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Frederick quickly crouched to the ground and took her in his arms. He did everything on the spur of the moment, without even realizing it. Vanya and Frederick both noticed blood still gushing out of her cuts while scanning her body briefly, implying she fainted due to high blood loss. Mrs. Zikora immediately summoned paramedics.

Frederick began to regret the way he had spoken to her at that point. And that, despite the fact that it was true, he should have known that the truth always hurts. Nonetheless, he was aware that the truth, like surgery, hurts but unquestionably cures.

(END OF FLASHBACK)

I sat rigidly in my chair, staring at Mrs Zikora without daring to blink.

"Are you teasing me?" In a hushed tone, I inquired.

"You're messing with me, that's the only explanation," I said with a sad smile.

"I have no reason to 'mess' with you, Amanda, as you put it. It all happened in real life." I knew she was telling the truth because of the sincere look in her eyes. But it was simply impossible to believe such a thing had occurred.

"So you're telling me," I began slowly trying to comprehend what was going on, "that the first time I met you and Frederick was in New York City?" I really just needed a definitive answer.

"Pretty much, yes." She coughed slightly after saying this. I immediately stood up to assist her, but she raised her hand, indicating that she was fine.

"Unbelievable," I grumbled, "then how come I don't remember anything?" I inquired, perplexed.

The thing is, I remember going to New York for treatment two years ago, but I have no recollection of the event she mentions. Most importantly, if this was true, Frederick was obviously aware of it. Then perhaps this is what he meant when he said he'd tell me "when the time comes." Still, he hasn't said anything since.

"Remember when I told you I called the paramedics when you collapsed?" she asked. Her face bore the same distant expression as before "When we arrived at the hospital, they had closed up your wounds and stopped the bleeding. Frederick begged me to wait until you woke up, even though he didn't have to because I was going to do it anyway." She laughed as she realized this. Wait, did Frederick beg her to let them stay? I gave a small smile. Even back then, he had a big heart.

I waited patiently for her to continue, despite the fact that the suspense was killing me.

"But, as you can see, when you finally awoke. It appeared that you had no idea who we both were "At this point, I raised both of my brows. What happened to my memory? But why was it that only event that I overlooked?

"How? Why?" I was stunned beyond words.

She chuckled slightly, a slight smirk on her face. Frederick was unquestionably his mother's son "I'm getting there, little one. I believe you should take a break." I couldn't help myself and burst out laughing. It was extremely amusing to see an adult speak in that manner. As I previously stated, Frederick was truly his mother's son. It was amazing how easily they could both turn a tense situation around.

She gave me a playful wink before continuing, "When we asked the doctor about this, she was mildly shocked too, so she ran a few tests and when she was done, she had reviled to us that you had developed Dissociative amnesia." It was a little sad because I knew this wasn't a dream, but rather the hardcore real life.

I paused for a moment before asking, "Dissociative amnesia?"

"Yes," she said, nodding in response to my question. "The doctor explained that it is a type of amnesia caused by..."

"Serious trauma or stress I know "I mumbled the rest of her sentence. What? As previously stated, I read a lot of books.

She gave me a wistful look. "I see Frederick was correct, you are a bookworm." I didn't find the term "bookworm" to be offensive. Rather, I took it as a well-deserved compliment.

Nonetheless, she continued, "The doctor also added that yours may have been caused by your mind rejecting thoughts, feelings, or information that you were too overwhelmed to handle." I remembered the part where she said Frederick got angry with me and said some harsh words to me. Maybe that's why.

"Well, that's a lot to take in," I exclaimed, and it was. Imagine discovering that you have completely forgotten an important memory. It was certainly a lot to take in.

"But why haven't either of you told me since then?" I inquired, my confusion growing.

"Oh, I really wanted to." She raised her hand defensively. "It was Frederick who didn't want us to do it."

"He..." she began, but quickly stopped, "You know what, it's not my place to tell you." Frederick will have to explain everything to you "I wanted to say something to her, but Frederick and the others came in at the same time. It had to be the universe mocking me. Really? What kind of synchronicity is that?

As they walked in, they all seemed to be laughing at something amusing. However, one person's memory faded. Frederick turned to face his mother before returning my gaze. He gave us both odd looks.

"Speak of the devil," Mrs. Zikora said quietly. Yes, talk about the "real" devil.

I've been having more dreams about my lost memory lately. More things started to enter the dream that I used to call nightmares. I'm not sure if I've only started remembering some of what happened because Mrs Zikora told me. Or perhaps I wasn't remembering them at all, because she had recently told me and I had begun projecting what I heard from her into my dreams. I honestly don't know.

I was currently in class, specifically English class. I was as bored as usual, but I suppose I could put up with it. Lunch was only a few seconds away.

In terms of a few seconds, the bell just rang. As I wanted to carry my bag and leave to my favorite place in the entire school... the library, of course. The Biology teacher entered the room.

Mrs Adenike was a short plump woman with a perfect shape. Her age had no effect on her beauty. She was one of my favorite professors. Not only because she was insanely nice, but also because Biology was my favorite subject.

I know that many students disliked Biology because it was too broad. In fact, the subject notebook that a student would not want to see go missing is Biology. That was effectively a death sentence. Chemistry and physics were also high on the list. But I loved Biology because it simply captivated me.

Mrs. Adenike turned to face the class after whispering something to our English teacher.

"Ahem," she cleared her throat, drawing the entire class's attention. Everyone immediately returned to their seats.

"I have a very important announcement to make, class." Curiosity could be detected in the air.

"A teacher's phone has gone missing, and we are currently visiting all of the classes to check students' bags and lockers." She stated emphatically. Gasps could be heard from everyone as soon as she finished speaking, and I couldn't blame them. This was the first time in Qatass academy history that such a case had been reported. And what about the bag and locker searches? This was definitely going to be interesting.

"However, you do not need to be concerned." "We won't check your bags if you don't want us to, as that would be invading your privacy," she added. Sighs of relief could be heard from the students' lips. "But.." "If you don't have anything to hide, I'm certain you would allow us to briefly check your bags," she drawled out, a slight smirk visible only if you looked closely. Reverse psychology right there people.

The atmosphere became awkward all of a sudden. After a few minutes, students were eagerly bringing their school bags forward for inspection. My seat was near the back, so it took them a while to get to where I was.

Mrs Adenike finally arrived at my location and gave me a brief smile. Yes, as you might expect, because she was my favorite teacher, I was also her favorite student. So there was that. I always aced her class.

I knew I wasn't the one who had taken the phone, so I pushed my bag forward towards her. Unfortunately, it was at this point that I noticed Silver. She was smirking at me as she stood by the entrance to our class door? What was she doing here? This was not her class, as far as I recall.

I then noticed her lips moving. She was speaking to me in hushed tones.

'I told you you'd be sorry for what you did.'

When I realized what was going on, my eyes automatically widened. Oh, please let it not be what I think she did.

"Amanda," Mrs Adenike called out, prompting me to return to her direction. My prayers were not answered, unfortunately. Her hand held nothing but a phone. I knew it wasn't my phone. And a phone that I knew was the one they needed.

Wait, I have one desperate question: Is murdering another human being still illegal?