Between Heaven and Hell
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

A year later...

JONATHAN stepped on the break when the light turned red. His eyes wandered as he waited for the green light to appear.

After he was dismissed from the hospital, he confined himself inside the house. It took Jonathan a year before he went out again. It not for the new quest Helene assigned to him, he would not come out of the house. "Ah, what's taking it so long..." He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.

And then, suddenly, a female figure who got off from a taxi caught his attention. The woman entered a coffee shop just across the street. Jonathan's heart started beating erratically, and there was this voice at the back of his head that tells him to follow her. He immediately pulled over on the side of the road when the stoplight turned green and got off his car abruptly.

Jonathan entered the coffee shop. His eyes searched for the woman that he saw a while ago. He found her occupying a table at the right corner. To his astonishment, it was Andie. Yes, as in Andie in the flesh!

Because if he just saw her spirit again, he would not see her talking to the barista for her order. And Jonathan was certain that it was indeed Andie. His heart would not want to jump off her untrimmed chest if it was someone else. And how could he forget that charming yet innocent face?

He fished his phone from his pocket and called his cousin.

"What's taking you so long, Kuya? We've been="

"How dare you lie to me?" he said through gritted teeth. "She's alive, isn't she?"

Oreo did not answer. Then, he heard him sigh.

"I-I'm sorry, Kuya. I thought it would be better for both of "

Jonathan hung up. He did not want to hear his apology for now.

He had enough. Living for a year, knowing that Andie was dead felt like hell. Jonathan was grieving and blaming himself continuously for nothing. Imagine how stupid he looked back then.

He sauntered towards a table near Andie. From there, he watched her as she engaged in a conversation over the phone. And then, a couple of minutes later, a man dressed in an office suit arrived. She welcomed him with a hug and kiss on the cheek. The jealousy that was consuming Jonathan that moment seemed like poison, killing him.

He held his breath when Andie's gaze suddenly reverted in his direction. But she failed to notice him as if she did not know him.

Impossible!

But then, he realized something afterwards. Could it be that she lost her memories?

"GOD, I thought we'll not see each other again anymore..." Elaija said with teary eyes.

Elaija Fortalejo was the editor-in-chief of that magazine company that she worked for back in the days. According to him, he was also friends with her because he was her senior back in college. Andie hugged Elaija and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Have a seat."

"How have you been?" he asked after they were both seated.

"I'm doing fine now after a series of physical and psychological therapies for a year." She clasped her hands above the table. "And now, I'd like to move forward."

Her father was forcing her to live abroad, to start a new life. But she did not like that idea. For a year, Andie felt like an object drifting in space. Some of her memories came back, but a huge part of them was still missing. She did not like a reset. What she wanted was to get her old life back. So, she decided to get back on track, with or without her memories. The doctor said there was no cure for amnesia. But for Andie, the remedy lies in one's self. She had to pick those fragments of memories on her own.

"Will you still allow me to come back to work?" she asked.

Elaija cupped her hands and lightly squeezed them.

"You're always welcome to come back to Spades, Andie. Anyway, have you talked to your publisher?"

Her brows furrowed. Her parents did not mention anything about a publisher.

"P-publisher?"

"Well, aside from working on a magazine company, you also write novels. But it's a secret that only you and I know about. I thought you remembered that since you recalled your work in Spades."

"Can you help me reach that publisher?"

"Sure. I'll ask them to set a meeting."

"Thanks for your help, Elaija." Andie smiled.

She raised her cup and took a sip of coffee. As she sipped her coffee, she felt that feeling of being watched by someone. Her gaze reverted to the table near them, and saw a man staring at her. Their eyes met, but she managed to ignore him. The way he stared at her made her heart pound against her chest. Does he know her?

"Elaija." She put her cup down. "The man on your ten o'clock, he's looking at me. Do you think he knows me?"

He simply turned in that direction and looked at her again.

"The world is full of filthy creatures, dear. Beware," he warned.

"I'll keep that in mind." She heaved a sigh.

Elaija has a point. She had to be careful. Especially she has amnesia. There is a possibility that people would take advantage of her.

"Andie, I have to go back to the office. I'll wait for you this week to report for work. Is that okay with you?"

She nodded.

When Elaija left, she opened her laptop and kept herself busy reading the articles she wrote in the past. She was too focused on reading that she did not keep track of time. It was past five in the afternoon when she left the coffee shop. Andie was waiting for a taxi across the street when she saw the man at the coffee shop walking towards her. Her heart started racing. She was not sure if it was because of panic and fear or it could be something else. Since she had amnesia, Andie could not trust what she feels. But her feet seemed to have a life of their own. They started running. She turned to the narrow road beside the coffee shop, only to replace herself trapped. It was a dead end. "P-please, don't..." she mumbled.

She could only utter a prayer when she felt the wall against her back.

It really creeped her out that he stayed at the coffee shop for that long, and now he was following her.

Minutes passed, and he was just staring at her just like what he did at the coffee shop. Andie noticed that his eyes were somber. He was trying to communicate with her through those eyes, but she failed to read what was on his mind. Then, without a word, he turned his back on her and walked away.

JONATHAN failed to contain his emotions when he got home. He was not able to go on his quest because he stayed in the coffee shop and watched Andie. If only she recognized him, he would not leave her side. He missed her crazy... But the look in her eyes made him feel that he was now a stranger in her life.

"Oreo!" he called his cousin the moment he entered the apartment.

"Where have you been, Ku-"

He grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Why did you do that, huh? Why did you make me believe that she's dead?" Jonathan laughed faintly. "I must've been a fool because I believed in you! All this time, I'm grieving for a fake loss!" "I-I'm so sorry, Kuya..."

"Sorry? You made me look like a fool, Oreo!" he snarled at him.

"Believe me, I didn't mean to lie to you." His cousin heaved a deep sigh. "When I went to the hospital to check on Andie, she wasn't there anymore. I tried my best to reach Auntie Marissa, and that was when I learned that woke up when you were still in coma. Andie has amnesia, and it was a total wipeout. She couldn't even remember her name. Your mother begged me not to tell you that she's alive. Her dad doesn't want you to be close to her. She said they'll be sending Andie to abroad once her therapies are done. But now, I guess it didn't happen. Forgive me, Kuya. I thought it would be better if you stay away from each other's life"

"How dare you decide what's good for me..." He freed Oreo.

Jonathan got his cousin's point. But still, it was wrong that he lied to him. He lost his will to live... for nothing.

He locked himself inside his room and spent the hours in solitude.

ANDIE was now back to work. But then, it was too early to say that her life was back to normal.

"Dear..."

She looked up at Elaija when he showed up beside her station.

"Yes?" she said as her fingers continued tapping on the keyboard.

"It's Friday once again. Maybe this time you can join the team dinner."

"I"

"Stop! I don't wanna hear another reason why you can't go with us. I won't take no for an answer today."

Andie just shrugged. "Fine."

He closed the lid of her laptop. "Then get your ass up and come with us."

Andie glanced at the door and saw the whole team waiting for her. Everyone's beckoning her to stand up. Laughing, she grabbed her bag to join them.

Elaija brought them to a buffet restaurant. After dinner, they headed to a karaoke bar, where they drank and sing the night away. Somehow, it was kinda refreshing for Andie because she got to spend her time with other people, who at first were all strangers to her.

She soon felt the call of nature, so she stood up to go to the comfort room.

"Where are you going?" Elaija held her by the wrist.

"I need to pee," she said.

He freed her wrist, and soon she was out of the karaoke room.

Andie bumped into someone when she turned to the hallway that leads to the comfort room. She looked at the person whom she bumped into to apologize.

"I'm sorry..." Her words trailed off, and her back felt stiff. "Y-you..."

"Hi..." the man greeted him with a smile.

He was the same man that followed her last time.

"D-do I know you?" She swallowed the lump that formed on her throat.

Her colleagues were just a room away, but they would not hear her even if she screams for help.

He reached for her hand.

Andie pulled her hand away and stepped away from him. she felt something with his touch. Spark? She could not explain.

"It's me, Jonathan," he said somberly. "Don't you remember me?"

"J-Jonathan?" Her forehead creased. She could not recall that her step-mom ever mentioned that name. But there was this strange filling creeping on her chest. "I'm sorry, but I don't know you. Please leave me alone." What if this man named Jonathan was a stalker? Ah, the thought creeped her out.

Andie turned her back. She needed someone to accompany her to the comfort room.

"Andie!"

He even knows my name!

But she decided not to pay attention anymore.

"Momo!"

She froze.

Tears suddenly sprung from her eyes after hearing him call her by that name. And her head, it suddenly throbbed. Deep down her subconscious, there were these flashes of scenes that made her feel dizzy. "Your mind might not remember me now, but I know deep down-"

"Stop!" she snapped and grabbed cupped her head.

"What's happening here?"

Andie started to calm down when she heard Elaija's voice. In just a few seconds, he managed to reach her.

She grasped his arm and whisper, "He's stalking me..."

Elaija turned to the man named Jonathan.

"Stay away from Andie if you don't want to end up in jail," he warned.