When Stanley came out of the bedroom, he heard a sound in the kitchen. Glancing back at the bedroom next door, he walked toward the kitchen.
There, Summer had an apron on, and she was cutting fruits on the countertop. She looked back when she heard footsteps. Stanley was standing two paces from her, gazing at her with a faint smile on his face.
“Good morning.” Summer returned the smile.
“What are you doing?” Stanley came closer, leaning against the countertop and looking at the ingredients.
“After I woke up early this morning and came to the kitchen, I found that I could cook.” There was a hint of joy on her face.
She and Stanley had gone to the hypermarket and bought a lot of stuff the night before. As she shopped for good ingredients, the recipe for every ingredient flashed across her mind. When she woke up this morning and tried to test out her cooking skill, she found that she could really cook.
However, her skills were not far from what she had guessed. She came from an average family and could cook. It showed that she could have been living alone previously and was independent.
Stanley’s eyes were fixated on her face for a moment. “You don’t have to do this yourself. You’re still a patient. I’ll hire a cook later.”
“I can do this. I know my body can handle it, and I feel good.” Summer put the cut fruits on a plate. “Now, breakfast is ready.”
As she brought the breakfast to the table, Stanley said, “I’ve got to go to work later, but I’ll come back to bring you out for lunch at noon.”
“That won’t be necessary. I can make myself lunch.” She shook her head without even thinking.
Not expecting Summer to reject him categorically, Stanley was startled. After a while, he shook his head. “I’ll still come back.”
“No, really. Your overly protective actions will only make me think I’m a disabled person who can’t take care of myself.”
Stanley smiled but said nothing.
…
After breakfast, Stanley left for work while Summer cleaned up the kitchen and brought the garbage bag downstairs.
As she binned the garbage bag and looked back, she saw two people sneaking around nearby. By the looks of them, one was a man, and the other was a woman. The woman was covered from head to toe while the man looked much more normal.
While Summer hesitated whether to call the security personnel, the woman suddenly ran toward her in a pair of high heels. Summer looked on, and her heart was almost in her mouth.
The woman came up and immediately gave her a big hug. “Summer! It’s really you! I thought Carl was lying to me!”
Summer was baffled by what just happened. She froze as the woman hugged her. Only after a while did she ask, “May I know who you are?”
“What are you talking about? I’m Jessica!” Jessica pulled herself away and studied her. “Why are you so skinny?”
Summer was still recovering, so she appeared pale and skinny. “Your name is… Jessica?”
“Yeah, I’m Jessica…” Jessica suddenly had a lump in her throat, and there was a quiver in her voice before she could finish her sentence. She then squatted down and cried.
“Jessica.”
Carl, who had been standing by and remaining silent the entire time, saw her crying and knelt down to comfort her.
Summer stood by and did not know what to do. “Ms. Patel…”
The woman seemed to know her, but she did not have any impression of the woman at all. She did not even know what to say.
Jessica heard Summer calling her “Ms. Patel” and became even sadder. “What do you mean ‘Ms. Patel’? How can you pretend not to know me after you’ve recovered?”
Tears had melted her makeup. Alas, Summer had no choice but to bring the man and the woman back to her apartment.
Jessica went into the washroom to sort herself out. She had calmed down by the time she was back out in the living room. While Summer was fetching them water, Jessica could not keep her eyes away from her.
Before Jessica came, Carl had told her about Summer’s condition, but she did not take it to heart at first. She was happy as long as Summer was still alive.
However, when she saw Summer standing before her eyes and realized that Summer had forgotten everything between them in the past, Jessica felt horribly sad.
Summer saw Jessica staring at her with her reddened eyes while she was bringing them water. She first handed Jessica a glass of water, then asked with concern. “Are you all right?”
Jessica quickly nodded, still staring at her. “What about you?”
Summer smiled, amused by Jessica’s dumb look. “I’m healthy. Just that I…”
“I know, I know. It’s all right if you can’t remember. We have time and can create more memories together.” Jessica sounded sincere. She had accepted the fact of Summer’s memory loss. All that mattered was, she was alive.
Seeing Jessica’s reaction, Summer could not convince herself that Jessica was not her best friend in the past. She thought Jessica would tell her about the past, but Jessica did not do that. Jessica just asked about what happened to her recently.
She had just come out of her coma not long ago. Besides Stanley, Carl and Jessica were the only other people she knew. She did not know what else to say, but she found Jessica affable as they tried to talk to each other.
Then it was noon. When Jessica and Carl still showed no intention of leaving, Summer said, “Would you two like to stay for lunch?”
“Yeah!” Jessica immediately answered. Only then did she scratch her head, realizing that she had jumped the gun. But truthfully, she had no intention of leaving yet either. Carl had told her before that the person who saved Summer was a man who had been steadfastly taking care of Summer for three years. She wanted to meet the man.
“Then allow me to prepare.” Summer stood up and walked swiftly into the kitchen.
Jessica turned to ask Carl, “Did you say that you went to see the big boss? What was his reaction?”
“Just like before.” Carl sighed, sounding helpless.
Jessica gave her temples a massage, feeling frustrated. “Why has this happened? He’s forgotten Summer completely. He even has a fiancée now. Men are an inconsistent lot!”
Carl retorted, “You can say that about him, but I’m not like him…”
Jessica was in no mood to argue with him. Her expression turned solemn as a thought came to mind. “Never mention Leonardo in front of Summer again. Not even a word!”
Leonardo had forgotten Summer. If Summer remembered him and knew that he had another woman, she would be unimaginably sad.
Carl knew very well how it felt. His stomach churned at the thought of Leonardo wanting to blacklist him. “I know,” he replied.