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Edward had never really understood why women always wanted to look more beautiful. He thought most of them were nice enough to look at in their own right. So he never actually expected his wife to bring up the newly discovered lake, which had been named simply “The Lake.” They had been discussing what kind of people they wanted to be, as they were young and recently married, and the kind of person they hoped the other would either turn into or continue to be, when Lucy had brought up how she wanted to experience The Lake’s effects.
Now, Edward loved Lucy completely as she was, so he questioned why she would want to. He honestly did not want her to change, because she was what brightened up his day and made him want to come home every night. She made him happy, but he also wanted his dear Lucy to be happy as well, and if this were what it took then he would help her do it.
From where they lived it was a bit of a drive, so both Edward and Lucy had to call their respective jobs to ask for a few days off. Edward worked for a local newspaper while Lucy was a simple waitress, so neither of them would really be missed. Once they got to the area The Lake was in, they stopped at a hotel, dropped off their stuff, and headed to The Lake. It took a while to get inside to where Lucy would be jumping in, so they spoke with the people around them until they were there.
Since they had never done this sort of thing, and there wasn’t much information available where they lived, Edward and Lucy were surprised to find that after she jumped in she would essentially be in suspended animation for almost a week while the changes occurred. She and Edward discussed what to do from there, and decided that Lucy should go on with jumping in The Lake, and that Edward would tell their bosses that they were quitting, and then sell their house and come back.
After a week of Edward sitting and waiting for Lucy to come out of The Lake, it was finally time. He had successfully sold their house and any of their larger items quite quickly, since the housing market was great, and even started renting a small apartment in the city The Lake was in. So then he waited. And worried.
Edward knew from the local people that two versions of his wife would come out of that lake, and he would have to try and choose the real one. If he did, the fake would fade out of existence. If he didn’t, it meant both that he didn’t really love Lucy, and that she would fall down dead because of it. The fake would then take her place and be the complete opposite of how Lucy had been. Or at least, that was what usually happened.
When Lucy came out of The Lake there was only one version of her, and all she remembered was her name, Edward’s name, and what he looked like. Now, this frightened both of them. For Edward, it was the whole forgetting and only one version coming out, as well as the fact he was surrounded by couples where there were doubles of the people who went in. For Lucy, it was the fact that the only thing she remembered was her name, his name, and what he looked like. She didn’t understand any of what was around her.
In order to ease both of their discomfort, Edward quickly took her to their new home, even though that in its self created problems. He tried his best to fill her in on things about herself, himself, and their lives, but none of it stuck. Finally, he brought her in to see a doctor about it, but the doctor only said that only time could tell if her memory would come back. Asking the locals didn’t help much either, so Edward decided to try and teach Lucy things that would help around the apartment, and got a job as a detective.
This way of life went on for a few months, but Edward could tell it was paining both himself and Lucy for things to be as they were. He still loved her dearly but it was difficult to show her, as she didn’t understand it. For Lucy, she knew the felt something for this man she was living with, but didn’t understand what or why.
Around the third month, he brought up the conversation they had been having before they initially left for The Lake. He asked her if she had any idea what kind of person she wanted to be, and what kind of person she wanted to be with. Lucy’s answer had been simple, but was enough to convince Edward to go through with an idea he had been harboring for the past month. Lucy wanted to be someone who could care for Edward in every way, and she wanted to remember. She wanted to be with someone exactly like Edward, because he was so kind to her even in her forgetfulness.
Sighing, he had told her of his idea and asked her if she thought it might work. He had been thinking that since The Lake was what had taken her memories away, maybe it could give them back. Such was the odd nature of magic, to take something away only to give it back later. Since Lucy only really understood what he said about the lake she remembers walking out of taking her memories and how it could return them, she quickly agreed to go back into The Lake.
The next day, they went back down and she jumped in. After a week, she hadn’t come back out. Edward could see her lying at the bottom, surreal in her beauty, but he didn’t dare try and have her pulled out. Who knew what could happen then.
Even after a year had gone by, Edward never stopped visiting Lucy every day after work. He gained promotions and now could afford a better apartment, but he never moved into one.
The years went by, and eventually Edward found out that he didn’t have long to live. A long time ago he had started talking to Lucy about each day, and did so even now. He had retired, he said, and was now a nice old age of 98. He had tried to move on to other people before, but they had never worked out. He still loved Lucy more than anything, but now he hoped she would never regain her memories. She had not changed a bit over the years, and still looked as young and beautiful as she had when she was 25. He missed her. He missed her smile, and her laugh, and they way she would tell him of her day or anything that happened. He missed kissing her quickly on the lips when he went off to work, and then hugging her tightly when he got home. He missed her. He loved her.
One day about a week later, he was visiting Lucy as usual. He told her how he had been thinking about how he was going to propose to her after she came out of The Lake the first time. He told her about how it would have been a small wedding, just the kind she liked, with a few close friends, lots of small colorful flowers, and that it would be outside, just as she would have wanted. As he said these things, he had leaned back against the wall of the cavern and gradually closed his eyes, feeling tired. After his last whispered, “I love you Lucy” he fell into his final sleep, never to wake up again.
Edward was soon found, and was buried near the edge of The Lake, so as to still be close to Lucy. The Lake was soon famous for the story of these two, but even that went away after a few decades. People stopped coming, and eventually the lake was forgotten about. It was rediscovered by someone centuries later, but the feeling of loss and love was still poignant and he left the lake alone. No one ever found it again.
Lucy never did come out of the lake.
The end.