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 Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:54 pm
Paris wasn’t aware of any promise but her own. Had she, she would have been horrified by what Chris had made someone agree to. There were other options, especially now that she’d come into her power.
But then Chris didn’t really know about that…
She looked up when Chris stopped and turned to look back, bracing herself with her hands on her knees and she leaned over and breathed.
“Yeah, just… a little hot,” she said by way of explanation.
Paris wiped more sweat from her brow and forced a tired smile. Perhaps it was too hot for them to be out running, though it was more likely that she was feeling uncomfortable for another reason entirely.
“My dad died,” she blurted out quite suddenly. It was easier to throw it out there like that than to think about what to say. “Three years ago. I didn’t handle it very well. Started running to forget. Like, really running, way past my limit, to the point where I would throw up. It turned into this thing I did when I was feeling stressed or overwhelmed. I ended up in the hospital. Had to see a therapist and a nutritionist.”
She didn’t know why she was explaining all of this to him. She hadn’t been able to tell him these things when he could actually remember, so she didn’t know what had prompted her to tell him when he’d forgotten, except that he’d called her “baby,” and he hadn’t done that since before that night with Laurelite.
“I’m fine now,” she assured him. “I haven’t done it in… I don’t know how long. Since before the babies were a thing, I think.”
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:54 pm
Chris stared in shock as Paris told him about her father and then about her problems with running. This was three years ago. Her father had died and he didn't even remember that. What else was he forgetting? What important things in his life were no longer something he could remember?
"Baby..." he said softly and slowly moved back towards her, reaching out to first just brush at her hair and then to place his arms gently around her, knowing that she said she was getting overheated. He didn't even realize it was strange calling her 'baby' since it felt natural to him. "I'm so sorry..." he said trying to wrap his mind about this new information. He didn't even remember meeting her father, but he wasn't about to say that to her.
"I'm sorry. I... I didn't know." Obviously. Still, he felt guilty. "We can go back... If you don't want to run with me..." He felt stupid. He should have known something was wrong. "You can show me the house instead," he suggested, trying to think of an alternative.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:54 pm
Paris let Chris put his arms around her, but she shook her head at his apologies.
“It’s fine,” she said. “I’m fine. It was years ago. I’ve gotten better. It’s nothing to worry about anymore.”
That wasn’t entirely true. There were moments in which she still felt like running, when the stress grew to be too much and she felt the need to expel in somehow. After they’d been kidnapped and tortured, the compulsion had grown, and now… with Chris no longer quite himself… there were times when she thought if she could just do it once, things would be easier…
But she didn’t do it. She had other things to distract her now. Better ways to work through her distress.
“Don’t worry about it,” she told him. “I promise it’s fine. I wouldn’t have come out here with you if I didn’t think I could handle it. I just… thought I should be honest with you. I didn’t talk about it a lot before.”
Maybe there was a small part of her that hoped and prayed that the more she shared with Chris, the more he’d soon remember.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:55 pm
"I'll always worry about it," Chris said with a hollow laugh. "I'll always worry about you..." He knew it probably sounded silly with so many people he cared about but she was his everything, regardless of how cliche it sounded.
"I'm trying to get better," he promised, leaning down to place a quick kiss on the top of Paris's head since it wasn't as comfortable leaning down even farther. "I don't like not remembering anything, and I know this hasn't been easy on you..." How would he feel if Paris suddenly forgot about him? They'd obviously been through so many things but ever since that night...
"We'll be okay," he reassured her, not wanting her to worry. He was miserable but he would work through it for her.
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Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:55 pm
She hoped it was true—that they’d be okay. Most days she thought they would be, but there were moments, particularly those in which it was obvious that Chris wasn’t quite himself anymore, that she thought they might have finally met their match. These days, Paris often found herself wondering what would be the thing that eventually broke them.
It would not be this. She was determined of that. Laurelite may have taken Chris’s memories when she thrust her hand into his chest, but she had not taken all of him. Paris had seen to that. She would never let Laurelite, nor anyone, come between them ever again.
Paris rose herself onto her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around Chris’s neck, leading his head down to press their lips together.
“I love you,” she said.
And nothing or no one would change that.
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