Broken and Fearless // C.B.

Chapter 81

[Picture above is Colby's mood for the last chapter and a part of this.

And y'all get a second chapter because I hate leaving on a mean cliffhanger like that.]

Juliet's POV:

I glanced at the window to see the young man who claimed he knew me. He was certainly cute, but I had no desire in pursuing a relationship.

I looked back at the nurse. "Can you please send him away?"

She nodded and walked outside to talk to him. He looked at me sadly and walked away.

A day later, I was discharged. I started calling for an Uber, but realized I had no idea where to go. L.A. definitely wasn't Boston.

I searched through my contacts and found Colby's number.

"Hi, Juliet."

His voice sounded harsh.

"Hi. Um, I'm outside the hospital and I don't know where to go."

"Okay. I'll come get you."

"Thanks. And I'm sorry for how I treated you. You seem like a sweet guy."

The tone of his voice changed, almost like he was smiling. "See you in a bit, Jules. Sorry, Juliet." He hung up.

I had a weird fluttery feeling, one I couldn't explain, when he called me Jules. It sounded like it was something special to him.

Colby arrived in a red Toyota Corolla. He gave me a tight smile and said, "Get in."

I climbed into the car and glanced down at my folded hands. "I'm sorry for my behavior the other day. You seem like a nice guy, and that was uncalled for."

He shook his head. "It's okay. I was warned. You wanna go anywhere?"

I bit my lip, hesitant to ask.

"Juliet, go ahead and ask. It's okay."

I glanced at him. "I am hungry. And I could go for some coffee..."

"Is Chick-Fil-A okay?"

I nodded and he smiled. "Great. We'll go there and then we'll go to Dunkin'."

"How'd you--Oh. You know what I like. Right. Um, would you mind introducing me to your friends? You talk a lot about them and I'd like to meet them."

He laughed lightly. "Sure. Go ahead and put on music, if you'd like."

"Uh, okay." I looked through my music and soon, Hero / Heroine by Boys Like Girls filled the speakers.

Colby seemed surprised and I frowned. "What?"

"I'm just surprised it's not some of your usual."

"My usual?"

"My Chemical Romance or Panic! at the Disco. That sort."

"Pop punk is pop punk."

"That it is, Jules. Juliet."

"Colby, if it's easier for you to call me Jules, go ahead. It sounds stupid to say, but it makes me weirdly happy. Like, I get a fluttery feeling in the pit of my stomach."

He shook his head. "It doesn't sound stupid, Jules. Honestly, it makes me hopeful. It seems you still vaguely remember us and there's a chance for you to regain your memory."

"I hope so. 'Cause I hate you knowing me and me not knowing you. You said we're engaged, right? We've never uh--you know."

"No, we've never done it. You want to wait until marriage and I'm okay with waiting."

We reached Chick-Fil-A and he said, "Get whatever you want."

I got a chicken sandwich, without pickles, and a fruit cup. I got a lemonade as well.

Before I could pull out my wallet, Colby said, "Don't even think about it. I'm paying for food and coffee."

"Colby, I--"

He smiled. "Nope. Don't even think about it."

I sighed. "Fine."

After getting food, we made our way to Dunkin' and I got a large regular, as I usually did.

Colby got a frou-frou drink, as he told me he didn't like coffee. His words felt strangely like déjá-vu, but I brushed the thought away.

We drove to the apartment he said we lived in together and entered.

I looked around the apartment once we'd gotten inside and frowned. "This is unfamiliar."

He smiled lightly. "Familiarity will come in time."

After a moment, he said, "We've got pizza night tonight. Are you up for going? It'll give you a chance to meet my friends."

I nodded. "Um, sure. Where does--"

"Sam and Jake, another friend of mine, live in this apartment building."

A couple hours later, we walked to Sam's apartment and Colby opened the door, ushering me in first and I shook my head.

Colby walked in first and a blond guy greeted, "Hey, guys! Glad you made it. Hi, Juliet. I'm glad you're okay."

I stepped behind Colby nervously and he smiled. "That's Sam."

"Oh. Hi, Sam," I said quietly.

Sam frowned, obviously confused and Colby said, "She lost her memory in the accident. She doesn't remember any of L.A."

"Two years?" Sam asked.

"Yeah."

"So she doesn't remember TFIL?"

I frowned. "What's TFIL?"

"It's a bucket list channel created by our "uncle" Elton."

"Oh. Um, would you mind introducing me to people, Colby?"

He nodded. "Sure. Come on."

We walked up to a blue-haired girl and he said, "This is Sam's girlfriend, Kat."

Kat tilted her head. "You don't remember me? We're good friends."

"Uh, she lost L.A. memories in a bad accident."

"Oh, my God! I'm so glad you're okay!" She hugged me tightly.

I pulled away. "Uh, look, I don't know you, and I'd rather not hug people I don't know."

Kat looked at me sadly. "Right. I'm sorry."

After meeting everyone else, those being Mike, Tara, Jake, Ariya, Kevin, and others I didn't remember, I decided to go back to the apartment. I retraced the steps we'd taken and found my way back.

Colby appeared moments later. "Hey. You okay?"

"Yeah, just overwhelmed, I guess. You should go back. They're you're friends."

He shook his head. "Nah, I am actually tired. Would you like to watch something? We're midway through season eight of Supernatural. You do remember that show, right?"

"Sam? Dean? Castiel? Of course I remember that show."

"Odd that you remember the show and not your life in L.A."

"Well, fiction is an escape from reality, Colbs. Whoa. Where'd that come from?"

"I don't know. Do you remember anything?"

"Just today."

"Huh. Well, I'm sure you'll remember in time."

Colby started the episode, which was called Freaks and Geeks.

I felt my eyes closing and a blanket soon covered me.

"Sleep well, Juliet," Colby whispered before walking away.