One Direction Imagines

14. Forgetting

Forgetting

Niall: "Hey, Ni. How are you feeling?" You settled into the chair next to Niall’s bed, his hand clutched in yours, fingers laced tightly. Niall looked at you quietly, his blue eyes distant and soft, no sign of recognition showing within their depths. Finally, when you couldn’t seem to take the silence anymore, he opened his mouth, leaving you with a flutter of anticipation that was quickly shot down by his words. "Who are you?" he murmured, cocking his head to the side, "Do you know why I’m here?" You pursed your lips, lowering your gaze to hide the wash of tears in your eyes. "I’m Y/N… Your wife. Do you remember that?" You blinked rapidly, desperately trying to ignore the fissure in your heart that his words had created. You had been expecting this, bracing yourself for this moment, but no amount of preparation would have steeled you against the pain that the Alzheimer’s had brought. "He’ll start to forget," the doctors had said, and you had tried to accept that, accept that the love of your life would forget you. Those memory lapses were happening more and more frequently, but he always came around in the end. It was always the anticipation of what was going to happen that killed you, and you didn’t know how you’d act if one day he forgot you permanently. Pushing away the negative thoughts, you rubbed the back of Niall’s hands gently, remembering how those hands used push your hair back before he kissed you, how he’d always rub your back softly when you were feeling sad. "It’s okay," you whispered, pressing a kiss to your intertwined hands, "You always come back to me in the end, but I brought something just in case." Freeing one of your hands, you reached in your bag, producing a photo album, the one filled with your favorite memories. Flipping open the album, you pointed to the first picture, "This was our first date, you took me out to get ice-cream…" Your statement was met with silence, but you persevered, "And this is a picture from our wedding day; you got cake all over my face, remember?" You looked up to see Niall’s blue eyes, the ones you had fallen in love with on your first date, the ones that always calmed you and reminded you that everything was okay, but you were met with no sign of recognition. Sighing quietly in an effort to quell the tears, you pointed to the next picture, “This was taken when we went on our honeymoon. You insisted that we should swim with the dolphins, and even though I didn’t want to, I did. I had the time of my life with you, you know…” On and on you went, describing every memory, feeling your heart swell with emotion with every picture. Niall might not come back to you one day, but those pictures, those memories, they were yours to keep for forever. “I love you, Ni,” you whispered, pressing a kiss to his forehead, “Always have, always will.”

Harry: The quiet beeping of machines and the gentle pressure of someone’s hand in yours awoke you from your slumber. Your muscles felt stiff, and you didn’t doubt that you had been asleep for a very long time. With difficulty, you opened your eyes, blinking rapidly from the bright glare of the fluorescent lights. “Wh-where am I?” Looking around, you saw that a strange boy was holding onto your hand, his brows knitted together in concern. “Who are you?” As the last words left your lips, the boy’s lips parted and his eyes widened in disbelief and loss. “I,” he cleared his throat, “I’m Harry… Your boyfriend, remember?” You watched as he blinked, trying desperately to fight back the tears that had pooled into his dazzling green eyes. Although you tried your hardest, those brown curls, the green eyes, that deep, gentle voice-none of it seemed familiar. As he watched you furrow your brow in thought, the boy-Harry, you reminded yourself-ran his thumb across your knuckles, a feeling that felt familiar yet foreign at the same time. “I don’t know if you remember this, love,” he ventured, his voice cracking with unshed tears, “but you got into a car accident. The other driver…he was drunk and he ran a red light. The doctors said that you’d be fine, but that you could have some memory loss.” Again, his words were met with silence as you tried-and failed-to dredge up some memory of what he was telling you. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you murmured at last, your heart breaking as you saw him lower his gaze, a tear slipping past his cheek. “Maybe you’ve got the wrong person,” you offered helpfully, not quite believing what you were saying. Looking up at you, Harry clasped your hands more firmly in his, moving his seat closer to your bed. “No, Y/N, you’re my girlfriend, the love of my life, my one and only. I could never mistaken you for anyone else.” Swallowing back tears, Harry continued on, “When you can’t sleep, I make up random songs and sing you to sleep, and when you have nightmares, I stay awake to fight off the monsters-just in case. You don’t like when I leave my clothes all over our bedroom, but I always forget and you always bother me about it. On lazy days, we always order take out and watch romantic comedies. You love to read, and when you do, it’s impossible to get your attention, so I just hold you until you’re done…” On and on, Harry went, listing facts about you while he blinked back tears that threatened to overflow. “Do you remember any of it, love?” Harry murmured, his voice soft and laced with emotion, “anything?” When you shook your head, feeling a lump in your throat forming at the sight of Harry finally letting loose the tears he’d been holding back, Harry nodded, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “It’s okay, Y/N, I’ll always be here for you; I’ll help you remember.”