~Prologue~
It was cold.
Before anything else, I noticed the below-freezing temperatures. It's the first feeling I remember. Slowly, I opened my eyes. I took in the sights around me: the trees that were all crowded together and looked as if they were growing on top of each other; the snowflakes falling from the sky that irritated me more than even the incessant chattering of my teeth or the cold that crept through me and chilled me to the bone; the dark sky that told me with an absolutely certainty that it was nighttime - or at least a time so early in the morning not a soul was awake.
Where am I? I asked myself. In all honesty, I had no idea, though it didn't matter to me because I was barely awake enough for coherent thought. I'd come back to it later. I struggled to get into an upright position so I could escape the cold that seemed to burn my skin wherever it touched. Once I'd managed it after countless attempts in which I only managed to sit up for a moment before falling back and knocking the wind out of myself, I was completely breathless. There was a peice of hair hanging in my face, and I reached up to brush it away, but when I caught sight of my hands I could only stare in fascination. They were red as a rare steak and stung. They were also shaking unbearably.
The physical activity had woken me up more, and with another glance around the forest, I suddenly realized just how dire my situation was. If I didn't know where I was, chances are that no one else did. And if no one knew where I was, it was extremely likely that I'd die in this place. And, really, a forest wasn't the ideal place to die. It would be years before anyone would find me, and when they did, I'd be a mere bundle of bones. Therefore I'd never be identified, and I would be six feet under the ground while my family wondered for the rest of their lives where I was.
Wait.
I had no idea who my family consisted of. Of course, I knew the basics. I was born to a mother and father, and I was probably married, and if I was married, I probably had children. But what were their names? I concentrated hard as I could to try to remember. If anyone had seen me, I would've looked rather odd, but it didn't matter to me. I was so consumed in what I was doing, I wouldn't have even realized if a crowd of people were around me.
Family, family, family. It was all I could think. I felt as if I'd sat there looking like an idiot for hours before I came to the conclusion that I didn't remember my family at all. So, instead I decided for a more conventional approach. I'd say any facts I could think of about myself, and eventually remember. It shouldn't be that hard.
"My hair is..." I thought about it for a moment. but nothing came to me. I shook my head. Don't get discouraged. "My eyes are..." Again, nothing. It was beginning to worry me. I creased my brow and began the next, "My name is..." I hit the closest thing to me in frustration, and immediately regretted it. I drew my hand back quickly. I had drawn blood, and I decided instead to keep my hands safely in my pockets. "God damn it!" I cried angrily. How could I not even remember my own name? Surely it was there somewhere.
"My name...it's..." I tried again, with as much success as before. I groaned loudly and allowed myself to fall back into the snow. Looking up at the night sky, I planned out my next course of action. As I had come to discover, I couldn't remember who I was, but I could remember certain things that seemed insignificant at the momeny but may come in handy later. That is, if I lived until this "later". The most useful was a trick to find north, but it was useless at a time like this, as the sky was completely covered in snow clouds. I sighed and sat back up. Now that I was fully awake, movement seemed to come to me more easily. I decided on what I was going to do. In a few not-so-swift movements, I was up on my shaky and uncertain feet. The back of my shirt clung desperately to my back and made me shiver. It made me wonder how idiotic I must've been to go out on a winter's day in merely a tunic, a pair of pants, and some boots. I didn't even have any mitts, which was ridiculous.
I headed in the direction that I thought was north and began to walk. I'd find something eventually...I hoped/ Fortunately, this time luck was on my side. After a few minutes that felt like whole hours, I came across a path that seemed relatively well-trodden. I almost wanted to jump in glee, but I was shivering much too hard for that by now. I walked slowly up the path, my strength fading as I shivered more and more. My teeth chattered so violently I didn't want to put my tongue anywhere near them. I was too afraid I would bite it off.
"Excuse me?" I heard from behind me. In an attempt to quickly spin around to face whoever had spoken, I tripped over my own foot and toppled into the snow. I heard a childish giggle, and looked up to see a young boy; roughly five-or-six years-old. He was holding up a lantern to me. His face was close to mine as he leaned in with curiosity. He was wearing a thick brown cape that protected him from the wind. Though the hood hung well over his face, I could see the ends of his bright orange hair at the nape of his neck. His face, or what I could see of it, was covered in freckles. Suddenly, he pulled his hood back and revealed eyes as green as the leaves of trees at the peak of summer. He grinned widely at me, and poked my cheek. "Are you real?" He asked me in curiosity. I looked at him, slightly shocked. "Um, is there any other kind of person?" I said through my chattering teeth. I tried to give him a smile, but I suspected it came out as more of a grimace.
"Well yes there is, silly! And you look just like my friend Alex! Mommy can't see him, but I can!" He looked proud of it for some reason. I had to laugh at his expression, but it came out as more of a choke. I was about to ask him where he came from when someone interrupted me.
"Joseph, sweetie, where are you?" A voice, obviously female, asked. He looked at me and said, "Don't worry, I'll take care of her." It was enough to make me start giggling hysterically. I wasn’t sure if I it was shock or if I was really laughing. Either way, it felt good.
“Joseph, I don’t know if this is a good idea.” I heard from not far away. “Mommy, he’s in the snow! If we don’t help him, he’ll die!” I struggled to stand so I could go see them, but my laughing fit left me tired. I just wanted to close my eyes…
“Where is he?” I heard running down the path, and a separate set of footsteps when Joseph sat beside me. The woman’s voice was closer now when she said, “Let’s get you inside.”
For the second time in a row, I woke up without knowing who I was. This time, though, I had memories of what I had previously done. I remembered a young boy, and a woman’s voice, though not much more than that. I’d fallen unconscious before I could see her. I had multiple blankets over me, and the heat under them was sweltering. I was glad I wasn’t still in the forest, or I might not have woken up.
I slid my feet out from under my blankets and tentatively placed them on the ground. I paused for a minute and took in the room around me. It was a warm yellow and was furnished by wooden furniture that you could tell was used, but it didn’t look too shabby. Along with the bed, which was only big enough for one person, there was a vanity with a bowl of water so I could wash my face in the morning, along with a tall dresser that had three drawers. There was a small nightstand that had a change of clothes on it. The quilts on the bed were obviously handmade and of a rough quality, but you could almost see the determination that was put into them. The floor was cold and furnished darkly, and matched the other furniture perfectly. I finally stood and changed quickly out of my night clothes, which someone had changed me into. I could only hope it wasn’t the woman from before. That would be embarrassing. I noticed a mirror on the vanity and walked over to it. In the mirror was me. My hair was either dirty blond, or just full of dirt. I couldn't be quite sure. My eyes were brown, which I knew to be an uncommon attribute in blondes. My nose was long, but not distractingly so and had a slight crookedness to it, as if it had been broken more than once. There was a thick stubble on my chin that threatened to turn into a full-grown beard any day now. "So this is me?" I murmured.
As I walked out of the door, I heard a voice. “When’s he gonna wake up mommy?” “We have to give him time, Joey. He almost died of hypothermia.” I blinked a few times at this. I almost died? I was shocked, to say the least. Though I knew it should’ve been obvious I almost died, it was still hard for me to hear it. I finally stepped into the picture, as well as a warm kitchen. Sunlight was streaming through and I had to squint.
“He’s alive!” The woman cried joyfully and sent me a smirk. I smiled tentatively and took a seat at the table beside Joseph.”Would you like anything to eat?” She asked. I nodded. “Um, yes ma’am.” I smiled and she threw her head back with a howl of laughter.
“Sweetheart, you don’t have to call me that. Just call me Diana. What could we call you?” She asked curiously as she walked towards the fire. There was a pan sitting on the grill inside with eggs inside of it. My stomach growled, and I laughed nervously.
“Well, I hoped you’d be able to tell me that. I have no idea myself.” She frowned as she moved the eggs around inside it. As her back was turned, I took the time to look at her properly. She had long red hair like her sons, but not nearly as many freckles. She had a small figure and she was rather tall for a woman. She turned back to face me, and I looked down at her feet. She had marvellous shoes.
“Do you remember anything?” I said nothing. “Interesting…” She said, taking my silence for a no. “Well, I’d like to propose you a deal.” She said after a moment. I looked back up at her, and into her yellow-green eyes.
“You can stay here until your memory has returned, alright?” I nodded vigorously. Considering the fact that I had no money, I could’ve never stayed at an inn. “I appreciate it, Diana.” She grinned.
“But we need a name for you…” She murmured. Joseph perked up. “His name is Alex, Mommy!” She smiled at her son. “Alex it is.”
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So this is he edited version of the story, and I find it much better than the original. Just to clear things up, it's not centered around romance. This story is centered around Alex and his amnesia. Of course, this doesn't mean there isn't any romance. It's just not the main focus. I'm going to re-write the rest of it soon, so look forward to that. For now, I'll delete them.
Bye~ And leave a comment on what you think of it. A vote would be appreciated as well. Thanks.