He'sStory : Episode One

This is going to be the first instalment of The He'sStory series. I hope there won't be more than 3 episodes. The plot continues to unfold in my head now. It's quite difficult to limit the number of words especially when there are times the story just flow straight onto the keyboard.




The headaches still came and go as and when they wished. Bottles of painkillers were stuffed in her oversized handbag together with her medical insurance card and doctor contact card. She considered herself almost cured, maybe at 97%. She got most of her memories back. She could remember most things from the past, prior to the car accident.

She was not in the car during the accident, she was walking from the train station heading to a customer's office when she was hit by an over speeding, heavily tinted car driven by an irresponsible person who ran away. Obviously, it's not safe to walk in this city anymore, now she thought.

That happened more than 4 months ago. She passed out during the accident as her body was thrown about 5 meters away and her head hit a wooden bench at a bus stop. She never knew how much blood she lost, or how much have drained from the faces of the onlookers. The police was still investigating the case as the car turned out to have been stolen and carried a false plate number.

When she woke up on a hospital bed 2 days later, her head was throbbing violently. There were 2 women standing near her and kept on saying,
'Take it easy Shereen,' both of them looked anxious.

She remembered then that her name was Shereen, but she had no idea who the 2 women were. The younger one came forward and held her hands.

'It's okay if you don't recognize or remember us. The doctor warned us that you might not remember some things from the past,' she touched her dry cheeks assuringly.

Later on Shereen learned that the younger woman was her own elder sister while the other was her mother. During the times when the headaches subsided a bit, they'd tell her about herself. Angie, her elder sister brought a few family photo albums to the hospital to show her pictures from her childhood.

When she looked at her own reflection in the bathroom mirror, Shereen could see her resemblances with the pictures of the girl Angie and mom showed her. 'Yes, that must be me,' she thought. 'I hope I could remember more,' she suddenly became sad. She needed all her memories back.



It all started coming back to her on a Wednesday morning 5 days after the accident. A thirty something woman with auburn hair came storming into the hospital room with a bouquet of daisies in her chubby arms.

'Shereen! How dare you never call me! I only knew this morning, luckily I went to have breakfast at Mamak Ali!' she stopped talking to draw some oxygen, and then continued, 'oh, I was so worried. Poor dear...' she stroke Shereen's hair.

'I'm sorry Melia, I couldn't remember so many things, and I know I should've called you.... or at least SMS...' that was when Angie and her mom's jaws just dropped, their eyes widened before they became tearful.

'Shereen, you remembered her!' Angie was half shouting. She never told Shereen about her best friend, Melia and that morning she just remembered her as if the memories never left her.

'Thank god....' that was her mom could say as she wiped her happy tears with her sleeve.

Shereen was discharged a week later but was given medical leave for ten weeks. The doctor claimed she was not fit to work yet and she had to come for regular check-up every fortnight. When she went home she still had many stitches on her arms, legs, back, forehead and shoulder. The swelling was gone, but she felt sore. Then, the headaches never seem to leave her. They kept on coming and going.

When she reported back to work exactly 10 weeks later, she was greeted with chocolates, cards, e-cards, well wishers who personally came to her workstation and she would never forget the big banner put by the secretary right above the office entrance, it said 'WE WELCOME OUR STRONG SHEREEN BACK!'.

She almost laughed seeing those words, thinking 'You guys have no idea how it felt like to not remember anything about yourself', she just kept it to herself.



The roses started coming on the third day she started working again. Then, they came twice every week, always on the same days. Tuesday mornings and Thursday afternoons. They were all signed with the initial J.D. with no notes. Not even a Hi or Have A Nice Day.

After receiving the 3rd bouquet, Shereen thought she had a secret admirer, so she asked Melia, to which she answered,
'No, I don't think so. You never had one before the accident. Unless it's the doctor from the hospital.' Melia laughed hard, imagining the old and grumpy Dr. Harris who treated Shereen. Shereen smacked her fleshy thigh.

'You laughed too much, that's why your weight refused to go down, you know,' that was some cruel joke, but for Melia it's nothing as they came from her best friends' mouth.

'Frankly speaking, you'll never have a secret admirer because most of the times you were such a bitch,' Melia laughed again and then gave Shereen a crooked smile to which she gave a cursory stare.

'I was a bitch? How bad?' Shereen asked, as she didn't have any idea what type of girl she was before the accident.

'No, I was kidding. You were such an angel. Everybody loved you. But I don't remember you telling me about any secret admirer of yours,' finally Melia was being serious. She shouldn't be confusing Shereen considering her current condition.
The next Thursday afternoon, she received another bouquet of roses.

'They've started coming again, haven't they?' Rossa, the receptionist gave a knowing look.

'What do you mean by 'again' Rossa?' Shereen asked. 'Have I been receiving roses before I had the accident?' she was then getting even more confused. Rossa gave a heavy sigh.

'Oh, I thought you remembered,' Rossa paused. Suddenly she looked tensed. 'You've been getting roses for three weeks before the accident Shereen. They were all like this, signed with just an initial. You never told me who the sender was, although I asked many times.' she stopped there, not sure whether she should continue.

'Then?' Shereen's heart started thumping loudly. 'What happened on the third week?' she asked, her patience running thin.

'You had the accident... ' Rossa bent her head while her fingers massaging her temple.

'Oh, yeah. That, I remember,' Shereen picked her bouquet and when she was almost sure Rossa was not willing to share more information, she started walking towards the lift. Then Rossa called,

'Wait, Shereen!' Shereen stopped walking and turned her head.

'The Thursday before your accident you didn't get any roses,' she said and Shereen waited patiently for her to continue. It felt like ages before Rossa finished her sentence,

'That afternoon, you received a basket full of plumeria.' there was a long pause. Shereen inhaled, nervously. Then looked at Rossa for a good 5 seconds before she turned and walked.

'Thank you Rossa!' she shouted, afraid to look at her again. Not willing to hear any more stories that could lead her into a deeper confusion.



--- To be continued ---