Remember Me? (COMPLETE)

Part 4: To Fix What's Broken

By: eternityunicorn

A few hours later, Eternity returned to put their daughter to bed for the night. Once the little girl was safely tucked in for sleep, the ethereal beauty lead Elijah out of the room. She didn't speak. She barely looked at him as she went down into the courtyard of the compound, away from the ears of their daughter and the rest of the household too.

She walked over to the bar and stood there with her back to him, leaning  forward on the dark wood as she did. "You should go," Eternity said quietly, almost too quietly for even his heightened hearing to catch. "You need to go to her, before the sun rises."

Elijah didn't need to ask after who she was talking about. He knew she was referring to Antoinette, the woman he had spend seven years with - the woman he had loved while in his amnesiac state. The very woman he had unknowingly committed adultery with...and then knowingly had carried on the affair, once Eternity had revealed herself to him in France.

The coldness he had shown to her, the hurtful things he had said, it all haunted him. It all echoed in his mind unendingly. He was ashamed and remorseful.

"Eternity, I -."

"You have a choice to make," his wife turned toward him. "Your erasure of your memories did just that: erased your memories, but what you felt for Antoinette was very much real. It still is. Therefore, I know you still love her."

Elijah tried to interject, "Sweetheart, I don't -."

"You have a choice to make," she repeated. "You have to decide what you want."

Before he could say anything, Eternity walked away, leaving him alone in the courtyard. He watched her go helplessly. Then a twinkling caught his eye and he went up to the bar to find Eternity's diamond and sapphire wedding ring sitting there. He picked it up and stared at it, pain filled him that she should dare to take it off. With a heavy sigh, he pocketed the ring, keeping it safe on his person for the time being with every intention of putting it back on her finger.

Determined, Elijah did as she said and left the compound to meet with Antoinette, whom was waiting for him by the river as they had agreed to. He found her there, watching the water. When she sensed him, she turned to him happily, the hopeful and relieved look she gave him made his insides twist painfully in guilt.

"You came," Antoinette said. "I was afraid that you wouldn't, that I would lose you forever."

The Original licked his lips uncomfortably and shoved his hand into his pants pocket, where he had stored his wife's ring. He gripped it for strength to do what was necessary, to remind him of what was important. Not that he actually needed to be reminded, of course. He knew his wife and child was vastly more important than the new life he had built over his seven years as an amnesiac vampire.

"Actually," he murmured, "I only came to tell you that I can't go with you, that I can't be with you."

Her face fell immediately, as she recognized he had his memories back from the change in his accent. As an amnesiac, he had an American way of speaking, but now he spoke with his regal, upper class accent that was essentially a mixture of American and English in tone.

"You have your memories back," the dark-haired beauty said sadly. "You're going back, just as I feared you would. In remembering them, remembering her, you're going to forget all about me."

"No, I won't forget," Elijah told her. "What we had was special. You helped me navigate my new, confusing life as an amnesiac vampire. You loved me and I loved you. Of course, I will always remember our time together and I will always be grateful to you for all you've done for me in my time of need."