All You Ever Wanted

Chapter 14- Memories?

Ashlyn's POV:

    As soon as I opened my eyes again, I saw my sister sitting beside my bed. I licked my lips, trying to moisten the very dry skin.
    "Ana? You came?"
    "Of course I did. You are my sister. What happened? I mean, what do you remember?"
    "Not much. Except what the doctors told me. I was walking to my car, when some sleazy guy tried to assault me. Apparently I was able to fight him off. But when he didn't get what he wanted, he shoved me so hard that I fell and cracked my head on the sidewalk. The next thing I remember is waking up in New Orleans hospital and now here."

    "But what about your life before that? What do you remember of that?"
    "Not a lot. I mean, I remember you, our parents and that we live in Louisiana. A little about our early life, growing up together. I also have this nagging sense of a best friend. But of the memories that are coming back, I can never quite see a face."
    "But what about Hunter?"
    "Hunter?"

    "You don't remember Hunter Hayes?"
    "No, should I?"
    "Yes, you definitely should. You said, you had a very faint memory of a best friend but that you can't see a face, right?"
    "I did."
    "He's your best friend. And for the last 3 years, he's been your boyfriend."

    "I have a boyfriend? I just wish I remembered."
    "I, actually, brought along your journals. Don't worry I didn't read through them, but I thought they might help you remember. And I grabbed a few pictures from the desk in your room at Mom and Dad's place."
    "Is he in some of them?"

    "You mean Hunter? Yeah, he is. Ash, you met him when you were 5. The two of you were best friends from then until he turned 18 and moved to Nashville. He's a singer/songwriter now and has a pretty big fanbase. You reconnected with him 3 years later when you were 21."
    "You should go home and rest. I'll be fine here. Just leave my journals. I'll read through them. Maybe you're right, maybe they'll help me remember."

    I finally convinced her to go home to get some sleep. For a while I flipped channels on my tv until I found a rerun of 'CSI: Miami'. I half watched as I flipped to the first entry of my oldest journal. It lay in my lap as I stared at the tv. As the credits rolled, I picked up the journal and began to read what I'd written at age 5.

     'Momma gave me this book for my fifth birthday today. I had a small party, just a couple friends. I made a new friend too. The family next door has one child, a five year old boy named Hunter. He's a month older than me. And he loves music about as much as I do. I think we could be best friends forever. Momma helped me make and glue this collage of me and my new best friend right here so I won't ever forget today.'

    I stared at that picture that the 14 year old version of myself had left here. So this was the best friend Ana had told me about. The next morning as soon as I woke up, I skimmed to where I stopped in my journal. I had read for hours last night, all the way until my sixteenth birthday. I opened to that entry and began to read again.

    'I turned 16 a week ago. I'm also going to graduate two years early. I know most girls would be thrilled to go to their senior prom. And I would be too, if I was like every other 16 year old girl. But I love music so much that Hunter and I are going to be playing at the fair downtown. And it happens to be the same night as prom. There is something I've never told anyone. Not even my sister. I have a crush on my best friend. I can't ever tell him that though.'

    'I can't believe how much has changed in the last 2 years. As soon as I graduated, I started working at my parents' music studio. They're not musical at all, though, so I manage most of the day to day things. I love my job, when I'm not busy I get to just be in a recording booth playing guitar. I've actually written a number of songs of my own in my private sessions. The only thing that could make my life better now, is if my best friend was here to share it. Hunter left to move to Nashville with his parents almost 3 months ago now. He didn't even come say 'goodbye' before heading out. I ended up finding out when I thought one day, I would stop by their Louisiana house. (Yes, they still own it.) I went in to find no one there, but all the belongings that they didn't take with them were there.'