deja vu

ecstasy

August 11th 2028 - Three years ago

Gem's pov:

I awoke to the sound of sobbing. Quiet sobbing, sobbing that erupted out of the person lying next to me.

I watched the back of my lover, it was shaking, forming a rhythm to his sobs. He was shivering, comparing to the sweltering heat inside the bedroom.

I tried to touch him, hesitant as he looked like he needed a moment for himself. But I swore to myself to make sure he was happy at all times, and I can't be breaking that promise.

"Baby..." My voice trailed off as I rubbed his back gently, my body language gesturing for him to turn around and face me.

He seemed to understand, and shifted himself so he was facing me. His tear streaked face and red, blotchy eyes knocked a gasp out of me...He looked haunted.

"What happened, Sweetie?" I asked, slowly pulling him into my arms, running my fingers through his tangled hair.

He buried his face into my chest, staining the front of my nightclothes with his tears. Grabbing onto the insides of my arms, he breathed deeply, like he was trying to talk to me.

That didn't work. He broke down again, sobbing until he had to loosen his collar in order to gasp for breath.

"Ge-Gem" He forced out, his body racking with sobs as he pushed into me, so hard, it felt like he was trying to merge into me.

"Shh...Baby, it's okay." I ran the palm of my hand up and down the small of his back. "Let it all out...it'll feel better"

And that released him like a faucet, tears and sweat pouring all over me.

It didn't take him that long to calm down, the thought of him having to hold it in before and sob quietly felt like a stab to my heart. It was my fault, I wasn't awake to comfort him, to listen to his words.

The clock struck 2am.

He was quiet.

"Gem..." He opened his swollen lips, words tumbling out like an over-stuffed cupboard.

"I...I saw him"
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The previous night...

Fourth's pov:

Gem and I were walking hand-in-hand, fingers intertwined, without a care in the world.

Passing the many dark ebony doors lining the walls, we read the lightly carved numbers on broze plates. Making funny comments and guessing which rooms had people in.

When that door first opened, I didn't even notice, and I walked headfirst into the man exiting the room.

When I got a clear look of his features, my heart stopped. It was him...
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About five years ago, when I was still nineteen, interning at the hospital, there was this patient. She was a little girl, and she had leukemia.

Her name was Fern, as she was the loveliest person to be around. But her father...

He was as lovely as his daughter, and cared for her so much...

I was Fern's nurse. She loved me, and I loved her. I used to tell her stories before she went to bed and sing her nursery rhymes. I used to sneak her extra ice-chips, because she loved them so much, with the grape flavored syrup.

But one day, everything changed.

Fern's father was not who I thought he was, he was just acting as a good Dad when other people were around.