Chapter Text
Soft… His hands were always soft.
Our voices had been trembling as we slowly accepted the fact that we may never see each other again.
It was all real–all of it.
All those lifetimes when we fought each other in League of Smashers. All those times when Mark crashed into me in the hall. All those times we fell in love, not knowing we had fallen for each other countless times.
But right now… In this vast and surreal plane of existence. Somewhere beyond space and time. We were holding onto each other’s hands. We were scared of letting go. We were scared of moving on. We were scared that we’d have to live a life where we might not even see each other.
That was terrifying. A hundred lifetimes but in the end, I guess fate had something else planned for us.
Another stream of tears fell from my eyes. It hurt so much. To love someone for so long, only to lose them when you needed them most. I didn’t know what I’d do after everything would be fixed. I didn’t know if I’d even remember him. I-I didn’t even know if I’ll ever see him again.
But we both had to stay strong. For each other. For the world. For the people we care about.
I squeezed his hands, something I’d always been doing whenever I was nervous. He squeezed right back as he looked at me with teary eyes. For a split second, I swore I saw his eyes sparkle. We’ve already said too much, but those words will never be enough.
A hundred lifetimes won’t matter if I’d never be with him in one of them.
“I-I guess…” Mark’s voice faltered, “This is goodbye.”
I gasped and held back another sob, “I guess so.”
We smiled at each other for the last time. Smiles that we both knew so well. Smiles that carried our talks, our arguments, our ups and downs… Our memories… Our past lives. I didn’t know what he saw in mine, but I saw my purpose behind that mischievous grin.
I saw a black butterfly land on Mark’s shoulder and felt one land on mine.
“Goodbye, Nicole,” he said.
“Goodbye, Mark,” I replied, “You know the rest.”
He lightly chuckled, “I think I do.”
Suddenly, the ground started shaking but we continued to look into each other’s eyes, like we’d done so many times now in the hopes of fixing things. Deep down I wished that I’d see him again, even as a passerby. I just wanted to live knowing that I was in the same world as my soulmate.
But…
…
…
Where was he?
I continued running, chasing after someone. But I couldn’t remember who I was looking for. It was something about his friend… Or was it something about the rain? I felt the raindrops on my skin as I ran. It was soothing. It almost made me forget what I was running for again.
Then I saw them. A boy was running towards a girl who was across the street. Then I heard the screeching of tires behind me. My heart dropped and I decided to shout after them.
“LOOK OUT!” I shouted as loud as I could.
I watched as the boy leaped toward the girl, barely getting hit by the truck. The truck swerved and luckily regained balance before continuing on its path.
I rushed over to see if they were okay. They were lying on the ground, groaning in pain. From the surface, it didn’t look like they had a scratch. Though, upon closer inspection, I noticed the girl had some scars and bruises along her arms and legs.
Suddenly, I felt a wave of memories flooding back to me.
Cathy.
This was Cathy.
She was someone’s best friend.
I glanced at the boy, who was clutching his stomach in pain. I knelt beside him, “Hey, Mister,” I softly spoke, “Are you okay? Do I need to call an ambulance?”
“H-huh?” Cathy murmured as she observed her surroundings, “W-what happened? I-I…”
She blinked and noticed me, “Nicole?”
“Cathy, I’m so glad you’re alright. I–”
“MARK!?” she exclaimed as she rushed by Ma-
…
Mark?
That name sounded so familiar. But Cathy interrupted my thoughts by turning the boy over on his back. “Mark? MARK! Are you okay?” she cried out.
I saw him. I saw his face and it all came back to me. This was Mark… And he… I…
I started to cry tears of joy. My wish came true, I got to see him again. We could be together once more, hopefully for the rest of forever. But enough of that, he was hurt and we had to help him. I watched as Cathy slowly got him to sit up. He was clutching his head while groaning in pain.
“Are you okay, Mark?” Cathy asked him.
“I-I think so…” he replied.
He glanced at me with a confused expression.
I waved at him and he waved back, “Should I call an ambulance?” I asked Cathy.
Cathy nodded as she continued to inspect Mark for injuries.
I was watching him as I spoke to the responder on my phone. I was waiting for him to talk to me, call my name or anything . He avoided eye contact and it hurt me. But I did not have a say in the situation. He was hurt, I needed to make sure he was okay. We could talk later.
“Okay, the ambulance will be here in about five minutes,” I explained, “Did you find any injuries we need to take care of immediately, Cathy?”
“Nothing too serious, just a small scratch on his right elbow.”
“Okay, but how are you feeling, Mark?” I asked him with a slight smile.
Again, he avoided eye contact with me. I didn’t want to push him if he didn’t want to.
“Mark, come on,” Cathy joked, “It’s Nicole. You should answer her.”
He looked away from the both of us, “I-I…” he muttered.
“Hey, Mark,” I tried to hold his hand but he recoiled away. I pulled back my hand and apologized, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-!”
“I-I’m sorry, uh, Nicole…” Mark stuttered, “But I… I don’t know you.”
…
What?
Even Cathy looked surprised to hear it. She let out a nervous chuckle, “Come on, Mark. It’s not funny.”
“I-I’m being serious, Cath,” he explained. He glanced at me, “I-I don’t know her.”
…
I felt my heart slowly breaking. What did he mean he didn’t know me? Did he not remember?
“Mark, I–” my voice faltered, “I’m Nicole, don’t you remember? I helped you practice the piano. I invited you over for Christmas… I-I… We–”
“I’m sorry, Nicole…” his tone sounded grim, “I just… Don’t have any recollection of who you are.”
I was beginning to panic. Did he hit his head when he jumped for Cathy? It was possible, but I didn’t want it to be the case. Perhaps he was still recovering from head trauma.
“Mark, you remember me, don’t you?” Cathy asked him.
“Yeah, I’ve known you my whole life.”
“Then you know that I hate your jokes.”
“I’m not joking. I’m really not.”
This couldn’t be happening. Something went wrong back there. There was some mistake, there had to be! I remember, why doesn’t he? I glanced at him again, and in those hundred lifetimes I’ve spent with him, I knew for a fact that he wasn’t joking around.
He forgot me. He actually forgot me. I had to hold back a sob because I didn’t want to make Mark feel guilty for something he didn’t understand. He seemed to remember everyone else, so maybe they could help him remember. But we had more important matters to prioritize.
Don’t worry, Mark… You don’t remember what we’ve been through, just yet. But I promise you, you’ll know the rest.