Hello again! I know it's been a while. Sorry.

Anyway, this is a long ass chapter, I tell you. I was going to cut this half but decided against it. I don't know if you prefer longer ones, but eh, you just have to deal with it. Lol

Hope you'll still enjoy it though and leave a review. Your reviews make me happy.

And oh, again, sorry for the mistakes you'd come across with.

Who are you?

Were her first words she said after her really long sleep. Her question didn't register in my mind right away since I was too caught up with the fact that she finally woke up.

My heart pounded against my chest as I looked at her. She seemed confused at first as she looked up at the doctor who was checking up on her. Her gaze shifted to me when she looked past behind the nurse. She furrowed her eyebrows again as she looked at me.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when the doctor said, "Miss, I need to talk to her parents. Can you possibly call them, and let them come right away?"

I looked away from Alex's curious eyes and looked at the doctor. "Yeah, let... Let me just call them." I knew they're just in the cafeteria, having late lunch so, I knew they could get back within a few minutes. I pulled my phone out and dialed Theresa's number.

"Mitchie?" She answered after the first ring and worry was evident in her voice. "Did something happen?" She asked as I heard shuffling on the other end.

"Uh... The doctor needs you here now, saying he needs to talk to you." I glanced at Alex, but quickly looked away since she was still staring at me. Her, staring at me made me really nervous. I took a deep breath, "Alex is already awake."

"Oh my God." I heard more shuffling. "Okay, honey, we're on our way." Then we hung up.

The doctor turned to me. "They'll be here in a few minutes." I told him as he nodded.

And again, I was back to staring contest with Alex. No more words said. After a few moments, she broke our eye contact as her parents rushed in.

Theresa came in first and went directly at Alex to hug her tight. "Honey!" She cried out. Alex hesitated at first to hug her back, but eventually she lightly wrapped her arms around her mother. Her dad followed suit, wrapping them both in his arms.

When I saw Alex hesitantly hugged her mom back, her question before came back to me full force. It made my heart ache and it definitely made my entire being went numb.

Who are you?

It finally hit me. She didn't remember who I was, and that must mean one thing: she lost her memory.

The doctor already gave us a heads up long before that when Alex wakes up, there's a possibility of her losing her memory because of her head trauma. I was hoping it's not going to happen to Alex, but by the looks of it, whether I like it or not, that's exactly what was happening to her.

I didn't have the courage to stay any longer so, I did what came to my mind first: I walked out.

x x x

There's only one thing I knew what I felt when I realized Alex had completely forgot about me: lost.

As soon as I got out of the hospital, I went straight to my car and started to drive. I didn't have a particular destination. I just needed to go somewhere so, I could clear my head. My heart would clench every time her question cross my mind. When I felt myself on a verge of tears, I decided to make a stop. I looked around to check where I was, and to my surprise, I ended up at the park, where Alex and I used to go to. It brought back memories, good and bad. I pulled out the cap that Alex left a long time ago in the glove compartment and put it on my head then started to walk to our favorite spot. I let out a little smile as I spotted the big old tree, the same old tree that had witnessed our love.

I patted its bark. "Hello, big guy." I pushed the lump in my throat, "It's been a while." I took a deep breath then sat under its shadow and leaned against it. I closed my eyes then let go of the tears that I've been holding back since I left the hospital. And as if on cue, a soft wind passed by, hugging me to give me comfort, like Alex used to do when I feel down. I took a long deep breath to lessen the pain in my heart as I thought of her.

Alex, the girl I'm deeply in love with, the only one that could always bring out the best in me, the most incredible person I know and most especially, the only one — aside from my parents — who loved me despite of everything, has now lost her memory.

What should I do now? How can I win her back if she doesn't even know who I am?

I was pulled out of my thoughts when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out, "Hello?" I answered with my voice strained.

"Mitchie?" It was Caitlyn. "Are you crying? What happened?" She asked worriedly.

I sniffed some more, "Alex."

"What about her? Please don't tell me she gave up already."

"No." I shook my head. "She's already awake."

"She is? That's good then." She sighed in relief. "Then why are you crying? How is she?"

"I don't know." I shrugged.

"What do you mean you don't know?" She was confused. "Where are you?"

"I'm at the park right now." I looked around.

"At the park? What are doing out there? Shouldn't you be in the hospital, now that Alex is awake?"

"I don't know what to do, Cait." I wiped my tears away.

"Do about what? Her, being awake? Isn't that what we've been waiting for?"

"It is." I sighed. "It's just that, I think she had lost her memory, Cait. The doctor had warned us about that possibility. And now it's happening. I don't know what to do." I ran a hand down my face.

"Why did you think that she had lost her memory?"

"The moment she woke up, she just stared at me and then asked if who I am."

"Mitch." She sighed. She knew now what worries me. "Are you scared that now she doesn't remember you, she won't remember what she felt about you too?"

"I was very aware that it wouldn't be easy for me to win her back, but I never thought it could be this hard."

"Well, maybe now is your time to prove to her that you're worth of her love. She's worth of your love, right?"

"Of course, she is." I answered right away.

"Then prove to her you're worthy of her love too. Go back to the hospital and be there for her. Start from the beginning and make her fall in love with you again." She encouraged.

"What if she doesn't like girls anymore?"

"Mitch, I think we both know that Alex was born to be gay." She lightened up the mood. It worked as I chuckled a bit. "Take it slow. Just be patient with her. For now, go back to the hospital and be happy that now she's finally awake."

"You're right. What's more important here is that she's finally awake." I took a deep breath. "Thanks, Cait."

"No problem, Mitch."

"By the way, why did you call?"

"Oh, I just wanted to ask how Alex was doing, but as we both know, you already told me how she is." She laughed. "Seriously, Mitch, I'm happy that she's back."

"Me too, Cait. Me too."

"Now, get your ass back there and be with your girl."

"Okay." I stood up. "You should go visit her as soon as possible."

"I'll see what I can do. Maybe tomorrow. Let's see."

"Okay. See you soon." Then we both hung up.

I looked up at the tree and patted its bark, "I'll go ahead, big guy. Wish me luck." I smiled a little then walked back to my car.

x x x

Alex was sleeping when I got back. As soon as I went in, Theresa quickly stood up from her seat and hugged me. "Where have you been, honey?" She asked worriedly as she pulled back from the hug.

"I just went out to breathe some fresh air and I wanted to give you guys some alone time with her." I smiled weakly at her. "How is she? She's sleeping again." I looked over at Alex.

She nodded in affirmation then looked over at Alex as well. "I guess she got tired when the doctor asked her a couple of questions. She seemed to be out of it. She was telling the doctor she can't remember anything." She sighed weakly.

"Is she suffering from a memory loss?" My heart clenched as I asked.

"The doctor thought so." She answered quietly. "He said he needed to run some tests on Alex so, we could see how bad her head trauma caused and how bad her memory loss can be." I felt the pain and sadness radiating off of her. I quickly wiped the tears that fell from my eyes. We were silent for a couple of minutes until she spoke again. "She asked me to look for you when she realized you weren't here." She said calmly, changing the subject.

My eyes widen when she said that. I looked away at Alex's sleeping form then turned to Theresa. "She did?"

She looked back at me and smiled. "Yeah, she asked if where was the girl she woke up to. So, I went out to look for you but you were nowhere to be found. I tried to call you but your line was busy."

"I was talking to Caitlyn for a while." My heart swelled as I thought of Alex looking for me. "If I knew that, I could have run back here right away."

"I could tell that she was disappointed when I came back without you. I saw it in her eyes." She put a hand on my shoulder. "She may have lost her memory but I guess her heart has a mind of its own."

x x x

Days had passed and it turned out that Alex was indeed going through a memory loss. Theresa said that Alex may or may not recover her memories. There's no assurance or anything, but at least she could make new ones.

Since Alex can't remember anything from her past, it was a good thing that the man who caused all of this was already in jail. He was captured the night it happened. He was convicted right away since there was a witness and he was driving Alex's car when the police captured him. He also pled guilty.

There's nothing new with Alex since the day she woke up. She would still stare at me curiously, though this time she would do it secretly. When I'll look on her way, she would just look away quickly and pretend that I didn't catch her staring which, I found it cute.

We decided to introduce me as her best friend because if we'll tell her the truth right away, she might have a hard time wrapping it in her head.

I was pulled away from my thoughts when I heard her cleared her throat. We were left alone again in the hospital since her parents need to go and report to their respective jobs.

I looked over at her. She was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling.

"Do you need anything?"

She shook her head without turning to me.

This was a thing that worries me, I felt like she doesn't want near me or do anything with me. I'd ask her some questions to start a little conversation but she would just answer me with a shrug or would just shook her head.

I sighed then looked down again at the notebook that I've been scribbling on my lap.

A few minutes later, she startled me when she suddenly spoke. "Don't you need to go somewhere?" She asked still looking up at the ceiling. "Like, don't you have school? Or work perhaps? You've been here since forever. Like, you're here more than my parents."

"Uhm..." I started as I looked at the side of her head, but before I could continue, she cut me off.

"You're not my wife, are you?" She chuckled at her own joke.

It would have been funny if her tone wasn't kind of sarcastic. I was a little hurt by the way she said it. Her tone was like, for her, it would be impossible for me to be her wife or can't picture me as her wife. I frowned, "Uhm... Well, I don't have school. I do have a job but I'm on a break. And we told you before, I'm your best friend. Why? Don't you want me here?" I asked a little concerned. What if she was sick of seeing me all the time? I felt my heart ache.

She didn't answer as she immediately dropped her smug grin. I knew she realized that what she said made me a little upset. "I... I didn't mean it like that." She sighed, "It's just... I get that you're my best friend but you don't have to be here all the time. You have your own life. You don't have to feel like, you have responsibilities here." She finally turned her head towards me. But this time, I looked away from her and looked down at my lap again. I don't know if she was aware with it but it seems she was pushing me away.

"I don't feel it like that. I just like to be here. It's what I want." I answered softly. We fell into uncomfortable silence as I fidget with my fingers. I could feel that she was still looking at me.

A little later, I took a glance at her and it was just in time she focused at the ceiling again. I felt my eyes sting and I knew I'm gonna burst into tears at any moment. I pushed the lump in my throat and stood up. I fixed my things on the chair as I said, "Uhm... I... I think I'm gonna go to the cafeteria for a bit to grab some soda. D-do you w-want some?" I inwardly cursed myself when my voice wavered a bit. "You're g-gonna be o-okay, right?" I pretended to arrange my things as I waited for her reply. I heard her bed slightly creaked so, I knew she sat up a bit.

"U-uhm, yes. I guess I'll be alright."

I turned to her and gave her a quick little forced smile. "Okay. I'll be back in a bit." I immediately walked to the door.

"Mitchie?"

"I won't take long." I told her without turning back. The tears had already escaped from my eyes. As soon as I'm out of the door, I let them all out.

I returned after a little over twenty minutes. When I got inside, I realized she was talking to someone. When I got farther inside, I saw a tall blonde girl sitting at the edge of Alex's bed, talking animatedly at her. Alex was looking up at her with a wide smile on her face.

My heart broke at that. She was never like that with me. She was always so distant towards me. When they noticed my presence, the blonde girl stood up from the bed and faced me while Alex's smile instantly dropped and looked away.

I looked at the blonde girl. "Hello." I greeted with a forced smile.

She stared at me with wide eyes. "Mitchie Torres." She said unbelievably.

"Yes. And you are?"

"Taylor." She answered still staring.

"Well, hello Taylor." I placed some foods at the side table. "How long have you been here?"

She snapped out of her trance and answered, "Oh like, ten minutes ago."

"I see." I sat back down on my seat. "Go, continue with what you guys were talking, don't mind me." I looked down at my notebook again and sipped on my soda. Acting like there's nothing wrong when the truth is, my heart was breaking when I saw how Alex acted towards Taylor.

Alex was just lying on her bed awkwardly which, confused me. She looked like she was guilty from doing something.

"I never thought you knew Mitchie Torres." Taylor said quietly to Alex.

"We're best friends." I told her without looking up.

"How did you know Mitchie's name if you guys haven't met before?" Alex suddenly asked Taylor.

I interrupted before Taylor could answer. I have never told Alex yet what kind of job I have. "She must have heard about me from Harper. Right, Taylor?" I gave her a pointed look that said just-agree-with-me. "I mean you have the same school, right?"

"Uh... Y-yeah." She stuttered out. "Harper mentioned to me some things about Mitchie. It just slipped out of my mind." She awkwardly laughed.

Alex looked at her suspiciously then looked my way. I just shrugged at her before looking away.

There was an awkward feeling in the room after that. And I was beyond thankful that Theresa arrived after a couple of minutes later. I can't be in the same room with Alex and Taylor together anymore. It was slowly breaking me.

"Hello!" Theresa greeted as she got inside. "Oh, hello Taylor." She greeted when she noticed the girl.

"Hello Mrs. Russo." She greeted back, smiling brightly.

I wanted to roll my eyes but I decided against it. Why does this girl have to be so chipper? I took a glance at Alex and found her smiling, looking up at Taylor. Of course she was so fond of the blonde girl. I took a deep breath as I felt my heart ache. I couldn't help myself but to feel jealous. I couldn't take it any longer. I need to get away.

"Uh, Theresa can I talk to you for a bit?" I stood up from my seat.

"Of course, honey." She smiled at me.

"Is it okay if we'll talk outside?" Her smile instantly dropped before she nodded and walked over to the door. I looked at Taylor and told her, "This won't take long." She nodded. With the corner of my eye, Alex was watching me curiously, but I ignored it.

"What is it, honey?" She asked worriedly as soon as I closed the door.

"Uhm..." I took a deep breath. "Is it okay if I'll go home for now? It's just... Dave informed me this morning that I need to send him some sample songs that I've worked on as soon as possible and I haven't quite done anything yet." I said sheepishly. My heart pounded against my chest as I lied to her. I mean, it was just a half a lie. Dave actually sent me a text about the songs but it just wasn't ASAP. "Would it be alright?"

"Of course, honey." She smiled. "I thought you were gonna say that something's wrong." She sighed in relief. "You do what you got to do." She squeezed my shoulder. "It's fine. I already asked my boss anyways that I would be absent for another week and Alex shall be discharged the day after tomorrow too so, everything's fine, honey. No need for you to worry."

I let out a deep breath. "Thank you. Is it okay if I go now?" She nodded. "Thanks." Just before I went in, she stopped me.

"Is it really because of your work that you decided to go home now? Or is there something else?" She asked knowingly. Maybe she noticed something was off with me. Mothers have the ability to always know if there's something going on around them.

"Yeah, it's really because of work." I lied again. "I need to get things done if I still want to have something I could get back to in LA."

"So, I assume you already accepted their offer?"

"Not yet, but I think I will." I gave her a half-hearted smile.

She nodded and squeezed my hand.

So we went inside. This time I let Theresa went in first. I didn't dare turned to look at Alex and Taylor when I came to their view. I went straight to my seat, immediately gathered my things and slid them inside my bag one by one. I felt Alex was watching me.

"What are you doing?" Alex asked by the time I was almost done packing my things.

"She's going home, honey." Theresa answered before I could.

"Why?" She asked again. I zipped my bag and slung it on my shoulder. "Mitchie, if this has to do with anything I said earlier, I—"

I cut her off with my voice even, "No, this has nothing to do with that. I just need to finish some things for my work." I walked over to Theresa. She had this look that she knew something's going on between Alex and I. "Thank you for understanding. Call me if you needed me for anything. I'll be right over without questions asked." I smiled at her before giving her a hug.

"Thank you for all the help, honey. Jerry and I appreciate it a lot." She hugged me back.

"No problem, Theresa." I said before pulling back. "I'll go ahead."

"Drive safely, honey." I nodded. I turned to Taylor.

"It was nice meeting you, Taylor." I pulled up my hand to her with a smile.

"It's a pleasure, Mitchie." She smiled back then shook my hand.

I gave Alex a quick glance as I said, "Lex." then I turned to leave.

"When are you coming back?"

I sighed before turning back. "I'm not sure. I'm gonna be busy for a while. I'll just see what I can do." I send her a sad smile then walked out.

Not feeling going home yet, I went to our favorite place, the park. It was the only thing remained that I somehow still have a connection with Alex. But when I got there, to my utter disbelief, there were men surrounding the big old tree. And by the looks of it, they were going to cut it out.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I exclaimed as I approached them.

One of the men turned to me with an annoyed expression. "What do think we're doing? Isn't it obvious that we're going to pull it off?"

"What? You can't do that!" I protested. It was the only thing I treasured the most and they were just going to cut it out. "This is a public place and do you even have a permit to cut this tree?" I questioned.

"What is it to you anyways? It's just a tree, for Christ sakes." He said exasperated.

"Well that tree is important to me and I'm an environmentalist." I lied. "So if you couldn't show me any permit that you are allowed to cut this tree, I suggest you get the hell away from it because if not, I will file a complaint against this." I threatened.

He rolled his eyes at me then let out a sigh. He fumbled something in an envelope in his hand before handing me a piece of paper. To my dismay, it was the permit I demanded.

"We're not cutting it out. We're just pulling it off and move it somewhere else." He said.

I felt defeated. I handed the paper back to him and asked, "Where are you going to move it?"

"Still here in the park. We're just not sure where to." He looked around for a bit.

"Hey! I know you!" Another guy exclaimed. I can't help but roll my eyes. I have no time for any fan right now. I'm busy worrying where they will move the tree.

I turned to him furrowing my brows. "I don't know you."

"Come on. I have something to show you." He smiled at me.

"Uh, I just said I don't know you so, why would you think I'll go with you somewhere?"

His smile dropped before letting out a sigh. I actually felt bad for being rude to him, but I was stressed out. "Okay, I'll bring it to you instead." He walked away.

"Come back right away, Jason. We need you here!" The man I was talking to called out to him. The other guy named Jason, just nodded then ran away.

I watched as the other men worked. "Is there anyway that you could inform me in the future regarding on where you moved this tree?"

"I don't understand why you were so worried about this tree. It's just a tree, like that one." He pointed to another one.

I was about to answer but someone butted-in our conversation. "I think I knew why."

"Jesus." I put a hand over my chest to calm my heart. "Don't sneak on people like that!"

"Sorry." He said sheepishly, but then continued, "This tree has a sentimental value on you." I looked down to the box in his arms. "We found this one buried right in front of the tree."

"What was in it?" I asked suddenly curious.

"Open it." He urged.

And so, I opened it. The first one I saw was the picture of Alex and I. My heart skipped a beat. I looked farther and saw a sketchpad. I started flipping it; it was a bunch of sketches of me. But what caught my eye was a page that has no drawing, but instead it has Alex's handwriting. It read:

She's so beautiful
She's the sunlight in my eyes
She's a bittersweet goodbye
And I just can't tell you why
I'd let her break my heart again
For those special days of summer in the rain

I pushed the lump in my throat. I closed it and put it back. I checked the rest of the things inside and I started to realize that these were Alex's things. Things that reminded her of me. She buried them. She got rid of them. She actually wanted to forget about me. I felt my knees weakened and my tears started to fall.

"Girlfriend?" Jason asked.

I shook my head. "Ex-girlfriend." He frowned. "C-can I t-take it?"

"Of course. It's yours."

"Miss." The older guy said. I turned to him. "Why don't you give me your phone number? In that way, I could call to let you know where was this tree moved." I gave him my number and thanked him. I was about to take the box from Jason but he pulled back.

"Carve your name on the tree so, you would know that it's yours." He handed me a Swiss knife. I wiped my tears away before taking it.

The older guy told his men to take a break for a while. When the area was cleared, I walked to the tree and carved Alex Russo. I ran my hand on it before looking up at the tree. "I'll find you someday, big guy. I promise." Then I walked back to the guys. "Thank you Jason and—" I looked up at the older guy.

"Ben." He smiled.

"Ben. Thank you." He nodded.

I took the box from Jason and decided to go home.

x x x

The day Alex was scheduled to be discharged had arrived and I didn't plan on going out there because I was sure Taylor would be there as well. Unless Theresa or Jerry will call and ask for my help, I would go.

Since the day I discovered that Alex was trying to forget about me for good, the thought of winning her back was not an option anymore. I just have to let her go and let her be happy with someone else. I owe that to her. It's the least I can do after everything I put her through. And so, I busied myself with work. Writing a lot of songs. Trying to suppress the ache that I've been feeling.

I know now what Alex felt when she was hurting because of me. Maybe the pain she felt was more than what I felt now. I have no right to complain since this was only the outcome of what I had done. Karma is indeed such a bitch.

I continued scribbling on my notebook when my phone rang. I considered not to answer it but it may be Theresa or Jerry. I picked it up and saw it was Caitlyn calling.

I sighed before answering, "Hello?" I answered tiredly. Sleep was not my thing these past days.

"Mitchie, where are you?"

"Uh, at home?" I replied as if the answer was obvious.

"You do know that Alex will be discharged now, right?"

"Yeah."

"So, what are you still doing at home?"

"I'm not gonna be there, Cait, if that's what you were trying to ask me. I'm busy. I still have a lot of things to do. I even haven't slept yet. Besides, Theresa told me that she would call if she needed my help. And so far, she hasn't called yet. Obviously, I'm not needed there." I said in a bitchy tone. It actually surprised me since Caitlyn was the one I was talking to. She's my best friend for Christ sakes.

"What are you even talking about? What do you mean, you're not needed here?" She was utterly confused. "Mitchie, what's going on?"

I sighed as I ran a hand down my face. "Cait, look, I'm sorry if I'm such a bitch right now, I'm just so fucking tired. I'll tell you this one last time, I'm not gonna be there. I'll talk to you soon."

"Mitchie, you..." I hung up the phone quickly and let my body collapse on my bed. And as expected, my tears started to pour out.

A week passed by and I still didn't try to contact anyone. Theresa sometimes gave me updates on how they were doing and in return, I told her also what was keeping me busy. I was thankful that Caitlyn didn't confront me yet about my bitchiness with the last time we talked.

After finalizing some songs and sent it to Dave, I decided to check out the new location of my tree. Ben, true to his word, he let me know where they moved it. I was extremely thankful when he called me. I drove to the park and looked for it. I smiled widely when I could already see it. It was moved to a secluded area, just the way I like it. No distractions.

When I got to it, I looked for the name just to make sure that it was indeed my tree. When I found Alex's name, I immediately hugged it. "Hello, big guy. It's nice to see you again. I told you I'll find you. I was afraid that you'd die when they pulled you out." I patted its bark, "But I'm happy that you're strong. I hope you'll give me some of your strength though, I needed it, especially now." I sat under it and leaned back. I took a deep breath as I breathe in the fresh air. I felt more relaxed as I sat under it. But it was immediately ruined when my phone rang in my pocket.

I groaned as I pulled it out. "Hello?" I answered irritatingly.

"Well hello to you too."

"Caitlyn, what's up?" I asked right away. I just wanted to get my alone time back.

"Let's talk. Where are you?" It was a demand.

"At the park. In my favorite place."

"Okay. I'll be there." She hung up. I giggled. Let's see if you'll be able to find me, I thought. As expected, after for about twenty minutes, she called again.

"Yeah?"

"Where's the tree? It's not here anymore. Where are you?"

I giggled, "I told you. I'm at the park."

"Mitchie, I'm not kidding around." She said seriously.

"Well, so am I." I countered. I heard her sigh on the other line. "It was moved."

"What was moved?"

"The tree. My tree."

"Oh well, where is it? We need to talk."

"Then let's talk. Through the phone. Just stay where you are. You don't need to come over here."

"Why?"

"I don't want you here. Nothing against you, but I don't want anyone to know where this place is, well, except for the people who moved this here. This is my new safe haven."

"Fine." She sighed again. "What's going on with you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't act like you don't know what I mean." She said sternly. "Why were you being so distant lately?"

"It's for the best."

"How so?"

"It's just is."

"Why were you not in the hospital when Alex got out? You were the only one who weren't there."

"I told you, I was busy and tired. And it's not like Alex couldn't get out of the hospital if I'm not there." I reasoned out.

"What happened to your plan of winning Alex back? How can you do that if you're always missing?" She questioned. "This Taylor girl has been acting weird around Alex." She grumbled.

I frowned at the mention of the blonde girl. "Winning Alex back is not an option anymore, Cait." I whispered.

"What? Why?"

"I guess there's nothing for me to win back in the first place."

"I don't understand."

I blinked my eyes a couple of times to stop my tears from falling. "I'm letting her go, Cait."

"What?!" She exclaimed. "I thought you love her?"

"I do. That's the reason why I'm letting her go." I pushed down the lump in my throat. "I now understand why Alex let me go when she thought I don't love her anymore even though I told her she didn't have to. If the people you love don't feel the same way as you do, don't hold them back and let them go. Let them be happy. That's how Alex proved her love to me. I guess, I'm just doing the same now. I want her to be happy. That's the least I could do after everything I put her through. She deserves to be happy. And if Taylor will make her happy then so be it." At the thought of it, tears started to fall.

"Mitch..."

"Maybe we're just not meant to be." I shrugged. "Everything happens for a reason. I guess, Alex just have to lose her memory, for her to finally be happy." I wiped my tears away. "For her to finally start over again. Love someone again without having fears of getting hurt like what I had done."

"What are you gonna do now?"

"Move on. I know it would be hard but I'll try my best." I took a deep breath, "I'm going back to LA this weekend, anyway. Maybe, I should also have a fresh start out there."

"You're going back? I thought you took a whole year off."

"Change of plans I guess. I don't think I still have a reason to stay longer."

"Did you already let Alex know that you're flying back to LA?"

"No."

"Would you?"

"I don't know." I answered her truthfully. I don't know if I could handle with finally saying goodbye to Alex.

"I think you should."

"I'll think about it."

x x x

The day before my flight to LA came and I haven't talked to Alex still. I couldn't do it. Theresa had been asking me where I was and why I haven't visited yet. And for my hundredth lie, I still insisted that I was very busy. When the truth is, I've been doing nothing but go to the park and spend my whole day there. Fortunately, Theresa had been so understanding.

And so, like I used to do for the past couple of days, I'm sitting by myself again with my tree, humming with my new written song. It was peaceful at first, that was until someone just suddenly spoke, scaring the crap out of me.

"So you just happen to like sitting out here all by yourself when some people were wondering where you are."

I was startled by her voice but I pretended that I wasn't surprised. I opened an eye and looked up at her. "Like who?"

"Uh, my mother?" She raised an eyebrow. "She said you were busy. You've been lying to her all this time?" She accused me right away and I was kind of offended even though what she said was true. I narrowed my eyes at her.

"I didn't lie to your mother. I was busy. I just got finished with all of my work last night. Is it too much to ask, for me to relax in a peace and quiet place even just for a bit after all the work I've done?" I countered. "And I could never lie to your mother. How dare you accusing me like that. Theresa is like my second mother. Just so you know." I let out a frustrated sigh and closed my eyes again.

She remained silent.

"What are you doing here anyways?" I asked still eyes closed. Talking to her was taking a toll on me.

"I was looking for you." Her voice was even.

"How did you find me then? This is a secluded area after all."

"Phone finder." She stated.

"Seemed like a stalker." I chuckled. I tried to annoy her. Maybe it would set her off and leave me. And it seemed like it worked.

"Call me whatever you like. I don't care."

"Oh well, you found me already. There's something I could do for you?"

"You never came back. Even the day I was discharged, you weren't there. Why?" She questioned.

"I told you the day I left, I was going to be busy for a couple of days."

"You can't even leave it just for a couple of hours? What kind of a friend are you? Your work is more important than me?" She asked disbelievingly.

And I can't believe she just asked me that. "You have no idea what you're talking about." I mumbled.

"Tell me then." She challenged.

I let out an exasperated sigh. "Trust me, you don't want to know." I stood up, "And why was that such a big deal to you, huh?"

"It's just is!" She yelled.

"Oh please." I scoffed. "Don't act like you actually want me to be there. When I was still there, you practically rubbed it in my face that you were sick of me."

"So this was what all is about? I told you, I didn't mean it that way."

"It doesn't matter anymore." I grumbled. I rubbed my temples with my fingers. I'm already getting a headache. "This conversation is getting nowhere. So, I'm gonna go now. Don't let anyone know about this place. I don't want people to ruin this peaceful area." I walked passed her.

"Why are you being like this? You're not like this before." I stopped.

"People change, Alex."

"I thought you're my best friend?" She said quietly. "You're supposed to be the one I could lean on."

I looked back to her. "We lied. I was not you're best friend."

She furrowed her brows at me.

"And trust me when I say this, you don't wanna know who I was in your life. It's better if you don't know." She continued to stare at me. "I have to go. I still have to pack."

"Pack? For what?" She asked right away.

I don't know if it was just me, but for some reason, she seemed like she's about to panic. I sighed, "I'm going back to LA tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

I nodded.

"To LA?"

"It's where I work. My break is over so, I have to head back. I just came back home for you. To make sure you're okay. And since you're pretty okay now, I'm gonna head back." I turned away from her again.

"Mitchie wait."

"Oh my God, Alex! What? What do you want from me?" I turned back to her then flung my arms on my side. I was already getting agitated with all of her interrogation. I feel like I was going to blurt out all the things I've been hiding from her.

"You! A friend! What about you? What do you want from me?" She countered. "There must be something. You used to like being around with me and then you suddenly changed. Now tell me, Mitchie. What do you want from me?" She looked determined.

I ran my hands over my face. This is getting frustrating. "You can't give it to me anymore, Lex." I weakly answered.

"Why? What is it?" She looked at me intently. Waiting for my reply.

"N-nothing."

"Tell me, Mitchie!"

"Your love!" I yelled. "I want your love back. And I know I can't have it back. It's not gonna happen." I let my tears fall. "I don't deserve it anyway. I don't deserve you. You deserve someone better. Someone that won't hurt you. Someone that could make you happy."

"I..."

"I'm your ex-girlfriend, Lex. The one who broke your heart so badly." I confessed. "As much as I want to have you back, I know I can't. This was why I chose to go back to LA. I'm gonna let you be with someone who could treat you better."

She stared at me.

I wiped my tears away. "Now you know everything. I'm gonna go now and you'll let me walk away." I turned away again and started to walk.

"Mitchie!" She called out.

I ignored her.

"Stop!" She demanded this time. But I still ignored her. "Mitchie! I swear to God!" She threatened.

For a moment I thought that she was acting like the Rebel Russo she used to be. So demanding. And I don't even have any idea what she would do if I'll still ignore her. But I did it anyway.

"Sunshine!"

My heart skipped a beat. I wasn't even entirely sure if I heard her right but I turned back. Again. It's getting ridiculous, to be honest. We stared intensely at each other.

After a little while, I sighed then walked back to her.

"What did you just call me?" My heart was pounding against my chest.

"You heard me."

"You remembered?" I asked hopefully. She didn't answer and just stared at me. It seems she has no plans on answering me so, if she thought it was the right time to joke around, I'm not gonna have it. I step back. She didn't move. "Aren't you gonna answer me?" Still no answer. "Okay." I quickly turned my back to her and walked away. But by my fifth step, she stopped me by wrapping her arms around my waist from behind. She nuzzled her nose on my neck.

"I'm so sorry, Sunshine. I just got scared."

"What are you talking about?" I tried to remove her arms from around my waist so I could face her but she didn't let me. She tightened her grip on me.

"I lied to you." I felt her tears fell down on my shoulder. "I never forgot."

That's it! It was long, right? I told you. I hope you still enjoyed it. So, any thoughts? Time to leave a review, yeah?

So, how mad will you get if I'm gonna just end this story here? Like leave you all hanging like that. I did say from the previous chapter this could possibly be the last one, right? Lol

Peace out!