I pinch the bridge of my nose as I think, my mind going back and forth of what I remember of this TV serial. I open my mouth to say something and then more images hit me. “I remember a dragon turning into a white walker.”

Aaliya presses her palms to her forehead and then she lowers them and grins at me. “Damien that was the last thing that happened in Season 7, which released two years ago.”

“No!” I rasp as hope surges inside me. “That’s not true!”

She takes my hands and clutches them tight. “Damien, it’s true. Google it if you want.”

“No, I believe you.” I can barely conceal my delight as I lift her up in the air and spin her in a circle. “I remembered something concrete. There is so much to hope for now!”

She laughs happily, the sound like music to my ears. I come to a stop and pull her down my body into the circle of my arms.

“Damien, what if you’ve forgotten people and places but you remember stuff like books and TV shows? Maybe even songs and movies. Oh! I’m so excited. Let’s start checking right now what all you remember. Let us...”

I stop her chatter by kissing her. She clings to me like she always does. “God! You are bloody brilliant! Why didn’t I think of something like this before?”

She rests her head on my shoulder and holds me close. “It’s all going to come back to you, Damien. Don’t ever lose faith.”

I breathe in her scent. It is familiar and so comforting. Being in her arms makes me content, like I have found an anchor in the madness that is my life. I can’t control the huge grin on my face thinking I remembered something from the last five years. It gives me hope that one day, perhaps, I will remember everything I have forgotten. Maybe Gabe was right and Aaliya is the key to unlocking that frozen part of my brain.

“Damien, there you are,” a shrill voice says from the door.

Both Aaliya and me freeze and move apart. We turn to the door in surprise as Celia strides towards us.

Damien

AALIYA TRIES TO TAKE a step away from me, but I put a hand on her waist, gluing her to my side. She gives me a puzzled look and I kiss her forehead. Even though we’ve decided to keep ourselves away from the public eye, the one person who I definitely want to inform that I’m unavailable is Celia.