Forget Me Not

Chapter Seven

Rianne climbed up a stool to reach the top shelf where she stores the different flavored syrups she uses for the coffee drinks. The caramel syrup ran out and she needed to get one from storage to put by the counter so that, by tomorrow, everything would be set and ready for brewing. She was closing up and going to call it a night but had to get everything ready for tomorrow. That was how she had always handled things. Everything needed to be in place. That was why she had been going crazy since the accident because nothing was in place. She still didn’t know a single detail from that fateful day and the two preceding years. The dreams she had been having were not helping at all.

The stool was still not tall enough for her to reach the bottle and grip it steadily. The caramel syrup slipped from her hand and she closed her eyes, getting ready to hear the crashing of the glass. There was nothing.

She squinted her eyes and looked down. A familiar face, with kind eyes and rimmed glasses, caught the bottle just in time. His unshaven look had given him a mysterious air. Most people would wonder if he was a geek or a hottie. His well-toned body wasn’t noticeable under layers of clothing, as he liked wearing polo shirts under a cardigan or a plain white shirt under a jacket—there were always layers of clothing on him, as if he was hiding something. He’s an athletic guy and it’s not surprising for him to be built like a sportsman. Wall climbing every Monday, going to the gym every Tuesday and badminton on Fridays were staples in his week. But of course, he never forgot to spend time with his women friends, too.

“Jason! I’m so glad to see you!” Rianne said when she saw him holding the bottle. He held out his hand and helped her get down from the stool.

“You shouldn’t be doing these things on your own! You should have waited for me,” Jason said, concern dripping from his voice.

“I can handle myself. No need to get mad.”

“You could have fallen and hit your head. I didn’t want you to get hurt,” he said and she couldn’t help but smile. She thought Jason looked cute when he was worrying about her.

“Relax. Nothing like that’s going to happen. I’ll be more careful from now on, okay? Anyway, how was your day?” she said, wrapping her hands around his arm.

“It was okay. Very tiring from all the filming we have been doing. We’re trying to finish before Valentine’s so everything’s in a rush. We only have three weeks to go and I’m re-editing scenes that we reshot. I’d have to get used to pulling all-nighters again. It’s crazy. How about you? Everything back to normal?”

“Yeah, except for my memory,” she said half-teasing. “As nobody, not even you and Yssa, would tell me what happened, I was thinking maybe I should just accept the fact that I’m never going to remember anything,” she said in frustration and surrender.

She couldn’t understand why he would hide anything from her. Jason had been her best friend since they were in college. They were block mates.

The first time they talked to each other was when they were paired together during dance class. They both had left feet and their routines were mostly a combination of awkward silly moves, but they both enjoyed themselves. They became closer while they practiced their cha-cha, swing, and foxtrot routines for the final exam.

Since then, they took all classes together for all the five years they were in university, working towards a double degree. They did two theses together and tried to have fun at the same time. Oh, how they’d laugh at the memories.

Jason met Alyssa in sophomore year and the three of them hung out a lot during breaks and after classes. Alyssa was taking up a different course but they managed to see a lot of one another.

Jason was introverted and liked to work on his own while Yssa was the extrovert who would discuss stuff with people and speak her mind. Rianne was the balancing factor because she was both at different times.

Rianne used to know herself way better but with the memory of those two years gone, she was not so sure anymore. She felt like Toni Gonzaga’s character in My Amnesia Girl but Toni’s character’s case was so much better because, at least, she didn’t forget just part of her life. Her identity was still intact. She still knew who she was, unlike Rianne.