Yay! Next chapter is up! I hope y'all like it. I've got to write one more chapter and then you'll get to meet...JAKE! :)
Turns out it was not a dream. I wake up the next morning and it's still 2007. I have shiny teeth and perfect hair. And I still have a big blank in my memory. I am eating my third piece of toast when Kate comes in wheeling a cart full of flowers. I gape at all the arrangements I see.
"So..are one of those mine?"
Kate looks surprised and answers, "All of them."
"All of them?"
Now I'm in shock.
"You're a popular girl. We ran out of vases. Here are your messages," she says as she hands me a bundle of tiny cards.
I take the first card and read it.
Bella – darling girl. Look after yourself and take care. See you soon. All my love.
Rosalie.
Rosalie? I don't know anyone named Rosalie. I put it down and pick up the next card.
Best wishes and get well soon.
Sam and Emily
I don't know Sam and Emily, either.
Bella! Get well soon. You'll soon be back to three hundred reps! From all the guys at the gym.
Three hundred reps? Me? Well I guess that's how I got my muscled legs. I reach for the last card and thankfully it's from people I know.
Get well soon, Bella. All the best wishes from Alice, Jessica, Angela and everyone in Flooring.
As I read the familiar names I felt extremely happy. It was stupid but for a minute I thought my friends had forgotten all about me.
Kate interrupts my thoughts, "So, your husband is quite handsome."
"You think so? I guess he's alright..." I say trying to come off seemingly uninterested.
"He's amazing! Did you know he came around yesterday and thanked us all again? We don't get that very often."
"I've never been out with a guy like Edward in my life!" I say as I abandon all pretense. "I still can't believe he's my husband. I mean come on him and me? Wow."
There's a knock on the door and Kate calls for them to come in.
The door opens and my mom and Claire come in. They are carrying about six shopping bags filled with photograph albums and envelopes.
"Good morning," Kate says to them. "Bella is doing much better today."
"Oh don't tell me she's remembered everything," my mom said. "Not after we've carried all this up. Do you know how heavy albums are? And we couldn't find a parking-"
"She still has severe memory loss," Kate says cutting her off.
"Thanks goodness for that!" then Mom notices Kate's look and changes her expression. "I mean...Bella, darling, we've brought pictures for you to look at. Maybe they will help with your memory."
I eye the bags and I get excited at the prospect of seeing my transformation.
"Fire away! Show me my life."
Ten minutes have passed and I have not seen a single picture. Mom and Claire are arguing about where to start.
"We don't want to overwhelm her. Here how about this one?" Mom asked.
"Gross! No way! I have a huge zit in that one," Claire asked her.
"It's not a huge zit, it's a tiny pimple. Stop being silly."
"No it's not. It's horrible," she says as she rips the picture up.
Here I am, can't remember anything, and my sister is tearing up evidence of my forgotten life.
"Okay, I found one. I'll just hold it up and tell me if it jogs any memories."
She flips it over and it's a picture of a dog. A dog? Really Mom...
"Why are you showing me a picture of a dog?"
"Darling, it's Kibby! She would have looked different in 2004. Oh here's another one of Dipstick and Claire, both looking lovely."
"I don't look lovely," Claire says as she takes the picture out of Mom's hands and rips it up.
"Stop ripping up pictures! Mom did you bring any of actual people?"
"Hey, Bella, do you remember this?" Claire asks and she brings me a necklace with a jade flower.
"No. I can't remember anything."
"Cool. Can I have it?"
"Claire!" my mom says as she rifles through more pictures. "Maybe we should just wait for Edward to bring the wedding DVD."
The wedding DVD. My wedding.
Every time I think of this, my stomach kind of fills with anticipation and excitement. I have a wedding DVD. I had a wedding! I can't even imagine myself in a wedding dress. I can't even bring myself to ask what kind of dress I wore.
"So...he seems nice. Edward. I mean...my husband."
"He's super," My mom says as she leafs through pictures of dogs. "He does a lot of charity work. Or his company. Well, he owns the company so I guess it's him.
"He has his own company?" I ask. I'm confused now. I thought he was a real estate agent.
"It's a company that sells properties, dear. Big loft developments all over Washington. They sold off a big part of it but he still holds a say in it."
"He made fifteen million dollars," Claire said from her position crouched down by a bag of photos.
"He what?"
"He's stinking rich," she says and then looks up at me. "Oh come on you haven't guessed that already?"
I can't speak. I'm feeling a bit faint. Fifteen million?
There's a knock on the door. "Bella, may I come in?"
Oh my gosh. It's him. I hastily try to fix my hair and spray some Chanel perfume I had found in my bag.
"Come on in, Edward," my mom says.
The door swings open and there he is. He's got two bags, a bunch of flowers and a fruit basket.
"Hi, darling," he says as he puts the stuff down and kisses me on the cheek. "Feeling any better?"
"Doing better, thanks," I say, smiling up at him.
"But, she still doesn't know who you are," Claire says, "You are still just a stranger in a yellow sweater."
"Well, we're going to try and take care of that. I've brought photos, DVDs, souvenirs. Let's reintroduce you to your life. Renee why don't you put on the wedding DVD?" He asks as he hands her the disk. "And for you, Bella, here is our wedding album."
I look at the fancy album and read the engraving.
Isabella and Edward
June 3,2005
I open it and my stomach seems to drop a mile. I'm staring at a black and white photo of myself. I'm wearing a slim fitting gown and my hair is up in a very pretty up-do. The bouquet is simple and made with lilies. Nothing pouffy in sight.
I turn to the next page and there is Edward in a black suit standing next to me. We're holding glasses of champagne and smiling up at each other. We look like we belong in a magazine.
This is my wedding. My wedding. If I needed proof that I was married well here it was.
Then I hear laughing from the T.V. It's the wedding. Edward and I are posing in our wedding outfits. We're standing next to a huge white cake, holding a knife together and laughing at someone offstage. I can't stop looking at myself.
"We chose not to record the ceremony," Edward said. "This is the party after."
I know have a feeling of extreme sadness. This was my wedding day. The happiest day of my life. And I don't remember any of it.
The camera swings around catching faces of people. I see Mom in a smart looking suit and Claire wearing a cute purple dress. We're in some huge, modern looking space.
"Where is this place?" I ask.
"Sweetheart, that's our home."
"Our home? But it's massive. Look at it!"
"It's a nice size I suppose."
A "nice size?" It's like a football field. My old apartment would probably fit on one of the rugs.
"And who's that?" I ask, pointing at the girl in the pretty pink strapless dress.
"That's your best friend, Rosalie."
My best friend? I have never seen this one before in my whole life. She's got a killer body and huge blue eyes. She's very tan and has blond hair.
She sent me flowers. Darling girl...love Rosalie.
"Does she work with me?"
"No!" Edward said trying to withhold his laughter. "Watch this part."
I am on the screen looking for someone. I call Edward's name and I walk out to the terrace where Edward is waiting for me. And then the camera focuses and I see it. Skywriting. I will love you forever Bella. Everyone is gasping and I go to kiss Edward.
My husband organized skywriting and I can't damn remember it? This is horrible.
"Now this is us on vacation last year," he says as he skips through the DVD.
There is a girl walking on the beach. Her hair is braided and her bikini fits her perfectly. Oh my gosh is that me?
"And this is us at a charity ball..." Edward says as he skips forward again. I'm wearing a slinky dress and dancing with Edward.
"Edward is a very generous benefactor," Mom says but I'm not paying attention. A man has caught my attention at the bottom of the screen. I know him. At last I recognize someone!
"Bella?" Edward asks noticing my expression. "Is this jogging your memory?"
"Yes!" I say gleefully. "That guy on the left. I know him. I don't know how. Maybe he's a doctor...or maybe I've met him in a casino...?"
"Bella," Edward cuts me off gently, "That's George Clooney. The actor. He was a fellow guest at the ball."
George Clooney. Of course. I am such a moron!
I can remember throwing up in third grade, wearing a white swimsuit when I was fifteen and being mortified and a bunch of other things and yet I can't remember going to a sandy beach or dancing around a ball room. Come on brain where are your priorities?
"I was reading up on amnesia last night," Claire said. "And I read that smell really helps when it comes to gaining your memory again. Maybe you should smell Edward."
"It's true," Mom says, "I read about it happening to a guy in New Mexico. One sniff of his favorite pastry and it all came back."
"Go on, Bella. It can't hurt, can it?" Claire said.
I glance over at Edward, embarrassed and ask him if it's okay with him.
He tells me to go ahead and he lifts his arms. I sniff his armpit and he smells like soap, aftershave, and a minor manly sort of smell. But nothing came rushing to me. Except visions of George Clooney in Ocean's Eleven. But I won't mention that.
"Anything?" Edwards asks, arms frozen in the air.
"Nope. I mean nothing big."
"You should smell his crotch," Claire says.
"Sweetheart," my mom says faintly.
I can't help looking down at Edward's crotch. The crotch I married. It's looks pretty generous, though you really couldn't tell. I wonder-
No. It's not the time right now.
"What you two should do is have sex," Claire says as in the awkward silence. She snaps her gum and then follows up with, "You need the pungent smell of each other's bodily-"
"Claire! That is quite enough!" Mom says cutting her off. Thank goodness.
"What? It's nature's own amnesia cure."
"So...not so successful," Edward says as he finally puts his arms down.
"No."
Maybe Claire is right. Maybe we should have sex. I glance at Edward and I'm convinced he's thinking the same thing.
"It's okay. It's still early," Edward says, smiles at me and puts the album up. I can tell he's disappointed though.
"What if I never remember?" I look around the room as I start to panic. "What if all the memories are gone for good? And I can never get them back. Ever."
As I see their concerned faces I suddenly feel powerless. It's like the time my computer crashed and I lost all my e-mails and files. Only so much worse. The tech guy kept saying I should have backed up my computer but how do you back up your brain?
In the afternoon I saw a neurologist. He says my short-term memory was good and I was functioning very well. He also explained to me the reason I couldn't remember was because of the way I hit my head. Overall it wasn't a very successful meeting.
I walked back into the room and saw Claire and Mom still watching the DVD. Edward is on the phone but gets off as soon as he sees I am back.
"How did it go?" Edward asks.
"Do you remember anything?" Mom then asks.
"I don't remember anything," I admit.
"Once Bella gets back to familiar surroundings her memory should come back quite naturally," the neurologist tells my family. "It may take some time but I'm confident there will be no problems."
"Right," Edward nods. "So what do we do next?"
"Well, Bella is in physically good shape. I'd say she gets discharged tomorrow. I'll make an appointment for you in a month's time but for now I suggest you go home. I'm sure that's where you want to be."
"Yes. Home is great."
Even as I am saying the words I realize I don't know where home is. Home was my apartment. But I don't have that anymore.
"What's your address?" he asks as he takes out a pen. "It's for my notes."
"I'm..not sure."
"I'll write it down," Edward says helpfully and takes the pen.
"Well good luck, Bella." he then looks at Mom and Edward. "Make sure you help her. Show her things and write things down. Take her to places she has been. And if you need anything just call me."
He then leaves and it's silence. Mom and Edward are exchanging looks like they are hatching a plan.
"What is it?"
"Sweetheart, your mother and I were discussing how to...tackle your release."
Tackle my release. He is talking like I am a dangerous killer or something.
"We are in a strange situation here. Obviously I would love for you to come home and continue your normal life but I can see how that would be difficult for you since...well you don't know me."
"Well, no...I don't," I reply as I chew my lip.
"I told Edward you can stay with me," my mom chimes in. "Obviously it would be a bit disruptive and you'd have to share a room with Duncan and Florida but they're good dogs."
"That room smells," Claire says.
"It does not smell. The builder guy says it's just...dry-something or the other," she answers back with a wave of her hand.
"Rot." Claire says not missing a beat. "And it does smell."
Mom is very annoyed and Edward has come to my bedside.
"Bella, please don' think I'll be offended. I'm a stranger to you. Why would you want to come home with me?"
I know it's my cue to answer but I'm transfixed by what is on the T.V. It's Edward and me on a speedboat. We both have sunglasses on and it's like something from a James Bond movie.
I can't help staring at it. I want this life. It belongs to me. I earned it and I'm not going to let it slip through my fingers.
Edward is still talking. "The last thing I want to do is get in the way of your recovery. I will support whatever you want to do."
"I'll just...think about it for a few moments."
A smelly room that I have to share with two dogs.
A huge house with my gorgeous husband who drives a speedboat.
"You know what, Edward...I think I should come live with you."
"Are you serious?" he says as his face lights up.
"You're my husband. I should live with you."
"But you don't know me. You don't remember me."
"I'll get to know you! Surely the best change of me remembering my life is to live it. You can tell me about yourself, me, our marriage. The doctor says the best way is familiar surroundings."
Okay. I'm getting excited about this. Sure I don't know anything about my amazing looking, multimillionaire husband or my life. But he loves me and we have a huge house and he brought me flowers. I'm not going to throw it all away just because I can't remember him.
Everyone has to work on their marriage. I'll just be doing the "remembering the husband" part.
"Edward I really want to come home with you. I'm sure we have a very loving marriage. We can work it out."
"It would be wonderful to have you back. But don't think you have to-"
"I'm not. It feels right."
"Well, I think it's a very good idea," Mom says.
"Okay then. Settled."
"Well, I'll take the guest suite."
"I would appreciate that. Thank you, Edward."
"Well, if you are sure...let's do this properly."
He grabs the two rings off the counter. I hold my hand up and he slips on the wedding band and then the huge diamond.
Fuck, the diamond is huge.
"Is that okay? Does it feel right?"
"It feels great."
A huge smile is on my face and I flick my hand this way and that. I feel like someone should be throwing confetti or playing the wedding march. Two nights ago I was being stood up at a club and now I am married!
I have to tell you that the things out of Claire's mouth are hilarious. I wrote it and I think that...ahh...REVIEW!
