The Road To Remembering

The Resturaunt

The intense pounding in my head refuses to cease after darkness envelopes my vision. I can feel someone scoop my weak body into their arms. One of their arms feels very hard and scratchy for some reason. It irritates me to no end, but I can't dwell on it for long. I'm suddenly was taken somewhere in my mind — it must be another memory.

I'm sitting at a booth in the Krusty Krab after closing time. My eyes dart towards the window to see a dark abyss of ocean. It must be night time. Suddenly, I can feel a hand on my shoulder. I don't know who it belongs to, but I feel very relaxed and comfortable around this person. Of course, I'm curious as to who it is but this only what I remember.

And I still don't remember who he is.

"Why did you want to come here, Squidward?" The person asks. "I know this is one of my favourite places, other than your house and Jellyfish Fields, but you don't like it."

"I do now," I reply. As usual, I speak with little emotion conveyed in my voice. Yet, the words that come out of my mouth are ones that I would never say. "I like working with you and being around you all day." My lips twitch upwards slightly as we lock eye-contact. "I like any place where I'm with you."

My eyes drift towards a stereo, which is playing a disgustingly romantic song. Why is there a stereo in the Krusty Krab after closing time, you might be wondering? Well, an entire damn meal is set up in the Krusty Krab after closing time.

This must be a dinner date. Great.

"Aww! Squiddy!" He exclaims, pure happiness filling his voice as he embraces me so tightly that I'm unable to breathe. I choke out, "Can't. Breathe." He immediately releases me with an apologetic laugh. "Oh. Oops. I'm sorry, babe." His voice really does sound familiar. It's driving me insane that I can't remember him. And, 'babe'? What the heck? I must've been gay as fuck.

We sit quietly in the booth together, just enjoying each other's company. It's not until I hear an upbeat song playing that we move. With a smile, I grab his hand and we dance to our heart's content. I'm moving in the same way that I did on the way to the pet shop, with him doing the matching moves in front of me. I cannot, for the life of me, decipher who he is. All I can remember is that he has the most amazing eyes. They're as blue as the water reflecting the sky.

When the song ends, we grin shyly at each other. Our breathing is uneven as we stroll over to the stereo. In unison, we pop down onto the seagrass with our hands still intertwined. I glanced over at my boyfriend. Yes, boyfriend. It's crazy to think that I dated a guy and I don't know who he is.

"I just love your nose, Squiddy." He giggles, poking it.

I sigh. It's a sigh of annoyance, but also. . .well, love. "I know that you do," I murmur.

We lean towards each other. His soft scent washes over me like lemonade on a cool summer's day. I close my eyes and. . .

My eyes snap open. The ceiling stares back at me, offering no answers to what I just witnessed in my dream. I attempt to sit up, but my entire body aches and I immediately give up. My eyes meet those of Squidette and Spongebob, who are staring down at me with concert apparent on their faces.

"Where are we?" I manage to ask.

"Back at your house," Squidette informs me. "It's a pity that we didn't make it to the pet shop." She offers me a sad smile. I just roll my eyes. I never wanted a stupid worm anyway. Like I said, all they do is eat and shit and then die. Why would I want that in my life?

"Anyway, Squidward, what happened?" Squidette inquires.

"Nothing," I mumble. "I just. . ." I pause, wondering whether to tell her or not. But, why not? Maybe she will finally help me to uncover the mess of my memories. Maybe she will even tell me what she knows, 'cause I know that she knows something. "Um, I had a memory."

Spongebob's eyes light up with what looks like hope. "Memory?" He repeats curiously.

I start to nod, but a sharp pain through my head forces me to stop. "Yeah, I think that it was at the Krusty Krab. I was there with someone — I don't know who — but it was like, well, a date." I've never imagined myself as gay before. Well, I haven't really imagined myself as straight either. Just. . .well, alone.

"We danced to the song that I was humming and then. . ." I continue to explain, not caring that I'm talking to Spongebob. My words are directed at Squidette as well.

"Then, what?" My sister asks. There's a strange look on her face, one that I can't quite read. I wonder what she is thinking. God, I hope that she isn't homophobic. It's 2015, for Poseidon's sake.

Well. 2018.

"I don't know." I shrug. "I woke up after that." What I don't mention is that we were about to kiss, my mysterious lover and I. That's one detail both Spongebob and Squidette do not need to hear about.

Suddenly, I hear the sound of a chair sliding against the hard wooden floor of my bedroom. Spongebob stands up, and without saying anything, he walks out of the house.

Things just keep getting weirder and weirder.