Chapter 12- When The Stars Align (Part 1)
"Hmm, the doctor should be this way." Rubbing the back of her head, Sali looked around with a confused look on her face as she couldn't see the place where the locals told them to go.
"Hey, we've been searching for the past 2 hours. Let's just leave it for another time." Edward said as he sighed with a tired look on his face.
They have been roaming the area for a long time and they were definitely lost. However, Sali seemed adamant about finding the doctor.
"Shh, I'm sure we are close." Turning around the corner, the two were faced with a small building with a sign on it that said 'Miraculous Medicines… Totally, 100% legit'.
"See? I told you that we will find it!" Smiling widely, Sali looked at Edward with an 'I was right all along' look.
"No, no, no. Hold on a second. No matter how you look at it, that looks very shady!" Edward said as he shook his head.
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"What kind of sane doctor puts 'Totally, 100% legit' on their sign? Doesn't that sound fishy?"
"Maybe he wants to attract more customers?"
"..."
"Who cares, Asher? If he isn't a good doctor. I will punch him and then we leave to search for another one. Now, let's go."
"Wai-" Before Edward could say anything else, he was dragged to the building. The inside was quite normal for a doctor's office.
It was empty with only an old male receptionist, sitting behind the desk, sleeping soundly. He had his arms crossed and his legs were resting on the table without a care in the world.
"Ehem…" Coughing slightly, Sali tried to grab his attention.
However, no reply came.
"EHEM!!" Increasing the volume, the receptionist didn't wake up.
"Sigh, you brought this to yourself."
So, Sali walked around the table and grabbed the man by the collar.
"Wake the fuck up!!"
*Slap*
"AAAAHHH!!" The slap woke the old man up with a scream of pain.
"What?! Where?! Who?!" He looked around with a confused gaze as he held his cheek.
"Good morning, mister."
"U-Uh, a c-customer. That's rare! We don't get patients that often." He said.
'I have a hunch of why that is the case.' Edward thought with a plain look.
"S-Sorry for being asleep."
"No worries. Consider my slap to be your morning coffee." Sali replied sarcastically.
"Ahahaha! So, how can I help you?"
"Hm, where is the doctor?"
"I am the doctor…"
"..." (x2)
"Yes! I am the great Doctor Rack! I'm known to heal every disease in existence. Nothing can beat me."
"Then, why don't you have any patients?" Edward asked.
"E-Ehem, it's because they don't comprehend my genius! I'm too smart for this world."
"..." (x2)
"Anyway, come with me." Saying that, the man named Rack stoop up and walked inside one of the rooms, followed by Sali and Edward.
"Now, how can I help you?"
"My brother here… Has some kind of amnesia. He can't remember a thing."
"A memory loss, huh?"
After that, Rack approached Edward and started eyeing him up and down.
"Hmm, for how long has he had this amnesia?"
"Two weeks."
"I see… Hmm, let me examine him first."
After that, Rack went to the other side of the room where he had a huge shelf filled with all kinds of objects and weird tools.
"Not this, not this… Hmm, not this either." He then started rummaging through them as he threw most of them on the ground carelessly.
"Here it is!"
After that, he turned around and walked back to Edward with what seemed to be a small platform made out of metal and other materials and put it down.
"Step on this. It would make a full body scan on you and give me the results."
"Hm? Ok…"
Doing what Rack asked, the moment Edward stepped on the platform, Rack clicked on a button on the side and then stepped back. Immediately started shining with a blue light as it quickly engulfed Edward's body.
A few seconds passed that way before the light finally disappeared. Meanwhile, Rack held a tablet in his hand and read through it.
'Wait, what if he finds out I'm fine? Would I be screwed?!' Realizing the possibility that Edward's lie could be uncovered, he felt his heartbeat increase as he nervously waited for the result.
"Hmm, interesting… He does indeed suffer from memory loss. Although it's very odd." Rack said.
"Odd?"
"Indeed. His brain seems to be working fine. But, a huge chunk of it seems… different. It's as if a completely different brain had taken place in his skull, replacing the old one."
"...!"
'Wait, what?!' Barely holding himself from making a weird sound.
"Huh?! What do you mean doctor?" Sali asked with a confused expression, rightfully so.
"I do not understand how this is possible myself. But my results say that the kid has a different brain than before. Although the good news is, it doesn't seem to be affecting him negatively. He can live his life normally. But…"
"But?"
"I doubt he can restore his memories," Rack said as he rubbed the back of his messy hair.
The moment Sali heard those words, her face crumbled as she froze in her place.
"He can't… remember? Ever?"
Rack shook his head with a regretful expression.
"..." Laying back, the girl held her face as if the truth still didn't sink in yet.
"Sali…"
When he saw her reaction, Edward quickly approached his sister. He knew that the shock must've been strong even for someone like Sali.
Her brother, the person she spent all her life with, can't remember the years they spent together. How sad was she feeling? Even Edward himself won't be able to understand that feeling.
The memories of their family, their lives, their happiness and sadness, their tragedies and celebrations, they were all gone forever.
"It's fine, Sali. I don't regret that I can't remember my memories. I'm already happy enough with what I know till this point."
"Asher…"
"The time I spent with you till this point honestly makes me really happy. I feel like I've known you for a very long time. So, you don't need to feel sad. If anything, we can simply create more memories together in the future."
As Edward said those words, Sali listened quietly and when he was done, her eyes watered slightly as tears trickled down her face. Then, she hugged Edward tightly.
"I don't want you to forget your life, Asher! Our mother and father, our lives, they are very important to you. I know you cherished them greatly even in our long year away from home. I always hear you murmur the names of our parents during your sleep. Each time I hear them, I feel my heart ache greatly."
"I know…"
"I'm sorry…"
"You did nothing wrong."
"I'm really sorry…"
"I know.
"I don't know how I can compensate you for losing everything."
"I understand. You have been nothing but a great person to me. I can only feel grateful to you. You are the best big sister I could ever wish for."
"Hick, hick!!" As those words left Edward's mouth, Sali broke down and started sobbing loudly while tightly hugging Asher.
'This blissful feeling. I have never thought gaining a person that I could really consider a family would be this amazing. I'm truly happy.'
"You're such a crybaby," Edward said with a smile as he hugged her back.