Chapter 2

Anterograde Amnesia - One of the two types of amnesia. It prevents a person from making new memories and the brain cannot convert new sensory information into long-term memories. Anterograde amnesia is more common than retrograde amnesia, where a person has trouble with remembering his/her past.

"See ya, bastard."

"Yeah, see ya, princess." I said to Gray as I walked towards my car. It was still in the middle of the afternoon but we were already done with our work. Actually, today was our day off but we had to rush some reports which were due tomorrow. It has been a month since I last saw her and I'll be honest, I kinda miss her. I would have visited her if it weren't for my job catching up on my ass.

When I got to the bakery shop, she was, as expected, behind the counter and greeted me with, as usual, a smile on her face when I walked inside.

"Yo! Long time no see." I said as I walked towards her instead of where the pastries were.

Her face, once again, contorted into a confused one as she tilted her head and asked, "I'm sorry but have we ever met before?"

I can't help but laugh at her. Seriously, she's a good actress and is very convincing, "Now, now. Just because you were irritated with me last time doesn't mean you have to act like a complete stranger to me."

"I'm sorry sir, but I don't really know what you're talking about."

I opened my mouth to answer her but was interrupted when the same blue-haired girl interrupted me, "A-ah, sir, could you please follow me for a minute?" she said in a panicked voice as she pointed to a door behind her.

Of course, I followed her, but I was a bit hesitant. I don't really know what I have done this time. There's no reason for her to talk to me.

When we entered the room, the first thing, or person that I saw was a built man with black, long hair and piercings on his face and arms. Paranoid thought entered my mind like 'Are they going to kill me' or 'Crap, what did I do now'. But the man simply looked at the woman who closed the door behind us and asked her, "Oi, who's this man? You cheatin' on me, shrimp?" He said as he crossed his hands over his chest and glared at me.

'Shrimp' huffed at him and faced me as she answered, "I'm not, Gajeel. I just have to talk to him about Lucy."

"Ah." He merely said but never stopped glaring at me. I wanted to tell him that I don't have the hots for a short and flat chested woman but I knew that if I want my tongue to stay intact, then I have to shut my mouth. I learned that lesson while working with Erza and Cana. You never know just how strong a woman is. I also proved that lesson when Lucy hit me in the head with a rolling-pin.

"Yes now please go away." She whipped her head towards his direction and told him with an irritated face which was quickly replaced with an apologetic smile when she faced me. They act just like how my parents do so I easily concluded that they are married or still getting there.

"Sorry about my husband. He's not that friendly." I knew it. Talk about bad boy loves good girl. I never really thought that it happens in real life. But seriously? Not friendly? More like he's anti-social.

"So... ahh... What do you want to talk about?" I scratched my head as I asked her.

Her smile disappeared from her face as she asked, "Are you... trying to be friends with Lucy?"

Well that was weird. It perturbed me a little that she was asking me this. It's none of her business if I am trying to be her friend, right? "Well, yeah. Why'd you ask?

"There's something you need to know...well, understand about her."

"O...kay."

"Do you know what amnesia is?" Is she taking me for a stupid or what? Because with the way she asked me that, it was like she was asking me if I know how to tie my shoelaces

"Of course I do." What is she trying to tell me? I asked myself, confused as to why she is asking me such questions.

"Well, you see, Lucy is suffering from anterograde amnesia."

What? She is... Lucy has an amnesia? What the hell? Is this some kind of a sick joke? Did Lucy made her do this as a revenge? "W-what are you talking about? Ante-what amnesia?"

She seemed to be a little annoyed with my question as she said, "Anterograde, a type of amnesia where a person cannot make new memories." She stated as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. Then and there, I somehow knew, that his short girt may possibly be a bookworm.

But to be honest, her words didn't make any sense to me. It was like she was talking in a different language when she said that Lucy has an Ante-whatever that is. "Did she put you up into this?" I was doubting her, of course. It wasn't everyday that someone tells you that a person you're trying to befriend has amnesia. Actually, I never even knew that there two freaking types of amnesia. According to the movies that I've watched, the hero or heroine would lose their memories of their past, not memories of their present!

"W-what? Of course not!" Her face looked so sincere as she shook her head furiously.

It kinda felt sad and I can't help but feel sympathy for her. As far as I understood from her explanation, it was like she was living her life on a never ending loop. Wake up, do whatever girls do in the morning that takes forever to finish, go to work, greet her customers with a smile, thank them with a smile, forget everything about what happened for the day, go to sleep, and then repeat the same process all over again. If it was him, it would have driven him insane. But how can he go insane if he can't even remember what the hell happened?

I tried not to make my eyes look sad as I looked down at her face and asked her, "How did she get it then?"

"Well, to make a long story short, she got into a car accident and she hit her head hard." 'Shrimp' hesitatingly told me as she fiddled with the hem of her apron, biting her lip after she said those words. Her answer annoyed me but it makes perfect sense. I want to know the details. But I can't just ask her that. I'm a complete stranger who should mind his own damn business.

From my perspective, this short girl may or may not be her best friend, if not a close friend. Because why would she take in a basically disabled person if she's not a friend? Living in this cruel world has taught him one thing: that you shouldn't trust a stranger, even if the said person is sick or disabled in any way. But here she is, dragging me all the way here just to tell me about her condition.

"The reason why I called you here is to ask a favor." Woah, woah! Wait just a damn minute. Is she going to ask me to look for some guys who might be the reason for her accident? And since when did she found out that I am a cop? I never told her that!

"I've seen the way you interacted with her. And... well, I just wanna ask, if this is not a waste of your time, if you can befriend her? You know, talk to her every time you can visit." Oh... so that kind of favor. I guess I overreacted.

I processed her words in my brain. Befriend her? Sure, no problem with me. The problem is that I live 40 minutes away from here and despite my laziness and procrastination, I am actually a very busy person. I can't just...use those precious 40 minutes when I can use them doing reports and try to arrest the bad guys.

"The thing is, most people usually avoid her because, well, they thought that she was a freak or something. I tried explaining to them her about her condition but they don't understand it. This is the first time I've seen her smile like that." She continued talking, not even confirming if I was listening or not. I weighed the pros and cons of her request. The cons are, if I agree then it means more gas, time, money and I also have to prepare myself to get hit by her in the head. The pros are... well, I get food. Not really that good.

"So plea-" I cut her off by holding my hand up and saying, "I'll do it." I knew that agreeing to her request would mean that I have to change my schedule. The cons were greater than the pros, but I can't help but agree to it. I'm not the type of person who'd agree to helping a stranger, but there really is something about this Lucy that made me agree to it, despite knowing the negative results if I do.

"Really? Thank you so much!" She said as she clasped her hand together and smiling at me. There is one thing that has been bothering me, though. Is there, like, a way to... umm... cure Ante-what-what amnesia?

"Can I ask a question, though?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Is there a way to reverse that kind of amnesia?" I was kinda scared to say Ante-what-what amnesia because might give me that certain look girls give you when they think you're an idiot. But seriously speaking, is there really any? The kind of amnesia that I know is that you have to help the person remember their past by, like, taking them to the places they've been or reintroducing them to people they know in hopes that it might trigger something in their brain. How are you supposed to reverse this kind of amnesia when she can't even remember her present?

"Well, it is possible. According to the doctors, she might recover by on her own, with the help of the others, of course"

"Oh... Okay."

"I won't bother you anymore so off we go!" She cheerfully said as she grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the door.

Lucy's head turned towards our direction and our eyes clashed. She walked towards our direction, leaving the counter and smiled towards 'Shrimp'.

"Levy-chan!" So 'Shrimp's' name is Levy. Now I know what to call her. Lucy turned towards me and, instead of asking me, she asked Levy, "And... who's this?"

Levy turned towards me, uncertainty clear in her eyes as she answered, "He's a... friend."

"Oh! Hi. I'm Lucy. Nice to meet you."She said as she offered her hand for a handshake, which I took hesitantly.

"I'll leave you two alone, okay?" Levy said as she went inside the room without even waiting for a confirmation and shut it behind us which left me and Lucy alone.

I stared at Lucy, not even caring if she's aware or not or if she's unnerved of it or not. I simply wanted to stare at her. Try to figure out if she really can remember me. And finally, after a whole minute or so, she asked me,

"Why are you staring at me with sad eyes?"

I am a very talkative person. I know that and I am constantly reminded by my friends and colleagues. I talk every single minute, every single second. I say something for everything. But for the first time...

...I was rendered speechless.