One Shots #VariaSquad

Can't Remember to Forget You

The car screeches to a stop, the driver shouting after his passenger to be careful as she opens the door, her feet on the ground before the wheels have fully stopped turning. To the left, a similar scene is occurring, the passenger of the car throwing the door open and tumbling out while the vehicle is still in motion, only it is definitely a male that exits the second car. 

As though they can sense each other's presence, the two glance at each other, both relaxing slightly upon seeing the other uninjured. Together, they approach the car blocking the street, the man reaching out a comforting hand for the woman to hold as they take in the sight of the crumpled bonnet and smashed glass, trying not to breathe in the acrid smoke billowing from the hood. 

The pair anxiously peer through the window, hoping to see a sign that their director is still conscious. What they see makes the actress curl into her companion's side, burying her head in his shoulder to stop herself from seeing anything more. Though equally horrified, the actor can't seem to look away, even as the ambulance arrives and they are pushed out of the way. He watches, heart pounding, as two bodies are pulled from the car onto stretchers, wincing at the still forms and the blood on the starch white sheets. Without thinking, he pulls the girl closer into him, breathing her in and thanking every deity he can think of that it wasn't her car that had been hit. She makes no remarks, just clutches at his jacket a little tighter, letting his familiar scent calm her racing heart and thanking God over and over again because it could easily have been him in that car - was supposed to have been him - but it wasn't and he's right there; he's alive. 

At some point, a paramedic comes over to them, guides them to the ambulances and asks them to sit. It isn't until the raised voices penetrate the haze in her brain that the girl realises the paramedic had only asked her to sit and was trying to direct the boy to another ambulance. The boy is protesting, refusing to leave her side and the paramedic is arguing, saying something about checking them over and needing to do it separately. As the meaning behind the words registers, she clings on to the boy, shaking her head and telling him not to leave her, afraid that, if he does, he might just disappear. Seeing her panic, the paramedic finally relents, muttering something about rules and only supposed to let family stay together, but a sharp glare from the man shuts him up. 

The paramedic stalks off and another one comes by instead, apologising for his colleague's behaviour and giving them each a shock blanket. For a while, they sit in silence, neither of them able to do much more than focus on breathing and, in her case at least, not having a panic attack. Their drivers both come by to tell them that they've made the necessary phone calls and given statements to the police about what they saw. They inform them that the police will want to talk to them as well but will wait until they're out of the public eye to do so; even though they aren't at home, people recognise them and a crowd is already beginning to form. The actor nods and thanks them, asking them to wait by the cars until the paramedic allows them to leave, but the actress is still in a state of shock. She stays silent even once they leave, her head spinning from all the information she's trying to process. 

It's not until after the police come by to take their statements, after they're back at the hotel, that the haze finally starts to clear. She barely even realises what she's saying when she speaks to the officers, mumbling something about following the car, seeing the other car coming and the collision before the policewoman takes pity and leaves them be. She snuggles back into the man's side - the man who still hasn't left her and she isn't willing to leave - and the fog starts to clear. 

As her brain starts to clear, everything catches up to her and she begins to shiver slightly as the belated fear sets in. Tears begin to fall - relieved, guilty, distraught - and the tremors become more pronounced until she's shaking violently. 'Alia?' her companion calls her name worriedly but she doesn't respond. 'Alu, it's okay, you're safe.' he assures, thinking it'll calm her down. It doesn't do anything; she just shakes her head, choking on her tears when she tries to speak. 'Calm down. Breathe. Come on, with me. In-out, in-out.' he instructs, giving her a small smile when she begins to breathe again, even though the tears haven't slowed any. 'Ally, stop crying yaar. It's okay.'