With the red bead clutched tightly in her hand, Bella raced back to her hotel room. Her heart was beating so fast that it made her ears ring.

 

For once in her life it was a welcome sensation.

 

Fumbling her keycard she swung open the door and was delighted to see that the lights were still on.

 

“Hello? Is that Bell?” a voice called.

 

“Hiii!” Bella sang, rushing into the main area of the hotel room. There she found her roommates for the weekend, Kayleigh and Julia snuggled up close on their bed. Kayleigh collapsed entirely upon Julia’s chest. Any casual observer would have assumed she was sleeping. In a way she was.

 

“Is she sleeping..?” Bella whispered.

 

“Nuuh…” Kayleigh slurred, nuzzling to dig deeper into her partner’s soft warmth, “Deeeeep…”

 

Julia smiled fondly and petted the resting girl before looking up to her roommate. “You look happy. Did it go well?”

 

With a toothy grin Bella hopped up and down on the spot. “It did! I talked to her after the event and we went to her room and I think it went really well. It really did! She tranced me! I tranced her! We had big talks and…”

 

Bella paused for a moment, squeezing the bead in her hand.

 

 

The words caught in her throat. How could she phrase it so it could be understood? That a human being had validated her weird mood shifting behavior? Had used her proper names? Had recognized her as an individual and not as a hyperactive moment within a normally calm woman?

 

Kayleigh and Julia were friends. They had been for years.

 

They’d understand.

 

 

It wasn’t quite a thought as it was a sinking well of dread that manifested in her heart. An understanding that part of her was communicating doubt, guilt, self-hatred. Courage failed and she backed down.

 

“...and she gave me this!” she exclaimed, showing off the red bead. “It means she’s interested in a romantic relationship with me. At least talking about it!”

 

If Julia had noticed the pause then she did not make it known.

 

“Yaaaaay…!” Kayleigh slurred from her hypnotic slumber.

 

Placing the bead on her designation of counter space, she peeled off her dress and let it crumple to the floor. An emotional pang of PICK THAT UP IT’S EXPENSIVE was felt and ignored. She instead hopped on bed.

 

“How was your night?” she asked, looking over at her roommates, still tied in their affectionate display.

 

“It was good. Kayleigh was on display for the living art exhibit and got to be a good doll for everyone.” Kayleigh murmured a delighted whimper of joy at the memory of her evening being shared, “I got to talk with a few friends from Fet. It was a good night.”

 

As Julia gave the full details of the evening, Bella checked her phone. A message from Madison waited for her.

 

 

Bella’s legs kicked in excitement before she hastily shot her reply.

 

“9am your room! I’ll be there!”

 

She sunk back onto the pillow with a swooning sigh. Everything was right in the world.

 

“Sleep well, precious.”

 

 

-

 

Bell jolted upright in her bed.

 

An alarm was going off. There were curtains. She didn’t normally have curtains. Everything felt weird. The room didn’t sound right. She grasped for her phone.

 

7:10am.

 

Everything felt wrong.

 

Summoning her fortitude she blocked out the increasing panic in her heart as she closed her eyes; took in a breath; and let the world come back to her piece by piece.

 

This happened more than she cared to admit to other people and certainly more than she would admit to her therapist. Waking up from deep sleep with none of her bearings. It happened far more often in hotels than it did at home.

 

There are times she needed to be reminded that it was the 2020s.

 

Those were not proud days.

 

Those were days she had to mourn all over again.

 

Replacing the phone she saw a red bead and held it.

 

 

Right. Hypnosis convention. Monday. Check-out day.

 

And she had her date with Madison the previous night.

 

Moreover, she had a date this morning at 9am.

 

“Bell?”

 

Bell looked over to Kayleigh who was squirming. Julia remained fast asleep. “It’s 7am, Kayleigh. Check-out isn’t until 11. Get some more sleep.”

 

“...mmmfff…” Kayleigh sighed, which was as much of a coherent response as could be expected at 7am.

 

Bell quietly prepared her bags and got dressed. Street attire was far less presentable than her Bella dress from the previous night but it made her feel more comfortable. The hard part was waiting.

 

But 9am did eventually come and she knocked on the door she had hated to leave the previous day. Madison opened it, warmth radiating from her features. She, too, was dressed in casual attire and had clearly not completed her morning ritual.

 

Bell preferred her like this. The ballgown from the previous night was lovely, but there was something so down to Earth about seeing her in a sports jersey and jeans.

 

Madison’s room was all tidied up. The belongings had been stacked aside, ready to be taken to the car. Madison traveled to events with her partner, Saphire. Bell had met him and knew his real name. She did not care. Saph was Saph shaped. The name fit to him like lycra.

 

“Sleep well, precious?”

 

Bell felt a stirring in her heart from that nickname. A giddiness which sought to overwhelm her.

 

“I did. You?”

 

Madison blossomed into a beaming ray of light, her cheeks burned red and her eyes danced with life. “So much.” she responded, “Saph is doing his rounds and saying his final goodbyes, which gives us some time. I don’t think the convention is over until we leave the hotel and I’d like to get at least one more bit of play in, if we can fit it in.”

 

“I’m game with that if you are. I’m just glad to selfishly steal every last minute we can get together.” Bell laughed, “I just wish we’d started sooner. There was so much weekend that could have been enjoyed.”

 

“More to look forward to next time.” Madison chirpily shrugged, “But we have here. We have now.”

 

“We do.” Bell softly noted. She had made herself comfortable by sitting on the edge of the bed.

 

Madison parked herself next to Bell and reached for her hand.

 

“May I?” she asked, that tender voice stirring another wave of emotion in Bell’s heart.

 

“You may.”

 

She took Bell’s hand and held it between both of hers. Bell needed to huff out and tense up to force herself from being overwhelmed by the rush of affection.

 

Madison noticed. Bell noticed Madison notice. Her face read plainly ‘I’m concerned, but I won’t pry.’

 

Bell held up her spare hand to indicate she was fine.

 

“We should talk about things. Before we go any further.” Bell said. “Call it another negotiation.”

 

“That’s sensible.” Madison agreed, “I was putting a lot of thought into it myself.”

 

“Glad I’m not the only one.”

 

“You’re not.” Madison paused a beat, watching Bell closely, “Bell. I care about you and I know you care about me too. I think we can both say we’re smitten right now. But I don’t want to call it anything else. Not yet. And because of that I think we should have some limits. Just so we can know we’re not rushing in.”

 

Bell nodded, all of the giddiness inside of her being smothered by an increasing well of gravity as the serious tone erased any intrusion from pesky expressions of abundant emotion.

 

"Are you sure Saph is okay with all of this?" Bell asked. It was a soft ball opener to their discussion. She knew the answer but felt it needed to be asked.

 

"I'm sure." Madison confirmed, "We both have other partners and he likes you. It'll be okay. What about you? Have you checked in at home? Your family mean a lot to me."

 

Bell nodded, mind drifting back to the family who had taken her in when things fell apart. She would never want to betray their care and kindness. She had made sure they were aware of everything that was happening before even going to the flirt event. She had blessing.

 

"I promise." Bell said.

 

“It's not just our home lives though. I want to be careful because I've seen a lot of people in the hypnosis community dive in hard and fast and really mess things up by committing to things while high on the new relationship that they may not have otherwise. plus I want to take the time to learn how to interact with you - all of you - without hurting you.”

 

Bell sighed. Madison respected her enough to say it. There was just a small internal twinge of self-loathing though. It couldn’t be helped.

 

“Because of that, I really think we should avoid any words stronger than smitten.” Madison said.

 

“I agree with that. I also think lip-to-lip contact should wait. Especially given I don’t do anything more intimate than that. I feel like it’s important to earn that.”

 

“Of course!” Madison responded, as if the idea of not waiting had not even occurred to her, “and on that note, after the event we should spend a couple weeks not doing any trance play. I want to make sure all of this works without hypno-shenanigans.”

 

Bell’s eyes flashed. Madison had only been aware of her facets for a single night, but she could see Donna’s moment of suppressed protest as plainly as if she had a body of her own.

 

“Especially with your facets in play. I would prefer it if Donna, Bella and I were to have relationships that weren’t entirely based on play.”

 

Bell’s heart skipped a beat. She was caught off-guard. The idea of individual relationships had never occurred to her. She still considered herself to be a single person, no matter how much parts of her protested.

 

“...I… don’t know what to say…” Bell stammered.

 

“Just think about it, okay? We have time and that’s why it’s important we wait. We need to use that time.”

 

Bell just sat with that one. She legitimately had no idea how to even approach it.

 

“You really want that?” she finally managed.

 

“I do. At least I want to explore it.” Madison confirmed, “And there will be times that it will be hard. If we are going to get close then I want you to know I have a history of trauma too and our baggage might not go together. But on the other hand it might go together just fine. We’ll have to wait and see.”

 

Bell just nodded, “That’s going to be a tough conversation when we have it.” she sighed.

 

“But we will have it.” Madison confirmed, “You trusted me with your facets. I can trust you with at least that much.”

 

“Thank you. You don’t have to say anything. But I’ll listen. I’ll care. You’ve already shown me so much kindness and care. I want to prove that it’s not just one-way.”

 

“I know you will.” Madison said. Her hands still held Bell’s firm and tight. “Which reminds me. Last night when I touched your— when I touched Donna’s face” she firmly corrected herself, “she lost control of the scene and melted into Bella. I want to avoid doing something like that again if I can help it. I never want you to ever feel like I want to spend time with one of your facets more than the other.”

 

Bell’s eyes flickered downwards.

 

“That includes you.” she added, firmly, squeezing the hand that she still held with hers. “I’ll remind you how long we’ve been friends. No matter how much fun we have in play, it’s the friendship we forged that brought us to last night. Okay?”

 

It had been years since the two of them, both with different usernames, had met on a now defunct hypnosis themed social media. Bell was a completely different person back then. Literally. But there was always comfort in sharing perspectives with another ‘hypnosis for the sake of hypnosis’ fetishist.

 

“God. You were in college when we first started talking.” Bell sighed. Her memories of those days were barely viable, but she had done a lot of reading through old chat logs and journals prior to the convention. Bell had gotten good at using context and evidence to retroactively generate her past.

 

“I remember you saying your roommate was aware of what you did and I just couldn’t believe that. I had so much trouble mentioning it to anyone offline and you were just open and comfortable. It was amazing.”

 

Madison bobbed up and made a proud “Mhmm!” sound, gleaming with pride.

 

“It was still hard to find moments to have chats though. All that homework and those side projects really took a lot out of you, huh?”

 

“It was a busy time…” Madison mused.

 

The atmosphere softened and the pair immersed in nostalgic conversation so smoothly that the weight of the heavy topics melted away. There was no worry or tension. Only two old friends getting to catch up on members of the community who were no longer at events, on their favorite stories and some mild anecdotes from their individual circles.

 

Minutes fell off the clock far faster than either would have preferred.

 

Madison was the first to notice. “We should start getting ready to head out.” she finally said, “I know we still have time, but Bell, I want you to know I have cherished our time together. I truly have and I know we will keep talking. This is only a goodbye in the sense that this weekend is coming to an end… and I wanted to say goodbye to you. I don’t know if I’ll get another chance.”

 

Madison took each of Bell's hands and squeezed them. "Goodbye Bell," she stressed the name, hard enough that even Bell's unhealthy abundance of skepticism could not deny she was speaking to the facet and not the shared public identity, "I really enjoyed our talk and we will talk again soon."

 

Bell smiled bitterly and rest her forehead against Madison's, the connection grounded her. Her heart soothed to a peaceful still. Everything felt like it was going to be okay.

 

The calm made it all the easier to hear the pangs of disappointment that were screaming from within her heart and demanding things not be over yet.

 

Bell got to have her tender moment. She got to have her goodbye. It was okay to stop holding back the tidal wave of emotions now.

 

"Does it really have to be goodbye?" her voice whispered. It wasn't quite the soft tone from the previous night. More it was Bell voicing Bella's vulnerability as if it were her own.

 

“It’s okay, precious. I’ve not forgotten." Madison teased, noting the adjustment in tone, "I did say I wanted to do a bit of play before we finished up, didn’t I?” the teasing voice she used was the same one she used while trancing Bella the previous night.

 

Shifts weren't always easy and sudden, though. "I think I need some help." Bell sighed, "I know we talked about not doing it, but could you stroke my cheek again?"

 

Madison's tensed, more than Bell would have expected. She would need to ask her about her feelings on forcing shifts, the discomfort seemed older than her familiarity with Bell's circumstance.

 

"I'm giving permission. I want this-- I promise. I'll try to work on doing this smoother but I need help right now."

 

Madison took another moment to truly consider her feelings before nodding “I don't like doing this because I worry you'll feel like you have to present how I want you to present and not how you truly feel."

 

"I understand. It's not just giving permission, I am actively asking." She reached over for her hand.

 

"May I?"

 

"You may."

 

Bell took Madison's hand and planted it against her face, looking at her intently. Madison leaned forward and began caressing Bell's-- no- Bella’s cheek.

 

Madison still couldn’t put it into words.It was in the eyes. A brightness and giddy exuberance flooded from that epicenter and spread outwards until the entire woman was consumed. Stern and sincere body language exploded into stiff and energetic, hands clasped together and her smile blossomed. It was like every muscle was tense to try and keep the emotion from spilling out.

 

Beauty was a good name for her.

 

“So eager…” she mused, delighted, “I put some thought into what I wanted to do while I still had a chance. I remember you said you were really good at amnesia play.”

 

Within Bella’s heart a wry and exhausted chuckle of bitter irony emitted in the shape of Bell.

 

“We’ll sit down and discuss what we’re going to do… but I want you to know that if we do go ahead with this you’ll lose all memory of that conversation until I give it back to you.” those final words were said so firmly that Bella sat bolt upright and attentive, “And that any play we do today and any triggers we play with will disappear as soon as you return home. Is that okay, Precious?”

 

She nodded enthusiastically.

 

And then they spoke.

 

Post-hypnotic amnesia is different from the homegrown natural kind. For induced amnesia it is lovingly placing a treat in the cookie jar above the fridge and knowing you could collect it at any time but it will be better to wait until you are given permission to enjoy it. Every time the mind goes hunting for that memory there’s a soft and delicate reminder that it’s better to keep waiting, that it’s going to be more fun to let those thoughts drift away.

 

The fact that the effort of letting thoughts drift away is a mini-trance unto itself was a bonus.

 

With the regular kind it felt like there was a powerful like-charged magnet pushing against any attempt to recall. It was not a firm barricade, it was slippery and invisible and impossible to dwell upon without suffering some consequences like a lightning storm in the head or a well of confusion. Thoughts didn’t drift away as much as they were actively repelled.

 

That was if the missing spots could be detected at all.

 

Bella could remember Madison clapping her hands together excitedly, ready to begin. She remembered her cupping her chin and the sharp whimper of surprise that accompanied the action.

 

She could not remember her words, but knew they were powerful. She could remember how her head began to swim.

 

She remembered her eyelids fluttering.

 

She remembered a finger to her forehead.

 

She remembered the word “Drop.”

 

Any recollection of the negotiation and the suggestion was wrapped up in a bundle of trust. A gift with a bow that read ‘DO NOT OPEN UNTIL HOME.’

 

The minutes passed and by the time Bella’s eyes fluttered to full awareness it was 10:30am. Time seemed to lose all meaning when she was with Madison.

 

“How are you doing, precious?” Madison asked delighted with herself.

 

“Mmm… good” Bella swooned, rolling back against the bed. Her head felt fuzzy. Like pink clouds.

 

“You get silly when you’re fractionated.” Madison chuckled, “I’ll have to remember that.”

 

Bella giggled “Silly is a silly word. It’s like. Sicily. But without the C. Only Sicily isn’t silly. I wonder why we use the word silly. Are there other words for silly? Like fun and weird and unthreatening… I dunno. I just feel silly.”

 

Madison laughed to herself and mused the cute girl’s red hair. “I know, precious, I know. Do you remember what I put in your head?”

 

Bella sat up and gave a thoughtful look, “Hmm… You gave me an amnesia trigger…”

 

Madison nodded, “Mhmm… that’s right. Go on…?”

 

“And every time I remember that I have an amnesia trigger I am supposed to say that I have an amnesia trigger and forget that I have an amnesia trigger!” she proudly proclaimed, before blinking back in confusion and looking around. “Wait, what?”

 

Madison couldn’t help but burst out in a fit of laughter, “Oh precious.”

 

“Whaaaaat?!” Bella cried out in a huff of frustration, “What’s funny?”

 

Madison quelled another burst of laughter, “You’ll remember later, s– precious, I promise.” Madison held the other woman close against her and planted a kiss on the top of her head, “Gosh I am so smitten.”

 

Bella melted into the embrace and felt her heart glisten with joy. She’d remember when she got home…

 

“OH! I have an amnesia trigger that I’m not allowed to remember!” she cried in discovery before the like-charged magnet in her mind repelled the notion with a couple of firm blinks.

 

“What was that, precious?”

 

“What was what?”

 

Madison burst out laughing again and held the other woman close, stroking her hair.

 

“We have about fifteen more minutes then I think you need to run and make sure your bags are packed before check-out. Do you think you are going to still be around for an early lunch?” she asked kindly.

 

“I can check. Julia is driving but we’re only like 6 hours out and we all have the day off… I think it’d be okay.” Bella chirped, still drunk on trance and her smitten affections.

 

“Okay, then what I’ll do now is say goodbye to you now so I can make sure you get to hear it. This weekend has been wonderful and you are a delight, Bella.” she emphasized the name, stressing the ‘ah’ at the end.

 

The pair may have put a pause on lip-to-lip kissing but in that moment Bella discovered something more intimate. Intentional and affectionate name calling.

 

It was the first time she had ever experienced it.

 

“We still have time and we may still see one another but I needed to make sure you got to hear that.” Madison added, pulling Bella back gently and looking her firm in the eyes. “And every time you look at that red bead you’ll remember– you will know I care for you.”

 

Remember…

 

“OH!” Bella exclaimed, “I have an amnesia trigger I’m not allowed to remember!”

 

Madison just stared at the bundle of sunshine in her grip as the amnesia suggestion robbed her of her startling discovery.

 

She was so powerfully smitten.

 

-

 

Checking out, filling the cars and approaching logistics only took about 45 minutes. Bella had managed to remember her trigger 3 times in that duration.

 

Kayleigh and Julia had already said their major goodbyes for the weekend and opted to tag along with Bella. Madison in her own circle had run through a number of her friends and what had begun as a whim between two smitten friends had turned into an impromptu afterparty.

 

12 members of the hypnokink community gathered around a table. Bella recognized most of them, though had limited interactions with most. One of those present was Madison's partner, Saph. The smile he gave was enough to ensure that the squeeing that she had done to Julia and Kayleigh was equal to that Madison had shared with him. That was a nice feeling.

 

It filled Bella with joy to see how diverse the table was. There may have been a time when these gatherings were all cisgender white men of a certain age. Now the table was full of people across the gender spectrum and from different racial and religious backgrounds.

 

Half the reason she felt safe at these events was that fact.

 

The other half was proven when a familiar enby from the Tumblr community raised their hands and gathered everyone’s attention.

 

“Remember we’re in public.” they warned. That statement was a full sentiment. It carried every rule and expectation with a firm period at the end.

 

Bella wasn’t sure if that meant her behavior would be appropriate. Then she paused and wondered why she thought that.

 

“I have an amnesia trigger that I’m not allowed to remember…” she whispered, mostly to herself, before forgetting it.

 

Kayleigh burst into an unguarded grin and Julia chuckled in delight. Madison placed a hand on hers, “Precious, until we leave this restaurant, you can just let that thought slip away. It’s okay not to remember for a little while longer. It’ll come back when it comes back on the drive home, but for now it’s okay to let it stay out of sight and out of mind.”

 

Bella looked at Madison with awe. She wasn’t quite sure what she meant but her emotions could feel the words taking root. Even if they made no sense, they were what she needed to hear and so she listened.

 

The conversation was lively, if a little edited for the public setting, everyone gave their war stories of the weekend and boldly proclaimed their favorite classes and events. Some bitter words were shared regarding an individual who would likely not be allowed to return for future years. Some stealthy demos stretched the limits of the rule that had been established for the lunch.

 

It was about the time the entrees had arrived that Madison noticed Bella’s energy shift.

 

To an outside observer it would have seemed like the shy wallflower with too much energy had just become comfortable enough in the environment to become extroverted; but she knew better. It still baffled her how no one else could see it.

 

Where Bella had laughed along with bold jokes and nodded approval and agreement when appropriate, Donna engaged boldly with the conversation. When Kayleigh’s performance as a doll for the living art exhibit was brought about she squeezed her cheeks and gushed about what a precious cutie she was.

 

She also stole a number of subtle shows of affection towards Madison. A stroke of the arm, a hand on hers, a brush of the hair. It was obvious Donna was as smitten as Madison and given how bold and flirtatious she had been in any of Madison’s prior encounters with her, it was touching to see how warm and tender her gestures were.

 

Madison got caught up in a discussion with Saph and a friend who had flown in from overseas while Donna had started gushing to an author friend about their long-running series.

 

Everything seemed so normal.

 

This exact scene could have happened with or without the events of the prior evening. Yet it still felt so natural.

 

There was comfort in that.

 

Madison and Bell had agreed that the danger of new relationship emotions would have blinded them or made them each act in a way unbecoming of their natures.

 

Donna could feel the contentment in her heart as the meal ended. They didn’t need to be on one another all of the time and drinking one another’s affection or acting in unison. Comfortable coexistence even when they both hungered for just one more moment? It was achievable. It felt safe.

 

Time continued its headlong pace and soon enough people were trading hugs and offering goodbyes. Donna and Saph got to trade a hug which traded the sentiment of their mutual affection for Madison and they wished one another a safe journey home.

 

Donna walked alongside Kayleigh and Julia.

 

“Can I get a minute? I’ll be with you?”

 

Kayleigh gave a knowing smile, “Take all the time you need.”

 

“Thank you, my dear.” she smiled back, before turning to the door where Madison waited.

 

“I believe you still owe me one last goodbye, lass.” Donna said smoothly.

 

“I wouldn’t have missed it. Thank you for making it easy for me.” Madison responded, “I’m sad we didn’t have time for you to have a little scene of your own.”

 

“Alas…” Donna sighed, “And I had so many ideas, too. Who knows how long it will be before we are reunited. Let alone how long before I am permitted to tease and toy with that beautiful mind of yours.” as she spoke she reached over and ran a finger along the edge of Madison’s fringe.

 

Bell’s eye contact had been erratic, on and off based on comfort and how introverted she was feeling. Bella’s was drawn to the ground at most times through timid bashfulness.

 

Donna’s eyes were always there. Burning azure blue against Madison’s own pale glow.

 

“I suppose you’ll need to keep a list.” Madison teased, playful in tone but still harboring disappointment.

 

“I’ll be sure to link it to you, then. That way we can pass the waiting period with all the tantalizing ideas.”

 

“You know, I’m only a 4 hour drive from you, right?” Madison said, this leap of faith was barely a skip of hope. She knew it was a welcome prospect.

 

“We had best start preparing to see more of one another’s cities then, lass. Though there is only one room in my city I wish to sho–.”

 

Donna’s speech trailed off as a harsh crackle of emotion yanked at her from within. Burning orange and filled with anger, shame and repression. Within the timing of a single blink all of Donna’s confidence and vivacious energy had been put to a halt.

 

Madison tilted her head. That expression she wore. The one that said ‘I can see something is happening, but I’m not going to force you to say anything’ was plastered on her face.

 

“...sorry. I was going to make a joke but it seems on some level, I don’t seem to find it appropriate.” her voice rumbled with frustration, but she kept a smile on her face. “Either way, my lass. I will be happy to visit you and would have you visit me, should comfort and time allow.”

 

“I would like that.” Madison confirmed.

 

“I suppose this is the third goodbye, then.” she sighed, feeling mildly deflated from her mood turning on her like that.

 

Madison took a step forward and kissed her cheek. “We’ll talk.”

 

Donna wanted to snatch her hair and hungrily kiss her in return. She did not need Bell’s incessant censorship to tell her that was a whim she could not follow through on.

 

“Plus, you’ll have a gift when you get home. Well, Bella will anyway.”

 

Donna raised her eyebrows, “Color me curious.” she laughed.

 

“You’ll find out.”

 

There was no courage this time. Donna reluctantly pulled away but could not stop looking back. Madison remained at the door waiting.

 

There was a ringing in her ears as she pulled into the back seat of the car and watched Madison until she could see her no more.

 

This wasn’t the fun kind of ringing. This was the bad kind.

 

Parting. Always such sweet sorrow.

 

-

 

6 hours was a long time to drive home. Donna didn’t stick around for very long. Any kind of pain, whether it emotional or physical, was enough to drive her into the depths of Belladonna’s multifaceted heart.

 

Julia and Kayleigh spoke at length about their adventures through the weekend. It was a delight to travel with them and it was always fun to see the convention through their eyes in retrospect.

 

When Bell told her story of the flirt event and time spent with Madison, Bella filtered through to announce that she had a trigger before vanishing along with the amnesia.

 

It didn't take long before Madison pinged Bell's phone from the passenger seat of her own car ride home.

 

Anything that was happening in the front of the car faded into a hyperfocus mist as Bell responded and chatted. Discussed plans. Discussed hopes. Discussed what was happening in either city over the next few months.

 

Despite being told goodbye three times, she felt Madison’s presence more and more with every passing second. Distance was not going to be their enemy. They had already been speaking non-stop for months. This was only going to make their communication all the more constant.

 

Messages flooded back and forth between the pair. Giggles and laughs emitted on occasion.

 

Soon enough Bell was shocked from her thoughts by the car coming to a stop and Julia announcing “We’re home.”

 

Memories of each and every time the amnesia trigger had been remembered and forgotten, including a couple on this very car ride, flooded in to Bella’s mind.

 

Her fingers flew across the keypad.

 

 

Madison's reply came in soon after.