Chapter 13

Riley's POV

When I woke up the next day, it was midday. Although the doctor had said the pills would make me drowsy, he had not mentioned that they would make me sleep longer hours than I used to. My sleep had not consisted of any dream, whatsoever. My body ached. I had lain still for a month and a half. I needed some exercise.

I agonizingly walked to the bathroom. I brushed my teeth and took a shower. I ate lunch in the kitchen, to mom's protests. She was determined to keep me in my room all day. Clearly, she thought I was not well enough to start exercising. Someone tell me where she studied to be a doctor!

After being shooed to my room, I decided to play computer games. I played for an hour. When I was certain I was getting butt sores, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in", I shouted lazily.

When I was certain an old frail woman with graying hair would walk in, a sexy brunette with tall legs did.

"Hey handsome", she said.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" I could not hide my surprise.

"I came to see you. I did say I would punish you", she replied.

"Hmm, what is my punishment?" I asked.

"Well, it's a punishment and a gift babe. We are going to watch a movie. The punishment is, the movie is a romantic comedy. The gift is, you get to spend time with me", she said.

I sighed.

"Do I really have to sit through a romantic comedy?" I asked.

"Yes", she said smiling, giving me a peck on the cheek.

"Does mom know you are here?" I asked.

"No! I sneaked in", she said.

I momentarily stared at her.

"I'm joking, she does. We met at the hospital. We bonded a little", she said.

"I brought the movie on my USB. We can play it on your computer. I brought the snacks too", she said, handing me a plastic bag I had not seen on her before.

The set-up was done in a few minutes. I had only one chair in the room so we sat on the bed. We moved the desk a bit to be able to see. I opened a bag of chips and we sat back and watched the movie. Well, she did, I occasionally just watched her. She was beautiful, intriguing. Her laugh was enchanting. At one time our eyes locked. Her lips moved closer to mine, and mine did not resist. They went closer until a needle could not pass between them. She sensually parted her lips, closing her eyes. The door chose that moment to open.

"Buddy, you will not believe what..." Casey's voice entered the room.

He stopped dead in his tracks when he spotted Mandy and I.

"I'm sorry; I didn't know you had company. Your mother did not mention it. I'm so sorry. Forget I was here", he said heading to the door.

"Casey! You don't have to go, you can join us", I shouted.

"No, no, I couldn't. I...my truck broke down, and my phone battery died. I just wanted to use the phone. I did, in the kitchen. I just thought that while I'm here, I should check up on you", he said.

I noticed he had grease on his t-shirt. No doubt he had tried fixing the truck, the little mechanic.

"You should stay and watch the movie with us", Mandy said, running her fingers on my thigh.

"I can't. I have to be there when my truck is towed", Casey said.

"Okay. Do you need a ride tomorrow?" Mandy asked.

"No, Calvin will take me to school. Thanks anyway", he said as he walked out and closed the door behind him.

Casey's POV

I walked as fast as I could without it showing that I was running away.

"Leaving so soon?" Riley's mom asked as soon as she saw me.

"Yeah, I have to get my truck towed", I said.

"Okay", she said.

I went out and closed the door. My hand went to my left cheek. It was burning. I was too light so I knew both cheeks had turned crimson with embarrassment. The previous scene replayed itself in my head. I had thought I would be fine with Riley being with Mandy, but I clearly was not, it was painful. I had not expected to find Mandy in Riley's room, never mind doing what they were doing! My heart shattered and a teardrop escaped my right eye.

I'd been so excited that Riley remembered me first, I'd forgotten about his relationship. I thought I had my best friend back, and I did. I stupidly wanted more.

I started walking, determined not to let another teardrop escape. I walked for a while, before remembering that my truck needed to be towed. I had not lied about my truck being broken but I had lied about my phone battery being dead. It was two-thirds full.

I made the call and they promised they would not take more than 10 minutes. I had not gone to Riley's house because I needed to use the phone. I had gone there because I'd wanted to see him. My truck had broken down a couple of blocks away on my way to Riley's house so I had decided to make my journey on foot and get my truck towed later.

Finally I arrived at my truck's location. I got in and leaned my head against the steering wheel. Despite knowing about Riley and Mandy's relationship, I had hoped Riley would see it as a mistake and realize he loved me instead. I was so naïve and a fool!!

A few minutes later, a tow-truck arrived. I got home safe and decided to spend the rest of the day in my room, reading up on cars. I was not the least happy I could not fix my truck.

*

Riley's POV

The door closed behind Casey.

"Now, where were we?" Mandy purred.

I sighed.

"What's wrong?" Mandy asked.

"I didn't tell Casey about us. I should have before he saw us", I said.

"Relax, I told him. Besides he cannot hold it against you, you have amnesia. To you he's like a stranger", she said, her hand on my stomach.

I held the hand on my stomach in mine.

"About that, I actually do remember, everything", I said.

"What? When did that happen?" she asked.

I let go of her hand.

"Last night", I said.

Details of the previous night visited my mind. I had completely forgotten all about them, about the book.

"...and you thought of telling me now?" she pouted.

"I was going to tell you, I got distracted. It's your fault; I got distracted by your beauty, your smile..." I lied.

"If you are trying to sweet-talk me, it's working", she said winking.

"I'm glad", I said.

We watched the movie in silence for a while. Mandy turned to me.

"Riley, does it change anything? I mean, now that you remember your life before the coma, do you, are you, are we... You know like, the previous days were..."

I could not stand to hear her stutter any longer. If I did not stop her, the question would go on and on. Could she not come out and ask directly the question she wanted to ask. I knew it would go like, "Riley, now that you remember, are we still together?"

I interrupted. "We're fine". We weren't. I didn't like her as much as when I couldn't things. I had no romantic feelings for her, but I was drawn to her. I needed to know why, but there were more pressing questions.

She smiled. I shifted on the bed slightly, turned and faced her.

"Mandy, I know about your dad. He's not dead, is he?" I said.

Her expression turned to anger.

"Cass told you? That slimy bitch!!! He told you after he told me he wouldn't tell anyone? Wow, what a friend he is!" she said furiously.

"What? What are you talking about? Casey did not tell me anything about you or your father" I said.

"Then, how the hell do you know about my dad?" she asked, still angry.

"He's famous, isn't he? I made a connection", I said.

I had never heard of her father before I did the internet search.

"Mom thought we could get away from prying eyes, she was so wrong! I guess you know about the bankruptcy and the book! Why the hell did he have to write that darn book?" she screamed.

"What book?" I pried.

I saw regret cross her face. It was clear she had not meant to talk about the book. She cast her eyed down.

"No one knows about it, well, a few people do. Newspapers and magazines write that my father lost his money because of depression; they don't know that he had lost a lot of money before the depression. He wrote a book. He was obsessed with the book. He claimed everything he wrote had happened and that he wanted to warn the world. He used a lot of money to make copies. The doctor told my mother he was insane. To protect his reputation, my mom organized for the copies to be destroyed. Dad was furious; he started not paying attention to his work. As a result, he lost billions", she said sadly.

I was lost for words. She looked so sad it almost tore me apart to think that I had reminded her. I hated fishing for information, but I had to know.

"Nathaniel Baker?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Lands of Azuria, is that the book?" I asked.

She nodded again.

My eyes were in the process of getting wider when I stopped myself. I reminded myself that she could not know about me. So the person who had written about me was Mandy's father. He had claimed everything was true. That meant he was the Nathan in the story. That meant he had met my mother! I had to get in contact with him.

"Are you in contact with him? Your father?" I asked.

"No", she said.

"Come here", I said enveloping her in a hug.

I did not really like hugs, but with the way she looked, I felt like hugging her. After all, I had reminded her.

"Do you know where he is? Is there any way I could get in contact with him?" I asked.

Her head emerged from my chest.

"Why?" she asked.

"I...I..." stuttered.

There was a knock on the door. Mom walked in after a few seconds.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but Riley needs to rest, doctor's orders", she said.

"Right, I'll see you soon", Mandy said to me as she kissed me on the cheek.

She passed mom who held the door for her. When Mandy had disappeared from sight mom turned to me.

"Is she your girlfriend?" she asked.

"Mom, teenagers do not discuss such things with their parents".

Mom gave me the "oh, really?" look and walked out, closing the door.

I sighed. I had to get in contact with Mandy's dad. It was something that simply needed to be done. It seemed unlikely; I would not bump into him in the street. He was based in England, the chances of getting in contact with him without Mandy's help was zero. If they were not in contact, it was highly possible she didn't know of his whereabouts or how to contact him. I had to talk to her mother. That did not seem like an easy task at all.

I sighed again. There was something nagging me at the back of my mind. Ever since Mandy appeared before my presence, something in me had not felt right. It was like my body was anti-her. It was like she was causing some sort of interference in me. It could have been my imagination, but it had felt real. Now that she was not there, the feeling had disappeared.

Remembering how I had levitated the book the other day, I decided to test my powers one more time. I searched for my phone and set it on my bed. Remembering what happened to the book, I looked for another object to levitate. If I broke my phone, I would be adding another object to my to-buy list. Mom could not afford to buy me a new one and I did not yet have an idea as to how I was going to pay for a car. I could not add a new phone to that list.

Finding my yo-yo on the overcrowded desk, I decided to use it. I concentrated all my energy on it and gave it simple instructions in my head. It rose gracefully. I narrowed my eyes and controlled its direction. I made it speed up and then move slower. It was amazing. You would swear I did not have a problem a month and a half ago. Deliberately breaking contact with it, it fell on the bed. I went on to test my other powers, they worked just fine.

With my mild powers working well, I decided to test out my more advanced powers, one of which was instant transmission. Instant transmission allowed me to instantly disappear from one place and appear in another instantly, and I had Aqua St Claire Park in mind. I felt so claustrophobic in that house. I dialed Casey and asked him to meet me there. It was a bit late and of course he reminded me of it, but he eventually agreed to come.