When I stepped out of the clinic, I didn't feel the same as before. Inside me, everything made sense. The emptiness that haunted me during hours of lobotomy was no longer accompanying me. It was as if I had finally found myself again.

I breathed in the air of the city, letting my lungs get used to this new reality. I checked my phone and realized that nothing was out of the ordinary. The dates were the same, the wallpaper with Cookie's photo was the same, and there was no weird message popping up. I fumbled through the messaging app, and all my soulmate's messages had also been deleted. That should make me happy, but it didn't. In fact, it only made me more confused, wondering why things had turned out the way they did.

The deal would be to go on with my life as if nothing had happened, but that would be impossible. The curiosity inside me was much greater, and I would be lying if I said I didn't have the curiosity to see him one more time. Just to confirm, even for a second, that he felt the same way I did. It was crazy, but for some reason, I worried if he was okay.

I tried to ignore my instincts and made my way to Pizza Place downtown to feed my body. My stomach was growling with hunger, so it wouldn't hurt to grab a slice or two of pizza before heading home.

I walked into the pizzeria and the wonderful smell hit me straight in the stomach. I smiled because I loved pizza. Especially the one with pineapples. Looking for a place to sit, I headed straight for the table by the window at the back of the restaurant, on the left side. It was a great place to sit as you could see people walking down the street and a lot of movement in the restaurant. It was just like an urban landscape.

As I placed my order, I noticed that the waiter was looking at me strangely. It was like he was waiting for some reaction, for a reason I couldn't understand. The whole place was kind of weird, actually. It looked like something was out of place there.

When the order finally arrived, I didn't even wait to eat. I felt the flavors exploding in my mouth like New Year's fireworks. Bright lights explode in a million pieces. Suddenly, a flash of memory lasted about seconds in my mind, like an image of fireworks on the beach. I blinked.

"What was that?" I murmured.

Maybe I shouldn't have left the clinic so suddenly. Did I have to go back? Had I just done irreversible damage to my own mind? Ah, suddenly my appetite wasn't the same anymore. I set the pizza aside, feeling the urge to cry.

What had we done? Why didn't I think more carefully? This was all very complicated. I didn't want to feel all these emotions anymore, but the problem was… I didn't even know what his name was. All I had were smudges on his face.

The window shining with the sun's rays on my face drew my attention to the outside. Buses sped past, and the rosy sky looked like an immaculate painting. The day was so beautiful for such a miserable feeling. I felt sorry for myself. And I was also quite surprised when I saw a dark-haired young man in a denim jacket walking directly to Pizza Place.

My wide eyes couldn't make out. Was it… him? It looked like him. But I couldn't say, because, well, it was all very dark. Except for my racing heart and that well-guarded feeling of anxiety, nothing was indicating to me that this boy was my soulmate.

He entered the restaurant and went directly to the counter. The easy smile, the way he moved so comfortably in his skin, it all felt so familiar. I stared at everything like I was watching a show. He was waiting for pizza at the counter and didn't make a point of sitting at the tables. Which probably meant he was on his way out.

Even with all that information and doubts, even though my heart seemed to scream inside my chest, I couldn't move. All I could do was watch him from afar as if he were untouchable. And maybe for me, he was.

When everything was finally ready, the boy took his pizza, smiled, and started talking to the pizza guy. However, the only thing I could hear were the exact words: "Pineapple… and it's still the best in the house."

Pineapple.

That ingredient, so important, is once again being exalted. I was just looking at the whole scene as if I wasn't part of the context. He left with a smile on his face and walked down the street without looking back. He stood at the curb, waiting for traffic to stop until he could cross. I didn't look away, because I couldn't even.

As soon as the traffic stopped, he continued walking. But before he took the first step, he hesitated in place. He turned his gaze to the window, where I was watching him. The wide, black eyes were locked on mine like a magnetic magnet. In the same second, I felt butterflies in my stomach at the same time I saw a red flash pass before my own eyes.

I closed my eyes immediately, touching them with my fingers as if to make sure I wasn't going blind. The headache the doctor had mentioned finally arrived as if my head would split in two, such was the pain. I bent my entire body over the table, praying that nothing inside me was sick or anything.

“Sir… is everything okay?

I heard a voice say, but I couldn't even respond. I was a little weak in energy, and my body didn't seem to want to react to any other stimuli. Maybe it was all that lobotomy that had made me so tired. It was even funny, because for one more time that day, I didn't know if I was delusional or not.

"Just a minute…" I murmured.

"Do you want me to call someone? You are pale."

"It's the... lobotomy."

"Oh," the boy said, surprised. "I'll leave your order here, then. Any other help, just call for me."

I nodded, still with my face under the wooden table. I opened my eyes slowly, at the same speed as the pain left my body. With every millimeter my eyes opened, I could see a little blurry. Slowly the colors were forming, and suddenly, I was looking at the darkened wood of the table. I frowned, realizing that in the midst of the various phrases of romantic songs, it had a peculiar thing. It was my name, and right next to it, it read: Alex Diaz.

I stared at that name with a single question running through my head at that moment: was this a coincidence, or a clue? I could never know.

Turning my gaze to the window again, I noticed that the boy was already gone. Of course, I didn't even know if that had actually happened or if it was still the effects of the lobotomy. On second thought to myself, I decided to go straight home and rest at once. The next day, who knows, I might not be able to go back to the clinic to find more answers.

Or, at least, I hoped so.