I Forgot You - Chapter 3
Junba, Sakumoto. PG-15 (for now). Angst, drama. Betaed by inaudible_d. Chaptered. Warning: Character Death.
Written for rainbowfilling. Prompt: I Forgot You.
Aiba Masaki saw a glimpse of Matsumoto Jun's past. Now the table was turned; Matsumoto Jun asked for Aiba Masaki's help and Aiba Masaki doubted if it's a good idea.
Aiba opened his eyes and he saw restless Jun pacing back and forth. His whole body was numb, probably from the sedative and painkiller that were injected to his body.
“Finally!” Jun noticed that Aiba was regaining his consciousness, “I know you are crazy, but please don’t drag us to your craziness!”
Toma pulled Jun away and muttered some calming phrases to Jun.
“Oh, shut up, Toma,” Jun huffed.
“I’m sorry,” Aiba said. He sat up and rested his body on the headboard. Toma instinctively helped him.
“No, you’re not. I don’t know what’s in your head but please, stop involving us into it,” Jun said in a hard tone.
“I’m desperate, I need your help,” Aiba said.
“Seek for other people to help you, not me.”
“No one can help me but you,” Aiba insisted.
“Are you trying to seduce me?” Jun asked with disbelief.
“No- I-,” Aiba racked his brain. He had to explain everything without being considered as a mentally ill man and it’s hard. But then again, Jun already suspected him as one, so he decided to just blurt it out, “I have this power that only you could diminish.”
“Power?” Toma asked.
“I- I have this special power. I-”
“This is bullshit,” Jun cut, “Listen, we already paid for the hospital and we see except for your already damaged brain that nothing is serious. So, please, excuse us. And don’t you ever come to our lives ever again.”
“I can see people’s memories!” Aiba blurted out just a second before Jun passed the threshold.
At that, Jun stopped.
Aiba knew that sparked something in Jun’s mind because suddenly, a memory-person appeared and disappeared again. Like Jun’s mind was drifting away but Jun forbid it from doing so.
Two seconds later, Jun resumed his walk.
“There’s a man!” Aiba tried. Because he knew Jun’s mind reacted to his statement, he thought he might as well use it. He tried to concentrate on the memory-person that kept appearing and disappearing. There were two of them, apparently. They were down on the floor, “Oh, it was you! Younger you! You were holding someone in your hands!”
Jun stopped and turned around. Toma’s eyes widened to the size of a saucer.
Slowly, the memory-persons became stable. Aiba straightened his back to look closer. Then, his jaw dropped. He saw horror.
“Oh my God, you killed someone?!”
*******
Jun couldn’t pretend that he didn’t hear what the patient said. He stepped back to the hospital bed, eyes filled with the same amount of horror as Aiba’s.
“Who are you?!”
“Who are you?!” Aiba asked back, retreating himself in a defense position, “Why did you kill people?!”
Jun was sure about the scene that Aiba meant. But he’s also sure no one he didn’t know would know about it.
“He didn’t kill anyone,” Toma said. Apparently, he also noticed that Aiba wasn’t fooling around, “But, how could you know about it?”
“But he-”
“It’s not him,” Toma repeated. Then, he demanded, “Now answer me, Aiba san, how in the hell do you know about it?!”
“I’ve told you I can see people’s memories,” Aiba said, still with terrified look.
“Are you kidding-”
“Toma, shut up,” Jun cut Toma’s words. His eyes were fixated to Aiba, “Can you see forgotten memories?”
“Basically your brain never forgets. So-”
“Can you or can you not?!” Jun shouted. He felt dizzy as anticipation surged into his body.
Aiba was taken aback, but he answered, “Under certain conditions, yes.”
“Toma, we’re bringing him home,” Jun commanded. Various images danced in his head and he wondered if the man in front of him could see them all.
“But-”
“We’re. Bringing. Him. To. My. Home.”
It was a one sided decision, but neither Toma nor Aiba had the gut to object anymore.
*******
Aiba shifted on his seat. The doctor let him go because none of his wound was serious. He was glad of that, but now he didn’t know if he’s glad about being employed by his potential savior or not.
“Explain it to me,” Jun said, pacing back and forth restlessly. Aiba could see he’s thinking about many things at once because fractions of memories were showing and disappearing like crazy.
“When- when you let your guard down, like when you’re daydreaming or so, your memories could leak. That’s when I could see it,” Aiba stuttered. Felt agitated more than anything else, “But if you’re alert enough, then it’s fine.”
“Forgotten memories. Tell me about forgotten memories.”
“Y- your brain has it. Your brain stores everything perfectly. You just can't access those memories, thus you say it's forgotten. But sometimes, when the situation is right, your brain might access it unconsciously. Like a background process on a computer. You don’t realize it when it happens, but I can see it.”
“Explain the situation,” Jun was still pacing around and Aiba had the urge to make him stop and sit. Because, hell, this man was already intimidating even without pacing around like a hungry lion.
“Like.. uh- it’s related to senses. Scenery, scent, texture, melody. Right combination might trigger the brain to access the memory,” Aiba explained as best as he could, “Or- or- it might just pop out of nowhere. No one really knows how one’s brain works.”
Jun stopped. Finally. He pondered for a bit and then he asked, “What kind of help do you need from me?”
Aiba furrowed his brows, totally forgot his initial intention. When it came back to him, he wasn’t sure whether to continue asking for help or not. He stole a glance or two to Jun and considered it all over again.
Jun looked like a kind person, actually. He was just- troubled? Determined? Restless? Aiba couldn’t pinpoint. But something in Jun’s eyes and gestures made Aiba believed that this scary person wasn’t going to hurt him.
“People from memories treat me like intruder when they recognize me. Like antibody to a virus, they would try to- uh- destroy me,” Aiba shuddered a bit, “But when I touch you, I lose my power for a little while. Every memory-person would disappear. So-”
“You need me to rescue you when it happens.”
“Yes. Well, actually I’d prefer to never see them again, so-”
“Where do you live?” Jun cut Aiba for the second time. If Aiba wasn’t too afraid, he would already complain.
“On the other side of the town.”
“Family?”
“Mom, dad, and a little brother in Chiba,” Aiba wished his mother was there to save him. He started to think that Matsumoto Jun might be more dangerous than a platoon of memory-person.
“Wife? Girlfriend? Kids?”
“No,” Aiba answered fast. How could he have any of them if he couldn’t even walk under the sunlight without being a paranoid weirdo, he thought to himself.
Then, Jun announced, “Okay. You’re my assistant from now on. You live here, your main responsibility is to rediscover my forgotten memories. I can pay you as much as you like, and you’ll be around me so if you need help you can help yourself.”
Aiba tensed up. He was the one who asked this, true, but he wasn’t sure about it anymore. Not after seeing what he saw earlier.
“Jun!” Toma complained.
“Go home, Toma,” Jun didn’t even look at Toma while saying so.
“Jun!”
“Go home or Shun will have a black-eyed groom for his wedding this weekend,” Jun threatened.
Toma tsk-ed. He knew he wouldn’t win on a banter with Jun, especially when his lost memory was involved. He found his way out with a grumpy face and his cellphone on his hand.
Once it’s only the two of them, Aiba didn’t know what to do. It felt like he was trapped as a prisoner.
“Ano-”
“You asked for this, so I don’t want to hear a no,” Jun said firmly. He walked to a door and opened it, “You can use this room, I’ll be next door. Tomorrow we’ll get your belongings.”
Aiba felt that nothing was right. He was accused as a mentally ill person at one second and on the next one, he’s forced to live with this probably murderer man. Now he knew how Jun might feel when he said he wanted to work with him even when they didn’t know each other yet.
“Matsumoto san, I- I think we should think about this first. I mean- time. We need time. You don’t know me, I might be a bad guy.”
Jun approached Aiba and with eyes fixated to Aiba’s and hands gripping Aiba’s shoulders he said, “Seventeen. I’ve lost my memories since I’m seventeen, Aiba san, do you think I could spare anymore time?”
Aiba was overwhelmed by the proximity. Jun’s eyes were reflecting anger and pain at the same time it made him confused if he wanted to run away or hug Jun.
“And I don’t care if you’re a bad guy. Rob me, take my money, I don’t care. Just help me get my memories back.”
By the end of the sentence, Jun’s eyes were covered by a thin layer of tears. Tears of anger, tears of determination.
Aiba decided he didn’t want to run away anymore. He sighed, hoping that he would never regret his decision.
“Don’t worry, I’m not a bad guy. Just- try not to touch me because then my ability would disappear,” Aiba said while walking to his new room, “Well then, good night?”
“Night,” Jun replied and silence filled the luxurious apartment.
******
Aiba found it hard to fall asleep that night. He kept moving restlessly, feeling a faint chill running down his spine.
A rustling sound caught Aiba’s attention a little bit past midnight. He sat up, trying to find out the source of the sound. Then, he saw a little kid in the corner of the room. The kid was trembling, crying.
It was him.
It was his memory.
His lost memory.
Aiba felt anticipation grew in his chest. Even though he didn’t remember anything about himself when he was just a kid, the nostalgic feeling was definitely there. He knew it was him. He just knew.
“Masaki,” a sound made Aiba turned his head quickly.
Another boy was there. Slightly bigger and older, with worried eyes and cautious gestures.
“Masaki, it’s okay. It’s only a thunder,” the older boy approached little Aiba.
“I’m afraid,” little Aiba started to cry.
“Hey, hey,” the older boy took little Aiba to his embrace, “It’s okay, I’m here. Nii chan is here so everything’s alright, okay? I got you. Nii chan got you.”
Aiba felt a wrenching feeling in his chest. He missed this man - the one that he believed as his older brother. The longing feeling felt so great that Aiba unconsciously moved towards the two hugging boys. He wanted to touch him, he wanted to hug him. He wanted to tell him how he wanted to see him.
Aiba was already an inch away from touching the memory-person from his own memory when a loud voice snapped him back to reality.
It was Jun.
Jun was screaming. Hard.
<< Chapter 2 | Chapter 4 >>
Yeay! Finally I updated this!
Even though I'm slow at this, but I am determined to finish this! xD
Thanks for reading and comments are loved! ♥
Written for rainbowfilling. Prompt: I Forgot You.
Aiba Masaki saw a glimpse of Matsumoto Jun's past. Now the table was turned; Matsumoto Jun asked for Aiba Masaki's help and Aiba Masaki doubted if it's a good idea.
Aiba opened his eyes and he saw restless Jun pacing back and forth. His whole body was numb, probably from the sedative and painkiller that were injected to his body.
“Finally!” Jun noticed that Aiba was regaining his consciousness, “I know you are crazy, but please don’t drag us to your craziness!”
Toma pulled Jun away and muttered some calming phrases to Jun.
“Oh, shut up, Toma,” Jun huffed.
“I’m sorry,” Aiba said. He sat up and rested his body on the headboard. Toma instinctively helped him.
“No, you’re not. I don’t know what’s in your head but please, stop involving us into it,” Jun said in a hard tone.
“I’m desperate, I need your help,” Aiba said.
“Seek for other people to help you, not me.”
“No one can help me but you,” Aiba insisted.
“Are you trying to seduce me?” Jun asked with disbelief.
“No- I-,” Aiba racked his brain. He had to explain everything without being considered as a mentally ill man and it’s hard. But then again, Jun already suspected him as one, so he decided to just blurt it out, “I have this power that only you could diminish.”
“Power?” Toma asked.
“I- I have this special power. I-”
“This is bullshit,” Jun cut, “Listen, we already paid for the hospital and we see except for your already damaged brain that nothing is serious. So, please, excuse us. And don’t you ever come to our lives ever again.”
“I can see people’s memories!” Aiba blurted out just a second before Jun passed the threshold.
At that, Jun stopped.
Aiba knew that sparked something in Jun’s mind because suddenly, a memory-person appeared and disappeared again. Like Jun’s mind was drifting away but Jun forbid it from doing so.
Two seconds later, Jun resumed his walk.
“There’s a man!” Aiba tried. Because he knew Jun’s mind reacted to his statement, he thought he might as well use it. He tried to concentrate on the memory-person that kept appearing and disappearing. There were two of them, apparently. They were down on the floor, “Oh, it was you! Younger you! You were holding someone in your hands!”
Jun stopped and turned around. Toma’s eyes widened to the size of a saucer.
Slowly, the memory-persons became stable. Aiba straightened his back to look closer. Then, his jaw dropped. He saw horror.
“Oh my God, you killed someone?!”
*******
Jun couldn’t pretend that he didn’t hear what the patient said. He stepped back to the hospital bed, eyes filled with the same amount of horror as Aiba’s.
“Who are you?!”
“Who are you?!” Aiba asked back, retreating himself in a defense position, “Why did you kill people?!”
Jun was sure about the scene that Aiba meant. But he’s also sure no one he didn’t know would know about it.
“He didn’t kill anyone,” Toma said. Apparently, he also noticed that Aiba wasn’t fooling around, “But, how could you know about it?”
“But he-”
“It’s not him,” Toma repeated. Then, he demanded, “Now answer me, Aiba san, how in the hell do you know about it?!”
“I’ve told you I can see people’s memories,” Aiba said, still with terrified look.
“Are you kidding-”
“Toma, shut up,” Jun cut Toma’s words. His eyes were fixated to Aiba, “Can you see forgotten memories?”
“Basically your brain never forgets. So-”
“Can you or can you not?!” Jun shouted. He felt dizzy as anticipation surged into his body.
Aiba was taken aback, but he answered, “Under certain conditions, yes.”
“Toma, we’re bringing him home,” Jun commanded. Various images danced in his head and he wondered if the man in front of him could see them all.
“But-”
“We’re. Bringing. Him. To. My. Home.”
It was a one sided decision, but neither Toma nor Aiba had the gut to object anymore.
*******
Aiba shifted on his seat. The doctor let him go because none of his wound was serious. He was glad of that, but now he didn’t know if he’s glad about being employed by his potential savior or not.
“Explain it to me,” Jun said, pacing back and forth restlessly. Aiba could see he’s thinking about many things at once because fractions of memories were showing and disappearing like crazy.
“When- when you let your guard down, like when you’re daydreaming or so, your memories could leak. That’s when I could see it,” Aiba stuttered. Felt agitated more than anything else, “But if you’re alert enough, then it’s fine.”
“Forgotten memories. Tell me about forgotten memories.”
“Y- your brain has it. Your brain stores everything perfectly. You just can't access those memories, thus you say it's forgotten. But sometimes, when the situation is right, your brain might access it unconsciously. Like a background process on a computer. You don’t realize it when it happens, but I can see it.”
“Explain the situation,” Jun was still pacing around and Aiba had the urge to make him stop and sit. Because, hell, this man was already intimidating even without pacing around like a hungry lion.
“Like.. uh- it’s related to senses. Scenery, scent, texture, melody. Right combination might trigger the brain to access the memory,” Aiba explained as best as he could, “Or- or- it might just pop out of nowhere. No one really knows how one’s brain works.”
Jun stopped. Finally. He pondered for a bit and then he asked, “What kind of help do you need from me?”
Aiba furrowed his brows, totally forgot his initial intention. When it came back to him, he wasn’t sure whether to continue asking for help or not. He stole a glance or two to Jun and considered it all over again.
Jun looked like a kind person, actually. He was just- troubled? Determined? Restless? Aiba couldn’t pinpoint. But something in Jun’s eyes and gestures made Aiba believed that this scary person wasn’t going to hurt him.
“People from memories treat me like intruder when they recognize me. Like antibody to a virus, they would try to- uh- destroy me,” Aiba shuddered a bit, “But when I touch you, I lose my power for a little while. Every memory-person would disappear. So-”
“You need me to rescue you when it happens.”
“Yes. Well, actually I’d prefer to never see them again, so-”
“Where do you live?” Jun cut Aiba for the second time. If Aiba wasn’t too afraid, he would already complain.
“On the other side of the town.”
“Family?”
“Mom, dad, and a little brother in Chiba,” Aiba wished his mother was there to save him. He started to think that Matsumoto Jun might be more dangerous than a platoon of memory-person.
“Wife? Girlfriend? Kids?”
“No,” Aiba answered fast. How could he have any of them if he couldn’t even walk under the sunlight without being a paranoid weirdo, he thought to himself.
Then, Jun announced, “Okay. You’re my assistant from now on. You live here, your main responsibility is to rediscover my forgotten memories. I can pay you as much as you like, and you’ll be around me so if you need help you can help yourself.”
Aiba tensed up. He was the one who asked this, true, but he wasn’t sure about it anymore. Not after seeing what he saw earlier.
“Jun!” Toma complained.
“Go home, Toma,” Jun didn’t even look at Toma while saying so.
“Jun!”
“Go home or Shun will have a black-eyed groom for his wedding this weekend,” Jun threatened.
Toma tsk-ed. He knew he wouldn’t win on a banter with Jun, especially when his lost memory was involved. He found his way out with a grumpy face and his cellphone on his hand.
Once it’s only the two of them, Aiba didn’t know what to do. It felt like he was trapped as a prisoner.
“Ano-”
“You asked for this, so I don’t want to hear a no,” Jun said firmly. He walked to a door and opened it, “You can use this room, I’ll be next door. Tomorrow we’ll get your belongings.”
Aiba felt that nothing was right. He was accused as a mentally ill person at one second and on the next one, he’s forced to live with this probably murderer man. Now he knew how Jun might feel when he said he wanted to work with him even when they didn’t know each other yet.
“Matsumoto san, I- I think we should think about this first. I mean- time. We need time. You don’t know me, I might be a bad guy.”
Jun approached Aiba and with eyes fixated to Aiba’s and hands gripping Aiba’s shoulders he said, “Seventeen. I’ve lost my memories since I’m seventeen, Aiba san, do you think I could spare anymore time?”
Aiba was overwhelmed by the proximity. Jun’s eyes were reflecting anger and pain at the same time it made him confused if he wanted to run away or hug Jun.
“And I don’t care if you’re a bad guy. Rob me, take my money, I don’t care. Just help me get my memories back.”
By the end of the sentence, Jun’s eyes were covered by a thin layer of tears. Tears of anger, tears of determination.
Aiba decided he didn’t want to run away anymore. He sighed, hoping that he would never regret his decision.
“Don’t worry, I’m not a bad guy. Just- try not to touch me because then my ability would disappear,” Aiba said while walking to his new room, “Well then, good night?”
“Night,” Jun replied and silence filled the luxurious apartment.
******
Aiba found it hard to fall asleep that night. He kept moving restlessly, feeling a faint chill running down his spine.
A rustling sound caught Aiba’s attention a little bit past midnight. He sat up, trying to find out the source of the sound. Then, he saw a little kid in the corner of the room. The kid was trembling, crying.
It was him.
It was his memory.
His lost memory.
Aiba felt anticipation grew in his chest. Even though he didn’t remember anything about himself when he was just a kid, the nostalgic feeling was definitely there. He knew it was him. He just knew.
“Masaki,” a sound made Aiba turned his head quickly.
Another boy was there. Slightly bigger and older, with worried eyes and cautious gestures.
“Masaki, it’s okay. It’s only a thunder,” the older boy approached little Aiba.
“I’m afraid,” little Aiba started to cry.
“Hey, hey,” the older boy took little Aiba to his embrace, “It’s okay, I’m here. Nii chan is here so everything’s alright, okay? I got you. Nii chan got you.”
Aiba felt a wrenching feeling in his chest. He missed this man - the one that he believed as his older brother. The longing feeling felt so great that Aiba unconsciously moved towards the two hugging boys. He wanted to touch him, he wanted to hug him. He wanted to tell him how he wanted to see him.
Aiba was already an inch away from touching the memory-person from his own memory when a loud voice snapped him back to reality.
It was Jun.
Jun was screaming. Hard.
<< Chapter 2 | Chapter 4 >>
Yeay! Finally I updated this!
Even though I'm slow at this, but I am determined to finish this! xD
Thanks for reading and comments are loved! ♥