Losing Your Memory
Summary: When Tessa wakes up in a hospital in New York, she has no idea of who she is. She is sent to London to start a new life, but forced to conceal her suffering, no one is allowed to know about the true Tessa Gray, herself included. When memories start coming back, Tessa realises that something is gravely wrong. WESSA, JESSA, AU, ALL HUMAN
Quote: "Fe hoffwn I fod mor feddw, fyddai dim yn cofio fy enw. I wish to get so drunk I no longer remember my own name." (Clockwork Prince, Chapter 4)
(Author's Note: Hello there, this idea popped up in my mind while I was listening to Losing Your Memory by Ryan Star. The quote does not exactly fit the story, but I just thought it was a fun quote. I hope you enjoy!)
Chapter 1: Amnesia
Tessa Gray was 19 and one of the most mundane girls you would possibly ever meet. Well, that was apart from the fact that she suffered from amnesia and had absolutely no clue as to what had happened in her life so far. Under the supervision of her doctor, Axel Mortmain, she was sent to London to start a brand-new life.
It was supposed to be some special kind of project, to see if a different environment would trigger the mind of a patient who was suffering from amnesia. Tessa despised it without a doubt, but she could not argue with the people that tried to better her life, right?
Now, going to London really did not sound that bad, more like a wish being fulfilled, and assigning to the London Institute felt like living a dream. Yet there was something bothering Tessa, some voice in her head telling her something was not right.
She decided it was the part with Mr Mortmain paying her travelling costs that made her feel uneasy, it was after all something you could become suspicious about. And perhaps the fact that she could not even recall her own name also played a big part in her discomfort with the whole plan. The doctors had told her she was called Theresa Gray -Tessa for short- that she came from New York, Brooklyn, and all the other things she required to know about 'herself' to survive at least a year of working at a world wide known company. Mr Mortmain had even given her a bunch of documents to study, in case she forgot.
The London Institute was on the list of companies, though Tessa found it more of a university, and she was convinced many more people thought so too. On the other hand, you still had to do a job interview, before you would be accepted. Mortmain had forced her to assign to that certain university, even though London was quite the trip from New York, according to Tessa. Yet her doctor saw no problem, he had bought her a ticket and practically pushed her onto the plane. And since Tessa had no other option nor actual objection as to not accept the offer, she was now on her way to London, Heathrow.
It felt so damn stupid she could remember that she did not like flying, yet could not remember her past. Even her name did not sound familiar.
"Tessa Gray." She whispered, but it simply did not feel right. For all that she knew, she could be Taylor Swift, even when her physical appearance did not exactly match. Then again, that could have been just a matter of cosmetic surgery; she was precisely Taylor Swift's length after all.
She pulled out David Copperfield and began reading before her thoughts would shift to all the wrong bits of losing your memory.
There was a positive side on forgetting who you were. You did not have to worry about ex-boyfriends –though Tessa doubted she had one of those. You could have that clean start many people yearned for, and you did not have to lie about awkward scenes from the past, since you simply could not recall them. Well, maybe the latter was not true; Mortmain forced her into swearing she would not tell anyone suffered from amnesia, apparently it was part of the project. To be entirely honest, Tessa felt more like an undercover agent than the usual student going to university.
Hours passed swifter than Tessa expected them to, and within no time Tessa stood alone and perhaps a little bit lost at her gate in Heathrow, her heavy trunk in tow.
She left Heathrow after a while of wandering, and looked for an empty taxi, which was easier said then done. As she had predicted, almost every taxi already drove passengers away from the station. When one finally halted, she perked up, only to discover it had stopped for the person standing about two meters away from her. He hastily dumped his trunk in the back of the car and moved to open the car door when he noticed her staring.
Tessa decided that when she finally arrived at the Institute she would make a list of advantages and a list of disadvantages of suffering from Amnesia. She mentally added the first negative thing to the list: no experience with incredibly handsome, drop-dead gorgeous men…
Because, damn, this man -or rather boy- definitely came in touch with the 'incredibly handsome, drop-dead gorgeous men' concept, if not outdid it.
Tessa was dazed, it was like someone managed to copy a fictional character and paste it in real life, right in front of her. He truly was that handsome. And she bet he knew he was, noting the confident way he stood there.
"Where do you need to go?" He asked not unkindly, and Tessa was confused for a second, only to remember quickly again.
"Oh, eh, I'm supposed to be at the London Institute, Fleet Street." A spark flashed in the boy's bright blue eyes, like gleaming blue glass, and he reached out to shake her hand.
"I'm William Herondale, but I prefer being called Will. I'm going to the Institute as well, so step in." He lifted her trunk and placed it in the back of the car carefully.
"Oh, thanks, I- I'm Tessa Gray." God damn hot, British gentlemen, she never stuttered. He even held the door for her as she stepped in. Tessa wished she had the nerve to roll her eyes at him, but that would just be rude, to react to such kindness in that way.
Will dropped down on the seat next to hers, and with a small jump of her heart she noticed he could have gone to sit in the passenger seat instead. The strong wind had messed up his dark hair up thoroughly, and his face was all angles. And God, his jawline, Tessa had to admit he had the most gorgeous jaw she had ever seen. Not that she would have likely been able to remember, had she seen a stronger one.
In an attempt to start a casual conversation, Tessa spoke up.
"So you go to the Institute?" Will seemed amused at her question, and the corners of his mouth quirked up, as if he was trying hard not to smile.
"No, I teach there." Tessa totally missed out on the sarcasm in his voice, being still a little captivated by his looks.
"Really?" She asked half interested, half out of habit. Will laughed.
"You really don't know the difference between sarcasm and general talk, do you?"
"I do, I merely was a little… distracted." Tessa sputtered, glaring at Will as he looked at her like he could burst out laughing again.
"Distracted you say? Oh, but that it quite normal. It's what happens to you when you lay your eyes upon me for the first time. It will wear away a little after a while, so don't worry." Tessa snorted.
"You're really not that handsome, you know?" She wasn't sure if her voice was still quite as steady as she wanted it to be, because Will's looks were quite distracting, annoying sarcastic behaviour or not. Will was smirking by now, though in an entertained way.
"I bet you said that because you don't like giving into the fact that you're attracted to me."
"I'm not attracted to you!" Tessa indignantly screeched a little bit too loud, and the taxi chauffeur cleared his throat uncomfortably. Tessa scowled at Will as he shuddered with laughter.
"You definitely are, you're only in the denial phase." He remarked with a glint of mischievousness shimmering in his dazzling eyes.
"Am not." Tessa responded childishly. Will's laughter vibrated through her whole body, and she did not dare look up, because she was positive she was red all over her face from shame. She pulled David Copperfield from her messenger bag and was about to continue on the page she left off, when Will pulled it out of her hands. He studied the cover and Tessa waited for a sarcastic remark, but it did not come.
"Do you like Dickens?" He asked instead, which completely blew her away. It took her a moment of regaining her voice before she replied.
"Yes, a lot. Do you?" Tessa's fingers pulled on a tiny thread of her sleeve, her hands warm and clammy.
"Yes, I do indeed, yet I never read while sitting in a plane or car." He commented, and he handed the book back to her. Tessa quirked up one eyebrow.
"You were on the plane, reading." He explained after seeing her frown. Tessa realised how pleasant Will's voice was as he spoke deliberately with his standard London accent, though there was something about the way he rolled his 'r' that betrayed his true origin. It took her quite a moment to process what he had actually said, but when she did, she gazed at Will with a surprised expression.
"You were in the same plane as I was?" Will nodded, giving her an amused look.
"I was seated on the other side of the path." Tessa could not help her curiosity this time.
"What were you doing in America? Because you're obviously not from there." Will had trouble with concealing his smile as it tugged on the corners of his mouth.
"Obviously."He mimicked Tessa, and she rolled her eyes.
"I suppose you have not read Pride and Prejudice then, when you trust your first impression like that." He continued to give her a funny look for a while, but then he turned serious, his whole face fell, and the spark in his eyes that had been there before was almost completely gone.
"I was visiting my best friend in New York, his fiancée had an accident and is currently in the hospital. He is not allowed to get in contact with her, the doctors say." A sudden ghastly feeling ran down Tessa her back, and she shivered, biting down on her tongue.
"I'm very sorry for your friend." She managed to say, though it did not sound like she truly meant it. Will gave her a tight, forced smile and they both spent the rest of the car-ride staring out of the windows.
(Author's Note: Do you like it? Are the characters okay so far? Review, Follow & Favourite! Have a nice day, Jill)