Adonis

I was tired. The touring schedule had been hard to keep up with especially when I hadn't been getting much sleep since I'd agreed to attend Alex's birthday party in a couple of days. The thought of seeing Lacey again had me in knots I couldn't untie.

I boarded the private jet behind my bandmates. We were on our way back home. I'd just taken a seat when my phone started to ring. It was Aiden.

"Hey," I answered my phone.

"Are you on your way back?" he said, the underlying urgency in his voice made me sit up straighter. My immediate thoughts jumped to Lacy.

"Yeah," I said. "The plane is about to take off."

"Good." He sounded agitated.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Reece called me," he started. "She's worried about Lacey."

I frowned.

"Why?" I asked. He wouldn't be calling me if he didn't feel that it was important. And his anxious tone wasn't helping either.

"She says Lacey has been drinking heavily."

Why would she do that? It didn't sound like my Harp. She wouldn't jeopardize her recovery like that.

"I don't understand," I muttered trying to figure out what would make her be so reckless especially after everything she'd been through. "Why is she drinking?"

"Reece doesn't know. There's something up with Lacey but she isn't talking to Reece about it."

Why wouldn't she open up to her best friend if there was something wrong?

This whole time I'd been under the impression that she was doing fine. I got my updates about Harp from Alex and he hadn’t mentioned anything like that. Tired and on edge I pulled a hand through my hair trying to organize my thoughts but my exhaustion made it difficult.

"I wished I could talk to her but she doesn't even remember me," he muttered.

I had no doubt he would be able to reason with her if she hadn't lost her memories of him.

"How much has she been drinking?" I asked needing to know the extent of the issue.

"More than she did before. Reece said it's like she's drinking to forget something."

The irony wasn't lost on me. She had forgotten some of her most important memories so what was she trying to forget?

"Has Reece said anything to Alex or her parents?" I asked hoping that Alex hadn't known about this and kept it from me.

I felt a moment of guilt. I'd been so wrapped up in my own torment, I had believed she was okay. It had made it easier to keep my distance. There was no way in hell I would have left her if she'd been struggling with life after her surgery.

I let out a haggard breath.

"No."

I had the consolation that Alex hadn't lied about it.

"When do you land?" Aiden asked.

"Early tomorrow morning," I answered. I wished I was there already so I could get the answers I wanted.

After I got off the phone the last person boarded the flight, Trisha. She was our manager's assistant who helped keep us to our schedules and generally helped with any small issues we had.

She smiled as she took a seat beside me. I didn't mind. She was interesting to talk to and I could do with the company. I was too wound up after what Aiden has revealed to contemplate sleeping.

"You look like crap," Trisha said as she buckled the seatbelt.

"Thanks," I replied dryly. She was very direct even to the point if blatant.

"It's the truth," she said with a shrug.

I rubbed my forehead trying to ease the slight headache I was starting to get.

"What's up?" she asked, as she studied me. She was pretty perceptive but it didn't take a genius to see
something was one my mind.

I didn't feel close enough to her to open up about Harp and what I'd just found out.

"I'm just tired from working too hard," I said, hoping she wasn't going to ask anymore questions.

"You still worried about your friend?" she asked taking me by surprise.

Lacey and her surgery hadn't been a secret. It had been plastered all over the news for the first few weeks after her surgery. I'd been determined to keep her out of the media. Anyone who'd asked what she was to me I'd told them that she was my best friend's little sister and a good friend, nothing more.

Only my band mates knew how close we'd been before her memory loss. I wasn't comfortable revealing too much because I was worried that if it got out it would put Lacey in the media spotlight. I knew how difficult it was having every action and moment recorded and judged by the media and my fans. It would just make things worse for Lacey. And she was going through enough.

"Yeah a little," I answered down playing how much Lacey influenced my life. The truth was my life revolved around her. That was why it had been so hard to carry on without her.

Everything I'd thought about her carrying on her life without any problems just increased my guilt because it hadn't been the case. Both of us were struggling with our lives post surgery.

What was she going through that had made it easier to cope with alcohol? When I'd realised that there was a chance her memory loss was permanent I'd gone through a stage where I'd turned to alcohol to help numb the pain. But I had learnt quickly it was only a temporary fix and would cause more problems if I had continued.

It had been Link who had pulled me aside after another night of heaving drinking that I'd nearly passed out in a club.

"What the hell are you doing?" he had asked, with a disapproving look. Even though we were the same age he acted more like an older brother who was wiser beyond his years.

I hadn't answered because I'd known that what had happened to me hadn't justified me trying to drink myself into oblivion. After a lengthy lecture on what I'd be throwing away if I had continued I had made the decision there and then to find better ways to deal with my problems.

Every minute on that flight had felt so much longer. I knew it was because I was worried about Lacey. Every possible reason for her behaviour I analysed the entire flight home. Nothing could hold my attention for a few minutes. No type of distraction could make me think of anything but her and the guilt that somehow I had failed her.

There was no point in wondering why I hadn't found out earlier, all I could do was try and figure out what I was going to do about it now.

Initially the specialist had told me that trying to force her to remember could have a more destructive result. He'd advised us all to let her remember on her own. We had all agreed to keep details of what she'd forgotten from her but now I wondered if it had been the right thing to do.

It hadn't worked. As far as any of us knew she hadn't remembered anything.

Maybe it was time to be honest with her and lay everything out in the open. For the first time since she'd lost our memories I felt a little hope.

If I touched her hand and held it my hand would she remember how it felt? Would she remember if I brushed my lips against hers softly?

I let out a deep breath trying to calm myself. I didn't want to get too hopeful and be disappointed if it didn't happen. Even if she didn't remember what we had, would admitting how I felt about her and telling her how we'd fallen each other at least give us a shot of recapturing what we'd lost?

Glancing down at my watch I calculated the time until I would see her again. This time instead of just dread, I felt nervous and anxious but at least I had some hope.

**********

Lacey

I was a mess of nerves and anticipation. No matter how much I told myself I didn't care the truth was I did. Adonis had landed, he was back home. I'd woken up this morning with a growing anticipation to seeing him again.

It was inevitable. Today was Alex's birthday and he would be attending the party tonight. Reece had also been invited so at least had my friend to help me navigate the evening.

The party was being setup in the backyard.

Birthdays were pretty important in my house and were celebrated to the fullest. Even though it wasn't a significant birthday my mom had gone all out. At the sight of balloons and birthday decorations Alex had rolled his eyes and reminded mom he wasn't five anymore.

She had ignored him and carried on. He acted like it was embarrassing but honestly I think on a level he loved the attention.

My thoughts turned back to Adonis.

I tried to ignore the reminder from inside my mind and the ache in my heart that he had avoided me for the last three months. His actions hadn't dampened my feelings for him or the way my whole body felt alive with excitement at the thought of seeing him.

If my mind ruled over my heart I would have shoved my feelings for him aside and gotten on with my life. At some point I would have to find a way to do that because I couldn't spend more time hoping that he would feel the same.

If he did he wouldn't have avoid you for the last three months. A voice inside of me reminded me.

My hand went to my hair and I soothed it down feeling more nervous. I breathed in deep and exhaled hoping to calm myself. Reece was on her way over but my growing nerves pushed me to change my plans.

Deciding I needed some time out before I had to face him I went looking for my brother. He was standing on a ladder fixing a decoration in the yard under my mom's instruction. I wanted to suppress a giggle when I saw it was a 'Happy Birthday' decoration that hung from one side of the patio to the other. At my obvious amusement my brother threw me a glare.

There was no point in laughing because I'd be having the same when my birthday came around. This year I had a feeling it was going to be much worse. The fact that I'd come to close to dying would make my mother take it to a whole new level.

"Next year I'm not going to be home for my birthday," my brother mumbled under his breath.

"Will you do me a favour?" I asked Alex as he climbed down the ladder and my mom disappeared into the house, probably to find another decoration.

"What?" he asked.

"Could you give me a lift to Reece's house?" I asked, as I stuffed my hands into my pockets.

"Will you be coming back for the party?" he asked with a frown.

"Of course," I replied. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'm just going to go over to Reece's to get dressed."

"Sure," he answered.

Even my brother was different with me since my surgery. Before he would have been annoyed if I had asked him for a lift. Now without a complaint he walked into the house searching for his car keys as I ran upstairs to stuff some potential outfits into a duffel bag. I grabbed my phone just before I dashed out of my room and met my brother at the front door.

Inside his car I shoved my duffel bag into the back. The trip to Reece didn't take long and before long Alex pulled up in front of her house.

I frowned when I noticed a car I didn't recognise in the driveway. I saw a flicker of emotion on my brother's face when he saw the same car. Uncharacteristically he decided to walk me to the front door. But I reminded myself that my family treated me differently since my surgery. Nothing like nearly dying to pull your family closer and for them to appreciate all the small things they had taken for granted before.

"Did you call Reece to tell her you were coming over?" he asked when we stopped outside Reece's front door and I rang her doorbell.

I looked at him with a frown. That was a strange question. "No."

Why would it matter to him?

"Hi," Reece greeted when she opened the door. She looked surprised to see me. But it was the look Alex gave her that made me feel that something was going on and I was the only person not getting it.

A guy appeared behind Reece. His hair looked dishevelled and he ran a hand through it. My eyes when back to my friend and then I noticed that she looked a little dishevelled as well. My eyes narrowed as I took in her slightly swollen lips.

When the stranger behind her saw me, he stilled. Our eyes met. In his was recognition and more but I didn't remember him. Should I know him? I thought.

I continued to stare at the stranger as I felt Alex and Reece watching me. They were watching me for a reaction.

Something poked through the darkness of my mind. I leaned closer studying his feature more closely booking it would tug the memory open. Taking in his features I felt the pull of a memory grow stronger.

"You-," Reece began to say but I raised a hand to stop her. I didn't want her to distract me from remembering what I could feel was within my reach.

"I know you," I whispered. The stranger looked at me hopefully. I didn't miss the look Reece and Alex shared.

"You were at the hospital," I said. The hope in the guys eyes vanished and I could see the disappointment in his features.

"Yeah," he admitted. Alex shot him a glare. Some of my memories from the few hours after I'd woken up after surgery had been disorientating and overwhelming. It was hard to remember a lot of things
None of this made sense and the reaction of my brother combined with Reece's strange behaviour added to the growing mystery. Something didn't add up.

"Are you a friend of Reece?" I asked. When had she met him? Was he part of my missing memories?

The stranger looked to Reece. He was unsure of what to say and seemed to be looking at her for the answer.

"Yes, he's a friend of mine," she said, nodding her head. "Aiden this is Lacey and Lacey this is Aiden."

The name rolled off her tongue and into my mind. There was something familiar about the sound of it.

Alex was still watching me silently. Why were they acting so strangely? It wasn't that I didn't believe what they were saying, it was their still nervous expressions that nagged at me.

The explanation that he was her friend was reasonable. The only thing that didn't seem to piece into the puzzle was the fact that he'd been in the hospital room with Adonis when I had woken up. Why would a friend of Reece come to the hospital to see me? It didn't make sense.

"Why were you at the hospital?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"He wanted...to help support me," Reece said. It was a lie. A straight out lie. I knew my friend well enough to see the nervous lick of her tongue against her bottom lip and the way her eyes flickered from mine to Alex.
Why was she lying?

I turned to look at my brother. His eyes met mine. He was trying to keep something from me as well. I could tell by the way he shoved his hands into his pockets and shifted slightly while trying to hold my gaze.

They were all hiding something from me.

"I don't understand," I murmured out aloud what I was thinking.

"What don't you understand?" Alex asked.

I swung my gaze from Aiden to Reece and then lastly it rested on my brother.

"I don't understand why you guys are lying to me?" I stated bluntly tightening my crossed arms.

There were no denials which confirmed what I'd already figured out.

"No more lies," Aiden said stepping past Reece to stand in front of me.

"I don't-" my brother tried to say.

"She needs to know the truth," Reece said cutting him off.

"Stop talking like I'm not standing right here," I said, feeling my anger grow at the blatant lying and deceitfulness of the whole situation. "I want the truth. No more lies."

"We were only trying to protect you," Aiden said trying to soothe me.

Protecting me? It made no sense. He pulled a hand through his hair.

"I'm your friend," he stated.

How could I have a friend I didn't remember? I took an unsteady step backward, unable to believe what he was saying.

I looked to Reece and she nodded, confirming what he'd said.

"It's the truth," Alex added.

"I don't remember you," I found myself saying to Aiden.

"I know."