Memories Long Forgotten

Chihiro tightened the grip on her hood as the wind threatened to force it off of her face. She looked up at the sky and glared at the clouds which were turning a dangerous shade of grey. Shaking her head, the young girl picked up her pace, wanting to get back to her room before the rain began to fall.

She and Amanda had plans for that night, but, with the weather changing, they might just be stuck in their dorm for the rest of the night. Not that it really bothers me. She probably wanted to go out clubbing. Chihiro didn’t mind going clubbing every once in a while, but Amanda wanted to go all the time and if it was left up to her eccentric roommate, they would be going to clubs almost every night. While she tries to hook me up with guys.

She knew that her friend meant well, but none of the guys that Amanda ever set her up with were right. There was just something... something that Chihiro couldn’t put her finger on. She remembered one night when Amanda asked her what was “missing” from the latest guy that she had set her up with. Chihiro had responded with that she didn’t know, but she would let her know when she found that something in a guy. Her friend had just smiled and told Chihiro that she was just too picky when it came to guys. At this rate, she might be right, the dark-haired girl mused as she cut behind one of the buildings in an effort to get inside to her nice, warm room sooner. The last thing she needed was to get a cold. Thankfully, she didn’t get sick often but when she did, she really got sick.

“Looks like it’s going to rain soon,” a familiar voice called out from somewhere behind her.

“Oh, it you!” she replied in surprise. The last person she expected to see out here in this weather was him. Not that she had seen him since that day in the library a few weeks ago.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m glad I caught you,” he said, grinning. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye as she continued to walk. They walked in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

“So why were you glad that you caught me?” Chihiro asked, finally breaking the easy silence that had fallen between them.

“Umm, right, about that. I was wondering if I could take you out for a cup of coffee tonight, in the interest of getting to know you better.” He looked at her face, gauging her reaction.

“I umm,” she stammered. No guy had ever asked her out before. While she had only met him for a few minutes in the library, she had felt at ease with him. She was about to tell him that she could meet him for coffee later tonight when she remembered her plans with Amanda. Not that she would mind in this case. She’d probably be mad that I didn’t blow her off in the interest of a hot guy, Chihiro thought, smiling to herself. “I’m sorry, but I’ve got plans tonight with my friend,” she replied apologetically, stopping in front of the path that would lead her back to her dorm.

“Oh, that’s fine. Do you have a number I so I can call you to get together at a more convenient time?” the boy asked politely. She nodded and quickly wrote down her number on a piece of paper that she’d fished out of her bag. She handed it to him and began to walk away but stopped and turned to face him again.

“You know, I just gave you my number but I don’t even know your name.”

“Haku,” he replied, smiling at her. She smiled back at him before replying.

“I’m Chihiro, nice to meet you Haku. Give me a call soon and we’ll get together for that coffee that you promised!” Why does that name sound so familiar? Chihiro thought as she looked at him a final time before turning around and dashing towards her dorm, trying desperately to get inside before the rain started to fall.

“You have no idea,” Haku said as he watched her go and the rain started to fall. The young man stayed for a few more moments, looking at the building before turning and disappearing into the rain.

~*~

Chihiro groaned as she put the down her book. This was getting absolutely nowhere. She had a huge research project due in two weeks and she had nothing done. If the professor would have given us some actual instructions instead of the incredibly vague instructions that we did get, I wouldn’t be so frustrated right now. She loved history, she really did, but sometimes it was just so annoying.

She hated taking courses in history that she had absolutely no interest in whatsoever. Chihiro loved ancient history, Ancient Japan, China, Egypt, Mesopotamia etc. Studying Twentieth Century Global History just wasn’t of any interest to her. Not only that, but the professor was a boring lecturer which made it really hard for Chihiro to pay attention in class.

Glancing at her watch, she groaned and tossed the book she was reading down. It was time to get ready for that class. Why do I even bother to go? She wondered as she put her laptop in her bag. It’s not as if anyone pays attention anymore. No one knows what’s going on in the class; no one takes notes from the presentations or anything. Heck, even she didn’t pay attention, sometimes watching video clips on her computer or reading up on a particular subject that had caught her interest.

Chihiro quickly exited her dorm and began the fifteen minute walk that would take her to the ever dreaded class. Listening to her mp3 player and not paying attention, Chihiro never saw the boy in front of her until the last minute and by then it was too late to prevent them from smacking into each other and ending up on the ground.

“Oh!” the boy groaned, holding his head with his left hand. Chihiro glanced over from her position on her stomach, which she had thankfully landed on instead of her back, saving her computer from being squished to an untimely death.

“Are you alright?” Chihiro called, picking herself off the ground and slowly walking over to the boy, taking internal stock of any possible damages on her body.

“I think I’m fine,” he said, still holding his head as he tried to get up. Grabbing his arm to help him stand, the young woman finally got a good look at his face.

“Haku! It’s you! Oh gosh, I’m so sorry for knocking you over, I really wasn’t paying attention and I should have been…”

“It’s ok, I’m fine, really,” he said, cutting off her rambling. “See? No blood or anything.” He smiled, showing her the hand that had been holding his head.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” she asked again, letting go of his arm and backing up a few steps.

“I’m sure,” the green haired man smiled reassuringly at her. “You know, I was going to call and ask you if it would be possible for you to join me for coffee?”

Chihiro looked at him blankly, forgetting for a brief moment that she had told him to call her to ask her again for coffee. After knocking him down, joining him for coffee was the least she could do. That and, for the first time, Chihiro was actually interested in a guy. Not to say that growing up she never had anyone ask her out, but she had always turned them down. No guy had ever interested her. Amanda had commented that she seemed to be saving herself for someone. Maybe’s she’s right, Chihiro mused and quickly realized that she was taking too long to give Haku an answer.

“How about we go for ice cream? I’ve never been a big fan of coffee. Amanda and I found this really great place that’s close to campus a little while ago,” Chihiro mentioned.

“Ice cream it is then!” Haku exclaimed, shooting a smile in her direction. “How about I meet you tonight?”

“Sounds good to me,” she quickly gave him directions to the ice cream parlour before they parted ways.

~*~

Darkness surrounded her. Chihiro rubbed her hands together, trying to ward off the cold she could feel. She looked around, sensing that somehow this was familiar. She couldn’t place where she had seen it, but decided to walk on.

“Sen. Chihiro,” a voice called out.

“Chihiro, come back to us, we need you,” a masculine voice calls.

“Who are you? What do you want with me? Why can’t you just leave me alone!?” Chihiro screamed into the darkness.

“Chihiro, please don’t be scared. Try to remember,” the male voice called again.

“Remember what? What do you want me to remember?” Chihiro looked all around her, trying to pinpoint where the voice was coming from. It seemed to be echoing from all around her. Finally turning back in the original direction she was facing, she nearly fell over in shock when a young man around her age with dark green hair and green eyes appeared before her.

“Who are you?” she asked, voice trembling.

“Please don’t be scared Sen, don’t you remember me?” Shaking her head, she watched as the young man frowned.

“Please try and remember Chihiro. Don’t you remember the bath house in the Spirit World? The adventure you had all those years ago…” the young boy trailed off as he began to fade from sight. “Remember the bath house Sen,” the voice said.

“No wait! Don’t go! What adventure? What bath house?”

“What are you talking about?” another voice asked, jolting Chihiro out of her sleep. She sat up and tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes. “You had that dream again, didn’t you?” Amanda sat on the side of Chihiro’s bed, waiting for her to answer. The younger girl nodded and sighed.

“The dreams are getting more detailed. I saw a boy this time with green hair and the most amazing green eyes you’ve ever seen,” she whispered, hugging her pillow to her chest.

“You’ve been having these dreams for years Chi. Maybe they’ve been trying to tell you something. Don’t you think it’s time to maybe, you know, listen?”

“Maybe you’re right. The question is, what do they want me to remember? The boy mentioned something about an adventure and a bath house, but this is all just a dream isn’t it?”

“Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. Like I said, maybe it’s time you listened to your dreams,” Amanda said, poking the other girl’s pillow. “Now come on and get up, otherwise we’re going to be late for breakfast and we’ll never get any of the good stuff!” Chihiro smiled as she watched her roommate grab her clothes and disappear to the bathroom down the hall. Maybe Amanda was right and her dreams were telling her something. Shaking her head, Chihiro pushed the dream from her mind and started to get ready for the day. They were just silly dreams, nothing more, right?