Memories
Prompted by 'aphass' and set around episode 7090, this is a one-shot covering Chris making his decision about whether or not he was going to go to New York with Lucy.
Chris practically floated through town like some sort of ghost. Everything that had happened in the last few hours had just hit him like a freight train: seeing his baby for the first time in the scan, his break-up with Nate and now Lucy inviting him to join her in New York. Chris barely had time to get his head around it all, but wandered around Erinsborough thinking carefully about the possibility of leaving his home.
Traipsing past Harold's, an image flashed in Chris' head, which stopped him in his tracks. He suddenly remembered chasing Harry, Summer and Andrew out of the store after finding out that the guidebooks Andrew had sold to him and his friends about how to pick up girls were a fraud. Chris chuckled to himself at the irony of buying an instruction manual to help him get a girlfriend, though he hadn't been fully aware of his sexuality back then. He remembered being mortified about having been taken for such an idiot at the time, but in some ways was grateful that it had happened otherwise his life could have turned out very differently. Chris could almost still see him and his peers chasing Andrew, Harry and Summer back to the school, like a vision in front of him.
However, the vision suddenly changed to one of him and Naomi chasing Bossy across the complex and being relieved when she was caught by a mysterious stranger. The mysterious stranger left an impression on Chris immediately and after a few near-misses eventually became his boyfriend and one of the most important people in his life. Chris let out a deep breath and couldn't help but smile as he thought about how much had changed between that first memory and the last: he'd miraculously got rid of his glasses and had a decent haircut for one thing, but most importantly he'd made something of his life by getting a steady job and just becoming more comfortable and confident in himself. However, that thought didn't help with his decision-making process, and only succeeded in making him feel more conflicted than before.
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Passing by the Waterhole, Chris was taken back to two tragic events that had happened recently. One of them was waking up after being attacked by Victor Cleary and hobbling into the complex to witness Kate dying. That image of his friend being pronounced dead on what should have been one of the best days of her life had been imbedded in his mind for weeks afterwards, despite his own problems such as his injuries and relationship dilemmas. Chris was the type of person who tried not to have too many regrets, but even nearly a year later he still regretted the fact that he was so caught up in his own problems that he wasn't supporting his friends – especially Mark – who were grieving Kate and were struggling with the loss themselves.
The other memory that returned was the night he was coward-punched by Josh. However, as a result of the injury Chris lost his memory of that night and even six months later he could still remember very little. He remembered sending Josh and Nate away during the party, but his next memory was waking up in Hospital, and the fact that he still couldn't remember what had happened in between terrified him. The worst part of what had happened was the fact that he was unable to do things that he knew he used to be able to do: combined with his mood swings, Chris' behaviour had changed out of anger and frustration. Deep down, he was still bitter about Josh getting away with a community service order considering that Chris was still healing, but he didn't regret being the bigger person and showing compassion towards his neighbour who had – in some ways – been suffering just as badly as him. Thinking about those dark times made Chris tempted to leave Erinsborough, not just to escape from it all but to create a better life for himself and his family.
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Chris debated whether or not to enter The Waterhole because he knew that Sheila would be there, and whilst he was still trying to decide whether or not he was going to New York with Lucy, he didn't want to speak to anyone else. However, standing near the door, his mind wandered back in time to some of his most memorable moments inside the pub. Both of his immediate memories were of two different Valentine's Days, for two different reasons. Valentine's Day 2012 felt like a lifetime ago (especially considering that it was 'Charlie's' – not The Waterhole – at the time), but Chris remembered it as clearly as if it had been yesterday. He remembered seeing Aidan across the room and Tash encouraging Chris to ask him on a date, and he had been nervous because he had never asked another guy out before and wasn't sure how to do it or how to cope if Aidan had rejected him, just like Chris had turned down his offer of a drink a few weeks earlier. Chris remembered Tash's increasing annoyance towards him and her advice to 'just go up and say exactly what you're feeling'. Chris had scorned her for her suggestion, which had seemed ridiculous to him at the time because he felt sick with nerves whenever he thought about his crush, let alone considered asking him on a date. So as a mocking response, Chris had suggested that he would approach the nurse and say 'Hey Aidan, I'm about to throw up right now but I think you're hot and I'd like to go out sometime'. And of course, Aidan had to be walking up behind him at that very moment and happened to overhear those sarcastic words. Fortunately for him, those words were enough to win Aidan over and earn himself a date. At the time, he had been mortified but now he was grateful because in the numerous times that he had asked guys out afterwards, none of those experiences had been quite as embarrassing as that one.
The other memory was of the Valentine's Day just gone when he, Kyle, Toadie and Karl decided to get their partner's names tattooed somewhere on their bodies. Chris cringed as he recalled the moment in The Waterhole when they all realised that they had the wrong tattoos. In retrospect, it was hilarious to think about, but at the time they were all mortified by their mistake and were desperate to find a way to correct it. Despite the humour of the whole situation, Chris felt pensive when he thought about it all. Leaving Erinsborough would mean leaving his friends who he had a lot of great memories of and wanted to make more of with them.
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Chris continued his stroll around Erinsborough, not wanting to circle the complex for too long otherwise he'd drive himself crazy and probably look strange to passers-by. Instead he wandered past Erinsborough High School, where he could still remember his first day as a nervous twelve year-old. Unlike the people in his friendship group – Tash, Andrew, Harry and Summer – Chris had started at the high school at the beginning rather than a few years later like rest of them had done. Despite that, it took him a long time to make friends, and most of them pulled away from him later on anyway so it demonstrated how shallow and weak those friendships were. It was as a result of his interest in computers that he found acquaintances in the computer club and quickly became one of the nerdiest guys in the school: no wonder no girl or guy looked at him twice back then. Chris remembered desperately wanting his mum to walk him in on his first day but knowing that he would be ridiculed about it for the rest of his time in education, so he had traipsed in by himself with his head down and eyes on the ground; and every day after that for the next few years he did the same thing as a shy little kid.
Arguably, the most significant moment in Chris' life happened at Erinsborough High: the moment when he publically came out of the closet. He had admitted it to himself, Andrew and Summer's iPod but had never imagined having to admit it to a classroom full of teenagers including his girlfriend. But he'd had to do something to stop everyone from assuming that Summer was a lesbian, so he literally stood up for her and told everyone the truth. It was one of the most terrifying experiences of his entire life (and he'd had a few of those) but after the first time he'd said it aloud, it got a little bit easier to talk about. Obviously telling his parents was hardly a walk in the park and even to this day Chris still felt some tension in his family home, so as he strolled past the school Chris started to question whether or not they had actually dealt with it properly over four years later. Perhaps, in that case, having some space from his parents might be a good thing so that they could all have some time away from each other in order to consider about how they really felt about everything.
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Chris had to pause outside Fitzgerald Motors to reflect on his apprenticeship. He remembered asking Lucas if he could do work experience with him, mainly because he had been at a loss as to what else he could do. It wasn't a case of having poor grades (because his grades were decent overall), but it was because none of his subjects really inspired him in his search for a career. However, once he had settled into the routine at the garage, Chris realised that this was a real possibility as a full-time job, though his dad never really agreed. Having to choose between basketball and being a mechanic was one of the hardest decisions he'd ever had to make (apart from whether or not to have a baby with Lucy) but in spite of how things turned out in the end, he knew he'd made the right decision.
Chris swallowed his desolation at how his injuries from the coward-punch had led to him having to give up his apprenticeship only weeks before his final tests. He knew that he wouldn't have been ready in time and it was infuriating that he wasn't able to do things that he used to find easy so quitting was the only realistic option, but he still felt bitter about it. Despite knowing that he'd made the right decision to quit, a part of him wished that he had tried harder on that last day instead of giving up halfway through, even if just to make the most of his last day (since he hadn't known that it was his last day back then). Chris gazed around the place, thinking back over the past three and a half years that he had spent there. He remembered some of the strange things that had happened there like being bashed by the assailant that Peter Noonan had sent and his downward spiral towards the end of 2013 that had put his job in jeopardy. Most importantly, Chris remembered the friendships he had formed with Lucas, Kyle, Mark and Danni, and he knew that no matter where he was, those connections would always be there.
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Eventually Chris made his way back to number 26. He had spent the last few years calling it his 'home', but now that he was in the process of making an important decision about his future, he wasn't sure if it still was his home. As Chris approached the driveway he recalled meeting Kyle there towards the end of 2012 so that he could try to convince him to let him move in, using his mum's Moussaka. He remembered initially being offended by Kyle refusing to let him move in and assuming that he was being homophobic when he wasn't. Chris was glad that Kyle had cleared up that misunderstanding because not only did it mean that he had a place to live, but it meant that he would end up forming one of the best friendships he'd ever had. Kyle proved to be exactly what Chris needed; they were like chalk and cheese but had plenty in common so that they never ran out of conversation topics, and Kyle had unwittingly made Chris more easy-going whilst Chris had been the voice of reason to stop Kyle from doing stupid things (most of the time).
They'd had a lot of drama and fun whilst living together such as the first Christmas at the share-house, the situation with Scotty and Chris helping Kyle whilst he was blind. As Chris entered the house he remembered helping Sheila to move the furniture in order to help Kyle move around more easily, forgetting the fact that Kyle wouldn't know where everything was once he had returned home and making it more difficult for him to get around. Chris didn't want to consider the idea of not seeing Kyle, Georgia, Sheila and Naomi every day because they had become a second family to him. They had all been there for him at some point or another and he loved them all as if they were his actual family, so leaving them was something that Chris didn't want to think about.
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As Chris strolled through Lassiter's park, he was taken back to a couple of different events that he had experienced over the past few years. The first one that sprung to mind was the Australia Day barbeque in 2012 when Tash tricked Chris into boycotting their plans of playing tennis in the city in favour of spending the day at the park, where she'd arranged for them to meet Aidan. Chris remembered being practically forced to join Aidan to get some more food and trying to make conversation whilst feeling extremely awkward about turning down Aidan's offer of a drink the day before. The lunch itself wasn't as traumatising as he had expected it to be, but later at Charlie's the event took a turn for the worse when Chris accidentally hit Aidan in the face with the pool cue, which led to Aidan arranging a date with the barman who had come to his rescue. Back then, Chris couldn't figure out why he'd let that opportunity with Aidan slip through his fingers. It had always occurred to him that having a boyfriend might cause more problems between him and his dad (which it eventually did), but Chris had also been unnerved by the realisation that having a boyfriend would mean actually acting on his sexuality, which he had never done before that point. Fortunately, he had managed to overcome that hurdle soon enough, but unfortunately the problems with his dad was ultimately what came between them.
Another important memory that returned to Chris was his first date with Nate. He couldn't remember why he had suggested having a picnic breakfast date or where he had gotten the idea from in the first place, but it had worked. In his nervousness, Chris had invited Kyle, Georgia, Mark and Paige to join them, fearing that if he and Nate were alone, he would unintentionally say stupid things and frighten Nate off. He had been proven right considering that he didn't make a fool out of himself. Though, in retrospect, that date didn't end very well when Nate attacked the drunken yob before rushing off. Back then, Chris didn't realise that the date was just the beginning of a life-changing adventure, and now here he was at the end of it. That thought made Chris realise that this was the end of one chapter in his life, so perhaps moving to New York would mark the start of a new chapter. Chris smiled to himself as he continued down the path to the hotel.
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As Chris entered the towering building and nodded towards the members of staff in reception, he couldn't help feeling slightly smug that he was the trainee manager of the place. Never in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined that he would be working in a hotel, let alone having so much authority. He had been devastated to leave his old job, considering that being a mechanic was the only thing he'd ever wanted to do professionally, and he'd never considered working at Lassiter's or any hotel for that matter. Initially, Chris hadn't wanted to take the job, assuming that Terese had only offered it to him out of pity because her son was the person responsible for Chris being unemployed. But after Nate pointed out that it would be an opportunity to design a whole new future for himself, Chris had reconsidered. He realised now that Nate had been right: working at Lassiter's had changed him and opened up new opportunities that he wouldn't have had otherwise, and now he had a whole new future to look forward to.
Working at Lassiter's had also helped to strengthen his friendship with Lucy because they shared the experience of working in a hotel. Obviously Lucy's role was more significant than his, but they could still share their experiences of the highs and lows of the business. Remembering Lucy telling him that he could continue his training in New York reassured Chris about starting afresh in a new country, and he knew that this was the most reliable job that he could have with a baby on the way. Chris never expected to form such a strong friendship with Paul's sister (considering his own strange relationship with him), but their shared interests and humour meant that being friends and having a child together didn't feel forced, even if the situation was a bit strange. The thought of being around full-time to raise his child gave Chris a warm feeling and he couldn't stop himself from smiling at the future that he could have if he took the chance that was being offered to him.
With that in mind, Chris grabbed his mobile phone and called Lucy to tell her his decision. Considering all of the memories that he had been reflecting on during the day; the faces of the people that he would never forget, the dramas and heartbreaks that he'd experienced over the years, Chris had finally decided to go with Lucy to New York and leave his past in the past.
Thanks for reading, and thanks 'aphass' for the prompt! I hope this is close to what you were hoping for. I'm not that skilled at writing one-shots without dialogue, especially when there's a mixture of continuity references and using my own imagination to fill in the gaps, so apologies for taking so long.
This question is directed towards 'Tori', who commented on chapter 32: I was considering doing a chapter where Chris reacts to the hotel explosion, so would it be ok if I intertwined those ideas and had Chris return in the aftermath and run into Nate and Aaron instead (and should Chris still be in a relationship or single)?
Anyway, if anyone has any ideas for one-shots, then please let me know. In the meantime, reviews are always welcome!