that time you weren't there (an "a.u." oneshot)

that time you weren't there

Damian woke up in his bed. His real, actual bed in the new house, in his new room with the mirror hanging on the back of the door. The persistent chirp of the alarm on his phone pulled him further back into reality.

He bolted upright as the memories from the past handful of scenarios began to form comprehensible thoughts in his head. A heavy weight pushed down on his ribs. He could recall the most recent scenario with crystal clarity. The pressure it put on his chest made his limbs tremor.

Trying to shake it off, he reached for his phone to snooze the alarm. He checked it while he had it in hand. It was Wednesday, the day after they'd last left this "world" behind. It was 7:30—later than he usually got up, but still enough time to go through his daily routine and get to work. There was a Facebook message waiting for him.

The name on the notification allowed him to exhale. A portion of the weight lifted, but his chest felt tighter somehow. He opened Messenger.

Alexander Cobalt

> Hey! I spent like 20 minutes looking before I realized I don't actually have your phone number

> are you

> uh

> back

Damian hesitated, trying to figure out what to say.

yeah, just woke up in today<

if that makes sense<

He stared at the Messenger window for a minute until the icon dropped and his messaged changed to "read".

>Yeah, me too

> I wasn't sure what to do so I just went to work

yeah it's kinda weird<

I think I'm gonna go to work too<

>Did you wanna stop in?

Damian earnestly thought about it. As much as he was yearning to see Alexander, corporeal and unharmed, he wasn't sure if he should right now.

Or could right now.

I'm running behind this morning <
so if it's cool I'm just gonna head straight in

>No prob, you weird time stickler :p

hey<

do you mind meeting me in the park after work?<

I get done at 5:30<

>Yeah, sure

>My evenings are always free

>I think

>Still trying to get my mindset adjusted to home again

haha me too<

see you then<

Damian got out of bed and began to get ready for work. It admittedly wasn't that hard to fall back into routine, but that didn't mean the imported memories felt any less real. They simply integrated and coexisted with his pre-existing memories just as they had last time.

Except this time around, he really wished they hadn't.

He didn't let the dull ache in his chest keep him from getting to work on time. He even managed to get in a couple minutes early, actually.

Damian used the time to work himself back into the flow of things. His job wasn't as easy to slip back into as his morning routine. If he hadn't kept notes or an updated calendar, he would've been royally fucked. But he managed pretty well, keeping to himself most of the day and staying cordial with his coworkers.