Everyday Amnesia

0.8

"Mike, guess what?"

"Erm, what?"

"They're making a new season of Attack On Titan!" Ashton shrieks happily.

It's been exactly 24 hours since Michael promised Ashton he wasn't going to die. He had already learned that Ashton had forgotten Luke, though he didn't know the reason why.

Now, Ashton refers to Luke as the creepy blonde boy who keeps trying to talk to him. Michael hasn't bothered to correct him. He forgets to reply and Ashton sighs.

"You don't even care!" Ashton accuses, pointing a finger.

"Nah, not really," Michael admits.

Ashton sighs again and then blinks, looking at their weird position. Somehow, he had his knee wedged under Michael's back and was folded over his side, resting his head on Michael's chest and listening to his heartbeat.

The steady thrum of his heart was reassuring. Because he knows that Michael is alive. He knows that Michael is keeping his promise. They chat pointlessly until visiting hours are over and it's time for Ashton to go. He hurries down the hallway and collides into somebody.

"Oh, sorry," The person says. Ashton looks to see the creepy blonde boy staring at him with a guilty expression on his face.

"It's you," Ashton mutters. He steps around the boy and rushes out the front door where Daniel is waiting for him.

"How was the visit?" He asks, starting the car.

"Oh, it was fun," Ashton shrugs. "I ran into the creep again."

Daniel sighs. "He's not a creep, Ash. It's just the two of you had some problems and you forgot about him purposely."

"I did?" Ashton frowns. "What did he do?"

"Well, from what Hannah told me, he apparently knew you before, and didn't tell you? And he wrote a song based on your everyday amnesia, kind of, it was more like "I wish that I could wake up with amnesia" and you got mad because he never said anything to you," Daniel says, keeping his eyes on the road. Ashton lets the words sink in.

"What's his name?" He asks curiously.

"Luke," Daniel replies.

"I guess I'll have a chat with him then<" Ashton says. When they arrive home, he decides to skip dinner and heads upstairs to his room, pulling out his journal.

So, creepy blonde boy isn't all that creepy, or so I've been told. Apparently we had some sort of spat, I suppose, but it wasn't directly. He knows about my everyday amnesia! I thought only Hannah, Daniel, and Michael knew, but I was wrong.

And also, he wrote a song, about wishing to wake up with amnesia. That's a stupid wish. I wake up with amnesia everyday, and it's a struggle to get through life without remembering anything. I think I'll talk to Luke if I ever see him again. I don't know how I'll be able to identify him. Maybe Michael could help?

Ashton jots down a couple of notes before shutting his journal and putting it on the shelf. He had some time to kill, so he pulls out an old journal and begins to read. The first entry was dated about nine months ago.

Today, Michael Clifford talked to me! I thought he was really just a popular asshole, but it turns out he's so fucking nice, I swear. He lost his popularity since he talked to me, a loner, but he didn't even care. He said he thought I was cool and he wanted to be my friend.

He wanted to know all about me, and he told me all about him. He loves pizza, video games, and comics, kind of like me. Except I don't play the same video games as he does. I don't like FIFA, and he thought I was insane.

But Michael is such a great guy, I'm hoping we'll be good friends. And he has blue hair! I never thought I'd ever like dyed hair on a person, but it looks great on him. He'll lose his hair though. I bet he'll be bald before thirty.

Ashton smiles, he doesn't remember it exactly, but he does remember having a vision and seeing Michael hanging out with him all the time. He usually remembers all of his visions and dreams, but sometimes he forgets them. Ashton yawns and shuts off his light, climbing into bed and closing his eyes. He didn't fall asleep as quickly as he usually does. It was slowly, like he was sinking in quicksand. And suddenly, like a door slamming in his face, everything's dark and he's out like a light.

He's standing in the same graveyard as before, but this time, he's alone. Ashton's standing near a gravestone, but it looks brand new, like it was just put in. His stomach lurches at the memory of Michael in the coffin, but he keeps it down.

It's strangely quiet, except for the trees rustling in the wind. Dark clouds cover the sky, but it's not raining. Ashton's wearing a t-shirt and jeans, goosebumps rising on his arms from the cold. He doesn't understand why he's here. It's a different area than where he stood in the vision from before, at Michael's grave. So he knows that it isn't Michael who is buried right in front of him.

The wind blows harder, but strangely it seems it's coming from four different directions. The blades of grass seem to bow towards the headstone. Ashton hears a sound, feet scuffling along in the grass. He whirls around, heart pounding. Nobody's there. His eyes flicker back and forth as he scans the graveyard. There's nothing.

It feels like a cold, clammy hand is grasping his heart. He can't breathe properly, struggling to get air into his respiratory system. Something is pressing on his rib cages, he can feel it, but nothing's there. There's absolutely nothing there. So why does it feels like there's an anvil sitting on his chest? A gust of wind sends a pile of leaves flying, and they all seem to swirl around the headstone. Ashton finally gets it. He drops to his knees and crawls slightly, shielding his eyes from the wind and squinting to read the words on the headstone.

Luke Hemmings.

Son, brother, boyfriend.

July 16, 1996 - August 11, 2014.

His memory will always be with us.