Unexpected Encounter

Part 3

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In the evening, I return home after a tiring day. As I open the door of my house, a thought crosses my mind: “Why is it so quiet?”

“Ann?” I call out, but there's only silence.

“Ann, Ann!” I rush to her room, but she isn’t there.

“Where are you?” I search around the house, growing increasingly worried.

Suddenly, a troubling thought flashes through my mind: “How would I feel if she disappeared from my life?”

Flashback

In the principal's room, I ask Ren, “Why did you call me to your father’s room?”

“To talk,” Ren answers. “He's at a meeting, so he couldn’t come to school today.”

“I see,” I reply, taking a seat.

“How's Ann doing?” Ren inquires.

“She’s fine, but she seems exhausted lately,” I express concern.

“You seem to worry about her a lot,” Ren notes with a smirk.

His words catch me off guard. “Well, she’s in trouble, and since I found her, I feel responsible. Don’t you empathize with her? She lost all her memories,” I explain.

“Oh,” Ren responds, but his tone is strange.

“What's with that tone?” I ask, frowning.

“Nothing,” Ren smirks.

“You sound like you doubt me,” I accuse him.

“Yep, I do,” he admits, shrugging.

“What do you mean?” I press further.

“Michelle, don’t act like you don’t have feelings for her beyond pity. You take care of her more than out of mere sympathy,” Ren asserts.

“I...I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I deny, standing up.

“If you don’t have any other business, I'll head home. Ann must be hungry,” I say, preparing to leave.

“Ah, always worrying about your Ann,” Ren teases with a smirk.

“Shut up,” I retort, leaving the room.

As I’m about to close the door, Ren's parting words echo in my mind:

“Michelle, how would you feel if one day she disappeared from your life?”

End Flashback

Back in the present, I continue searching the house for Ann, my heart racing. Finally, I hear the door open and rush to see Ann entering with Sam and Rhian, smiling happily.

“Where were you going? I told you not to leave,” I angrily confront Ann.

“I’m sorry,” she apologizes softly, looking down.

“Calm down, Michelle. I just took her to the nearby store. I wanted to treat her to some food,” Rhian intervenes.

“Sorry, Michelle, I’ll…” Ann starts to say.

“You don’t need to apologize. Do as you please; it's none of my business,” I cut her off, retreating to my room.

“Michelle, what’s wrong?” Sam calls after me, but I ignore him and slam the door.

In my room, I can still hear Rhian and Sam comforting Ann.

“It’s okay, Ann. Maybe he’s just tired from work,” Rhian said.