Mneme

"Do you still remember me?" she asked.

"Of course I do!"

"Truly?"

I put down my book. "Yes! For crying out loud! What do you want from me?"

She sat cross-legged on the couch next to me. "Well," she began, staring at her hands, "you've changed. You have this new life now. I feel like you want to forget about me. Leave me in the past."

"You are my past," I said. "It doesn't mean I'll forget you, it's just that, well..." I sighed. The words for the emotions didn't come. I had to open my mouth and shut it a few times before my mind latched on to something. "You need to stay in the past, that's all. I love you, but I'm older now, and you can't keep coming around and bugging me! You need to stay where I put you-- in the past."

She pouted. "And you can't ignore me! I'm a part of you! You can't ignore those memories and pretend they don't exist!" Suddenly she lashed out and drove her hand into my head. Memories of the past rushed through my mind at top speed.

I tried to push her away from me, falling off the couch in the process. Uselessly grabbing my head with my hands, I tried to move as far away from her as I could. Unfortunately, she moved with me, staying attached as she forced the replay of memories in my head. "Stop it!" I yelled, squeezing my eyes shut. "Stop!" My chest felt tight, and I willed myself to breath through the pain. All of the memories, good and bad, ran through my head, then she pushed harder and replayed all the bad things, over and over in a matter of minutes.

Breathe, I told myself. It's just memories. It's all in the past, now.

After a few minutes, the memories stopped, and my breathing began to slow. I felt her squat next to me on the floor. She whispered in my ear, "I won't be thrown away so easily. I'll be back. You know it."

I felt her leave. Rolling onto my back, I stared at the ceiling for a long time before I could get back up.