Remember Me

chapter one

My stomach twisted up. I could feel an acidic taste develop on the back of my tongue as she grabbed for the picture in my hand. Her face crumpled in confusion as her eyes danced across the photo.
"Who is this?" She whispered, her index finger brushing against the picture.
"That's you, sweetie," I said, watching Theresa's eyes widen. She dropped the photo and I quickly grabbed for her empty hand. Theresa gasped and backed away from me, suddenly terrified.
"What are you doing?" I brought my hands back as Theresa's shrill voice yelled at me.
"I'm sorry," I said quickly, feeling my chest tighten up again. Theresa took another step back, breathing fast as she looked at the other pictures in the room. The group photo of our days in high school, graduation pictures, convocation, our wedding ceremony.
"This is too much," she exhaled, her voice breaking. She looked back at me before quickly walking out the door, leaving me alone in the living room.
It was my own fault. It was my idea to show her the photos, even when her doctor disapproved. Exhausted, mentally and physically, I slumped into the leather arm chair behind me. I grabbed blindly for the phone, dialing the number for the hundredth time.
"Hello?"
"Hey." My voice was hoarse in the mouth piece.
"You showed her the pictures, didn't you?" Archie sighed, his tired voice echoing mine. I heard background shuffling, and soon Atlanta's voice joined in. He had put me on speaker.
"How did she react?" Atlanta's voice echoed in the back.
'Not well," I answered, pinching the bridge of my nose. I could feel the headache forming, and we were out of Advil.
"Well, that was to be expected," Atlanta said, Archie coughing slightly in the background. "What're you going to do now?"
"Any ideas?" I could hear footsteps upstairs as Theresa paced in the guest bedroom.
"Give her time," Archie suggested.
"Obviously," I snapped back, my lack of sleep was starting to affect my mood. "…sorry," I quickly apologized, resting my head on the back of the chair.
"Look, Kay, you can't really do much else for her. I could make a few phone calls, maybe get the gang together." Atlanta seemed to also be running low on ideas, finally joining the rest of us.
"Yeah, we haven't seen Neil, Herry and Odie in a long time," Archie leapt in, a dog barking in the background before being shushed by Atlanta. "Not since your wedding probably."
"Much simpler back then," I said quietly, half to myself as I twirled the gold wedding band around my finger. A few wedding pictures were laid out on the table from the night before. I felt the all too familiar tightening in my chest as I stared at Theresa standing next to her father, looking stunning in her grandmother's dress.
"I'll call you tomorrow," I said roughly; Theresa's footsteps stopping above me.
I didn't hear Archie or Atlanta say goodbye, I had heard it too many times this week.
I ran my fingers through my hair, letting my head fall into my hands. My neck seemed to longer want to support my heavy head, my shoulders aching from the burden. The stress of the last hour was beginning to press down on me, some invisible hand pushing me slowly into the hard ground.
I glanced at the clock on the wall through my hair. We would have been finishing dinner right now, but it wasn't hunger that ached in my body.
The bottle was almost empty, but I poured myself a glass anyway. I quickly downed the glass and regretted it instantly. The sharp burn stung the back of my throat and my eyes started to water, making me set the glass down heavily on the hutch.
"Could you pour me a glass?" Theresa's voice carried down from the stairs above me.
I must have looked horrible as I stared blankly up at her. My hair stuck up awkwardly, tears coming out of my bloodshot eyes and about to collapse from sleep deprivation. She wrapped her shawl tighter around herself, slowly walking towards me.
"But you don't like whiskey," I whispered hoarsely.
"I don't?" She reached for the bottle, pouring a bit into another glass. I backed up as she placed the bottle back, wary of her nervous eyes.
I couldn't help but hide a smile as Theresa flinched back from the smell of the alcohol. She closed her eyes and tilted her head, swallowing the mouthful of bourbon. Theresa exploded into a fit of coughs, slamming the glass down and putting her hand to her chest.
"I told you." A smile started to creep across my face, and it felt alien to me. I watched Theresa squeeze her eyes shut, a tiny smile playing on her flawless lips.
"How can you drink that?" She laughed lightly, making my heart skip.
"Tolerance and practice," I said, taking the two glasses. I gazed at her, turning slowly towards the kitchen, silently wishing she would follow.
I rinsed the glasses under the running water, hearing her faint footsteps behind me. I looked up, staring into the window, allowing the light from the kitchen to illuminate Theresa in the dark window. She stood in front of the refrigerator, holding her arms and looking at the pictures decorating the freezer.
Before, they were just images. To Theresa, the people in them were strangers, beings in a life she didn't remember anymore. My heart throbbed painfully as Theresa's vibrant face smiled widely as the camera captured the moment. The photo booth pictures were one of our favourites, taken a year before our engagement.
"How did - ," she said, faltering. "How did I…" She brushed her fingers over the sensitive part of her scalp, her eyes pinching shut.
"You were horseback riding." The words rolled off my tongue with ease, making me feel uneasy. "A fox ran by, spooked the horse and you fell." The image of Theresa falling replayed in my mind: the unnatural way she slid off the saddle, the sickening thud sound as her head hit the ground.
"Horseback riding?"
"You've been doing it since you were eight," I said, staring into her confused eyes. Better to tell her the truth, rather than lying right to her face.
"Oh" she said simply. She averted my gaze, looking back to the photos. She focused on the last of the four, a faint smiling appearing.
"Huh," she laughed lightly. She smiled at the picture of me kissing her cheek, a faint blush colouring her face. "Goodnight, Jay." With that, Theresa walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs, leaving me alone with my thoughts, staring at our memories.