# I did everything I could to take care of him after his accident, hoping he’d regain his memory. When I found out I was pregnant, I thought it might bring him back to me. I showed up at the private lounge with the ultrasound report in hand, ready to tell him. But before I could step inside, I overheard his laughter. “Ethan, you really nailed it with this fake amnesia thing,” one of his friends said, cracking up. “Not only did you shake off Anna, but you’re back with your dream girl.” “Right?” Ethan replied, chuckling. “I had no idea Anna could be so clueless. After the accident, she’s been running herself ragged looking after me. She has no idea I’ve been faking it the whole time.” The group let out a roar of laughter. “Man, I thought she’d get the hint and leave, but nope. Still clinging to me like she always has. She’s been like that since we were kids—impossible to shake off.” … The next day, at a business gala, I met his so-called “dream girl,” Natalie. Ethan introduced me to her as “just a friend’s little sister.” Natalie gave me a condescending smile and quipped, “Ethan, your friend’s sister looks so much like me back in college.” That’s when it hit me. All my clothes, my makeup, even my hobbies—I had unconsciously molded myself into a copy of Natalie. The realization was like a knife to the chest. I stepped out of the gala and called my brother. Afterward, I went straight to the hospital and scheduled the procedure. “Nick,” I said over the phone, my voice trembling, “I’ll come home. I’ll get married.”
There was a heavy silence on the other end of the line. Then came Nick’s worried voice. “Anna, what did Ethan do to you?” The ache in my chest grew unbearable. I fought back tears and forced a laugh. “What could he do? He doesn’t have the guts. Besides, there’s nothing between us anymore.” I paused, taking a shaky breath. “I came here to get better, and now that I’m healthy, it’s time to come home.” “And… I miss you, Mom, and Dad,” I added softly. Nick let out a light laugh, trying to sound casual. “Took you long enough. You’ve been away for years, and now you’re suddenly homesick?” I didn’t respond. My breathing grew uneven. Nick quickly changed his tone, coaxing, “Alright, alright. I didn’t mean it like that. I’m glad you’re coming back. We’ve all missed you like crazy.” “Besides,” he added with a teasing lilt, “the White boy’s still willing to marry into our family. Once you’re married, you’ll be back home with us. How perfect is that?” His warm, familiar voice was enough to break me. I hung up quickly, tears streaming down my face. … I was a sickly child, in and out of hospitals all the time. Born with asthma, I was sent to live in Springhill, a city with a mild climate, to recover. Our family had been close with the Hayes family for years, so my parents left me in their care. Ethan was seven years older than me, mischievous and carefree. He had a reputation for being a flirt, and my brother constantly warned me to steer clear of him. “Keep your distance,” Nick would say. “Don’t let him get any ideas.” But as time passed, the boundaries blurred. Ethan’s warmth and charm pulled me in, and I fell hard. When I recovered, I insisted on staying in Springhill to study and work, just to be near him. Ethan said he didn’t want to go public with our relationship yet. He worried my family wouldn’t approve of the age gap and promised he’d explain everything to them when the time was right. That “right time” stretched into six years. And now, after everything, I didn’t even know who to turn to.
When I got off the cold operating table, my body felt hollow—just like my heart. The anesthesia dulled the physical pain, but the ache inside was unbearable. Tears slipped down my face as I shakily ripped the ultrasound report into pieces and tossed it into the trash. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. The woman staring back at me looked like a stranger. Straight black hair, a white dress, soft, understated makeup. It wasn’t me. It was her. I used to love staring into Ethan’s eyes, seeing the love and tenderness in them. Now I knew that love had never been for me. He had always been looking at Natalie, even when he looked at me. I swiped on some lipstick to hide my pale lips and walked out of the bathroom. In the hospital hallway, I ran into Ethan and Natalie. They were holding hands, dressed in matching outfits, smiling like they were the happiest couple in the world. Ethan held a piece of paper in his hand. Even from a distance, I recognized it: a pregnancy report. Natalie was pregnant? The thought hit me like a thunderbolt, leaving me frozen in place. “Anna, what are you doing here?” Natalie asked brightly, pulling Ethan toward me. When Ethan saw me, a flash of panic crossed his face. He quickly folded the report in his hand. “Anna, are you feeling unwell again?” he asked, his voice overly casual. Bitterness rose in my throat as I struggled to find the words. Finally, I shook my head. “No, I just ran out of my medicine and came to get more.” “Don’t tell me you’re still taking those vitamins,” Ethan said, smirking. “You know they don’t actually work, right?” I stayed silent. After Ethan’s “amnesia,” I developed severe anxiety. Insomnia plagued me, and I relied on sleeping pills to get through the nights. But I lied to Mrs. Hayes, telling her they were just vitamins—I didn’t want her to worry. I clenched my fists, trying to hold back the wave of emotions threatening to engulf me. “Guess what, Anna?” Natalie said, beaming. “Ethan and I are having a baby!” She placed a hand on her stomach and laughed. “At the gala earlier, I swore I felt the baby kicking. Ethan was so worried he dragged me here to get checked out.” She playfully nudged Ethan, who smiled sheepishly. “You know how it is. The first three months are the most critical, and our baby’s only two months along. Better safe than sorry.” Two months. My baby was two months old, too. The realization hit me like a punch to the gut. He had been with me one night, only to crawl into Natalie’s bed the next. How could he so shamelessly have both of us at the same time?
Looking at his guiltless face, at the way his eyes softened with genuine affection for Natalie, I finally understood why everyone said his fake amnesia was so convincing. Because it didn’t require any acting. No lies, no pretense. This was the real Ethan Hayes. When you stripped away the false tenderness he’d shown me, all that remained was the burning devotion he felt for Natalie. Disgust churned in my stomach, and I fled the scene in a daze. The pain was unbearable. Tears spilled uncontrollably the moment I turned away. I went straight to the office and handed in my resignation. I’d always been friendly and well-liked at work, so when my colleagues heard I was leaving, they were reluctant to see me go. They insisted I host a farewell dinner. At the table, I drowned my sorrows in alcohol, drinking until I could barely stand. When I stumbled out of the restaurant, my first instinct was to call Ethan to pick me up, just like I used to. But all I got was a cold, automated voice telling me the number was no longer in service. It sobered me instantly, sending sharp pangs through my chest. How could I have forgotten? I was no longer the person Ethan would drop everything for. I flagged down a cab and returned to the Hayes family home. As soon as I arrived, I saw movers carrying boxes into the house. Curious, I peeked inside. There she was—Natalie, sitting comfortably on the couch, leaning affectionately against Mrs. Hayes while they chatted like old friends. Ethan was sitting beside them, peeling grapes and feeding them to Natalie like some lovesick fool. It was such a picturesque scene. Until I walked in. The moment they noticed me, the warmth in the air dissipated. Mrs. Hayes awkwardly pushed Natalie away and hurried over to me. “Anna, this is Natalie. You must remember her—she’ll be staying here for a few days,” she said, her voice strained. I smiled faintly but didn’t respond. “You’ve been drinking?” Ethan asked, frowning as he stood. His tone was sharp, almost accusatory. I gave a nonchalant hum of acknowledgment. His expression darkened immediately. “How could you drink with your stomach condition? Have you forgotten about your perforated ulcer?” Of course, I hadn’t forgotten. That ulcer had been the result of me drinking excessively to help Ethan close a big business deal. I’d ended up in the hospital, bleeding internally, and Ethan had spent the entire night crying outside the emergency room. I still remembered the way he’d cradled my hands afterward, his eyes full of guilt as he whispered, “Anna, I’ll never let you touch alcohol again.” The memory stung, and my eyes burned with unshed tears. “I forgot,” I lied flatly. Ethan’s shoulders slumped as a flicker of panic crossed his face. He glanced nervously at Natalie before turning back to me. “Natalie’s pregnant,” he said, his tone suddenly stern. “She can’t stand the smell of alcohol. From now on, don’t drink anymore.” I didn’t respond. I simply turned and walked up the stairs. Mrs. Hayes followed me to my room, clearly worried. She sat beside me on the bed, holding my hand tightly, her eyes red-rimmed as though she wanted to say something but couldn’t. I broke the silence for her. “It’s okay. I don’t mind.” She wiped at her tears and cupped my face gently. “I never thought Ethan would lose his memory and forget everything you two had,” she murmured. “But I heard that sometimes amnesia happens because the love was too deep. Maybe Natalie reminds him of you. Maybe he’s with her because, deep down, he thinks she’s you…” Her voice faltered, but she quickly added, “But no matter what, Natalie is pregnant now. The Hayes family has to take responsibility.” A mother always knows her child. Mrs. Hayes wasn’t fooled by Ethan’s act. She knew he was lying about the amnesia. But she was Ethan’s mother. His happiness—and her future grandchild—mattered more to her than I ever could. Still, Mrs. Hayes had always been genuinely kind to me, even in the years I’d spent here. I couldn’t hold it against her. Swallowing the bitterness in my heart, I squeezed her hand and smiled faintly. “Mrs. Hayes, I’m going home to get married.” “Please don’t tell Ethan.”
Mrs. Hayes froze, her face flushing red as she opened her mouth to speak but couldn’t find the words. Finally, she let out a long sigh. “This is all Ethan’s fault… he’s the one who wronged you.” After she left, one of the housekeepers brought in a bowl of ginger soup to help me sober up. The ginger slices were thick and clumsy, clearly cut by Ethan himself. Tears slipped into the bowl as I stared at it. I didn’t take a single sip and poured it all down the toilet. That night, the alcohol and my recent miscarriage left me doubled over in pain. My lower abdomen ached so badly that I could hardly move. With trembling hands, I rummaged through my bedside table for painkillers, but all I found were my sleeping pills—disguised with a label I had written, calling them “vitamins.” From the next room, muffled sounds of passion seeped through the walls. In the darkness, I finally let go of my composure and sobbed into my pillow, my cries echoing through the silence of the night. The next morning, I was jolted awake by the sound of furious knocking. Ethan’s voice shouted from the other side of the door, laced with anger. Confused and half-asleep, I stumbled to open it. Before I could say a word, his hand came down hard across my face. The stinging pain snapped me out of my daze. “Anna! You’re nothing but a selfish, ungrateful brat!” Ethan roared, his eyes blazing with fury. “Why the hell would you send flowers to the house? Don’t you know Natalie is allergic to pollen?!” He threw a bouquet of roses at me, and the sharp thorns scratched my cheek, leaving it burning with pain. The bitterness in my chest bubbled into a swell of anger. I opened my mouth to explain, but Ethan cut me off before I could utter a single word. He shoved me, and I fell to the floor. His eyes were filled with unrestrained hostility. “Pray that nothing happens to Natalie’s baby,” he hissed, “or I swear I’ll make you pay for it.” With that, he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Lying on the floor, I let out a hollow laugh as tears rolled down my face. I had asthma. I was allergic to pollen, too. Why would I ever send flowers to the house? My breathing grew shallow, and my chest heaved as I gasped for air. My vision blurred, and I struggled to get up. Unable to stand, I crawled toward the bedside table. “Medicine…” I whispered hoarsely. My hand knocked over the vase on the table, and it shattered, cutting my palm as I reached for the drawer. But it was empty. Panic gripped me as I remembered that Ethan had insisted on keeping my medication with him, saying it would be safer if he carried it in case of emergencies. I closed my eyes, overwhelmed by despair. My strength ebbed away, and I collapsed onto the floor. “Anna! Anna!” Mrs. Hayes’s panicked voice broke through the haze as she rushed into the room. When she saw me gasping for air on the floor, she immediately shouted down the stairs, “Ethan! Where’s Anna’s medicine?!” Footsteps pounded closer, and I felt someone kneel beside me. Cool liquid entered my airways, and oxygen slowly flooded my lungs. As I began to breathe again, Ethan’s voice cut through the tension, dripping with disdain. “To force Natalie into a miscarriage, you were even willing to risk triggering your own asthma attack.” He scoffed bitterly. “Anna, I really underestimated how far you would go.” Mrs. Hayes, furious, smacked Ethan hard on the back. “What nonsense are you spouting?!” But Ethan ignored her, grabbing me and tossing me onto the bed like I was nothing. “Natalie just told me that if you agree to be her bridesmaid and hand us the rings at the wedding, she won’t hold this against you.” “Ethan!” Mrs. Hayes cried, horrified, as she tried to push him away. “What are you saying?!” “Fine.” My voice was calm, steady. Both of them froze, clearly not expecting me to agree. My throat was raw, but I forced the words out, one at a time. “I’ll do it.”
Ethan’s expression flickered with disbelief. After a long pause, he finally muttered, “At least you know your place.” I turned away, burying my face in the blanket, letting my tears soak into the pillow. The wedding was set for three days later. During those three days, I busied myself packing and saying goodbye to friends. Ethan, on the other hand, spent all his time accompanying Natalie as she tried on wedding dresses. One by one, my belongings were removed from the house, leaving the space I once called home emptier by the hour. Finally, I came across the photo album filled with pictures of Ethan and me. Without hesitation, I tossed it into the fireplace. The flames crackled, their light reflected in my eyes. Our memories burned away, turning to ash. “What the hell are you doing?!” I hadn’t even noticed Ethan come back. He lunged toward the fire, reaching into the scorching flames in a futile attempt to save the remnants of the album. But the fire spread too fast. He couldn’t save anything. I watched him coldly. “There’s no point in keeping it.” “What do you mean, no point?!” Ethan’s eyes reddened as he shouted, his voice raw and desperate. “These are our memories!” I let out a bitter laugh. “You must be mistaken. There was never anything between us.” His face fell as he suddenly remembered his supposed “amnesia.” His voice softened, losing all its fury. He reached for my hand, his tone gentle. “I shouldn’t have hit you. Don’t be mad at me, okay?” “It’s fine. Pictures can be retaken,” he added, his voice coaxing. “Even if you’re getting married, you can always stay by my side as my little sister.” He placed a bridesmaid dress on the table. “Natalie asked me to bring this to you. Make sure you look your best tomorrow.” I picked up the bag and nodded. “I will.” The next morning, wedding photos of Ethan and Natalie were displayed on every screen across the city. The dress Natalie wore? It was one I had designed years ago—for myself. I left the bridesmaid dress on the bed, untouched, and wheeled my suitcase to the airport. I didn’t leave a single word behind. As I boarded the plane, I removed my SIM card and tossed it into the trash before turning off my phone for good. As the plane took off, I let out a long breath. Six ridiculous years of my life were finally, completely over.
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