Rose's secret

You don't know her. Ana, your friend" There was a moment of silence while they waited for my response.

I closed my eyes. How will I put up with this act? Lying to those that was always sincere with me.

"Grandma, how did I end up here? No, why am I in the hospital? Or no, when did I grow so big?" I asked series of questions.

"My child... You"

"Excuse me" Mr. Walker, my dad friend came in. I knew he was a doctor but I didn't know he was the one in charge of my case.

"I'd appreciate if I can examine her alone" he said and they all went outside. This was my chance! A golden opportunity!

"How do you feel?" He asked and examined me, looking at my eyes with something that looks like a small touch light. An examination lamp.

"I'm fine, Doctor Walker" was my reply. He was surprised. He didn't expect me to remember him.

"Amiyah, do you remember me?" He stopped examining me and smiled.

"I do" I returned the smile.

"How have you been?"

Figuratively speaking I replied "I do well at not doing well"

* After some minutes *

Doc Walker called them into his office.

"Doctor Walker, what's wrong? Why can't Amiyah recognise her friend?" was Grandma questions as soon as she came in.

"Umm, due to the excessive shock of the accident our patient has amnesia. I'm sure you've heard of it" he explained and motioned for her to sit.

"What?!"

"Hers is a special case. She remembers up to her tenth year birthday. I think she went through a lot during those times so her brain desperately wanted to excape it"

"She lost her memories over the years, you are saying?" Liam pressed his thin lips on each other.

"Exactly"

"Is the illness permanent?" Grandma asked, inquisitively.

"Of course not. If she keeps eating well and taking her drugs in time, she'll regain her memories eventually. Most especially, doing the things she did that was memorable over and over again. It will awaken her memories"

"What of her studies? Does she remembers all that she learnt? Can she remember the books she read and..." Ana asked, sincerely concerned.

"Yes, she didn't lose all the knowledge acquired. We tested her"

"Ahhh,"

"What happened with the hit-and-run driver?" Doc Walker was curious.

Who was trying to kill an innocent young lady? what was going on in his mind.

"Ahh, he was released. Amiyah was saying all sorts of things that night so it wasn't hit-and-run" they concluded and the case was closed. Ana said. She didn't know what really happened.

"How soon can she recover?" Grandma asked.

* My ward *

Grandma came into my private ward with a smile. I saw how hard she was trying to mask all her feelings. I felt so sorry that I had to do this but I didn't have a choice. I had to avenge my parent death. Her eyes was swollen. I think she cried before coming in here.

I'm very sorry Grandma.

"How are you feeling?" Grandma clears her throat and looked at me intensively.

"I'm okay. Grandma, did you cry?" I didn't expect the tiger in our family to be this weak. When she lost her husband, her child and his wife, she didn't shed any tear even at the funeral ceremony.

"Am I okay? What did the doctor say? I'll be fine, right" I rushed her with questions.

"You're fine" she smiled and a tear dropped from her eyes.

"I knew it. I knew you cried. Stop crying, it's fine. I'm here with you. I won't ever leave you" I hugged her and her sob, climates.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry" she told me and I felt sorrier. A deep well of guilt built up in my stomach.

* Flashback *

I asked Doc Walker for a favour. To forge my medical report. At that time, pretending to lose my memories was the best idea I could come up with.

"Doctor Walker, I need your help"

"My help with what?"

"Can I trust you? Even if I don't want to, I don't have a choice this time. I want you to tell everyone that I have amnesia"

"Don't you know that kind of lie is against my working ethics?" He stood up.

"I know. I'm aware but... I have to do this. That night I was brought here you may have heard that it was an attempted suicide case but actually it's not. Someone tried to kill me and to find out who that person is I must do this" I said with determination and he calmed down a little. His face was asking so many questions. He was feeling uneasy.

"Wait, I don't understand. So are you trying to say there is someone trying to kill you?" He was very surprised.

"Exactly"

"But why?"

"I'm going to try to that find out. I've no proof so I'll need to gather some evidence and find out who this person is. Will you help me?" I smiled, patrionizingly.

"Hmm," Doc Walker took a moment to contemplate.

"I'll do it. Your father was a really good man. I should do this to protect you atleast" he heaved a sigh.

* Present *

"I'm sure mom and dad went to a better place. A place without grandma's nagging" I joked. My soul was shattered. People change after facing a major life crises. I think I changed because of this major crises I'm facing that's why I could act this way.

"Mmm. You have grown so big, my darling. I haven't seen you in a while. See, I promise to stand by you now. I won't be selfish anymore. Sorry, I didn't know I wasn't the only one hurting" I was curious why she just left to a remote city and left me all alone.

"Where are those two?" I asked her of Liam and Ana stylishly.

"They had something to do. Ana was hesitant but I told her to go. She had a test Liam did too"

"Okay"

*A day after at Hermes Villa *

Rose was jumping around the house when she heard of my accident. She was jealous of me. She wished I had a deformity of some sort so we would be able to compete because she couldn't compete with me in anything. She always saw herself way below me. I don't know why she is so insecure.

Rose saw her mum going out hurriedly.

"Mom, where to?" She looked at the bag of fruits with her.

"Sweetie, I heard Amiyah has amnesia. I'm going to see her" she was exhilarated.

"What?! She didn't lose her arm or something just a memory loss? That wasn't what I prayed for" she was given the harsh sharp of reality. That I'm not someone that can be gotten rid of easily.

"Roooseee, that's good enough. At least we get to treat her like she deserves and have an influence over her. Rose, how about you mould her to the kind of person you want? She is acting like a child I heard" she was building castles in the air.

"I want her to follow me around. Clean my mess and do everything for me. She has to know how low she was. That Amiyah tried to get cheeky every single time. She makes me so angry! I'll go with you" she took her mom hand and they came to the hospital together.

* My ward *

She ran into my ward suddenly when the nurse was adjusting my drip. Grandma went to see Doc Walker again for medical advice.

"Amiyah..." A voice rang out and my ward was opened. It was Aunt Chloe and Rose. Now what are they doing here? The nurse left us.

"Aunt Chloe?" I chuckled, nervously. I was scared of her a little bit. Who won't I be? It was the person that almost took my laugh standing here faking her concern for me. My palms were sweaty and I felt like blacking out again.

"Yes, it's me dear. Are you okay does it hurt anywhere?" She examined me with her hand. Putting her filthy hands on me.

"I'm okay" I removed her hands as I felt my patience slip. I could hardly stop breathing fast. I felt all my organs twisting. I know we didn't like each other right from start but... Trying to kill me... That's ridiculous. Why did she do such a thing?

She even wiped a non-existent tear "You don't know how worried I was"

I know. Worried enough to have thought of getting rid of me as you played an important role in getting rid of mum and dad.

Suppressing my fear "Who is she?" I pointed at Rose who was watching us at the back of her mother. She isn't the drama queen like her mother. One could see that she doesn't like me. It's written on her face.

Even the fear inside you depends on how you tame it. So I won't run away but face my fears instead.

"I heard you lost some memories from mother, so it was true. She is rose. Rose, my daughter your cousin. Rose, say hello" she explained and dragged Rose forward.

"Amiyah, stop pretending. I can see right through you. This is an act, isn't it?" She was leading me on with questions.

"I don't understand what she is saying. Rose, you look so beautiful in that dress" I complimented her because she loves that. At least she would give me a chance to fool her now.

Rose can pretend to see through me but she can't. Why? Because I know I'm a better actress than her. Acting as a means to save myself that will make me do well at it, don't you think?

"I got it from Spain. It is a limited edition" she told me. It worked, I smiled.

Grandma came inside and saw them.

"Grandma... You were here?" Rose asked as if she didn't want her here. She wanted me to be all alone

"Rose, let's talk later. Chloe, meet me outside" she commanded her. Aunt Chloe won't dare say no to Grandma. The way Grandma talked alone commanded respect.

"Mother, what is going on" she asked again.

"I told you on phone"

"It looks so serious"

"It is. Don't disturb her and just go home for now. She is still recovering. Her scars hasn't healed yet"

"What do you mean, mother? I'm the mother figure in her life"

"You know how exhausting you are, right? And mother figure, you say? Amiyah tried to take her own life. If you had done your duties as a mother figure, this wouldn't have happened! I'm disappointed in you"

"Mother, you think I didn't try my best. Amiyah is selfish. She wants to be treated like Rose. She wants equal treatment, who does that?"

"At least you'd have tried to show her love, care and attention. She looked so lean, don't you feed her?" Grandma was very angry.

"She left home on her own accord. Don't blame me. I'll leave now after waving her goodbye" she came in alone and carried her bag.

While they were out, Rose and I didn't say a word to each other.

"I brought this for you" Aunt Chloe brought out an apple from the fruit bag she brought. The skin around her eyes crinkled. She was having fun. The moment I saw this expression I was filled with rage so much that I couldn't breathe.

"Ahh, you didn't have to" she was testing me.

"I wanted to" she took a fruit plate and knife from the table and cut the fruit into eatable pieces. My ward was private so I had all those things. I just had fruit salad some minutes ago.

She knows how much I hate taking something from her. She gave me a poisoned fruit once and since then I didn't eat anything she offered me. I thought it was mistake giving me fruit meant for out dying dog, Mali. She said it was to ease it's pain from dying.

Now I just understand, the fruit was meant for me from the start.

"Take. Take it" she fed me the fruit with a fork. My heart started beating, heavily. I was reminded of that day. Just imagine, poisoned not once but twice.

"Haa" I opened my mouth, widely, took it and chewed every piece of it. I won't lose this battle.

"It so sweet" I smiled, insincerely. Mandi Chloe, I won this battle.

"Mmmm" she hummed and smiled back.

"We'll leave now. Take care. Rose, let's go" she patted my arm and helped her daughter stand up from the chair she was sitting.

"Ahhh, thank God. If you delayed that a minute more I'd have lost it. Amiyah, sorry. It's just that I hate the smell of hospitals" she waved at me and they left together. I could see the look on her face. She totally fell for it.

"I heard Liam brought her to the hospital. Hope they haven't made up. If they found out that I was behind all that happened between them then..." She was nervous. Trying very hard to cover up something.

"Then nothing? How will they talk about the past when she lost her memories?" They were going outside of the hospital.

"You're right. Mom, what was that act of kindness with an apple?" She dragged her mother who was walking ahead of her.

"Rose, it has happened. It's confirmed. She really doesn't remember anything" she was exhilarated.

"What do you mean?"

"You know that brat won't take anything from me after the poison incident. She forgot that!"

"Let's celebrate with champagne" Rose danced.

"We will. We must. I'm so happy, dear. Now, you can get anything you want anytime and I get to keep GM Gallery" she danced with her daughter as they entered their BMW.

I watched them from the window and congratulated myself on fooling those two.