The City That Forgets-Part2

Liam sat quietly on the rooftop of the bakery, watching the morning sun rise over the quiet village of Eloria. The same sun, the same rooftops, the same streets—but a new day where everyone, except him, had forgotten yesterday. Again.

He took a deep breath and opened his notebook. Page after page was filled with notes, dates, sketches, and desperate messages to himself: “Don’t forget to reintroduce yourself to Clara.” “Buy food before noon—shopkeeper forgets inventory after that.” “Check the western forest again. Something moved last time.”

He flipped to a blank page and began writing:

Day 247 of Remembering.

No one recalled the strange blue light last night. I saw it flicker above the hill. I think it’s connected.

Below the entry, he drew the hill, the strange light, and a shadowy figure he could barely make out through the trees.

⸻

Liam had grown used to the loneliness. Used to being a stranger in his own home. His parents? They greeted him every morning like he was a traveler, not their son. His best friend, Arlen? Every day, Liam had to win his trust from scratch. And Clara—he loved her, but to her, he was always just a curious boy she met “today.”

Still, he never gave up. He made laminated cards with facts about himself and handed them out daily:

Name: Liam. Age: 18. You know me. You trust me. You forgot.

Most people laughed, assuming it was a joke. Some threw the card away. But a few… a few paused. A flicker of recognition would dance across their eyes before vanishing like smoke. It was that flicker Liam lived for.

⸻

Later that day, Liam stood in front of the old town library. It had been closed for years—no one remembered what it was for. But Liam had picked the lock weeks ago. Inside, dusty books, sealed scrolls, and rotting papers held secrets the town had forgotten.

He walked to the corner where he had stacked his findings: old maps, village records, and a journal—one not written by him.

The leather-bound journal had belonged to someone named Elenor. He found it under the floorboards. Her last entry dated 53 years ago read:

“The spell is failing. The forgetting grows deeper. I fear soon, even I will forget why we started it.”

It was the only clue he had to the curse’s origin. Who was Elenor? What spell? Why did they curse their own town?

A noise behind him snapped him back. He spun around—someone was watching.

“Who’s there?” he called.

A girl stepped forward from the shadows, eyes wide with fear—but also, curiosity. “I… I think I know you,” she said softly. “You’re… Liam?”

His heart skipped. No one had ever said his name before without prompting. “Yes!” he rushed to her. “Do you remember me?”

“I don’t know… I just had a dream about you last night. It felt real.”

Liam’s eyes filled with hope. “You’re not forgetting… not completely. That means something.”

The girl looked confused. “What’s happening to me?”

“You’re waking up,” Liam said. “Maybe it’s starting to break.”

They sat in the library together as the sun dipped low. For the first time in months, Liam wasn’t alone.

He smiled.

“Tomorrow, you might forget. But I’ll be here. And now, maybe… you will too.”

⸻

To Be Continued…