Rewind

by Mariam Alaa

  Yours,

  Adam

  Ever since I sent this email, my nerves have been all irked up because Evangeline hasn’t texted, emailed or even called me for the past three days. Needless to say, I’m getting worried. It’s not like her to not respond within two days, and I don’t want to sound like a creep, but I would’ve driven straight to Liverpool if it weren’t for my inner battle. Even though the greater part inside of me is encouraging me to hire a private jet to Liverpool, there’s some other part asking me to be patient because if I go there and she’s fine, I will really look creepy and overprotective, and we’re not even dating yet.

  She’s fine.

  I won’t lie and say that my heart doesn’t race at the sound of my doorbell ringing or that emotions don’t drown me whenever my cellphone rings because they do. Whenever there’s someone on the door, my heart starts beating a little over the norm at the thought that that someone at the door might be her. That’s how much control she has over me, and it didn’t matter whether she was Evelyn or Evangeline because for me, she’ll always be the same Evie I fell in love with.

  The doorbell rings, throwing my heart off guard.

  Slowly, I walk towards the front door, twist the door knob and open it. Any excitement that was uprising inside of me instantly dims, and I fight the disappointment overtaking my features at the sight of the Papa John’s delivery man standing with the chicken ranch pizza box in his hands.

  “Hello, sir.” The middle-aged man greets me, earning a slight nod from me.

  I take the pizza from him as I ask, “How much does it cost?”

  “Twenty pounds, sir.”

  After paying him, I tell him to keep the change and make my way back to the dining table. I open the cardboard box and become instantly hit with the familiar mouthwatering aroma, begging me to take a bite. As I was about to sink my teeth in its crust, my phone lights up, alerting me that a text has been delivered. I let go of the pizza slice I cut and pull my phone from the table with my other hand, secretly praying it was Evangeline.

  Adrien: I’m not feeling well, Adam.

  Adam: Everything okay?

  Adrien: Yeah, everything’s fine. It’s just some fever; can we postpone this hangout to tomorrow night? I’m really sorry man; it’s just I can’t even leave the bed.

  Adam: No, it’s okay; don’t worry about it. Do you want me to come over?

  Adrien: No, it’s fine. Mom’s handling it pretty well.

  Adam: Okay, I hope you feel well soon.

  Adrien: Yeah, I hope so too.

  I let go of the phone, placing it back on the dining table. Before I get the chance to take the pizza slice I previously cut and eat it, a soft knock to the door stops me. ‘Now what?’ I huff out a frustrated breath as the thought enters through my mind. I hate this. I hate how every time a knock sounds on the door or the doorbell rings I’m hit with false hope.

  “Yes?” I yell out in irritation as I swing the door open.

  “Hi.” A soft melodic voice, that I missed hearing so much, says.

  It’s then that I have to do a double take to make sure that I’m not hallucinating. My heart beats level up at the sight that I’m met with. Right in front of me, the same familiar face, that I’ve grown accustomed to falling in love with over and over again, stands. The straight long blond hair that used to reach her mid back is now a little bit less straight and a little bit more wavy; the dark chocolate brown eyes I missed melting into are glinting with a sudden new brightness in them, and her full plum lips were stretched into a beaming smile, showing off her full set of spotless white teeth.

  She is wearing a black beanie, a white scarf along with a pair of long black leather boots. Covering her body was a secured long light-colored camel coat that reached right above her knees. My eyes move searchingly on her hand, and I smile as I spot the familiar silver ring right where it belongs.

  “Evangeline?” I ask in disbelief, terrified at the thought that my eyes may be playing tricks on me.

  “I missed you, Adam.”

  “I missed you too,” I reply with a soft smile and ask confused, “Why didn’t you answer my calls? I’ve been this close to booking a flight right to Liverpool.”

  She lets out a laugh; the one where she throws her head a little bit back and her eyes twinkle with genuine happiness as she explains, “I was afraid you’d do something like this, so I had someone track you at all times these past three days to make sure you don’t leave London until I came. I just wanted to surprise you.”

  “Oh yeah? You did a damn good job at that then.” I chuckle lightly as I ask, “So who did you hire to babysit me from afar?”

  She turns her head around, pointing to the other side of the street with a small smile as she waves to the person sitting in the driver’s side of the very familiar blue Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita.

  My jaw drops slightly as I spot Adrien waving at me whilst giving me a small smirk. He came up with this fever thing just to keep me locked up in my own house? My heart warms up at his little action, so I offer him a small nod as I smile at him- a genuine one at that. Rolling his eyes at us, he starts driving his car away from his parking spot.

  “So everything’s good with Adrien?” I ask her with hope sparkling in my eyes.

  “I’m just trying to find true peace, you know? If you’re willing to give him a chance like you wrote me in the last email then I’m willing to do so myself. Besides, he’s really starting to work up on fixing himself; I can see it.” She sighs.

  I nod. “Yeah, he is.”

  “I wanted to tell you something.” She suddenly looks anxious as she fiddles with the ring on her finger.

  “What is it?” I give her a concerned look.

  Her eyes look away from the floor, slowly rising up until they meet mine as she says, “When I was in Liverpool, I started visiting all the places I’ve been to before I lost my memory including my old house and the room I’ve been admitted to in the hospital and so on, and I don’t know if this is a good thing or not, but I’ve been getting some of my memories back lately.”

  “W-what?” My eyes widen in disbelief.

  “Y-yes, I guess the only reason why my memories were truly blocked is because my parents have kept me locked away so long from the only place that could’ve helped me retrieve them. At least that’s what my psychiatrist said,” she demonstrates.

  “You’re seeing a psychiatrist?” I ask her confused, “Why didn’t you tell me you were starting to get your memories back?”

  “I don’t know.” She removes her beanie, averting her gaze to the ground. “I guess I was nervous; I didn’t even tell my parents yet.”

  I move forward, approaching her more before I raise my hand, gently tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “Why would you be nervous, Evangeline?”

  A tiny blush appears on her pale cheeks. “Because even though the memories are blurry and even though they’re faded, I kind of remember you now.”

  “And?” A playful smile decorates my face, realizing what she might actually be nervous about, and I resist the urge to smirk.

  “I just don’t know if we should pick up from where I left as Evelyn or pick up from where I left as Evangeline.” Her blush deepens as she admits.

  “Well, how about we start over?” I offer, trying to ease her worry.

  She tilts her head, completely facing me now as she nods, smiling. “I like that.”

  I stretch out my right hand as I say, “My name is Adam, and you are?”

  She lets out a beautiful laugh as if thinking ‘we’re actually doing this?’ before she places her hand in mine, shaking it slowly as she replies, “It’s nice to meet you Adam. I don’t really know what my name is right now, but you can call me Evie.”

  And that was the beginning of another story, but it didn’t really matter to me. It didn’t matter to me that this was the third time I introduce myself to her, and it didn’t matter to me that we’re starting over again- not the least bits because all
that I cared about right at this moment was that I knew for sure that she’ll be in it.

  She’ll be in my life, and that’s all I cared about.

  That my life will revolve around her, and she’ll be right at its center.

  ~THE END~

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Mariam Alaa has lived almost all her life in Egypt. She’s almost eighteen, meaning that she’s heading to college. Even though it took her a lot to decide on a major she truly likes, she has chosen engineering. In the midst of her junior year, she was contemplating whether or not to take writing as a career since she has an absolute passion for writing. In the end, though, she decided to major in engineering like she planned to and expand her writing passion into a side job. ‘Rewind’ is the first complete story she’s ever finished, and she’s currently writing a new book ‘A Spark of Faith’ which may take her a while, but she promises that once she’s done with it, it’ll be out as soon as possible. Two characteristics that she absolutely loathes are the lack of confidence and constant self-doubting which may actually be the same thing. She almost had to deal with them every day in her life, but she’s telling you that it’s a normal part of being human; you just have to fight it with believing in yourself and what you’re capable of. Throughout her ‘Rewind’ journey, she has doubted herself in the middle multiple times and at certain points, she was terrified of losing motivation. ‘Determination’, ‘will’, and ‘dedication’ are the three greatest terms that will always empower you to do the impossible as long as they’re inside of you. She loves dogs and likes cats, and that’s it.

  Visit her Instagram author’s account and say hi: Passion_on.line Follow the account if you want to remain updated with her latest books and offers!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I don’t know from where exactly to start, but I have to give a huge thanks to my family for supporting me throughout this journey; to my sister who has read my entire book and empowered me with her beyond positive feedback to continue writing; to my mom who, in the midst of her all-day duties and work, has somehow managed to include reading my chapters in it; to my nine-year-old brother who would constantly nag me to spoil him the plot twists, and to my dad, whose both sarcasm and support have inspired me to continue writing even more. An appreciative thanks to my cousin, Nada, who was surprisingly super supportive; I love you dude, and the ‘Thank you of the year’ award would have to be handed to my big-hearted cousin, Mostafa. Thank you for being the first customer I receive; thank you for being the first one to buy my book, and thank you for doing it for my mental support- because honestly we all know you won’t even read it.

  Big thanks to my best friend and sister, Malak Ragaie, who was my backbone support throughout this lovely yet challenging journey. Thank you for being my bestfriend because I’d honestly be lost without you. You were always there for me whenever I felt like I wasn’t good enough, and you were always a phone call away- literally. Thank you for reading my book and giving me the cutest feedback ever. You’re the best! Same goes for all my close friends, Rama Jana, Batool, Farida, Nourhan, Laila, Nouran, Mariam, Sara, Nesma, Sandra and Clara, for encouraging me to finish my book and for being beyond supportive throughout my journey whether by simply reading a prologue or just motivating me with a few meaningful words. Thank you for showering me with your love and support. Thank you for everything.

  Last but most importantly, I would like to give the biggest thanks to one of closest people to my heart, Mariam Emad. Thank you for everything. You have been there since the start of my journey till the very end. Thank you for reading every chapter, for giving me feedback every single time, and for removing any inch of self-doubt my mind was dealing with using your cutest voice notes.

  Thank you to everyone who has helped me without even knowing; I truly appreciate it, and I love you all so much.

  Till next time.