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Nykki groaned as she flopped down onto the inviting bed. The whole afternoon had been spent running cross-country, and she was dead tired. "Get your ass off the bed right now and take a shower." Nick admonished. "Only ten minutes!" "Bossy mother hen," Nykki flicked the fallen lock of hair off her forehead. "Can't you just stop being a big brother for a while?" Grumbling, she disappeared into the bathroom. Fifteen minutes later, she emerged toweling her hair. "What took you so long?" demanded her brother. "Why is it girls always hog the shower?" "I gave up the comforts of graduate school to join you here in this forsaken place, at least give me some time for myself!" she complained. "And I thought I'd be able to have some peace up here!" "Fine, have it your way," muttered Nicholas, "wait up, I'll be only five minutes." "Hah, five minutes to bathe, no wonder you always need to use so much cologne! Gods," she said to the empty room, "Men!"
Twenty-five minutes later, two immaculately dressed young men entered the dining room. The taller one, at six foot one, wore a light gray suit, while the shorter one, at five-seven, was decked out in a dark blue suit and a matching tie. Nykki fidgeted with the knot of her tie as she scolded her twin. "Only five minutes for a bath, and look at you, you took even longer than me!" "I'm sorry, okay. I had a stomachache," Nick apologized. "I'll find the seats, you get the food." Nykki soon returned to the table with two trays of food balanced precariously on her hands. "I think they're having Chinese food tonight." Nykki said, looking at the contents of their dinner dubiously. "It looks like soggy rice, burnt chicken, half-cooked - catfish I think, and... and cabbage in gravy." Nicholas eyed the tray his twin put in front of him and grimaced. "This place is okay but they've got to get better cooks." He waited until his twin had started eating before speaking. "Are you still going back to Bancroft's after this? You haven't said anything for nearly a month, I thought maybe you'd changed your mind." "I..." she was interrupted by someone clearing his throat behind her. She turned around. "It's you." Christopher Wilder smiled slightly, perversely enjoying Alex's annoyance. "Mind if I join you?" he asked amiably. "Why don't you..." Nykki started, but was stopped by a look from her twin. "Sure sir." Nicholas intervened smoothly. "Call me Chris, 'sir' makes me feel so old." He placed his tray on the table and pulled out a chair. "I always thought only agents with long and distinguished service records get to work here - to pass on their skills to the later generations." The emphasis on the word was apparent. "Oh," she exclaimed with feigned surprise and innocence, as though the answer had just dawned on her. "Your father gave you this high-ranking job! Lucky you! How long have you been an agent?" "If you really want to know, I was sent here because..." Christopher suddenly realized that he had said too much and stopped abruptly. "Yes?" Nykki inquired, lip curling, making no attempt to hide her contempt. "Because of what?" Damn, he cursed silently. Christopher glared at the mocking smile on his face. Come on, he thought, if you want a fight, you've got one! He was matched by an equally hostile stare. The tension in the air was so thick that it could be cut through with a knife. "Why don't we start eating, the food's getting cold." Nicholas said, breaking the silence. He landed a careful kick at his twin's shins. Her glare transferred onto him. The two looked at each other for a long moment. Finally, Nicholas bent down and started eating. Nykki, reluctantly, followed suit. Christopher, his anger forgotten, watched the silent communion between the twins with interest. The nagging little warning was ringing madly, yet he could not pinpoint a reason to it, and that made it more annoying. All he knew was that it had something to do with Alex, and that his twin was shielding him. But whatever the twins' secret was, it was obvious after six weeks together, that they both had a great deal of determination, and that Alex was particularly adept at hiding his emotions. He'd definitely win at poker, Christopher thought irrelevantly, as he put spooned rice into his mouth.
The twins retired into their room for the night. She stormed into the bathroom and changed into the shirt and pants she slept in. Completely ignoring her twin, she pulled the blankets over her head. "Nykki?" Nicholas called out tentatively. She did not answer. "Nykki?" he repeated, prodding her. She pushed the coverings away. "I despise that son of a bitch." Nykki closed her eyes and conjured up a picture of the man who had become her nemesis during the past one and a half months. His deliberate taunt during dinner still ate at her, she remembered the look in his eyes, he had been baiting her, daring her to fight. Had not been for her twin, she would have gladly obliged. Her train of thought was interrupted by her twin. "It's not that bad, he'd make a good friend." "A friend? A caged lion would make a better friend than that bastard; even a convicted psycho would be friendlier. You must be joking! And I always thought you didn't have a sense of humor!" Nykki laughed, bitterly. "This is no joke. You can't keep treating the guy like that for ten weeks. You'll be in close proximity of him every day! He's already suspicious..." "I don't give a damn. He's been picking on me ever since I got here. I've never met anyone like him! Turn off the lights, I'm going to bed." Nicholas turned off the lights and crawled under the blankets. That night eight years ago turned their lives upside-down. I'd give anything to have Mum and Dad back with us, and to have Nykki well again, he thought sadly. Nykki had lost her memory after the incident. He remembered what the psychiatrist had said clearly, as though it had only been said yesterday. "It's a form retrograde amnesia caused by psychological trauma. A person who suffers from severe emotional trauma can lose his memory. When a person, suffers a severe emotional blow, the mind can sometimes 'block out' the incident that causes the stress. It's a defense mechanism, to distance oneself from the unpleasant event. The past is remembered, and the present is known, but that particular event is 'erased'. However, the amnesia Nicole is suffering from is different as what is blocked is the memory of the past, and the focus is on the event itself and the aftermath. The shock of the deaths made her 'forget' earlier memories. She doesn't want to remember the happier times you had together. She won't remember any of her past - friends, neighbors. Those memories are linked to her parents, and since she can't seem to remember anything about them, she'll not recall the others either," said the psychiatrist. "Will she recover?" he had asked, fingers crossed behind his back. "Few people have suffered from this kind of amnesia. I've only come across one other case like hers. Recovery rate is dependent on the surroundings. Some recover, some don't. She may get it back gradually after all the painful emotions fade; or possibly after a few years; another shock may 'jolt' it back or... it may be permanent. You can never tell. But if she hasn't recovered after two years, chances of recovery are slim. You can help by talking to her, bringing her around to old hangouts et cetera. Furthermore..." Nicholas let the piece from his memory fade away. It's been eight years... Chris Wilder was her childhood enemy. I still don't know what she disliked about him, he was a great guy, but if she can't remember her most hated enemy of her childhood, I don't think she'll recall anything anymore. I hate seeing her like this, it hurts so much. However, despite his concern about his twin's loss of memory, the day's strenuous training had drained him, and soon, Nicholas Shane Storm fell asleep.
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