28 to 18

AYAH'S POV

“Hold on, Ayah.”

“Please, don’t leave us.”

“CLEAR!”

The voices around me sounded urgent, but distant. Everything felt chaotic, yet my vision remained dark. I tried to move, but my body refused to respond.

Then I saw a hospital monitor beside me.

The line suddenly went straight.

A flatline.

An indication that someone had died.

Wait… was that me?

NO!

“NO!” I gasped as I suddenly woke up, my chest heaving as I struggled to breathe.

I looked around in confusion and realized I was inside a hospital room.

For a moment, I thought it was just a nightmare.

But then a question hit me.

What am I doing here?

My eyes landed on a man whose head was resting on the side of my bed. He looked like he had fallen asleep while watching over me.

I stared at him, trying to remember if I knew him.

But I didn’t.

“Uh… excuse me?” I said, gently shaking his shoulder.

Sorry, mister, but you’re resting your head on my bed and I don’t even know you.

He slowly lifted his head and looked at me.

Then he froze.

His eyes stared at me intensely, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

Who is this guy?

What a waste… he’s handsome, but weird.

Without saying anything, he quickly called for a doctor.

While the doctor was checking me, I couldn’t stop wondering what was happening.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “But why am I here?”

The doctor finished examining me before answering.

“People heard a loud crash from where your car was,” he explained. “They found that you had been in an accident and immediately brought you here. Luckily, you survived.”

Car accident?

I tried to remember what happened.

But nothing came to mind.

The last thing I clearly remembered was sitting in a coffee shop with Isaac. We were chatting like we always did before going home.

That was it.

I didn’t remember driving a car at all.

“I really don’t understand,” I said with a small laugh. “I don’t even remember driving.”

Then I pointed at the man standing beside the doctor.

“How about him? Do you know him? I saw him earlier resting his head on my bed.”

The doctor glanced at the man before speaking quietly to him.

“Excuse us for a moment,” the doctor said before guiding him outside.

They left the room before I could ask anything else.

Ugh.

Where are Mom and Dad?

Why aren’t they here?

I waited impatiently until the door suddenly opened.

“Wait—Isaac? Roxette? Kyla?”

My eyes widened.

“Ayah!” they shouted at the same time.

Isaac rushed forward and hugged me tightly.

“You remember us?” he asked in disbelief.

I laughed.

“Of course I remember you. Why wouldn’t I? You’re my treasures.”

Isaac exchanged a worried look with the doctor.

“Ayah,” the doctor said gently, “we warned them that there was a possibility you might experience memory loss after the accident.”

“Well, I’m clearly fine,” I said cheerfully. “Maybe I forgot the accident, but I still remember everyone important.”

The doctor nodded slowly.

“In that case… do you know him?” he asked, pointing toward the man.

I shrugged.

“I already told you. I just saw him earlier resting his head on my bed.”

“Ayah,” the doctor said carefully, “that is Ethan Evans.”

I thought about the name.

Nothing.

“I’m sorry,” I said honestly. “But I really don’t know him.”

The room suddenly grew tense.

“Leave us,” Ethan said coldly.

Everyone hesitated but eventually stepped outside.

“Wait!” I protested. “You’re leaving me alone with him?”

Once the door closed, he walked toward me.

“Stop pretending,” he said sharply.

My brows furrowed.

“Pretending?”

“This act of yours,” he continued. “It’s not funny.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I replied.

His jaw tightened.

“I am your husband.”

I burst out laughing.

“You’re joking.”

His eyes darkened.

“Call my friends back,” I said firmly.

When they returned, I pointed straight at him.

“This guy just said he’s my husband!”

The doctor sighed.

“Ayah… do you know me?”

“You look familiar,” I admitted.

“I’m Alexander Alvarez.”

“Alex?!” I stared at him. “Why are you dressed like a doctor? We haven’t even graduated yet!”

Everyone exchanged uneasy looks.

“Ayah,” Alex asked carefully, “how old are you?”

I rolled my eyes.

“I’m eighteen.”

The room fell silent.

“You’ve been in a coma for a month,” Roxette said quietly.

“That still doesn’t explain why everyone looks older,” I muttered.

Then Ethan grabbed my arm.

“Love?” he snapped. “You said you’d marry the one you love. That’s me.”

I pulled my arm away.

“You’re scaring me.”

Kyla spoke softly.

“Then… who do you love?”

I smiled proudly.

“Bryan Mitchell, obviously.”

Alex blinked.

“Bryan Mitchell?”

“Exactly,” I said. “Tell him I’m in the hospital. Maybe he’ll visit me.”

No one spoke.

Then Isaac sighed heavily.

“Ayah… you’re twenty-eight years old. Not eighteen.”

My smile slowly faded.

“What?”

The doctor stepped forward.

“Ayah, you’re experiencing retrograde amnesia. Because of the trauma from the accident, your brain lost access to your recent memories.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means your mind returned to the last point it remembers clearly.”

My hands slowly clenched.

“In your case,” he continued carefully, “that point is ten years ago.”

The room felt colder.

“You remember your life when you were eighteen… but everything that happened after that is gone.”

Ethan let out a bitter laugh.

“Convenient.”

Everyone turned to him.

“You expect me to believe she suddenly forgot the last ten years?” he said harshly.

His eyes locked onto mine.

“Our marriage. Our life.”

His voice dropped dangerously.

“Or are you just pretending again, Ayah?”