage.

I glanced around the room, taking in the vibrant colors. My attention was drawn to a medium-sized picture frame hanging on her desk. My curiosity got the best of me, and I walked over to pick it up. The image inside showed two children - one I assumed was Blaire, and the other one, if I'm not mistaken was my cousin..Andrija I furrowed my brow and turned to Blaire.

"Is this you?" I asked, catching her off guard.

"Oh, that? That's me and André," she said.

My gaze shifted back to the picture frame 'You two seem really close,' I said, trying to stay calm and not let my emotions overwhelm me.

Blaire nodded, 'Yeah, we've been friends since childhood. We've done a lot of things together.'

I sat down on her bed while she paused on the floor, listening intently to her.

'André is like a brother to me. That's why he means a lot to me,' Blaire, a smile crept up on her face.

'You know what, he had an accident when he was younger? It made him forget a lot of memories,' Blaire said, catching my attention.

'Really? He did?' I reacted.

'Yes, ever since then, Auntie Susan has been extra careful with him,' Blaire continued.

So that's why André didn't recognize me; his accident must have been the cause.

'By the way, do you happen to know who André's father is?' I suddenly asked.

Blaire thought for a moment 'Yeah, why?'

'What's his father's name?' I inquired, eager to know if my suspicions were true.

'Um... His dad is one of the candidates in this year's presidential election,' Blaire replied. 'His father is Nikola Cikic”

My eyes widen the moment I confirmed my suspicions are true, and all this time André is just with me.

“Why do you ask?” Blaire, curiosity evident in her voice.

“Nothing” I replied, Blaire chuckled and continued to pack her belongings.

...

My mind was preoccupied with thoughts of what Blaire had told me. The reason Andrija didn't recognize me is because of the accident he had when he was younger. I won't lie, Andrija has changed so much; he had Blaire with him for the majority of his life.