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Don't Forget Me

I was sitting on the subway on my way back from the game store. I hated going out but my car needed a new tire that I hadn't had time to get installed. I looked around the subway car taking in the sights. There was a Hispanic woman yelling at a little boy and girl who were running around and climbing on everything in the enclosed area. There was an African American man in a suit reading a newspaper. There was a Caucasian boy just older than myself with more tattoos and piercings than I was aware could fit on someone's face and a mohawk dyed in every color under the sun. Next to him was an Asian American girl with long, straight, black hair wearing sweatpants and a wife beater with a mini-boom box in her lap blasting some rap tune.

They weren't what interested me though.

Sitting right across from me was a blonde in all-black leather. At first I thought he was a girl until I realized his tight leather was flat in some places a girl's wouldn't be and tight in others where a girl's wouldn't be. He was looking at his feet with the saddest eyes I've ever seen. In his left hand he had an opened chocolate bar that he occasionally took a halfhearted nibble on and in his right he had a notebook with a pencil attached on a ribbon. Occasionally he would look around confused as to why he was there it seemed then look through the notebook and nod as if he understood why.

Eventually my curious nature got to be too much for me and I hesitantly approached him. "H-hey. I'm Matt. Where are you headed?"

He looked up at me surprised and I sucked in a breath like I was punched as I got to see those beautiful blue eyes I'd merely glimpsed up close. "I'm Mello. I'm headed to L.A. Branch Station. You?"

"Aviator Way. So how often do you ride here?"

He looked uncomfortable and avoided eye contact as he said, "Every now and then."

I was going to ask more but a staticy voiced announced it was his stop as the subway car slowed to a stop. As he got off he turned partially to me and gave a small wave that I returned.

I couldn't get him out of my head.

The next day I got on the subway even though I had gotten my tire fixed when I had gotten home. I needed to see him again. Sure enough he was in the same spot with the same items and the same expression… just slightly different clothes. I tried not to seem too eager as I walked up to him. "Hey again," I greeted.

He turned sharply to me, "Hi," he said warily.

"It's me, Matt, remember? We met here yesterday."

He paused then laughed it off saying, "Of course I remember! I was just joking." I could tell he was lying. We talked about general stuff until he had to get off at Beretta Lane. I got off a few stops later at Camaro Crossing. I did my job and collected my paycheck then hurried to the subway. Once again I approached him and he lied about remembering me. What is going on? I wondered.

Three days passed with the same routine and eventually I got the nerve to ask. "Why do you never remember me?"

He blushed then looked away and muttered, "When I was ten I went to camp. I was swimming with a kid named Near when he got caught in some seaweed and began to drown. I swam down and saved him but I drowned myself. By the time he got me to shore and I was revived, the lack of oxygen in my brain had severely damaged my short term memory." He looked at me sadly "I don't remember you but… I feel like I do."

"Is that why you carry that notebook?" I asked pointing to the battered-up, brown leather notebook.

"Yeah." He took the pencil and began to write about me with my help. Later all I would need to do was tell him to turn to page sixty-three and he would understand.

A few weeks passed and we continued our chats, until I finally got the courage to ask him out on a date. As soon as I got on the subway after work I went right up to him. He looked up and I could tell he recognized me quickly, although I doubted he knew my name. After clearing my throat I stammered out the question. "T-The skating rink in town is opening tomorrow; w-would you be interesting in going there with me?" He looked at me as if he were a bit confused. "I'm on page sixty-three."

His eyes widened and without even looking in the book he smiled and agreed. "I'll meet you at Aviator Way at six tomorrow… I hope." He wrote it in his book then pulled a cell phone out of an inner-pocket of his vest. "Give me your number, just be sure to never call me unless I tell you to. It's… very important you do that." I raised an eyebrow and gave him my number. Just before he got off at his stop, he smiled at me and said, "Call me around four, O.K?"

"Sure," I said and waved as he left.

The next day couldn't come fast enough. As soon as it was four I called him. I knew I was over-eager, but something about him drew me in. It was if I was addicted to his presence and constantly needed a fix. He picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?" He sounded incredibly confused.

"Check page sixty-three then yesterday's page." I bit my lip and waited as he did.

I heard him make an "oh" noise, then, as if he were covering the speaker, say, "Hey I have to go for a bit." There was a pause in which someone presumably responded to him. "No, I should be fine. I don't need protection." My face lit up with a blush at that, and I couldn't help but wonder why he was asked that. After another pause he said, "Fine I'll wear a vest happy?" I couldn't help but wonder who he was talking to. I then heard him say from the un-covered mouthpiece, "I'll meet you at the station O.K?"

Acting as if I didn't hear the other conversation I agreed cheerfully.

When I arrived at the stop I saw him wearing his usual leather pants, but he had a black sweater as a top. It was rather stylish and suited him, I thought. "Hey, let's go," I said with a smile. He smiled back and left with me.

It was a bit of a walk to the rink so I decided to chat some more. Every time we'd talked so far we were around people in the subway. The stroll around the city sidewalks afforded a bit more privacy usually. It would be easy to spot someone eavesdropping by seeing them stalk us at least, I figured. "So, Mello, I was wondering, how old are you?"

He tilted his head to the side then responded, "Twenty-two on the thirteenth."

My eyes widened. That was only eleven days away. "Oh man we have to celebrate then!"

He smiled a little then almost immediately frowned. "I can't go drinking. It would be… very bad." His eyes skittered to the other side and he bit his lip.

I nudged him with my shoulder a bit. "No worries, I know places we can go otherwise. Unless you want to celebrate with your family…" I trailed off realizing I knew nothing about his family or if he even had one.

He hesitated then said, "I will probably have a celebration with my father… but afterwards I would love to do something else." The way he said it made it seem like he was reluctant to celebrate with his father at all. I would have asked more, but we had arrived at the rink. Before I could even ask he said, "Don't worry; I know how to skate."

I smiled at him and asked for a pair of skates. He gave his shoe size to help. To my embarrassment I fell down three times, while he skated circles around me; sometimes literally. After we were done I suggested we get some hot coca nearby. He agreed and we went to a little café.

I noticed he seemed less confused than usual around me. As we sat down at a corner table, though, he looked worried. He glanced at me as he sipped his hot cocoa obviously trying to place me without saying so.

I just smiled and told him to turn to page sixty-three again. He put down his cup and took his book out from underneath his sweater. I noticed as he did, his sweater seemed to have something heavy underneath, making his book hard to get out. He flipped through and re-read my information. He then blushed and literally headdesked on the table. "I'm so sorry," he muttered into the fake wood.

I patted him on his left shoulder. "It's no problem. You should probably drink your cocoa before it gets cold, though."

He sat up and looked at me. "Why are you so understanding?"

I opened my mouth then shut it, realizing I was unsure of the answer. I realized my first thought should have been because we're friends. Instead, my first thought was because I care about you in a more-than-friends way. I finally settled on, "I care about you," which fell into both categories I thought. He looked at me as if he knew I meant something else but just took a sip of his cocoa.

After the date, I made sure he got to his stop after he got off the subway. He gave me a wave and a smile as he left. When I got home I couldn't stop grinning.

When his birthday came I called him, hoping he wouldn't get mad, and asked him if he wanted to go to dinner then hang out at my apartment afterward. Planning on what to ask him to do in the first place turned out to be hard. I figured he would forget what he saw if we went to a movie or a play. Hanging out at my apartment was the only thing I could think of otherwise. He agreed and said he would meet me at my stop. I was worried he would forget which one it was, and breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped out of the subway car.

The restaurant we went to was a little bistro not far from my apartment. We just got some soups and chatted lightly. Afterwards we went to my apartment. Before we did anything I had him sit on my ratty old couch and I gave him a wrapped present. He carefully opened it to reveal some leather gloves. "I hope they fit. I noticed you like leather, and rub your hands together to keep them warm a lot." He smiled then tried them on. They fit perfectly.

He pulled me into a hug and said in my ear, "Thanks. They're perfect." He then pulled back.

Smiling at him I went to my t.v. and turned it on. I then gave him a controller and I took one then sat next to him. "Sooo… ready to get your ass kicked in Super Smash Bros?" He smirked and nodded.

Soon after that we went on dates all the time. Skating, strolling in the park, gaming and watching videos at my apartment, dining out, and so on. A real surprise came to me when he invited me to go to the arcade. He wasn't really good at any of the games, but we had fun.

Once when we were eating Chinese food at my apartment, though, everything changed. I had finally gotten to asking him about his family. He couldn't say anything which made me somewhat worried. "I wear my leather to intimidate people. I can say that much." There was a silence after that, then he turned to me with a smile, hoping to lighten the mood. "Hey, why did Cinderella get kicked off the basketball team?" I shrugged and he answered, "Because she kept running away from the ball!"

I laughed then nudged his shoulder. "I love you," I said then froze. He froze as well and stared at me like a deer in the headlights. I swallowed then said, "I really mean that."

He looked to the side then said, "I like you a lot… but I don't know you well enough to return the feeling." He then hung his head sadly.

I hugged him to try and cheer him up. "I'm just glad you like me," I said with a smile. He paused then hugged me back. After he left, I was worried things were over. Then I got a phone call from him inviting me to his apartment.

I did my best to spruce myself up, then went to his place. When I got there I knocked and hear him call, "Just a minute!" he opened the door and saw me. There was a pause and then he said happily, "Matt, you made it!"

My jaw dropped and I blinked then said, "Mello… you remembered my name."

His eyes widened as he realized he had in fact done so. He then grinned ear to ear. "Well, Matt, I think you should come in then." I did and we sat on his couch. We talked for hours, until I reluctantly told him I needed to go home because I had work the next day. He nodded then showed me out. Just before I left he pulled me into a kiss. I walked away in a daze with a huge smile.

The next day I got a text from him saying he would like to meet me at the duck pond in the park at nine. I went and waited for him, but he never showed up. I called him but got no answer. The next day I went to his apartment, but he wasn't there. I asked his neighbors, but they hadn't seen him either. Just as I was about to contact the police I got a call from him.

It turned out it was the police calling me instead of him, since his phone had me as the last one to call him. I went to the coroner's office to confirm who he was. Through my tears and sobs I identified him as Mello, saying I had no other real information.

It turns out he was shot three times in the head on the way to the park. Among his belongings was a journal with a pencil on the end. The last entry was:

March 12 2009: I read the notes on Matt and realized I love him too. I can't wait to tell him. Remember: Red hair, goggles, tan furry vast, striped white and black shirt, ribbed blue jeans.

I clung onto the journal as well as his hand before his body was put away. I later attended the trial for the man who shot him as a witness to where he was going and why. It turns out Mello was the son of a former mafia boss. His reason for the leather made sense then. I paid for his funeral and made a promise to his grave that I would never forget.

Every night now I read his final entry. I'm sixty-five and have yet to break my promise. I just hope he remembers to wait for me on the other side. "I won't forget, Mello. I promise."

When I first wrote this story it was March tenth 2010. It had a very sloppy and hurried ending. I finally got around to revising it, but decided I needed to re-post it instead of just updating the current story, because those who read the former version would have had no heads up as to the change.

Much thanks is given to an anonymous reviewer tagged Lazy Lizard who alerted me that 65 instead of sixty-five was bad writing. I honestly had no idea doing it that was considered wrong. I figured that numbers and their names could be used interchangeably. So thanks Lazy Lizard the help there. :)

By the way, this version is literally more than twice the length of the original.