Lost Memories/Amnesia Girl Chapter 23

"Good morning Amarante," Nicol said warmly. He entered the room holding a bouquet of flowers. He thought it would be nice to get something for her. It wasn't because he liked her, just because he wanted to do something nice AND normally you bring flowers to someone in the hospital. Amarante's eyes lit up seeing the boy come near her. He came to her holding out the flowers to her.

"Hi! Thank you! But…what are they?" Amarante asked taking the flowers. She immediately turned them upside down looking at the stems. A tiny bit of water dripped on to her hospital gown.

"They're flowers. You know, they're plants that smell nice," Nicol replied. Upon hearing those words she smelled the stems. Amarante looked up at him with a skeptical look before sniffing the stems again.

"I don't think so," Amarante said scrunching her nose. Chuckling Nicol leaned against her bed, turning the flowers right side up.

"Now smell them," Nicol replied. Amarante sniffed them quietly before smiling. They did smell very nice. She wasn't really sure what they were. Amarante touched the velvety petals before looking at Nicol.

"They smell really nice. So what do I do with them now?" Amarante asked in her ditzy way. She cocked her head to the right looking at her new found friend. Nicol smiled at her wondering if she was a ditz in her original state.

"You put them in a vase," Nicol chuckled taking the flowers and placing them in a small vase. He then filled it with water before placing it on a nearby table for her to look at them. Amarante stared at them before hearing the word roses popped in her mind.

"I like roses," Amarante interjected. He could really see how at some moments she could remember some things and at other it was blank slate. Nicol just blinked his eyes before smiling.

"A rose is a type of flower," Nicol said leaning against the end of her bed. Her cheeks turned red . Her head was still wrapped in bandages as Nicol returned to Amarante's side. Nicol brushed the hair out of her one good eye causing Amarante to blush. Her forehead was burning hot, even through her bandages.

"Nicol…Why do you come see me?" Amarante asked curiously. No one else came to see her except those 3 to 4 other boys. Even then not as often as Nicol.

"Because everyone should have company," Nicol replied. He couldn't tell her the truth…not yet. Nicol felt his cheeks turn red slightly before he snapped back to reality.

"What's it like?" Amarante asked feeling the bandages on her forehead. She wanted to see what he was touching there. It was nothing in her mind.

"What's what like?" Nicol asked curiously. They were both very innocent souls as they stared at each other.

"I…Oh never mind! The doctor told me to work on walking," Amarante said cheerfully. Nicol frowned for a fraction of a second knowing that what ever she wanted to talk about was not a happy subject.

"Oh do you want me to help?" Nicol asked. He came closer to her and was shocked to see her holding her arms out to him. She wanted him to help her sit up.

"Please help me?" Amarante asked, innocently cocking her head to the left. Nicol couldn't say no…she was so cute and kind. Yet because of her lost memories a bit childish. He could look past that and understand why. Gently he wrapped his arms around her back lifting her forward. He blushed fiercely feeling her breast against him. She groaned slightly causing Nicol to shrink physically.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked frantically. He pulled away looking into her injured innocent eye.

"No. I just have many wounds. That car accident was horrible," Amarante replied. With her finally sitting up…Nicol moved her legs over the edge. They dangled before she began to kick the right one.

"I'll get the IV," Nicol whispered into her ear. Unfortunately she couldn't wait because, Amarante enjoyed walking and being on her feet. She slipped her feet on to the ground feeling the cool floor. It made her shiver but she didn't mind. As long as she could be on her feet.

"Don't worry about it!" Amarante replied as she began to slip off the bed. She gasped thinking that something like this would never happen. With his quick reflexes Nicol dove over the bed catching the slipping girl. His face was so close to hers…so close that it was in reasonable kissing distance.

"Please wait for the IV," Nicol sighed with relief. She wasn't harmed but she cocked her head at something. Nicol looked at her feeling a queasy feeling in his stomach. Was something on his face? He felt her hand against his face which was really warm.

"Why is your face so red? Are you mad at me?" Amarante asked worriedly. She continued to rub his face and cheeks trying to figure out what was wrong with him.

"Huh? Oh it is?" Nicol asked quickly. He could feel his face light up even more. She liked his a lot but he seemed frazzled and uneasy.

"Y-Yes," Amarante gulped. Was he really getting angry at her? What did she do? He wanted to pull her hands off his face but he enjoyed what she was doing. It made him feel loved and he longed for companionship in this form for awhile.

"I…I…" Nicol mumbled as his friend Athrun came in. Athrun was finally back and safe. He had just taken a shower and had time to relax after his ordeal. Athrun was surprised to see Amarante's hand on his face.

"Who is he?" Amarante asked as he helped her back on to the bed. Nicol then tried to pull away but his body wouldn't budge. He let it slide as an awkward silence came over the trio.

"He's my best friend. Do you remember Athrun?" Nicol asked. He brushed the back of her hair down and slightly noticed that Amarante was still clinging on to him.

"Ath-run," Amarante muttered thinking it over. Well it sounded slightly familiar but the face and the name did not connect. Amarante placed her hand on her cheek in thought before shrugging it off and clinging to Nicol again.

"Yes Athrun," Nicol repeated. Athrun came closer to see that nothing inappropriate was going on. Amarante looked into his face but shook her head only.

"I don't expect you to remember me. So what is Nicol helping you with?" Athrun asked watching Nicol grab the IV stand. Nicol wished that Athrun would leave right now if he was going to tease him.

"The doctor told me to practice walking," Amarante replied kicking her legs back and forth. Athrun noticed that Amarante's right leg was acting funny. He watched for a split second as Nicol backed away from her legs to help her off the bed.

"What's wrong with your right leg?" Athrun asked as Nicol helped her off the bed holding her by the waist. He continued to hold on to her until she got her footing.

"I hurt it. There's a very large bruise on it," Amarante replied. She really didn't know. The doctors never gave her a straight answer. Amarante wrapped her arms around Nicol's neck liking the feeling that he was warm unlike the doctors. Nicol thought of it as a type of hug but he didn't know what to think.

"Ah hi?" Nicol replied releasing the girl. His face felt warm up again as he looked back at Athrun. His friend only gave him a playful shrug as Nicol tried to lead her forward. She kept her feet in the same spot as Nicol took her arms off his neck.

"Hello," Amarante replied still clueless to his love. She gave him a loving smile before wrapping her arms around his neck again. Nicol looked back at Athrun for help who just couldn't help enjoy the awkward situation between them.

Athrun chuckled, "Okay Amarante. Time to practice your walking."

"Okay," Amarante chimed. Releasing his neck, Nicol backed away from her. She gulped seeing that there would be no one to support her.

"Come on," Nicol encouraged. He held out his arms to her. Amarante looked to Athrun for support but he was watching Nicol. His best friend had really fallen head over heels for this girl. So hard that he would probably jump off a building for her.

"No," Amarante whined. She was beginning to feel light headed and she wanted to rest now. She had enough of standing on her own two feet today.

"Come on…you'll be alright," Nicol said calmly. He took a step closer trying to encourage her to walk the shorter distance. Athrun thought of a wicked but cute idea to get Nicol and Amarante together.

"I don't think that Amarante can walk on her own, just yet," Athrun said walking over to Nicol. He placed a hand on his shoulder before guiding him closer to Amarante.

"What should I do then?" Nicol asked looking over his shoulder. Athrun then placed his hands on her sides before walking away.

"It'll be like you're dancing," Athrun chuckled. Nicol shot a glare at him as Amarante just giggled. Amarante didn't understand what this was all about but she liked what was going on.

"Could you at least move the IV drip?" Nicol asked. Amarante placed her hands on his shoulders wanting to give Nicol a little kiss on the cheek. She really liked him but they haven't known each other. Going on her emotions Amarante slowly inched towards his cheek. He barely noticed since he was distracted by Athrun. She halted feeling queasy before trying to figure out what was wrong with her body.

"Sure thing," Athrun replied. Nicol then focused his attention on Amarante to see that her eyes were staring off into the distance. He was shocked to see her so close to his face. Moving a hand from her waist to her face Nicol brushed it gently as a small look of horror came on to her face.

"Amarante?" Nicol asked as her eyes began to close. Losing her balance Amarante was slipping out of his grip. He tightened his arm around her but she was still slipping.

"Amarante!" Athrun called out helping Nicol hold on to her. They took her to the floor and Athrun began to fan her face.

"Amarante? Answer me!" Nicol said to her. Lightly tapping her cheek a nurse walked in to see the unconscious girl plus the two boys surrounding her. The nurse almost dropped the food that she had for Amarante, shocked at the scene. Amarante was a good girl, she didn't allow anyone to remove her from her bed.

"Move, move, move, move. Boys get out," she snapped. Nicol didn't budge, he didn't want to lay Amarante on the cold hard floor. Athrun stood up as the nurse placed her food down on a table. The nurse towered over Nicol causing him to look at her innocently. He wasn't very sure why Amarante passed out but he didn't want to hurt her even more.

"Can I at least give her to you?" Nicol asked kindly. He wouldn't believe that she'd be out of his arms in a heartbeat and being pushed out of the room by Athrun.

"Nicol we do have a team meeting. Let's go," Athrun ordered. With one final look back at Amarante's room before following Athrun. Nicol sighed, how could something like that happen?

Three Days Later

"In these pictures…who is your father?" a researcher asked. There was an album of photos on Amarante's lap and pictures of several men on the opened page. They had obtained the photos from family members and from DaCosta. She looked through the pictures before pointing to one specifically. The one she chose was her commander's.

"Him," Amarante replied cheerfully. He seemed very kind and personable. He also seemed familiar to her. Amarante was almost certain that this person was her father.

"That's not your father," the researcher said harshly. Amarante looked at the picture again before examining the other pictures. Slightly saddened that it wasn't she then pointed to the picture of her cousin.

"He's my dad," Amarante said with the same amount of enthusiasm. She gave him a smile trying to receive some amount of praise from the irritable man.

"No, Amarante. He's not your father either!" the researcher snapped. He was becoming more and more annoyed with her inability to pick out family members. He had been questioning her for about two hours. In those two hours Amarante wasn't able to pick out anyone.

"I…I don't know," Amarante replied before pointing at DaCosta. The researcher slammed the photo album shut before yanking it off her lap.

"NO! You know what…we'll pick this up tomorrow," he growled before storming out of the room. Amarante's eyes began to tear up…and there was no Nicol to comfort her. Nicol hadn't been there in three days. She really missed him, and she knew that he probably missed her. Or maybe he didn't miss her and maybe he didn't like her anymore.

"I don't know anything. I'm such a fool and an idiot," Amarante cried. She continued to cry before seeing a familiar face at her bedside. Nicol had finally come.

"What's wrong?" Nicol asked going through her delicate hair. It was very soft and Nicol was shocked to see that her hair was still very long. It came down, off her shoulders before finally resting in her lap.

"I can't do anything right! I can't even tell you who my family members are and who they're not!" Amarante cried. Nicol continued to go through her hair before rubbing her hand. He was really mesmerized by it, enjoying the way it flicked and moved when you touched it.

"Don't let them upset you like this. Everything's alright. In due time you'll remember," Nicol replied. Then with a gulp, Nicol came closer to her face giving her a gentle kiss on her bandage forehead. He had never really noticed that her left eye was covered in bandages. She looked at him through her right eye with her mouth opened in confusion before blushing deeply. Nicol also blushed before also becoming bashful.

"I think I really like you," Amarante mumbled as Nicol rubbed her hand. She placed a hand on top of his with a smile.

"Me too," Nicol was only able to say. He really wanted to kiss her but the thought of Kirkwood stopped him. Even though Kirkwood dumped her, he still considered her, his girlfriend. Kirkwood would always be her boyfriend and Amarante would always love him, even if she didn't know.

"Hi Athrun!" Amarante cheered seeing the other red coated friend. This time Athrun had brought along two other people. A silver headed boy and a golden haired boy. They had to be friends with Nicol and Athrun.

"Hello Amarante. I see you and Nicol are pretty close," Athrun teased. Amarante didn't understand what he was talking about so she only cocked her head at the matter. Nicol shot him a glare which only caused Athrun to chuckle.

"Amarante," Nicol began focusing on Yzak and Dearka, "Do you remember Yzak and Dearka?" Amarante cocked her head twirling a piece of her hair. She looked at the two boys watching the one with the white hair. Amarante watched it as he turned his head from side to sie.

"FLUFFY!" Amarante called out looking at Yzak's hair. She had no idea why she called it out but his hair was…well, fluffy! Dearka laughed as Yzak's face began to turn red with anger.

"Oh so now you remember me?" Yzak demanded. Amarante looked at him skeptically.

"No. Your hair is fluffy though," Amarante giggled.

"Do you remember Dearka?" Nicol asked. Amarante turned her head to him and noticed their similar skin. The researcher said nothing about a brother. He had to be her brother! Amarante smiled at him causing Dearka to raise an eyebrow.

"No…Are you my brother?" Amarante asked curiously. She said it so happily Dearka hated to say no to her. Amarante was such an innocent girl…even more innocent without her memories. If she did have her memories he would have joked around and said yes.

"No, I'm not. I'm just one of your fellow soldiers," Dearka replied playfully. Amarante mouthed an "oh" before thinking about another question.

"So do you know me?" Amarante asked. She felt like she knew him from somewhere and the fluffy haired one too.

"From a past life, yes," Dearka replied. Amarante nodded before smiling at Nicol. Nicol smiled back before feeling the normal reddening sensation on his cheeks. Amarante continued to smile at him before cocking her head in a cute way. This time it didn't mean confusion…she just wanted to be cute.

"Nicol is very nice to me," Amarante announced. Nicol didn't mind that she said that but the snickering from his friends caused him to become a little uneasy.

"Well Nicol IS a pansy," Yzak chuckled. Nicol only frowned not wanting to frighten his new friend. He wanted to yell at Yzak but Amarante was his deterrent.

"Pansy?" Amarante asked cocking her head in what Nicol thought was a cute fashion. Nicol took her hands and smiled. He had to show her that everything was alright.

"Don't worry about it," Nicol replied. Amarante didn't want to slide it under the rug just yet. Pansy sounded so familiar. She continued to twist her hair before vocalizing a loud gasp. The four boys stared at her as she patted Nicol's arm excitedly.

"Nicol…Isn't a pansy a flower?" Amarante asked. She was beginning to remember what flowers were. They were beautiful objects with an attractive scent. Amarante was excited but Nicol didn't seem excited so she calmed down. What did pansy also mean for Nicol to get upset?

"Yes. So when do you get out of the hospital?" Nicol asked. He gave her a smile but it was a simi-happy smile.

"Eager to take her on a date?" Yzak sneered. Nicol shot him a glare before focusing his attention back on his new friend. This Yzak person wasn't very nice and Amarante could see that Nicol was getting hot under the collar.

"Um…This Thursday…and today is Monday!" Amarante said excitedly. She had been working on walking and the doctor said she improved so much that she could go to her room on Thursday, yet she had to come to the hospital everyday so they could make sure she was healing well.

"That's great!" Nicol said giving her a hug. Amarante made a squeal of delight enjoying the boy's company. She was getting tired of the hospital anyways. To the three other boys, it was so obvious that they loved each other but they were too afraid to tell each other.

"So what DO you remember?" Yzak asked. He hated seeing Nicol so lovey dovey and as long as those two were the only ones conversing the lovey doveyness would continue.

"I was in a car accident," Amarante said thinking it over slowly. That's what they told her but something didn't feel right about it. Yet she couldn't figure it out so she shrugged it off in her mind.

"Anything else?" Yzak demanded impatiently. He tapped his foot impatiently and crossed his arms. Amarante gulped as she looked down in thought. She had to remember something else so Yzak wouldn't be mad at her.

"I'm a Z.A.F.T. red and a pilot. And…that's about it," Amarante replied. That's all she could really remember. It really surprised everyone. Most stood there with their mouths open at her words. Amarante couldn't remember anything but she knew that she could remember anything if she put her mind to it. Somehow Amarante felt that Nicol could help her recover her memories.

In the polls today, (As of August 20, 2010)…

Nicol x Amarante: 7 votes

Waltfeld x Aisha: 4 votes

DaCosta x Amarante: 4 votes

Waltfeld x Amarante: 3 votes

Amarante x Aisha: 3 votes

Mu x Amarante: 3 votes

Kirkwood x Amarante: 2 votes

Yzak x Amarante: 1 vote

Maylam x Amarante: 0 votes

Dearka x Amarante: 0 votes

Athrun x Amarante: 0 votes