Chapter 1

Ava Miller opened her eyes.

The light was too bright.

She blinked.

A hospital room. White walls, beeping sounds.

Her head felt fuzzy, like cotton.

Her mom, Sarah, sat beside the bed. Her eyes were red-rimmed, her face pale.

Her dad, Tom, stood by the window, his back to her. He looked stiff.

"Mom?" Ava's voice was a dry whisper.

Sarah Miller jumped, then rushed to her side. "Ava! Oh, thank God."

She took Ava's hand. It was cold.

"What happened?" Ava asked.

Her dad turned. His face was grim. "You had a... a breakdown, honey. At the Spring Fling."

The Spring Fling. A university event. Vague images flickered. Music. Crowds. Ethan.

Ethan.

The name was there. Ethan Reed. Her boyfriend. Since sophomore year of high school. Star quarterback.

Facts. Like entries in a database.

But the feeling? The love? The recent... pain?

Nothing. A blank space.

"Ethan," Ava said, testing the name. It felt foreign on her tongue.

Her mom tensed. Her dad' s jaw tightened.

"He... he was there," Ava said, trying to piece it together. "There was an argument?"

"A public humiliation, Ava," her dad said, his voice tight with anger. "He betrayed you. In front of everyone."

Betrayal. Humiliation.

Ava searched for the sting, the heartbreak.

There was only a strange, calm emptiness.

"Oh," she said.

Her parents exchanged a worried glance.

Chloe Davis, her best friend, burst into the room then. Her usually vibrant face was etched with worry.

"Ava! You're awake!" Chloe rushed over, pushing past Ava's mom gently.

"Hey, Chlo," Ava said. It was good to see her. A familiar warmth.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again," Chloe said, her voice thick with emotion.

"I'll try not to," Ava said, a small, tired smile touching her lips.

Chloe looked at her parents, then back at Ava. "How are you feeling? About... you know."

Ava knew Chloe meant Ethan. "I'm okay. It's strange. I remember him. But it's like... like I'm reading about him in a book. It doesn't feel like it happened to me."

Her mom's eyes welled up. "The doctors said... dissociative amnesia. Specifically the emotional content related to... to him."

"So, the love, the pain... it's just gone?" Ava asked. It wasn't a question of disbelief, more of clarification.

"It seems so," her dad said, his voice softer now, laced with a cautious hope.

A nurse came in. "Mr. Reed is here to see Ava. Ethan Reed."

Ava's dad stiffened. "Absolutely not."

"Tom, please," her mom said softly. "Maybe... maybe it's for the best she sees him, sees how she reacts."

Ava watched her father. He looked like he wanted to punch someone. Ethan, probably.

"Fine," her dad bit out. "But I'm staying."

Ethan walked in a few minutes later. He looked rumpled, his usual confident swagger absent. His eyes were bloodshot.

He looked at Ava. "Ava? Oh, thank God. I was so worried."

He tried to take her hand. Ava pulled it back slightly, not out of anger, but because a stranger was trying to touch her.

Her dad stepped forward slightly. A warning.

Ethan stopped. He looked confused. "Ava?"

"Hi, Ethan," Ava said. Her voice was polite. Distant.

Ethan stared at her. "Are you... are you okay? What are the doctors saying?"

"I'm recovering," Ava said.

"Recovering? From what? Your... your little stunt?" he asked, a hint of his old arrogance creeping back.

"Ethan," her dad warned, his voice low and dangerous.

Ava saw her dad' s anger. It was a fact. It didn' t stir any anger in her.

"She's not feigning, Ethan," Chloe said, her voice cold. "She has amnesia. She doesn't remember the emotional parts of your relationship."

Ethan' s jaw dropped. "What? That's... that's ridiculous. You're kidding me, right? Ava, tell them you remember. Tell them you remember us."

Ava looked at him. "I remember your name. I remember we dated. I remember facts about you. But the feelings... they're not there."

He looked from Ava to her parents, then to Chloe. His face was a mixture of disbelief and agitation.

"This is melodrama," he muttered, shaking his head. "You always were dramatic."

He turned and walked out, nearly bumping into the doorframe.

Ava watched him go. No sadness. No anger. Just... a void.

A few days later, Ava was home.

Her parents and Chloe formed a protective circle around her.

They avoided talking about Ethan. They avoided anything that might trigger distress.

Ava appreciated it.

But the void remained. A disorienting peace mixed with an unsettling emptiness where strong emotions used to live.

She knew she had loved Ethan fiercely. She knew he had broken her heart.

But she couldn't feel it.

It was like knowing a fire had burned down a house, seeing the ashes, but feeling no heat, no sorrow for the loss.

One afternoon, her parents were in the kitchen, their voices low.

Ava sat in the living room, reading a book. Or trying to.

The words didn't stick.

Her mind kept replaying the facts. Ethan. The betrayal. The overdose. Her amnesia.

It was all true. She knew it was.

But why did everyone else seem more upset about her amnesia than she was?

Chloe came in, plopping down on the sofa next to her.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Chloe asked, nudging her.

"Just... how weird this is," Ava said. "Everyone expects me to be heartbroken or furious. And I'm... not."

"Good," Chloe said firmly. "He doesn't deserve your tears. Or your anger, frankly. He deserves your indifference."

Ava smiled. "You always know what to say."

"That's what best friends are for," Chloe said, slinging an arm around her.

Then, a car pulled up outside. A sleek, expensive sedan Ava didn't recognize.

Her mom and dad came to the window, their faces suddenly tight.

"Oh, no," her mom whispered.

"What is it?" Ava asked.

"It's the Reeds," her dad said, his voice flat. "Ethan's parents."

Ethan got out of the passenger side, looking reluctant. His mother, Carol Reed, got out of the driver's side, a bouquet of flowers in her hand. His father, Mark Reed, followed.

They were long-time family friends. Or had been.

Chloe stood up, positioning herself slightly in front of Ava. A silent protector.

Ava thought, This is awkward. But the thought lacked any real emotional weight.

The doorbell rang.

Her dad went to open it.

Carol Reed smiled, a strained, overly bright smile. "Tom, Sarah. We just wanted to see how Ava is doing. We brought these." She held out the flowers.

"Come in, Carol, Mark," Ava's mom said, her voice polite but cool.

Ava had always liked Carol and Mark. They were warm, funny people.

Or, she remembered liking them. The feeling was a faint echo.

"Ava, dear," Carol said, rushing over. "How are you feeling?" Her eyes were full of concern.

"I'm okay, Mrs. Reed," Ava said. "Thank you for the flowers. They're lovely."

She meant it. The flowers were pretty. Sunflowers. Her favorite. Or, they used to be. She wasn't sure now.

"And Mark," Ava said, smiling at Ethan's father. "Good to see you."

Mark Reed looked uncomfortable. He was usually jovial. Now, he just nodded, a forced smile on his face.

"Ethan wanted to come," Carol said, glancing at her son, who was lingering by the door, looking at his shoes.

Ava' s dad made a small, dismissive sound.

Ethan finally looked up. He approached Ava.

"Ava," he said, his voice low. "I... I'm sorry. For everything." He held out a small, clumsily wrapped gift.

Her mom and dad looked like they were suppressing anger. Chloe looked like she might explode.

Ava took the gift. It was a small, framed photo of them from senior prom. They looked happy. Young. In love.

She looked at the photo. Then at Ethan.

"Thank you, Ethan," she said. "But I think you should keep this." She handed it back to him.

He looked stunned. "What? But... it's us."

"I know," Ava said. "But the person in that photo, the girl who felt those things... she's not really here right now."

His face crumpled a little. "You really don't remember?"

"I remember the facts, Ethan," Ava said, her voice gentle but firm. "I just don't feel them."

"So, my apology... it means nothing?" he asked, his voice rising slightly.

"It means you're sorry," Ava said. "That's good. For you."

Chloe let out a small snort, quickly disguised as a cough. Ava's mom shot her a look, but there was a hint of a smile on her lips.

Ava stood up. "Mrs. Reed, Mr. Reed, it was nice of you to visit."

She walked towards the kitchen. "Mom, are we still having tea?"

"Yes, dear," her mom said, quickly recovering. "Carol, Mark, would you care to join us?"

"Oh, no, we couldn't impose," Carol said, flustered.

"Nonsense," Ava's mom said, a new strength in her voice. "Ava would like that, wouldn't you, dear?"

Ava turned. "Yes. I would."

She smiled at Carol. Carol returned a weak, grateful smile.

Ethan looked utterly lost. Defeated.

Ava walked into the kitchen. She didn't look back.

She heard her mom talking to Carol, their voices fading as she moved further away.

She stopped at the kitchen counter.

She picked up an apple.

She took a bite. Crisp. Sweet.

Ethan.

A name. A face. A collection of facts.

She felt a flicker. Not love. Not pain.

Confusion? Maybe.

He stood in the doorway of the living room, watching her.

His eyes were wide, uncomprehending.

She met his gaze for a brief second.

Then she turned away, focusing on her apple.

Ethan stayed in the living room for a few more minutes, his parents making awkward small talk with hers.

Then they left.

Ava heard the car drive away.

She finished her apple.

Ethan couldn't understand. He thought she was faking. He thought it was a game.

How could someone just forget love?

He would make her remember. He had to.