[Fic] Baby, Please Remember Me Once More - Part Two
Title: Baby, Please Remember Me Once More
Author: duckgirlie
Team: ROMANCE!
Prompt: devotion, home.
Summary: “Sorry. I know you? I mean, of course I know you, at least a bit. Your number’s in my wallet. But I don’t know you, not at all.”
Word Count: ~1000 (this part)
Rated: PG
one
“You look like the kind of person who’s in charge of situations.”
Arthur put his phone down on the side table and took a step back. “You could say that, yes.”
“That’s a relief. Some of these doctors, man... I have no idea if they have any clue what’s going on.”
“They don’t. Not really. Amnesia’s still something that we don’t have proper answers for.”
“Yeah? Makes sense.” He looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers like he didn’t quite recognise them. “I think the doctor probably underplayed things a bit. I mean - I have a lot of memories. Just not any recent ones.”
Arthur looked down at his phone for a second and tapped out a couple of replies before looking back at him. “It’s fine. I’ve got some people coming in. We’ll fix this. You’ll be fine.”
There was a pause where they both looked around the room.
“D’ya want to help me outside for a smoke?”
“Not particularly, no.”
“C’mon man. I can’t get out there by myself, I need someone to push me. It’s not far.”
For a second, Arthur looked like he was going to keep refusing, but he just sighed and pulled the hospital-issued wheelchair over to the bed, before pushing him to the nearest outside door.
“You know, you can stop looking at me like that. I’m a grown-up, even if I can’t remember most of it.”
“You still shouldn’t be smoking. You’d hate it.”
“Chill man, it’s not like you’re my boyfriend or -”
He nearly dropped his cigarette when Arthur flinched.
“Shit man, you’re not, are you? I mean, you said you were just my friend, and I thought...”
Arthur held up a hand to silence him. “No, I’m not. But it took you a long time to quit, and I just thought you’d appreciate being reminded that you don’t anymore.”
He looked down at the cigarette in his hand and raised an eyebrow? “I quit? For serious? Probably not. I probably just told you I did, but I’ve been sneaking them.”
“Suit yourself.”
He lit up the cigarette and took a long drag, coughing immediately.
“Shit man.”
“I did warn you.”
“Fine, fine.” But he didn’t put it out, instead cradling it in his palm and watching it burn slowly down. “So I don’t smoke. What else has changed? I’m still gay, right?”
Arthur raised an eyebrow. “It doesn’t just stop.”
“Well how the fuck should I know? This is the future. Maybe some hard-core social conservatives took over and forced conversion therapy on everyone.”
“No, you’re still gay.”
“That’s all right then.” He slouched down in his wheelchair, lighting another cigarette only to watch it burn down. “I mean, I’d probably miss that more then the smokes, yeah?”
“I imagine so.”
He looked up at Arthur and grinned. “I thought you might be my boyfriend, for a moment. I mean, you look like my boyfriends. But then like, you keep calling me Eames and I figured...”
“What else am I supposed to call you?”
“Um, David? It’s my name...”
“Well, David. Can we get back inside? Seeing as you’re not actually smoking anything.”
“Fine, fine. So we what, work together, or something?”
“Something like that.”
“And these people you’ve called, they work with us too?”
“They have done, yes.”
David craned his head around to look at him. “And we what? Do something proper dodgey?”
Arthur paused for a moment before he resumed pushing. “What makes you say that?”
David rolled his eyes. “I may be nine years younger then I was yesterday, but people don’t just mysteriously show up and promise to ‘fix things’ if they’re not at least a little bit dodgey.”
He stopped talking as he pulled himself carefully back into the bed. “Plus, you haven’t offered to ring my mom yet, so I figure that means you’re afraid she’ll beat me - or you either - for getting myself involved in something stupid.”
A thought occurred to him, and he gulped. “I mean, unless she’s... she’s not, is she? Dead, I mean.”
“No, she’s not. And you’re right, there is every chance she’d beat either one of us, so lets wait until we’ve a slightly better handle on things, okay?”
David relaxed back into the bed. “That’s good. I mean, fuck everything, if my mom was dead, I don’t think I’d want to be in the future.”
“It’s not the future Ea -David. You’re just taking a little catching up to the present.”
Arthur checked his phone again. “Look, I have to go... sort some stuff out. Do you think you’ll be alright by yourself until I get back?”
“Nah man, I’ll be tight. They’ve got vending machines, and I apparently own like, the tiniest computer in the entire world. You go find your shit out, I’ll be here, trying to remember you.”
Arthur looked at him for a second, like he was trying to figure something out, before nodding once and leaving the room. David looked about the room for a second before retreving his computer - and it really was ridiculously small - from the bedside locker and pulled it open.
He couldn’t remember his password.
*****
Arthur picked Cobb up from his house.
“What’s the situation?”
“Where are the kids?”
“They’re fine. What are we dealing with?”
Arthur slammed the car door shut and pulled out into the road. “Something wiped out nine years of Eames’ memory.”
“And you think it’s...”
“I don’t know what it is. But whatever it is, it can’t bee good.”
Cobb nodded. “Who else did you call?”
“I’ve got Yusuf coming in on the first flight he can get, and Ariadne as well.”
“You think we’ll need to go under?”
Arthur tightened his hands on the steering wheel. “I just want to be prepared.”
three
Author: duckgirlie
Team: ROMANCE!
Prompt: devotion, home.
Summary: “Sorry. I know you? I mean, of course I know you, at least a bit. Your number’s in my wallet. But I don’t know you, not at all.”
Word Count: ~1000 (this part)
Rated: PG
one
“You look like the kind of person who’s in charge of situations.”
Arthur put his phone down on the side table and took a step back. “You could say that, yes.”
“That’s a relief. Some of these doctors, man... I have no idea if they have any clue what’s going on.”
“They don’t. Not really. Amnesia’s still something that we don’t have proper answers for.”
“Yeah? Makes sense.” He looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers like he didn’t quite recognise them. “I think the doctor probably underplayed things a bit. I mean - I have a lot of memories. Just not any recent ones.”
Arthur looked down at his phone for a second and tapped out a couple of replies before looking back at him. “It’s fine. I’ve got some people coming in. We’ll fix this. You’ll be fine.”
There was a pause where they both looked around the room.
“D’ya want to help me outside for a smoke?”
“Not particularly, no.”
“C’mon man. I can’t get out there by myself, I need someone to push me. It’s not far.”
For a second, Arthur looked like he was going to keep refusing, but he just sighed and pulled the hospital-issued wheelchair over to the bed, before pushing him to the nearest outside door.
“You know, you can stop looking at me like that. I’m a grown-up, even if I can’t remember most of it.”
“You still shouldn’t be smoking. You’d hate it.”
“Chill man, it’s not like you’re my boyfriend or -”
He nearly dropped his cigarette when Arthur flinched.
“Shit man, you’re not, are you? I mean, you said you were just my friend, and I thought...”
Arthur held up a hand to silence him. “No, I’m not. But it took you a long time to quit, and I just thought you’d appreciate being reminded that you don’t anymore.”
He looked down at the cigarette in his hand and raised an eyebrow? “I quit? For serious? Probably not. I probably just told you I did, but I’ve been sneaking them.”
“Suit yourself.”
He lit up the cigarette and took a long drag, coughing immediately.
“Shit man.”
“I did warn you.”
“Fine, fine.” But he didn’t put it out, instead cradling it in his palm and watching it burn slowly down. “So I don’t smoke. What else has changed? I’m still gay, right?”
Arthur raised an eyebrow. “It doesn’t just stop.”
“Well how the fuck should I know? This is the future. Maybe some hard-core social conservatives took over and forced conversion therapy on everyone.”
“No, you’re still gay.”
“That’s all right then.” He slouched down in his wheelchair, lighting another cigarette only to watch it burn down. “I mean, I’d probably miss that more then the smokes, yeah?”
“I imagine so.”
He looked up at Arthur and grinned. “I thought you might be my boyfriend, for a moment. I mean, you look like my boyfriends. But then like, you keep calling me Eames and I figured...”
“What else am I supposed to call you?”
“Um, David? It’s my name...”
“Well, David. Can we get back inside? Seeing as you’re not actually smoking anything.”
“Fine, fine. So we what, work together, or something?”
“Something like that.”
“And these people you’ve called, they work with us too?”
“They have done, yes.”
David craned his head around to look at him. “And we what? Do something proper dodgey?”
Arthur paused for a moment before he resumed pushing. “What makes you say that?”
David rolled his eyes. “I may be nine years younger then I was yesterday, but people don’t just mysteriously show up and promise to ‘fix things’ if they’re not at least a little bit dodgey.”
He stopped talking as he pulled himself carefully back into the bed. “Plus, you haven’t offered to ring my mom yet, so I figure that means you’re afraid she’ll beat me - or you either - for getting myself involved in something stupid.”
A thought occurred to him, and he gulped. “I mean, unless she’s... she’s not, is she? Dead, I mean.”
“No, she’s not. And you’re right, there is every chance she’d beat either one of us, so lets wait until we’ve a slightly better handle on things, okay?”
David relaxed back into the bed. “That’s good. I mean, fuck everything, if my mom was dead, I don’t think I’d want to be in the future.”
“It’s not the future Ea -David. You’re just taking a little catching up to the present.”
Arthur checked his phone again. “Look, I have to go... sort some stuff out. Do you think you’ll be alright by yourself until I get back?”
“Nah man, I’ll be tight. They’ve got vending machines, and I apparently own like, the tiniest computer in the entire world. You go find your shit out, I’ll be here, trying to remember you.”
Arthur looked at him for a second, like he was trying to figure something out, before nodding once and leaving the room. David looked about the room for a second before retreving his computer - and it really was ridiculously small - from the bedside locker and pulled it open.
He couldn’t remember his password.
*****
Arthur picked Cobb up from his house.
“What’s the situation?”
“Where are the kids?”
“They’re fine. What are we dealing with?”
Arthur slammed the car door shut and pulled out into the road. “Something wiped out nine years of Eames’ memory.”
“And you think it’s...”
“I don’t know what it is. But whatever it is, it can’t bee good.”
Cobb nodded. “Who else did you call?”
“I’ve got Yusuf coming in on the first flight he can get, and Ariadne as well.”
“You think we’ll need to go under?”
Arthur tightened his hands on the steering wheel. “I just want to be prepared.”
three