Chapter 69: Who Is Mari?

Chapter 69: Who Is Mari? Abigail’s breath hitched at his words. Her heart, which had been racing with a mix of frustration and anticipation, suddenly felt lighter. Warmer. But she refused to let herself be swept away by his sentiment. Not yet. Not when she still had so many unanswered questions. She took a small step back, creating a sliver of space between them so that she could focus on what was most important to her. "That’s nice and all, but I still need answers, Jamal." Her voice was firm, but softer than before. "You really don’t remember me?" Jamal asked, and she shook her head. Jamal sighed. He couldn’t even feel disappointed since she had admitted earlier that she had only even remembered her own name not long ago. "Well, you were only a kid back then, so I guess it is understandable that you can’t remember me," Jamal said with understanding. Jamal resisted the urge to chuckle when she glared at him. "I was only a kid?" She asked with a scoff, not liking his tone. This time he chuckled, amused that she still reacted the same way to being called a kid. "Yes. You were a kid," he repeated. "And I guess you were an adult then?" She asked dryly and he grinned. "No. But I was an older kid," he said with a shrug, and she rolled her eyes. Jamal chuckled, unable to understand what she had against being called a kid. Back then he had not been able to understand why it upset her, and even now he couldn’t. "What are you laughing about? What’s funny?" She asked, eyeing him with mild annoyance. "Nothing has to be funny for me to smile. I’m smiling right now because I’m happy. It’s not everyday you realize that your first love wish actually came true," he said, and her heart skipped a beat. First love? Dawn was his first love? She was his first love? Her heart raced at the thought that she was her first love’s first love. She almost laughed at the thought. What would he think when he finds out about Josh? She mused as she looked at him. He looked quite overwhelmed already and he seemed like a very emotional person. She decided that she was not going to reveal it all to him right now. She would wait until she was very certain that he had what it would take to fight Ryan without getting hurt. Oblivious to her thoughts, Jamal exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face as if trying to wipe away the last remnants of his overwhelming emotions. Then he smiled at her. "Come sit down. You can ask me anything you wish to know. I know you have so many questions. I’ll answer as many as I can," he said even though he had so many questions of his own. Answering her questions was more important than satisfying his curiosity at that moment. She had lost her memories and needed his help. He will satisfy his curiosity first and then ask her all he needed to know later. And then he would decide what next to do after that. Abigail settled down in her seat again, while Jamal returned to his position on the bed. Abigail studied him for a moment, as if deciding where to start. "Did Lucy... I mean the stuffed panda. Did it belong to me?" She asked, deciding to start from there since it seemed like it. Jamal nodded, "Yes. And you named it Lucy back then, too." Abigail’s eyes widened. "I did?" She asked, understanding better why he had been so interested in the reason she named it Lucy. Jamal nodded, "You named it after Lucy," he said with a soft smile, "I guess you don’t remember Lucy," he said as he took out his phone. "Who is Lucy? Was she our teacher?" She asked, and Jamal laughed. "No. She is someone we both loved and fought over. The panda was a gift from her to you," he said, pulling out a picture of Lucy and Tom on his phone which he had taken at Lucy’s forty-fifth birthday some months ago. "That’s Lucy," he said as he handed the phone to her. Abigail gazed at the picture of the lady who seemed to be in her forties, "She looks so beautiful and classy." Jamal smiled and nodded, "Yeah. That’s the perfect way to describe Lucy. She owns the fashion store I took you to earlier. And the man with her is her husband, Tom. He owns this hotel," he said, and her brows pulled together as she gazed at Tom and then her gaze returned to Lucy. "Is she alive? Was she my mother’s friend?" She asked curiously. "No. They weren’t friends," Jamal said, and she frowned as she looked up at him. "Then how did I know her? How did I know you? Were we classmates? Neighbors?" She asked, confused. "This is somewhat complicated. I met you through them. You’re related to Tom. You are his aunt," Jamal said, and Abigail’s jaw dropped as she looked from Jamal to Tom’s photo and then she laughed. "I am his aunt?" She asked, pointing from herself to Tom with a laugh of disbelief. "Yeah. More like his step aunt. Your mother had you for his grandfather," Jamal explains and wrinkled her nose. "Ew! His grandfather? Not even his father? Why would my mother have me for such an old man’s grandfather?" She asked and Jamal laughed, amused by her question and the line of her thought. "Well, I’m not your Mom so I can’t answer that. But I was told it caused quite a mess and issues that resulted from it is the reason your mom cut the Hank family off from reaching you," he said, and heart skipped a beat. "Hank family? Is that the name of my paternal family?" She asked, and he nodded. "Yes," Jamal said with a proud smile, "the Hank family is a really large and beautiful family. And they’ve all been worried about you for so long. They tried really hard to see you but..." Jamal drifted off when something occurred to him. "Did you communicate with Mari five years ago and ask her to tell me to forget about you because you didn’t remember me and what we had was a silly mistake?" He asked, and she frowned. "Who is Mari? What are you talking about?" She asked, wondering where that was coming from since she had been enjoying the revelation. Jamal swore under his breath when what happened five years ago suddenly dawned on him.