FOREVER YOURS

Chapter One

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"Are you sure you don't want to retain some of the memories from this life to the next?"

The girl in question turned away from Kisuke and Yoruichi then looked out the bay window. "Yes." She confirmed, "I prefer not to remember anything at all."

"Don't you want to recognize him?"

Although Yoruichi didn't mention a name, they all knew who 'him' was.

She said, eyes cold and voice flat, "It didn't take him long to move on, so it's pointless for me to carry anything from here on to the next life, don't you think?" She laughed humorlessly. "Not sure how long it'll take my soul to journey there, wherever there is. It can be the Arctic and I'll be in the form of a polar bear for all we know."

"Bu-"

"You're right." Yoruichi intervened, choosing her words carefully. "And yet you still have that poem in your possession."

She took a long, deep breath. So deep that Kisuke and Yoruichi could see the slight tremor in her petite form. Kisuke's mouth opened then closed, not knowing how to convince the stubborn girl to see past her pain in order to make a more sound judgment. Yoruichi shook her head at him telling him with her eyes to stop the fruitless pursuit of persuading her to change her mind.

All the while the young, raven hair woman was breaking inside recalling the image from yesterday vividly. He had moved on and settled down. They even had a child together. A boy that looked just like his father. She bit down on her lower lip to keep from crying out loud. They had looked happy. He was happy without her, with another woman. He had broken his vow to her, to their love.

Love. What a pathetic joke. And you're even more a pathetic fool. A sore loser. However could you ever compete with that bubbly personality? And you're decades older than he is. It doesn't matter it's only your soul that has aged and that your physical body was only seventeen at the time of your death. Or that you were even younger than he was when two you met again. Her emotional half whined as her logical half reasoned, "To be honest and fair, you must admit that his wife is a great woman."

Wife. She could hear herself cry in the deepest corner of her soul. What she wouldn't do to be that person to him. Karma. She'd broken his heart first and caused him his death.

"Did you know we knew each other lifetimes ago?" She broke the silence. Both mentors shook their heads, shock evident in their eyes. She looked at her audience, her smile sad. "Here is another shocker," she continued, turning away. "In fact, we were meant to be married but I left him."

"Have you told him the history between you two?"

"Yes, and I was certain he would call me crazy, but he was the crazy one. He believed my words." She absentmindedly touched her ring finger. "He even asked me to wait for him this lifetime."

"As it turned out my promise wasn't necessary since…" With a careless shrug of one shoulder, she went on, her voice not as steady as before. "Guess he didn't break his promise, because I'm already dead and dead people don't have a heart to be broken. Aren't I right?"

"Anyway." She dropped a folded paper that had turned yellow with age into the fire. "That was history, just like yesterday belonged in the past and today has to move toward the future. Wish me luck that next lifetime around I won't make any promises to anyone. Ever."

And just like that she was gone before either Yoruichi or Kisuke could bid her farewell.

"Do you think she really meant what she said about promises?"

Yoruichi nodded. "Yes, and there will be much trouble ahead of us."

"Why is that?"

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2018.12.15