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You were here, you were there, you were everywhere.
Lilia was impressed by your persistent existence in the back of his mind. Hiding slyly in the crevices of his consciousness, akin to pesky dust within bookshelves, waiting for the right moment to jump and send him back to the reverie of the days the both of you once shared many years ago.
A bitter feeling always lingered in his chest after waking up from those peculiar dreams you had given him. Somehow, it ached whenever he realized you weren’t here anymore.
And why was that?
You were one of the lucky ones—he thought once. Only a handful of people had managed to stay in his circle, and that circle also had other little circles in it. You stood on the closest line to him. So close that even after you were gone, he could still feel your faint heartbeat along those lines.
Of course, as decades went by, eating his leftover memories without protest, he eventually forgot your face, your voice, and your entirety.
But the feelings he held for you were for eternity.
It was strange.
The fae was never the one to dwell on the past. Everything goes on. Lilia fully understood how different his lifespan was from other ordinary beings, including the inevitable long life he’ll live alone for many years to come.
He didn’t think of it as a curse until you breathed your last breath.
Lilia experienced countless encounters and departures throughout his whole life. All he treated with the same level of sentiment, as easy as saying ‘hello’ upon crossing paths with someone and saying ‘goodbye’ before going home. Sure, he’d let others enter his circle, but they only managed to get close on their own accord. And most of them would stop halfway from receiving the key to the home of his heart—not like any of them would care anyway. He didn’t think of it too much, though. He could care for himself as long as he could remember.
Being alone was as natural as the air Lilia breathed for hundreds of years. He was used to it.
Until one day, you came along. Before he could give the key to you, you already had it in your hands all this time. Catching him off guard like a summer storm. Gently removing the bricks of his wall, his home, and his heart. Then, his world shifted like no other.
Did he loved you too much that the universe was sick of it and took you away?
As Lilia walked along the shoreline, the chill breeze grazed his cheeks, and soft sand seeped through his feet. He watched the sunset slowly being pulled down by the horizon.
He had so many words left unsaid to you.
Staring off into the distance, he wondered if somewhere, out there in the skies, you were watching him right now. Would you be proud of the person he has become today? Would you give him praise for how he lives now? Would you still love him the same?
You were more than just a memory for him.
You were everything.
Suddenly, he froze in his tracks, staring at the ground, appalled. As if lightning just struck him dead.
What was your name again?