On Day 7, I have my doctor's appointment.   

    After everything I have learned, I am scared. My doctor is a part of the society... Wait. Rin calm down. Everyone is a part of the society. Dr. Jensen may not be evil. If she knew about the secret because she was a part of the society, then I would know it too. I think to myself while waiting for the bus to go to the hospital.   

    When I get on the bus, I try to dismiss my thoughts of the secret the society has.  I force myself to think about happier things.

    Once the bus arrives at the hospital, I hesitantly get off. I don't want to have doctor appointments. It could be part of the society's secret.

    I walk into the hospital and into the waiting room. It must take me a while, because once I get there my holo-watch says there is only 2 minutes until my appointment.

    After I sit down, I soon see somebody come into the waiting room from the door next to the front desk. He then leaves through the other door in the waiting room.   

    "Miss Casara, Dr. Jensen is ready for you," says the android at the desk.

    I follow a different android to Dr. Jensen's room.

    "Hello Rin. Please sit down," says Dr. Jensen.

    "Hello," I say, sitting down.

    "How have things been?"

    "The same as usual."

    "That's great. Your doctor's appointments will be ending soon."

    "They will be? What do you mean?"

    "Soon you will be having them as often as a normal adult does."

    "Oh, I see."

    "How has school been? There isn't much left."

    "It's been good."

    "22 days from now you will be on your first day of break. You will probably be doing a lot of studying in school for the final test."

    "Oh."

    "Has anything been bothering you lately?"

    I open my mouth to start talking about Akiko, but I decide against it.

    "No," I finally say.

    "That's good. I'm glad."

    "What's next?" I ask.

    "Well, today I will be asking questions mostly.  It will be for your job."

    "Alright."

    "What do you like to do?"

    "I like play on my laptop. That's one thing. I also like to read and type," I say.

    I wonder if Dr. Jensen is really only asking questions about my job. Is it that? It could very well be.

"What is your favorite subject?" she says putting something into her laptop.

"History Technology."

"What job do you want?"

"Well... A job where I'm making virtual realities, a job where I'm writing, or a job where I'm animating. I want to be making virtual realities or being a writer more."

"Are you talking about virtual reality machines or games?"   

"Games."

"What type of games?"

"Well... Video games..."

"Does making a video game interest you? Making the entire plot line, designing the game and all—does that interest you?"   

"That sounds cool!"

"What type of video games would you be interested in?"

"Well... Fantasy. Where the impossible happens."

"Alright. What do you like to do outside of home?" she says putting something into her laptop, as she has been doing this entire time.

"Hmm... Recently I've been going to cafés."

"Do you like to learn?"

"Yeah, if what I'm learning is interesting."   

"What things that you learn interest you?"

"Well... I like most of my classes."

"Is there any class that you just hate?"

"No."

Dr. Jensen continues to ask me questions. I can't help but think that maybe these questions aren't really just for my job.

"That's done," she says after she has asked me all the questions she has to ask.

"What's next?" I ask.

"Let's see... I would like you to follow me."

I nod and follow Dr. Jensen even though I am afraid. I am afraid that Dr. Jensen will do something to me. Something bad.

All I can do is follow her and pretend I know nothing.

"Please sit in this chair," she says gesturing to a chair once we have reached the destination.

I sit down.

"I will be making sure you are healthy," she informs me.

I nod my head.

She runs some tests on me. I start to wonder what Dr. Jensen is really doing as the appointment goes on.

The entire appointment I want to leave. I have to force myself to act normal.

"Alright, I would like you to come back here next Day 7 at the same time," Dr. Jensen says to me at the end of the appointment.

I nod my head, hiding my excitement that the appointment is over.

The next day, I go on the bus with Lily to school.

"Did you have fun yesterday?" Lily asks me while we are sitting on the bus going to school.

"I guess. I didn't really do anything exciting. The only thing would be my doctor's appointment," I say.

"Do you find that exciting?" Lily asks.

"Yeah. Wait what? I don't know. I guess... It's just my doctor's appointment? I don't know," I shrug.

"I see it differently. I see doctor's appointments as something that is mandatory, that can be exciting but other times is not," says Lily.

"You're right! I've never thought of it that way. I agree with you," I lie.

We continue to talk, until we reach school.

We both get off the bus, and we walk onto the school campus.

"Bye Lily, I'll see you later I guess," I say.

"Where are you going?" Lily asks me.

"I don't know. There's still plenty of time until school, so I thought I would use the time efficiently," I say.

She looks at me weird. "You don't usually do that, do you?"

"No. I thought I would change it up," I say.

"Alright then. Usually you talk before school, so I just wanted to know why you decided to do something different today. I was just curious."

"I see," I say, walking towards the school building.

While walking into the school, I realize that I don't know what I am going to do.

I stop.

Why am I even going in the school? How am I going to "use my time efficiently?" I don't know... I should just go to the library or something. I should read some books.

I walk into the school, and I go to the library on the second floor.

When I reach the library, I take a seat at one of the tables and I turn a reading tablet on. I look around to notice that there are only 5 other people here—something that rarely happens in the mornings before school. I'm sure more people will come in soon enough, as there is plenty of time before school. In the few times I have been in here before school has started, I have noticed that people like to come here. Compared to 10 minute free periods, 5 people is a decent amount. No one seems to come then, and I assume it is because there isn't much time to do anything.

I look at a book on memories. I am finding the book quite boring, although there is the chance that it may help me.

I find that the books do not help me at all in the end. I don't have time to do anything else when I am finished, as class will be starting soon.

Once my first break starts, I feel happy as it is 20 minutes long. I quickly leave the classroom to go to the library.

While I'm in the library, I wonder why I would of forgotten going to the café with Akiko. What I learned had been interesting.

I think hard, but I can't think of a reason why.

Finally, it comes to me.

I couldn't handle the secret. That had to be it. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't take it. I forced myself that it never happened. I forced myself that I had hung out with Lily and Alexandra instead. It went on to the next day. I had imagined that I was going to hang out with them again on Day 7. Since texting them would make them confused, instead I imagined that Alexandra texting me that our schedules didn't work out.

Why... Why... It seems like I tried so hard to forget, yet I remember. I didn't want to remember. I wanted to go on as if it never happened.

I think back to when Akiko told me about the secret.

"It seems that a secret of some sort is being kept from us," says Akiko, with a serious expression on her face.

    "What do you mean? Who's keeping it from us?" I ask.

    "I don't know. All I know is that you are forgetting something," she says.

    "Huh? I don't know what you mean," I say.

    "I heard it... I heard it the other day," she says.

    "Heard what?" I ask.

    "That man! Do you not remember him?! He asked you if you remembered something, and you said no! How could you not remember?" she says in frustration.

    "I don't remember any man like that."

    "...really?"

    "Yeah, I don't."

I think back to the second time I talked about the secret with her.

"I see. I told you that I thought you were forgetting something and that a secret is being kept from all of us. You said you didn't remember that man. Remember?"

    "Yeah, I do."

    I don't exactly trust Akiko, but I need to know for my research.   

    I think to when she talked about me investigating.

    "Hmm... You're investigating... Let me think of something else I know. I don't think you're the only one."

    "What?"

    "Rin, you may not be the only one who is forgetting things."

    "Uh? I'm not...?"

    "No."

    "How do you know?" I ask.

    "One day I was walking to the café. I saw a man talking to someone else. One man asked if they remembered something and the other man said no. I didn't think much of it then, but I think that man was forgetting, too."

    "Is that the secret? That we are forgetting?" I ask.

    I think to how that man didn't seem stressed, and how he never came back.

    "That man I saw didn't seem stressed out either. Those two used to go to the café often, or so I've heard. They stopped coming soon after I started. I don't know what happened."

    "They just stopped coming? Was it connected to him forgetting?"

    "That's a possibility, but the man who wasn't forgetting once came back. His friend wasn't with him. I asked him where his friend was, and he looked at me weird. I guess he didn't want to talk about it."   

    "Do you think his friend faded away or something like that? Or maybe he doesn't remember his friend?"

    "I have never told anyone that I knew him. I don't remember the two of them coming to the café, it's a vague memory, but I know they did."

    "Then you're forgetting too?" I ask.

    "It's just a vague memory!"

I realize how that must have changed me.

I can deal with what Akiko told me now... but not then. It was too much for me. Akiko must be trying hard to find out what the secret is. Even if she isn't, I want to try hard myself. I want to know what the society is hiding from us. I can't live without knowing any longer. I will figure out what it is, no matter what it takes.