Status: Closed
This round has closed. It remains open for fills, comments and remixes, but prompts are no longer accepted.
About
"Someone will remember us, I say, even in another time."
"How inconvenient to be made of desire."
"It's me, hi, I'm the problem its me."
Calling all readers, lovers of poetry and music, screen and stage. Quote collecters and lyric hoarders, unleash your archive. For this round, every prompt must contain a quote - you can combine them, add commentary, link to articles, do whatever. Steal from a literary classic, or copy WeVerse drama.
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Need ideas? Check out our 2021 and 2022 Quote rounds.
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[REMIX] versions of these belong to you
Major Tags: infidelity, mentioned drug use and sex
Additional Tags: eternal sunshine AU, angst
Permission to remix: please ask
***
âAlright,â Jun says, standing up, âIâm gonna go get some air. Is that alright, Seungcheol?â
Seungcheol doesnât reply, focusing on his work. Seokmin likes that about him, the furrow of his brow as he does god-knows-what at the computer.
âSeungcheol?â Jun calls again.
âYeah, thatâs fine,â Seungcheol replies, still not turning away from his work.
Jun is still for a second. He seems to be deciding whether itâs worth waiting around. Then he turns to the door and leaves the apartment, as easily as if itâs his own.
It may as well be, given how long theyâve been up here. Seokmin got here at around half ten, and Jun and Chan were here at least an hour before him. Chan left to go sort something out with his new guy, and then the guy on the bedâWonwoo? something like that?âstarted causing problems for Jun.
In hindsight, part of it may have been Seokminâs fault. Once Chan left, Jun and Seokmin had the whole place to themselves. Maybe it was the weed, making Seokmin a bit too relaxed, or maybe it was the thrill of being in someone elseâs house, but Seokmin and Jun couldnât keep off each other. So what if Jun wasnât as focused on the whole computer setup? It was on autopilot, he said, so it should all have been fine. They could have fucked. They nearly did fuck, and then Wonwoo-or-something started glitching.
Secretly, Seokmin is kind of glad they didnât fuck. Fucking doesnât do much for him anymoreâor rather, fucking Jun doesnât do much for him anymore. Not that heâll tell Jun that though.
Regardless, Wonwoo-or-something glitched, which is why Seungcheol is here. Bold, smart, competent Seungcheol. He looks serious, with his razor-sharp focus and the determined glint in his eye. The lights are dim in the room, but they frame Seungcheolâs face perfectly, showing off the line of his slightly clenched jaw, the arch of his long fingers.
He cares about his work. He cares about it the way Jun should. Junâs probably gone out for a cigarette in the middle of this sleeping guyâs brainwaves being fucked up, and he didnât even think to ask Seokmin to join him. But that doesnât matter. Seokmin can watch Seungcheol fix it.
âSeungcheol,â Seokmin calls from where heâs sprawled on the couch, âdâyou like quotes?â
That makes Seungcheol look up. He doesnât look confused, just curious. âQuotes?â
âYeah, like famous ones. Thereâs a nice one, goes like this.â Seokmin closes his eyes tight. ââBlessed are the forgetful, because they get the better even of their blundersâ.â
Seungcheol smiles, a tentative thing. Seokminâs heart melts.
âThatâs a good one,â Seungcheol replies. âNietzsche, right?â
âOh. You already know it. Dammit, I feel so stupid-â
âHey, itâs ok! Itâs a great quote. I like that we both know it.â
And suddenly Seokmin feels better. Itâs magical, the way Seungcheol does it. The way he makes Seokmin feel special, like theyâre tied together by knowing a quote he read in Bartlettâs one time.
âYouâre too nice to me, Seungcheol. Thereâs another one that I like, too. Itâs by- fuck, is it Pope Alexander? The poet guy?â
âAlexander Pope.â
Seokmin groans, buries his face in his hands. âGod, I really am the most stupid-â
âEasy mistake to make. Go on, whatâs the quote?â
âItâs something like-â Seokmin closes his eyes again. âHow happy is the blameless vestalâs lot! The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each prayer accepted, and each wish resigned.â
Seokmin opens his eyes again. Seungcheol isnât really smiling anymore. He looks like heâs been stunned, like heâs been told some great secret.
âDid I say something wrong?â Seokmin asks.
âNo, not at all,â Seungcheol replies, a little breathless. âItâs beautiful.â
âItâs poetry, right?â Seokmin gets off the sofa, wandering over to the chair next to Seungcheolâs. âLike, obviously itâs part of a poem, but itâs poetry. Itâs beautiful. Iâm totally dense about this kind of thing, but eternal sunshines and spotless minds⌠itâs powerful, you know?â
Seungcheol just turns back to the computer, nodding.
âAnd thatâs why what you do is so great,â Seokmin adds. âYouâre giving people that spotless mind. Itâs like a whole new page they can use to rewrite their story.â
Seungcheol swallows. Seokmin knows because he canât take his eyes off Seungcheol, off the golden skin of his neck, off the bob of his throat.
âItâs more complicated than that.â
âIs it?â Seokmin asks, tilting his head to the side.
âWell, I may be giving people a fresh start, but they have to give something up for that, right? Like, this guy, Wonwoo. Heâll wake up with nothing left of Mingyu. He wonât just lose the bad times, heâll lose the good times too. Giving up all those memories⌠itâs not an easy thing to do. I donât know if I could do that.â
âBut once you give it up, youâre free! You get to forget all these things that have happened to you, and you get to try again! Wouldnât it be great if you could just forget everything about someone? You wouldnât ever be hung up on them, and you wouldnât remember all the bad stuff they did to you. Itâs like being a kid again, right? You get to do everything over, without being scared or overthinking the past or whatever. That doesnât appeal to you a little bit?â
Seungcheolâs jaw clenches again. âNo, not really.â
âI suppose itâs a good thing not everyone thinks like you, or youâd be out of a business.â
Seungcheol smiles wryly. âI suppose so.â
Seokmin canât help the grin that spreads across his face. He likes Seungcheol, so much. Seungcheol shouldnât be paying attention to Seokmin. Seokminâs just the receptionist at his clinicâhe shouldnât even be here right now. But he listens to Seokmin, like Seokminâs worth listening to, like he has something smart to say. Somehow, Seokmin canât remember the last time someone has treated him like this, like heâs worth having a real conversation with.
He should tell him. Thereâs no harm in telling him, is there?
âSeungcheol,â Seokmin says, sliding onto his knees, closer to Seungcheolâs chair, âyouâre lovely. You know that, donât you?â
Seungcheol stiffens. âI- well, thank you-â
âLook at me? I want you to hear it.â
Slowly, Seungcheol turns his head towards Seokmin. The air is hyper-electric, his eyes big and full of something Seokmin canât quite place. Seokminâs insides feel like jelly. He can feel his breathing getting quicker, and he doesnât know what to do with his hands.
âSeungcheol,â Seokmin breathes, âI canât- I need-â
âWhat?â
Seungcheol puts a hand on Seokminâs shoulder to brace him, and thatâs when Seokmin leans in and kisses him. Seungcheol doesnât kiss back, though. Heâs frozen against Seokmin, turned to stone, Gorgon-like.
Seokmin pulls back. âOh God. Iâve fucked it up, havenât I, Iâm so sorry-â
âSeokmin, no, please, itâs not you, itâs just- you know Iâm married, donât you?â
âI do, I do, but-â Seokmin grips his hair. âI just thought- I didnât think, I just-â
âSeokmin.â
A warm hand tilts Seokminâs chin up. He lets go of his hair, silently begging for Seungcheol to forgive him. Seungcheol doesnât. He gets off his chair, kneels opposite Seokmin, and kisses him again.
Seokmin didnât know he could feel as happy as this. He didnât know that his limbs could feel so warm, that sparks could shoot through him like this. He pulls Seungcheol in closer, gripping at his waist, wanting more and closer and everything and-
A car horn honks outside. Long and loud. Seungcheol pulls away, goes to the window to see what the matter is, says,
âOh God.â
âWhat? What is it?â
âMy husband. Heâs here. I need to go outside.â
Not looking at Seokmin, he runs out of the apartment. Seokmin follows him into the piercing night air. He sees Jun, standing near the clinic van, and next to that thereâs Seungcheol, leaning down to a car window. The car starts to drive off, and he runs after it.
âJoshua!â Seungcheol calls. âPlease, this was just a one-time mistake.â
Seokmin instinctively rushes to catch up.
âIâm sorry,â he says. âIt wonât happen again, Iâm just a stupid guy with a stupid crush, I practically made him do it, so donât be-â
The car suddenly brakes. Joshua turns to look at them. Heâs handsome, sharp. He doesnât look like heâs caught his husband kissing someone else.
âWhat?â he asks, frosty-voiced.
âItâs all my fault, so donât-â
âSeungcheol. You didnât tell him?â
âTell me what?â
Joshua turns to look at Seokmin, smiles mirthlessly. âYou can have him. You did.â
With that, he drives off. Seungcheol lets him, not taking his eyes off the car until it turns away.
âSeungcheol,â Seokmin asks, âwhat does he mean?â
Seungcheol turns towards Seokmin, but doesnât look at him. âWe have a past. We had an affair. And then you wanted the procedure done. You wanted to get over- you know.â
Seokminâs heart falls away. He wants to crumble to the ground.
âIâm sorry you had to find out this way,â Seungcheol continues. âI have to finish the job upstairs, but we can talk about this. Ok?â
Seokmin doesnât move. His limbs feel dead. All he can do is watch as Seungcheol heads back to the apartment. His head is swimming, his thoughts curling away like the misty air he breathes out. He doesnât notice footsteps coming towards him until he hears,
âHey. Seokmin.â
Junâs standing there, hands in his pockets.
âWhat?â Seokmin asks, voice cracking.
âLift home?â
âDid you know about this?â
âKnow- about your procedure? No, God no.â
âAnd you didnât know me and Seungcheol wereâŚâ
Jun fidgets a little. âWell, there was one time. You were at his car, and you were talking to him, and you looked- happy. Happy and secretive, I guess. But I never saw you two together afterwards so I thought I was making it up. I should have-â
Seokmin shakes his head. âDonât.â
Jun sighs. âI really like you, Seokmin. You know that, right?â
Seokmin does. He canât look Jun in the face.
âIâll get my stuff in the morning,â he says.
And with that he walks to the clinic, staring at the ground the whole time.
***
âOk, do you want to just tell me what you remember?â
âYeah. I liked you from the start. It was hard not to like you, Seungcheol. You really noticed me. Not in like a creepy way, but in a way that felt like you cared. You never talked down to me. People talk down to the receptionist a lot, and we all know Iâm not the smartest, but you never made me feel like that. Even though youâre smart. I wanted to impress you so bad, you know? Pretending to know all these big words and quotes. But you must have seen right through me. It didnât matter, though. I wanted everything with you. I wanted to shack up with you, properly. I wanted to live with you, I wanted us to take care of each other as we grew old. Stupid, right? Given how married you were. But your marriage didnât seem to matter to you. What we had together made me so happy, happier than I ever knew I could be, and- oh Seungcheol, I donât think I can do this.â
âWe agreed, didnât we? Itâs best for both of us.â
âI know, but- I donât know if I can do this. I donât know what Iâll do without you.â
âYouâll live. And so will I. We have to. You said we have to, right?â
âI know, I know, but- God, itâs hard. I want you. I want so much. I guess thatâs why I have to let this go, but itâs still hard. And I-â
The door opens. Seokmin hits pause on the file, quickly wiping his eyes.
âSeokmin?â
Seokminâs blood freezes.
âSeokmin,â Seungcheol continues, walking towards him, âplease tell me you werenât playing your file.â
Seokmin watches as Seungcheol gets closer, gradually illuminated by the lone amber light.
âI have a right to know, donât I?â he says, lacklustre.
âLook. You chose to get the procedure done. We both did. We both thought it best for you to move on, and we decided this was the best way to do it.â
âNobody told me it would be like this. How was I supposed to know?â
âI didnât want you to forget me, you know,â Seungcheol says, louder than before. âYou think I did? I wanted you to remember me well, and to think of me as someone who was kind to you and who loved you. I didnât want to forget you either, otherwise I would have had it done myself. But you were so desperate to move on. You wanted me out of your head so badly that you wanted the procedure, so I did it for you. I just- I wanted to take care of you.â
âWhat?â Seokmin snaps. âTake care of me? You think that was taking care of me? Seungcheol, you sat there for god knows how long, listening me tell you how much I adored you, and you did nothing! I told you everything, and you did nothing! You never even tried!â
Seokmin doesnât try and stop the fresh tears stinging his eyes. Seungcheol says nothing.
âYou know what?â Seokmin continues. âWhen I played that file, I wasnât surprised by what I said about you. I still think youâre as charming and clever and kind as I did then. But what I didnât know was how much I could feel. I didnât know I was capable of loving you that much, of wanting you that much. I didnât know just how much I wanted to care for you. I didnât know how happy I could be. But now I realise there was a part of me that was that happy, that could feel so much and love so deeply, and I donât have that part of me anymore. Iâve lost a part of me. You have it. And now I can never get it back.â
Through Seokminâs tears, Seungcheol blurs into the light. Seokmin canât bear to look anymore. He turns his head away, wiping fiercely at his eyes.
âSeokmin,â Seungcheol says, voice hollow, âI donât want you to-â
âPlease,â Seokmin whispers. âPlease just leave. Iâll have my two weeks on your desk tomorrow morning.â
Seokmin leans on the table, buries his face in his hands. He hears footsteps getting further away. The door closing. Silence. Then his own sobs echoing through the room.
***
Dear Mr Jeon,
My name is Seokmin Lee. You wonât remember me, but I am the receptionist at the Lacuna clinic. If you receive this, itâs because you came to the Lacuna clinic to have your memories of a particular person erased. I donât know who that person was, and it doesnât really matter. What matters is that you have the files and the CD accompanying this letter. The files and CD have everything youâll need to know about the memories you erased, and why you did it.
You might be wondering why Iâm sending this back to you. Itâs because Iâve decided that this clinic is horrible. Itâs a horrible thing to do, to take someoneâs memories away. I used to think it was a great idea, giving someone a fresh start, without remembering someone you canât have anymore. But I have come to realise that itâs not just the other person that youâll forget. Itâs yourself. Youâll forget who you were around this person, and youâll forget how this person changed you. Who you were back then is part of who you are now. You shouldnât be able to lose that so easily.
Iâm sure you had a good reason for wanting to erase those memories. Maybe theyâre painful. Maybe they remind you of something you couldnât fix, someone you couldnât know, someone you couldnât be with no matter how hard you tried. But itâs the trying that counts, right? Itâs the trying that makes it all worth it. Itâs the trying that tells you youâve lived. And I think we should all remember that. Our memories, however bad, tell us that weâve lived.
Maybe this wasnât the smartest idea. Maybe youâll never even look at these files. Maybe theyâll go straight in the trash. But please, at least think about it. Listen to the CD. You might find something that you thought you lost a long time ago. I promise that itâs worth it.
Re: [REMIX] versions of these belong to you