"Yesterday" (fic)
Title: "Yesterday"
Characters: Matt/Daphne
Rating: PG-13
Notes: The song "Yesterday" is sung by Leona Lewis: it's a good complement to the story so if you have it/can get access to it, I suggest listening to it. If not, the lyrics will suffice.
Warning: Spoilers through 3x20 (Cold Snap).
I just can't believe you're gone
Still waiting for morning to come
Wanna see if the sun will rise
without you by my side
We had so much in store
Tell me, what is it I'm reaching for?
When we're through building memories,
I'll hold yesterday in my heart, in my heart
The monitor blared tonelessly at him, but Matt couldn't hear it. He wouldn't hear it. All he could hear was the absence of her voice, her snarky comments, the sparkle in her eye and the smirk that played on her lips. He felt her as she held on to him tightly, but when he opened his eyes and focused, it was he that was holding on to her tightly.
"How could this happen?" he breathed, unaware that he was speaking aloud. His companion patted his shoulder comfortingly as a response. They had come all this way, fought against hell and high water to be reunited only for her to die? Matt still wasn't quite sure that it was real. For a moment he wondered if someone was playing mind tricks on him. He had a strange, fleeting thought that maybe if he just waited for it to get light again, Daphne would just be sleeping and she'd wake up in the morning, her happy, perky, smirky self.
Light was a long time coming, though. But Matt was willing to wait. And while he did, he busied himself with thoughts of happier times, with all he had left of her.
They can take tomorrow and the plans we made
They can take the music that we never played
All the broken dreams, take everything
Just take it away, but they can never have yesterday
He remembered the nights they'd spend snuggling on the window seat, talking about what would do once they were free. Daphne wanted to go back to Paris, to be folded into his arms like she was now, only staring at the tower of light that was the Eiffel Tower instead of the dark, cold, forbidding skyscrapers of Manhattan. Matt wanted to take her to California, even though she claimed she'd stopped there on her travels once or twice.
One night, after dinner, an old jazz song came on and Daphne had joked that she was going to learn the trumpet and "play it crazy" like the song. Matt had teased her, said she'd never learn it fast enough to try and play it and make it sound good. But in the end, it was she who teased him the most, claiming she could move her fingers fast enough to play something else, and they'd ended up getting hot and heavy on the couch.
Matt saw all these memories with a bittersweet eye; after his life had been torn apart once by the Company, by Sylar, by all these things he'd been tangled up in after he had discovered his telepathy, the only bright spot he'd found was her. Spirit walk or not, he had been slowly been rebuilding his life, his love, his future with Daphne; and now, he'd been devastated all over again as he watched her fade away in his arms. Only this time, it hurt twice as badly because there was nothing he could have done to prevent it, to save her life.
They can take the future that we'll never know
They can take the places that we said we would go
All the broken dreams, take everything
Just take it away, but they can never have yesterday
You always used to say
I should be thankful for every day
Heaven knows what the future holds,
at least that's how the story goes,
but I never believed until now
I know I'll see you again, I'm sure
No, it's not selfish to ask for more
One more night, one more day
One more smile on your face
but they can't take yesterday
Daphne had known for a long time that she was dying. She had been subjected to immeasurable suffering and pain since she'd been shot, and as the hours went on and she had been resigned to her fate, her last hope was that she'd be able to say goodbye to Matt, to thank him for all the joy he'd brought to her life.
Every time he'd caution her to be careful, to come back to him or to be more cautious, Daphne would just shrug him off. She was tough, she was fast, and she was young. She was in the prime of her life and she'd be fine. But as she lay drifting between consciousness and lethargy, she realized just how right Matt had been, that everything she had taken for granted was slipping from her. As much as she hated to acknowledge it (because really, it did sound kind of crazy if you thought about it), she wanted the future Matt had painted for her, wanted it so badly. She wanted -- eventually -- to be his wife, raise their Daniela together, to spend forever together.
Once she knew she'd never be able to give that to him, she resolved to take one last smile, one last embrace, and then leave him to find his future without her. Running away from Matt was the hardest thing she'd done. Except finding out he'd followed her -- finding out that she'd never moved in the first place, that he wanted to make her happy as she slipped away from him.
It was with a bittersweet heart that she held onto him as he flew her to the moon -- the one place she hadn't been able to run to. She never wanted to let him go, but she could feel him slipping away. Daphne only had a few moments to kiss him deeply, to try and convey all the love she'd kept for him in her heart. She'd whispered "I love you" before, her vision blurry, she saw Matt's tearful eyes widen. They were the last thing she'd ever see before everything faded to black.
I thought our days would last forever
but it wasn't our destiny
'cause in my mind we had so much time
but I was so wrong
Now I can't believe that
I can still find the strength in the moments we made
I'm looking back on yesterday
"Matt?"
Mohinder's soft whisper broke the silence. Startled, unwilling to tear his eyes away from Daphne's lifeless form, looked up at his friend slowly. "I'm sorry, Matt, but we're going to have to leave soon."
He knew this. It was standard protocol. But why was it so hard to do what he needed to? "Give me a moment," Matt's hoarse voice asked. Mohinder nodded and walked towards the door. "I'll be outside."
The door closed behind them, and now it was just him and her. "I love you, Daphne," he breathed, kissing her forehead characteristically one last time. He got up slowly, prolonging his goodbye. With a heavy heart, he proceeded to the door. He stopped, one hand on the door handle. He knew he'd see Daphne again one day, somehow. It wasn't going to be easy, but he'd always have their memories, their short but very sweet time together.
"Goodbye."
The word slipped past Matt's lips almost unwillingly, barely audible. With one last look, he saw the first rays of the morning sun illuminating the room. Sighing, he turned the handle and walked out, closing the door on another broken dream.
All the broken dreams, take everything
They can never have yesterday
Characters: Matt/Daphne
Rating: PG-13
Notes: The song "Yesterday" is sung by Leona Lewis: it's a good complement to the story so if you have it/can get access to it, I suggest listening to it. If not, the lyrics will suffice.
Warning: Spoilers through 3x20 (Cold Snap).
I just can't believe you're gone
Still waiting for morning to come
Wanna see if the sun will rise
without you by my side
We had so much in store
Tell me, what is it I'm reaching for?
When we're through building memories,
I'll hold yesterday in my heart, in my heart
The monitor blared tonelessly at him, but Matt couldn't hear it. He wouldn't hear it. All he could hear was the absence of her voice, her snarky comments, the sparkle in her eye and the smirk that played on her lips. He felt her as she held on to him tightly, but when he opened his eyes and focused, it was he that was holding on to her tightly.
"How could this happen?" he breathed, unaware that he was speaking aloud. His companion patted his shoulder comfortingly as a response. They had come all this way, fought against hell and high water to be reunited only for her to die? Matt still wasn't quite sure that it was real. For a moment he wondered if someone was playing mind tricks on him. He had a strange, fleeting thought that maybe if he just waited for it to get light again, Daphne would just be sleeping and she'd wake up in the morning, her happy, perky, smirky self.
Light was a long time coming, though. But Matt was willing to wait. And while he did, he busied himself with thoughts of happier times, with all he had left of her.
They can take tomorrow and the plans we made
They can take the music that we never played
All the broken dreams, take everything
Just take it away, but they can never have yesterday
He remembered the nights they'd spend snuggling on the window seat, talking about what would do once they were free. Daphne wanted to go back to Paris, to be folded into his arms like she was now, only staring at the tower of light that was the Eiffel Tower instead of the dark, cold, forbidding skyscrapers of Manhattan. Matt wanted to take her to California, even though she claimed she'd stopped there on her travels once or twice.
One night, after dinner, an old jazz song came on and Daphne had joked that she was going to learn the trumpet and "play it crazy" like the song. Matt had teased her, said she'd never learn it fast enough to try and play it and make it sound good. But in the end, it was she who teased him the most, claiming she could move her fingers fast enough to play something else, and they'd ended up getting hot and heavy on the couch.
Matt saw all these memories with a bittersweet eye; after his life had been torn apart once by the Company, by Sylar, by all these things he'd been tangled up in after he had discovered his telepathy, the only bright spot he'd found was her. Spirit walk or not, he had been slowly been rebuilding his life, his love, his future with Daphne; and now, he'd been devastated all over again as he watched her fade away in his arms. Only this time, it hurt twice as badly because there was nothing he could have done to prevent it, to save her life.
They can take the future that we'll never know
They can take the places that we said we would go
All the broken dreams, take everything
Just take it away, but they can never have yesterday
You always used to say
I should be thankful for every day
Heaven knows what the future holds,
at least that's how the story goes,
but I never believed until now
I know I'll see you again, I'm sure
No, it's not selfish to ask for more
One more night, one more day
One more smile on your face
but they can't take yesterday
Daphne had known for a long time that she was dying. She had been subjected to immeasurable suffering and pain since she'd been shot, and as the hours went on and she had been resigned to her fate, her last hope was that she'd be able to say goodbye to Matt, to thank him for all the joy he'd brought to her life.
Every time he'd caution her to be careful, to come back to him or to be more cautious, Daphne would just shrug him off. She was tough, she was fast, and she was young. She was in the prime of her life and she'd be fine. But as she lay drifting between consciousness and lethargy, she realized just how right Matt had been, that everything she had taken for granted was slipping from her. As much as she hated to acknowledge it (because really, it did sound kind of crazy if you thought about it), she wanted the future Matt had painted for her, wanted it so badly. She wanted -- eventually -- to be his wife, raise their Daniela together, to spend forever together.
Once she knew she'd never be able to give that to him, she resolved to take one last smile, one last embrace, and then leave him to find his future without her. Running away from Matt was the hardest thing she'd done. Except finding out he'd followed her -- finding out that she'd never moved in the first place, that he wanted to make her happy as she slipped away from him.
It was with a bittersweet heart that she held onto him as he flew her to the moon -- the one place she hadn't been able to run to. She never wanted to let him go, but she could feel him slipping away. Daphne only had a few moments to kiss him deeply, to try and convey all the love she'd kept for him in her heart. She'd whispered "I love you" before, her vision blurry, she saw Matt's tearful eyes widen. They were the last thing she'd ever see before everything faded to black.
I thought our days would last forever
but it wasn't our destiny
'cause in my mind we had so much time
but I was so wrong
Now I can't believe that
I can still find the strength in the moments we made
I'm looking back on yesterday
"Matt?"
Mohinder's soft whisper broke the silence. Startled, unwilling to tear his eyes away from Daphne's lifeless form, looked up at his friend slowly. "I'm sorry, Matt, but we're going to have to leave soon."
He knew this. It was standard protocol. But why was it so hard to do what he needed to? "Give me a moment," Matt's hoarse voice asked. Mohinder nodded and walked towards the door. "I'll be outside."
The door closed behind them, and now it was just him and her. "I love you, Daphne," he breathed, kissing her forehead characteristically one last time. He got up slowly, prolonging his goodbye. With a heavy heart, he proceeded to the door. He stopped, one hand on the door handle. He knew he'd see Daphne again one day, somehow. It wasn't going to be easy, but he'd always have their memories, their short but very sweet time together.
"Goodbye."
The word slipped past Matt's lips almost unwillingly, barely audible. With one last look, he saw the first rays of the morning sun illuminating the room. Sighing, he turned the handle and walked out, closing the door on another broken dream.
All the broken dreams, take everything
They can never have yesterday