aneksi eyed the library quickly, feeling slight recognition, but not much. she shook her head a bit and folded her arms, looking at isaac.

"do you want to go inside?" he asked with a smile and opened the door anyway.

she entered the building and bit on the insides of her cheeks. nothing seemed familiar at all, and no pang of a sudden memory flashed through her mind. as they were wandering around, the librarian suddenly shot her eyes up at them and a wide smile spread across her face.

"aneksi? is that you?"

isaac frowned and nudged her shoulder with his own, catching her attention. aneksi gazed at the librarian with a blank expression.

"you know me?"

"of course, you used to come here all the time, remember? although you've been very much gone these past four months." the woman seemed to fall into deep thought while speaking.

"four months? are you kidding?"

"no. you just... stopped coming over one day." she sighed sadly. "you always used to read books about egypt, to get some more knowledge about your background."

"i'm egyptian?" aneksi frowned and parted her lips.

"yes...? are you okay, dear?" the woman suddenly seemed worried instead of sad. then her eyes widened as she leaned closer. "oh my, what happened to your face?"

"yeah, i'm fine. just a bit tired, sorry. it's... make up, i was trying to look like a vampire. did i succeed?" she laughed nervously and pointed at her cheek. "is there, um, a room somewhere in the back? with occult books?"

"ah, yes." the woman smiled and opened a drawer, rummaging through it quickly. "here." she tossed the two a pair of keys. "you should find the way."

"thank you." isaac smiled instead of aneksi when she turned around and walked further to the back of the library.

she searched for a door or anything that could be opened, but found nothing. isaac joined her side and then gazed to the right, walking over to the corner. without a word, he snatched the keys from her and unlocked a very hidden door.

"weird." aneksi mumbled and scratched her cheekbone. "god, this mark is itching so much."

"stop scratching it. if it's like a mosquito bite, then you really shouldn't scratch it." he mumbled and opened the door, allowing her to step inside.

she rolled her eyes and without really thinking about it, went straight towards a shelf. her hand reached for a book, pulled it out and put it down on the table. he hovered over her shoulder and read the title. she opened the first page and flipped through it quickly, then shoulders sank as a shivering sensation of coldness floated through her.

"when i walked in here, i visioned the lady from my dream walk in in front of me. this is the exact book i saw too. this is the page i was on when she approached me. isaac, i'm freaking out."

"now i'm scared." he mumbled with an uneasy voice and turned his head to the side, looking at her.

"sorry." she whispered and gazed at him too, realizing how close they were.

he could see now how the marks underneath her eyes had thickened and grown. it looked like she was decomposing but with more color, even though she was very much alive.

"we really need to get you to the hospital later." he stated quietly and averted his eyes to the book again.

"i'm still hungry." she sighed and shut the book. "i don't get anything from being here. i don't remember anything, but that lady obviously knows me."

"and we'll talk to her. listen, you found a damn note in your hand when you woke up, right? and then money in your pocket? maybe there's something here, something you need to search for. how wicked and freaky as it sounds, maybe you're expected to search for something here."

aneksi slowly opened the book again and turned every page carefully. her eyes scanned each one thoroughly and read. nothing seemed strange, no small notes between the pages, nothing. then she peered up at the empty space where the book stood.

standing on her toes instead, she ran her fingers against the wooden shelf, seized a dusty piece of paper and unwrapped it slowly, almost fearing what would be written on it.

use your senses, your voice and your strength. someday you'll need it.

"this is ridiculous." she muttered in disbelief and scrambled the note together into a ball.

"i'm starting to believe." he uttered and looked at her.

"believe what?"

"that something really weird is happening. i mean, who is this person?"

"let's talk to the librarian." she sighed and dragged him out of the room, locked it and went to hand the lady the keys.

"found what you were looking for?" she smiled in a friendly way and put the keys back in the drawer.

"don't know. what's your name?"

the woman laughed, believing she was just joking, but stopped once aneksi didn't change her expression.

"oh my, you're serious?"

"unfortunately. i woke up with amnesia the other day and i've lost literally all my memory, so..." she trailed off, cocking her head to the side.

"that must be awful. i'm sorry, my name's amy and i've been working here for ages. you were my favorite visitor — you still are." amy smiled sadly and folded her arms together against her little desk.

"would you mind telling me as much as you know about me?" aneksi grinned and pulled her fingers through her hair.

isaac rested his arms against the desk too and had a plastered smile on his face. he wanted to hear this too. amy nodded and reached for her high chair, sat down and opened her mouth while aneksi mirrored isaac's position.

"your name's aneksi. you're seventeen years old, and you grew up in california. your mother is egyptian, but not your father. david stone and nailah malek are your parents. they live just a few minutes from here, so you should go to them if you have amnesia. anyway, you're one of the nicest people i know, always so kind and funny. you believe in practically everything and at one point, you spent more time here than at home. let me see...you collect every single ticket you get when going to the movies, you love chocolate milk and animals — especially dogs..."

aneksi had to stop her and waved her hand back and forth. amy shut herself up with a smile and straightened her back.

"my parents? do i have any other relatives?"

"other than david and nailah? no, don't think so. no siblings, barely any cousins..."

"do i have a boyfriend?"

"no, you hate boys." amy laughed and shook her head.

"in case you didn't notice, i'm a boy." isaac smirked and raised his eyebrows. she rolled her eyes and nudged his body.

"so... no one really close to me?" she asked carefully and fiddled with her fingers.

"i've never thought about it like that, but no."

"that's... nice." she muttered and stood straight. "could you give us the address to my home?"

"of course." amy reached for some paper and a pen before writing it down. "here. i'm sorry this even happened, it must be horrible. and frustrating."

"it is." aneksi smiled wryly and put the note in her back pocket. "i'll see you around, i guess."

isaac and aneksi waved before leaving the library. she stood, arms folded, and stared ahead, not knowing where to go. he mirrored her posture and licked his bottom lip inside her mouth.

"the hospital or your parents' house?" he asked and gazed at her.

"i'm scared to meet my parents. apparently i've been absent for four months. what if i've really been gone? what're gonna do? i don't even remember them."

"so... hospital?" he guessed with barely narrowed eyes.

"no, i need to meet them." she said, more determinant than she had sounded since the moment she first woke up, and looked at him. "this is all just too bizarre."

"alright. i know where this house is, my friend used to live on that street." he smiled softly and led her towards the address.

aneksi followed his side, but they were stopped once someone bumped into them. she sucked in a sharp breath and gazed at the guy stumbling back.

"shit, sorry." he laughed and then looked up with a frown. "oh my gosh, you're back."

"excuse me?"

"aw come on, i know we weren't that close, but we were friends. it's me, jackson."

"i'm sorry, i don't remember you." she mumbled and eyed him before passing him.

"aneksi, wait." jackson sighed and grabbed her hand. she flinched, but only because this disturbing feeling floated through her as he touched her.

"what?" she said blankly and looked at him.

"where the hell have you been? one day you just disappeared, your parents have been worried sick."

"i... went on a rebellious trip without telling them." she lied and scratched the back of her neck. "anyway, are we friends?"

"yes? we used to go to the same class in middle school, and now we attend the same high school. we've been friends for years." he frowned and shrugged. "now i'm worried."

"sorry, i'm still a bit hangover." she made a 'pfft' sound while talking and exhaled deeply.

"okay, maybe we should go." isaac smirked and put a hand against her back. she buried her face against her palms and nodded, but then looked up as a question came to her mind.

"wait, you said my parents have been worried. what exactly have they been doing?" she asked and frowned up at jackson.

"what do you think? they called around, asked people, even took help from the cops. you've been gone for ages. they're pretty messed up, so i really hope you're going to them now."

aneksi swallowed a lump in her throat and nodded. now she was even more scared; what if they actually blamed her? of course she'd explain, but apparently it's been four months. she didn't even remember them or her own life; this disappearing could've affected them in so many different ways.

isaac nodded to jackson and gave her a slight push forward. he didn't even seem fazed by her dream or the fact that her face looked like it did. he frowned and looked up at the guy in front of when it hit him — jackson didn't seem fazed by it either. actually, he didn't even seem to notice.

"aneksi, let's go." he mumbled and she finally looked at him.

"yeah, i'll see you later." she mumbled to jackson and quickly walked away from there with isaac, only to stop abruptly. "wait, i can't go in like this."

"like what?" he sighed, almost tiredly, and gazed at her.

"my face. as if me being gone wasn't enough, i don't need to add more concern with these marks." she sighed and scratched her cheek.

"what are you gonna do? i know erica has make up at home, but–"

"jackson, wait!" she called, cutting him off, and jogged back to the guy. isaac rolled his eyes and raised his hands in the air, dropping them again a second later.

jackson turned around again with raised eyebrows and eyed her quickly. aneksi forced a smile and rested both hands on her hips.

"yes?" he asked and slid his hands down his pockets.

"you said we're practically neighbors. do you have a sister or mother who owns make up?" she wondered, licking her lips.

"yeah, of course. my mom can't live without her make up." he chuckled and nodded sideways before moving towards his house.

aneksi followed slowly, glancing back at isaac who seemed rather wary. nevertheles, he followed too and she stopped dead in her tracks when that scorching heat attacked her forehead. she backed away from the front door and automatically put a hand against her forehead. jackson gazed back at her with a frown and shrugged questioningly.

"are you alright?" isaac whispered and rested his palm against her shoulder.

"what are you two waiting for? come in, i'll go get her make up." jackson proclaimed before jogging up the stairs.

"how can he not have seen your face?" isaac wondered and sucked on his bottom lip. "i don't feel good about this, aneksi."

"what? do you think he's gonna murder us?" she laughed briefly, stopping when he gave her a look.

"i'm serious. he hasn't even said a word about your marks." he pointed out.

"maybe he doesn't want to be rude, or he hasn't seen them. let's just get the make up and leave." she whispered, just when jackson approached them with a sponge bag.

"here. she's not home right now, but i'm sure she doesn't mind." he smiled and handed it to her.

aneksi nodded while accepting it and awkwardly waved to him. isaac folded his arms together and walked closely beside her. they moved back towards her house and stopped a meter or so from it. she opened the bag, rummaged through it until she found the foundation and applied some to cover the purple marks. he helped her out with a sheepish smile — having some experience from watching erica doing her make up — and wiped his hand against his pants.

"you look good, they barely show." he assured her and took a closer look.

she gazed at him before doubtfully walking up to the porch. her hand knocked on the door quickly, but no one opened it. he frowned and knocked too, a bit harsher, but still no answer.

"great, of all the days they're not home." she muttered and tucked some hair behind her ear.

"maybe they have the same work hours." he shrugged.

aneksi shushed him and frowned deeply. with her fingers on top of her ear, she swore the wind sounded louder to her. then, when she concentrated a bit more, muffled whispers reached her hearing. it was incomprehensible at first, until the voices and words became as clear as if isaac would be speaking beside her.

"they're on the backyard." she said with a monotonic voice and inhaled through her nose.

"wait, how do you know that?" he asked, confused.

"i can hear them. and smell a strong perfume." she answered and decided to round the house. isaac glimpsed to the sides before catching up with her.

"you heard them? how?" he whispered, but she didn't listen. she just stopped with her eyes glued forward, making him realize that two people sat with their backs facing them, talking quietly.

"mom? dad?"

hello! so finally an update lmao, not that i think a lot of you have been waiting. anywaaay, i hope you like this, please leave a review because that'd mean the world to me, and don't forget to check out my tumblr for aneksi edits! it's 'nefertiris'. also, there will be less conversations and more details and description on the next chapters i promise!