Suddenly, I felt a violent tug, as if someone had reached inside me, grabbed my soul, and hauled me toward them.
Panic surged. Tears blurred my vision before I could even understand why.
He was holding me—clutching me to his chest as if he were the one in terror. He had been acting strange since our last encounter, that day he had pushed me away from this place.
"Take a deep breath," he pleaded, his voice trembling.
"Please, take a deep breath, Ele."
The nickname caught in my mind. We were never this close; we were barely more than strangers. Yet, seeing the deep lines of sorrow etched into his face, the protest died in my throat.
Slowly, my lungs obeyed. He lowered me gently until I was sitting. As my consciousness settled, I looked around.
This place had always been a hollow, white, endless void, but now, dark cracks as spider-webbing across the surface of the floor.
"Are you okay, Ele?"
His hands finding mine. His grip was a contradiction—soft yet desperate, large enough to swallow my hands entirely.
"You called for me... you're crying. Ele, tell me what's wrong."
"My memory," I whispered, the words feeling thin.
"I can't hear Jennie anymore."
" Everything... it's becoming a blur."
He seemed to steady himself then, a forced calm washing over him.
"You don't have to worry," he said, though his eyes betrayed him.
"These are your past events. If you can't remember them, they become a blur."
"If you forget them, you can no longer witness them."
He leaned in closer, his voice breaking.
"Ele, don't cry next time."
" Even ....if you forget everything... even if you lose yourself while living through these memories..."
He sounded as if his entire world were crumbling into the white void around us.
"For you... I will remember every bit of who you are. Even if you forget me."