I lost track of time. I was exhausted, feeling like my body couldn’t do anything but lay down. Every fiber of my body yearned for rest, yet somehow, I felt comfortable. My lack of energy made me feel light, and I was so tired that no thought bothered me. Feeling adrift, with my empty mind, I could do nothing but stare up. And I didnt want to do anything else.

For a while, I lost myself in that golden, almost clear sky. I could see small clouds, drifting through the wind, unbothered. The sound of birds and running water, peacefully added to the beautiful landscape on that tiny corner of the world. It was just me and my breath, contemplating everything else.

“ATISHOO!”

Oh yeah. And her.

Wait. What the hell was that? Was that supposed to be a sneeze? Did she get cold while trying to save me? Should I say something?

“Uh… are you cold…?”

My question broke the silence, and brought her back to reality. She looked at me, getting ready to answer, but she stopped herself, as if a thought interrupted her line of thinking. I saw her eyes slowly going down, and stopping on my neck.

She snorted.

“I'M SORRY DID YOU JUST LAUGH?!”

“I-Im sorry! It's just, you know, you're wearing a scarf in July! You have to see the irony in it!” She said, chuckling in between words.

“So you find me unconscious, drifting away, you take me out and save me, JUST TO LAUGH AT ME AFTERWARDS?!”

She laughed out loud for a few seconds, stopped, took a deep breath, and she looked at me dead in the eye, with a smirk.

“How did you end up there by the way?”

“Don't you think you’ll make that go away this easy!” I said, indignant.

“You ended up inside the river half naked and unconscious! I’m curious about it! Who knows, maybe I can help you with whatever you’re going through!”

I sighed.

I took a moment to think about my answer to that question. Her curiosity made a lot of sense, and I didnt want to leave her without a response. After all, she was the first one kind enough to care, to show some sort of empathy. A dangerous level of empathy, I must say. Jumping inside the water without a second thought showed either a lot of bravery, or a complete lack of awareness.

At the same time though, I didn't understand a lot of it myself. I lacked a lot of answers, and I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to explain everything right away. I decided that I would lie, while telling some of the truth at the same time.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

And so I did.

I explained everything to her, with every single detail, from the first appearance of the scarf to the present moment, but without talking about anything that happened before. I explained to her that I had some sort of memory loss, and I wasn't able to recall the past. With that, I gave some kind of coherence to the story, making amnesia the motive for my confusion, and the actions that led here afterwards. I tried to emphasize the scandal that I caused, and how the police reacted to it, trying to make sure that she wouldn’t try to take me to any authorities while trying to help me.

I finished my story, and I looked at her again, hesitant for an answer, or any kind of reaction.

She stood there, as if she was processing it. I began to regret telling her. My mind went through all the different outcomes, preparing for the worst. And, after what felt like an eternity, she gave one of the only answers that I wasn’t ready for.

“Have you checked your pockets?”

“Huh?”

“Your pockets, maybe there’s something there that could help you remember!”

“Of course I checked my pockets!” I said, as I bringed my hands to them, trying to show her that they were empty.

Wait, did I?

I anxiously touched my left pocket from the outside, wanting there to be something, while at the same time, praying for it to be empty to avoid the embarrassment.

Nothing.

I did the same with the right one, giving light taps from the outside.

There was definitely something there. It felt like some kind of card, maybe a credit card or a license.

I put my hand inside it, and I took the card out, bringing it closer to my face. It looked like some kind of student’s ID, from “Meadowbrook High School”. It seemed to peak her curiosity, because she got close to me, a little bit too much for my own comfort.

“You go to Meadowbrook! Are you a new transfer student? Will you be staying at campus? Oh! Are we going to be in the same class?!” She said, with a level of energy that I was incapable of processing at the moment.

“I don't know, remember?”

“Oh right, sorry about that”

“It’s fine. Did you say campus though?”

“Yeah! Meadowbrook holds students from all around the country! It's not easy to get in, admission exams make it so a small percentage of students are able to study there. Its sudden burst of prestige around different parts of the country made some kind of residency necessary, so they have one of the biggest campuses in the city. That ID shows that you study there, and maybe, if we’re lucky, you live there too! You would have access to a room, some uniform clothes, food and water from the cafeteria… this could be exactly what you nee!”

It seems awfully convenient. I can’t help but wonder if there’s someone behind this.

“And, I take it you live there?”

“Not exactly. I'm going to start studying there this year, but I'm from here, so in order to save up some money I will be living in my home. I know where it is though! We could go there before they close up, and if we’re lucky, we will be able to get you somewhere to sleep and something to eat!”

After such a tough day, the idea of eating something and sleeping inside came through like a warm, small spark of hope. I gathered energy from the depths of my body, and I stood up. My vision started spinning. I thought I would faint, but the idea of some comfort made me push enough to hold it until the feeling went away. And I looked to the horizon, ready to start walking towards what would hopefully be my new, temporary home.

“We should get you something to wear before though.”

“Right…”