I went back in time today
Quatre flicked on the lights at the head of the stairs before starting down. The steps were narrow and old, and he didn't want to injure himself.
A box I thought I'd thrown away
Had fallen off the basement shelf
Despite the fluorescent overheads, it was still had to see in the large concrete room, so it was no wonder that he didn't see the box until after he'd nosedived over it.
I tripped and almost hurt myself
He levered himself up and began dusting off his clothes, but his hands stilled when he caught sight of individual items in the jumble on the rug.
Scattered there across the floor
A New Year's Eve hat, 204
Ticket stubs to Billy Joel
And pictures from the Sugar Bowl
Kneeling next to the pile, he picked up a plastic hat with both hands and stared at the bright colors for a moment. Nearly a decade ago, he'd worn this very hat to a New Year's party with Duo and Trowa.
Some of these souvenirs I remember, mostly I don't
Funny how time reduces a keepsake to a footnote
The wheres and the whens
That meant so much then
Have gracefully moved along
As hard as he tried, he couldn't for the life of him remember why he'd saved a leaflet for a street party in Old New York, or what significance an unsigned reminder to meet someone might have once held.
My memory
Had mercy on me
And let me go on
Considering everything you meant
I thought I never would forget
As he picked up one thing after another, fragments of memory surfaced; faces he couldn't quite remember clearly, vague buildings, the outlines of events. Then he came across a small photo album, and one face became much sharper in his mind.
Here's us dancing on your birthday
July 29th or 29th
Catherine had announced once that she had picked a date for Trowa's birthday, and they were celebrating whether he liked it or not. The party had been long and loud, lasting well into the night.
The song was 'Always and Forever'
I'm not sure, but I remember
That's the night we first made love
The passion captured both of us
A small smile of guilty pleasure curved his lips. There was no forgetting what had happened after the party, when both he and Trowa had been ready and willing. It had been magical, the way they'd merged together in the height of passion, not to mention the tender hours alone afterwards.
It held us, then it set us free
This is all that's left of you and me
Sad how little he could recall of those years. Back then, he'd thought it would last forever, if only in his heart. Now, so much of it had drifted beyond his reach, and he didn't particularly mind.
A cardboard treasure chest with a diary of two lovers
Now it's just a dusty old box no different from the others
Carefully, he replaced each former treasure in the box, not wanting to cause further damage to the more fragile pieces. With each thing he touched, he wondered what wealth of emotion and memory it contained. Surely much more than the bits he'd managed to hold on to over the years.
The wheres and the whens
That meant so much then
Have gracefully moved along
My memory had mercy on me
And let me go on
Maybe it was better that he'd forgotten. Carrying the pain of a lost love would have probably driven him insane, if not to suicide. Humans were not meant to bear such pure emotion alone.
Considering everything you meant, He thought, replacing the newly packed box on the highest of the storage shelves, I thought I never would forget.
Wow, this was a quick fic. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Review and tell me what you think, okay?
Oh, also, I changed the lyrics a little in line 6. They originally read 'A New Years Eve hat, 94,' but Quatre and Trowa didn't know each other then, so I changed it to 204, when they'd have known each other for eight or nine years. I hope that makes as much sense to you as it did to me…