A Face to Remember

Posted on 19 Jun 2015 @ 3:51am by Nevedno Lož & Lieutenant Min Zhao
Edited on on 19 Jun 2015 @ 12:12pm

3,256 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Episode 08 - NIMBUS
Location: USS Galileo - Nevedno's Quarters
Timeline: MD01 - 2300 Hours

ON:

The space that the forever morose Nevedno currently found himself in was dark. Quiet. A coffin. Or at least that's what he liked to call his quarters, drawing an appropriate comparison between the utter solitude of one's final resting place and the room he found himself in every time he rested. The place where once entering, he would cease to exist to everyone around him. As close to death as the living could be.

He laid on his bed, contemplating the life he had chosen much the same way he had done every other night. He was free, but he was also alone. Is this what freedom felt like? He certainly thought not. The possibility of a 'cure' had crossed his mind before, suppressants of some sort, but he was a staunchly against curing something that was not wrong. It was his very being. His genetics. He would just have to find some other way to cope.

And besides, the previous medical team he had constantly confused could not come up with a cure. Hard to work with something when you always forgot what you where doing. They'd study the notes and then get back to work, but try as they might there was no headway gained.

This was just how it was meant to be. How he had to live his life. Alo-

"Incoming transmission," spoke the computer.

Nevedno sat up in a flash. He did not like being caught off guard. He blinked as he stared at the blank screen near the opposite end of the small room. Was it even possible to 'have a wrong number' with twenty-fourth century communication technology? I suppose I shouldn't keep the other end waiting, he thought to himself. "On screen."

A quick flicker and Nevedno's face became more in line with the description of his quarters. Pale and unmoving like a recently deceased man in a casket. He could never forget that face. That most beautiful and lovable face. But how in all the realms of all the universes had she found him. Or even remembered him. His eyes asked nothing but questions, but he found himself speechless as he stared at the screen.

It'd taken a while, she couldn't remember much of anything but with the help of the doctors aboard her ship, and the Starfleet DNA recognition bank, Olivia had been able to piece together a few fragments and track down the man staring back at her.

Her face was furious as she stared back at him. "So you do exist Nevedno. Took a while and you thought you could hide hmm? Running away like some coward. Screwing with my mind, covering your tracks. You know what you did to me you sick shit?"

"Run awa-. Covering tra-," he spoke as his questions where interrupted by his own confused thoughts. He was at a loss for words. So many questions, chief amongst which was how she knew him and for how long would he remember. He decided it would be best to start by defending himself. "The only thing I did to you, or everyone else, is leave without saying goodbye! And I was under the impression that, much like everything else I did aboard that ship, the lack of courtesy would be forgotten along with the rest of me!"

Nevedno's emotions where surging. A mix of love, loss, hope, and confusion. How he had missed Olivia, the one relationship he thought could have lasted. The one relationship he almost couldn't bear to part with. He had, in fact, said goodbye to her in a few hours of blissful passion before he had left, a final memory of the one woman he felt like he was truly leaving behind. But now here she was again. How?

"I don't know what you did to the others, nobody seems to remember you Nevedno, but I know what you did to me." Picking up a padd, Olivia pushed it up against the screen. "That's what you did you bastard. I'm six months pregnant with your child and you didn't even have the decency to stick around."

Questions changed to fears that Nevedno never thought he had. This certainly could not have been a joke. There'd never be a reason to see his file unless something had led them there. He ran his hands over his face and through his hair in a moment of torment. Had he unwittingly cursed another being not even born yet to the same tortured fate he lived through every day?

And Olivia. Poor Olivia. She must not have even known who the father was for a time. How frightening that must have been. It appeared that in his moment of selfish passion he had cursed the life of the one he loved and the life of another not yet born. Abort it, his thoughts shouted greedily at himself as his mind shoved a dagger deep into his heart. He winced in a moment of physical pain. No one should live as you do!

Tell her you love her, as you had to say a thousand times before. Tell her the hardships that will happen. Tell her everything. But would it matter? "I... I'm sorry," where the only words he could form as his emotions twisted and swirled like some horrid witch's brew.

"You're sorry? You took advantage of me, knowing I'd forget who you were and all you can say is your sorry?" Olivia paused, waiting for some sort of answer she knew probably wouldn't or couldn't come. "Why Nevedno? Why me?"

Why you, he thought to himself as he stared back at her. Why out of all the people he had ever met did he chose her and only her to attempt to say goodbye to? "Because I love you," he choked out. "And I believe that you felt the same, if such emotion is possible with someone like myself."

"How could I love somebody I don't know Nev?" Olivia responded. "Obviously I took you into my bed by I have no idea who you are."

Quickly realizing just how confusing the situation was to not only himself, but obviously Olivia, he spoke out before she could say any more, "perhaps I should explain my," he paused, "our unique situation. Then you might understand."

"Please do. You've already made enough of a mess." Olivia crossed her arms sitting back in the chair, letting Nev see her belly for the first time as she rested her crossed arms on it.

Nevedno brought himself closer to the screen, wanting to be a little more personal than just sitting across the room. It had not been easy hearing her question his love, but he had grown used to it. He was patient for a time before he just stopped caring. "No one remembers me. Not while they are around me, at least. And once I'm gone there is no reason to remember me, so everyone just forgets. It's in my genetics. My very being. You have to understand, I didn't want you to forget me, it's just the way it has always been for me."

"So basically what your saying Nevedno is that six months ago you were on my ship, your race produces some pheromone that makes people forget you, I took you into my bed at least once, completely forgot about it, and now the only reason we're talking over subspace is because your baby is inside me?" Olivia exhaled audibly. "Geez. Let's, let's pretend for a second I believe you, what's going to happen to my baby? Am I going to forget her too?"

With a sigh that matched Olivia, Nevedno could not have looked more serious as he spoke. He didn't want to scare her, but she had to know. "Yes," he stated bluntly, though with a layer of sadness. "You and everyone around, everyone but myself, will forget the child ever existed. Not without constant reminder. It will always feel new and it will always take you by surprise. There is no avoiding it." As he stated the facts, what she said clicked in his head. 'Her'. He almost smiled, but kept his composure. The matter at hand was most serious.

Tears began to form in Olivia's eyes. As much as she hated the man in front of her for what he'd done to her, the idea that she would forget this child that she carried inside her was worse. "Damn you Nevedno. Couldn't you have just shot me down and not slept with me? I'd have forgotten you anyways. Now I'm stuck with your child, a daughter I'm going to forget when she's born." Tears began to stream down her face.

He hated to see her cry. It wasn't the first time, trying to work through the almost impossible challenges of a relationship that was reset every few hours. But he had never gotten used to it. It was one of the reasons he had left her. The emotional torment he caused by simply existing in another person's life. And now here they were again, though it seemed this time he had no choice but to at least attempt to work things out. Adoption was out of the question, no one else could handle it. He knew he'd have to be there and he knew Olivia had to be as well.

"She's going to need a strong mother," he spoke before hesitating. So much responsibility being placed on a man normally completely free from any actual responsibility. "And a strong father." In an attempt to calm her nerves, he continued to a more important question at hand. "Do you have a name yet?"

Olivia sniffled a little. "Alexis." She wiped her face with her hand, "And who's going to be the father Nev? He'll forget her just as quickly as I will."

With words he'd never thought in a million years he'd have to utter, he looked into those beautiful brown eyes and spoke with a confidence he didn't know he had, "The only father she'll ever need. Myself."

Olivia snorted. "You? Really? You think I'd trust you to look after my daughter? After you ran away on me?"

"I had no intentions of leaving you the way I did. If it weren't for our, our child, you would never have known I existed! I left not because of you, but for you. I would never have left had I known we would be having a child." He was getting defensive, and fast. He didn't even really know why. "There is no better parent for her than myself. While you're sifting through notes and refreshing yourself on a life's worth of experiences every time you go to see her, I'll be the only one that actually, really remembers her! You're going to need me. She's going to need me."

Olivia sighed. The tears had slowed down though her face was still red. Everything he'd said had jived with what little Starfleet knew, and he was right, he was the only one who could truly care for their child. Like it or not, their paths were going to intersect again, Olivia just hoped this time she could at least remember some of him.

"Nevedno. Let's assume for now you are correct, and I need your help to raise our daughter. How can we make this work? I obviously felt something for you otherwise I wouldn't have slept with you. There was something between us wasn't there?"

"Of course. But after a time it had grown too difficult for us. Or at least we had both said that on more than one occasion. We loved each other, but for you to need to be reminded every time we met. For the relationship to be new every few hours. It strained us. You said it before. How could you love someone you didn't even know. It was said many times before but the answers to that question never seemed like enough. I know you cared, if there is anything I learned about you, it was that you really did care.

"But it was just too much. So I finally decided to let you go in peace. A few hours later and I was but a stranger. No more love. No more us. It was difficult, but you seemed happy. No more questions. No more missing spots in your life. I didn't want to leave the ship, but to see your face every day and remember what we had and lost, I couldn't stand it. But I just had to say goodbye one more time. I told you once more what we had. It was so confusing to you, but you believed me. So we spent one last night together where I said goodbye. You were so mad that I told you everything just to leave you, but the anger faded and soon I was a new face again.

"I'll never forget that night. And now it seems you have something to remember, too." He let out a long, slow sigh, his own eyes now filled with tears. "Perhaps we can try again," and again, and again, and again, his thoughts continued after he spoke.

Olivia listened to Nev's rather long winded explanation. She wasn't sure if she believed him, and she didn't consider herself a good judge of character, but the whole thing had a ring of truth. The story fit what she knew, and if she was willing to admit that, aside fro not knowing who the heck he was, he was kinda cute in his own sorta way.

Olivia wiped a final tear from her eye. "Nev..." She said, her hands trembling, "How can we correct this? If your right, I will forget this conversation by tomorrow, so what do I do? How do I remember?"

He thought for a moment at the question. It seemed she had remembered the information from the computer that she had read recently, perhaps it was only by being in the same area that people would forget him. "Maybe you won't forget," he said with a bit of a smile. "I'm not there."

Then it hit him, his face turning back to sorrow. Just how could they correct this? Alexis needed him, but he couldn't just take her from Olivia. She'd need her mother just as much as her father. How tragic that it seemed Olivia would know more about either of them in their absence than she would ever know in their presence, forgetting everything shortly after re-meeting.

Nevedno shook his head slightly. We'll worry about that later, he thought. "This could be good. Perhaps we play catch up now, then I can look forward to your call tomorrow. I'll know things have gone well if you don't come up shouting at me in expletives again," he said with a noticeable smirk.

Olivia nodded. In for a penny. "Maybe if it is a in person thing I will remember this chat? Who knows, maybe if I remember this chat it'll be easier to remember you when we meet in person?" She gave Nev an uncertain smile. "Maybe there's something I can take that will help me remember?"

"No. At least not that I know of. The science team on the Liber tried to suppress the pheromones, but I can imagine it was most difficult when they had nothing other than notes to go by. That, and I was admittedly uncooperative. Having to explain the same problem every damn day. Having them send me to the psych for a head check before sometimes finding their notes. Or calling security for the madman in their office." His voice had slowly started to turn angry. "Maybe that will change though," he spoke with a sliver of hope, "but for now you will have to stick with notes. Though I must admit I look forward to you knowing more about me now, even if that may fade once we meet in person."

"Technology isn't affected is it? Could I leave notes and messages for myself? Something to remind me when I forget? And if I learn as much about you now, I won't forget that will I? Start at least from knowing we are/were close?"

"Notes will help. Take as many as you need. I suspect technology will be your friend as much as it has become mine. Unfortunately, once we meet, you will forget everything about me again. You will start over, from the beginning, again." Nevedno took a deep breath as he continued, he wanted them both to have lasting happiness, even if it would not be forever. "Perhaps we can find light in this time apart. Time for you to know me better, even if it is fleeting. Take your time taking notes before we meet. You'll have more time now than when we where together. You'll need them."

Olivia frowned. "Even these conversations? I'd have thought the pheromone only stops memories from staying implanted, not actively wiping out existing ones?"

Nevedno looked unsure for a moment, thinking intently. "I'm not sure, to tell you the truth. I've never encountered this situation before. Perhaps that may work. We can grow close now and when we are finally together there will at least be a foundation to work upon. Everything we do together will have to be written down or recorded, remembered like reading a biography more than actual events, but it would be better than not remembering at all." He showed a genuine smile as he looked upon her. "But I do want to see you. To really be with you again."

Olivia smiled a little unsurely, "I'll see what I can do at this end Nev. Alexis will need her father even if I'm unable to remember him so perhaps a move to your ship is best." She paused, unsure of her next words. "Maybe in the interim, we can stay in touch? Help me remember what I've forgotten. Maybe reading it will at least help build something again."

It would have sounded strange to any other couple, but the next words Nevedno spoke where spoken with true happiness. "I look forward to our time apart. This separation could prove more beneficial than I could have possibly have hoped. There's a lot of catching up to do."

Olivia finally managed to break a small but genuine smile. "A lot apparently. Assuming I remember, same time tomorrow? Maybe tell me what our last night together was like?"

That last night. It wasn't easy, but despite its awkwardness, and some of the pain, it was still a very important part in both their lives. More important than Nevedno and Olivia could have possibly imagined. "Certainly," he said with a returned smile. "Same time tomorrow." With the click of a button the screen went black and he let out a heavy sigh. He wasn't sure what was going to happen, but somehow there was a glimmer of hope.

Olivia watched as the screen went blank, Nev's face disappearing from view. "Computer, retain a copy of that conversation. File under Alexis' Father." Leaning back on her couch, hands on her stomach, Olivia closed her eyes, thoughts running through her head. Starfleet was right but was he all he claimed he was? No matter what happened, she knew where he was for now, and if he called back tomorrow, well just play that one by ear.

OFF

Nevedno Loz
Science Technician
USS Galileo
[PNPC Jynn]

Olivia
Former Lover
Expectant Mom
[PNPC Zhao]

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