Welcome To Your New Life

Dr. O sat in comfortable silence, anticipating the arrival of their next customer. This time of year was the most popular for their services. Something about the Gregorian shift from one calendar to the next always made people want to forget.

For as long as they could remember, it had been their job to help those who wanted to change, become anew. To leave one’s past in the past didn't come cheap. In this mortal world, money was an object of power; however, for Dr. O to truly exist within this world, money proved to be more of a requirement.

Creating this business wasn’t originally the plan, but being condemned to spend eternity walking amongst the humans on their plane of existence would make anyone scramble for a purpose. After years of observing the mortal population, Dr. O determined what use they could be to the people and how that would make them successful. 

There was no telling if it would actually work. Years of nothingness would fill the air until there was finally that first knock on the door. Once word got out, Dr. O was a hit. Humans would show up from all over to wipe their memories of past decisions, not without giving the strangest of explanations for their needs:

“I cheated on my last wife three times and I don’t want to be that horrible person again if I’m ever gonna find love. Sure, it was fun and I met a lot of wonderful women who showed me many things, but I need to leave that behind me for the future.”

“I was a bully in high school and I don’t want to go into college being rude to people like I used to. I want friends. It was cool when I was younger to be mean and pick on people, but everyone is so mature in college and I don’t want my past to be a factor in who I become in the future.”

None of these backstories were needed for Dr. O’s services. All of the excessive ramblings were an unnecessary headache. It was simple. Your old life will be left behind, as long as you pay the price. There was no reason to further explain what you wanted to change in the future.

The only thing you can change for certain is your past.

Dr. O stood up, realizing that they were done for the day. It was after midnight, almost 12:30—no one would be coming by this late. 

They shut off the lights and locked their door on the way out.

“Wait!” 

A voice called from across the street. It was a young woman, frantically waving her arms about. She slowly made her way across the street, dodging the cars in the way.

“I’m in desperate need of your services,” she uttered, as she made it to Dr. O.

“Unfortunately, ma’am, I’m closed for the night. Come back tomorrow.”

“But I need this to be done tonight. I was only a few minutes late.”

“Try 30.”

“30?” she echoed, with genuine surprise. “My apologies, the time just happened to get away from me. It’s tonight, after all. I really need you right now.”

“If you’ll excuse me, I have somewhere to be.”

“Where does someone like you have to be at this hour?”

Dr. O ignored her, heading down the street with a leisurely stride. Much to their chagrin, she followed them at a hurried pace. 

There seemed to be no shaking this woman. Regardless, of the twists and turns they took, she still stuck closeby. Her determination was admirable but irritating.

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t follow me.” They spoke up, lighting a cigar.

“Well, I would appreciate it if you listened to my request.”

“I don’t need to listen to your request. They’re all the same.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Dr. O was silent once more as they took a shortcut through the park. Believing they knew their way around better, they tried losing the woman amongst the trees.

When all was quiet and the woman had become a distant memory, Dr. O kept on their journey further down the street. Finding the next corner before their destination, they were stopped by a painfully annoying force.

She stood before them, hands on her hips. “Thought you could lose me that easily?”

“You’re persistent, I’ll give you that.”

“Will you help me now?”

“You should go home-”

“I’ll pay you double.”

Dr. O’s facial expression changed to one of intrigue. No words were uttered just yet, just curious glances. They pressed on forward, leaving the woman behind—stopping a few feet away.

“You coming?” they inquired.

She ran after them with an excited expression, unsure of where she was being taken. The pair headed further down the street, taking a particularly sketchy path that the woman had never encountered before.

“I’m unfamiliar with this area,” she uttered with wandering eyes. There was no response, but she wasn’t one to give up easily. “I’m Rita Hau. And you—I apologize, I’m not sure how to address you. Are you a man or a woman?”

“I am neither. I exist within and around the bounds of the human gender binary.”

“I will remember that. They/them?”

“They/them is fine. It/its is fine. Use either at your leisure.” 

“And your name?”

“I am the one called Oblivis. Though, clients typically call me Dr. O.”

“Nice to meet you, Dr. O. If you don’t mind me asking, where are we going?” 

Without another sound, the two of them happened upon a local pub. Inside, large groups of people could be seen drinking, eating, enjoying themselves. All the excitement was loud enough to hear from where they were standing. A long line stretched from the front of the building to somewhere around the corner.

“The place you had to be was a bar? These lines are kind of long. We won’t be in for a while.”

“Follow me,” Dr. O muttered, tossing aside their cigar. They immediately extended their hand to Rita. 

Hesitant at first, she grabbed it, feeling a strange sensation throughout her body. Dr. O led her behind the bar, stopping before the alleyway. Rita examined herself for any differences, but she couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. 

Then she looked up.

There was a descending set of stairs behind the pub that wasn’t there before. The outside of the building looked slightly different, as well. She gazed around, wondering if she was in an entirely different reality.

“Where are we?” Rita asked Dr. O as they headed down the stairs for what appeared to be a deeper trek than anticipated. 

Presented before the pair was a large stone doorway guarded by a creature just as massive. The beast was a greenish-blue hue with wings that looked as if they could stretch for miles. Its fangs were almost as large as Rita’s head, causing her to stand behind Dr. O for protection.

“Party of… two,” they said, prompting the creature to open the doors. 

A speakeasy existed beyond the doorway, with jazz music filling the air and fancy tables decorating the interior. The occupants; however, did not fit Rita’s vision of the classic speakeasy. There were ghosts floating around delivering drinks to each table and monsters sat down at these tables enjoying themselves.

Dr. O took a seat at an open table, noticing Rita’s awed expression.

“There’s a lot you don’t see. A lot of secrets in this world. “

“A lot of things worth remembering,” she told them, finding her seat.

“There’s a lot to forget too,” they responded, sitting back. “Not everything is worth remembering.”

“This place is so spectacular. If I told anyone about this they would think I was insane. It feels like I’m dreaming. Wait, I’m not dead am I? Did you kill me?”

“My powers aren’t quite that advanced. You’re in a common space for entities like myself. The only reason I allowed you in with me is because I know that by the end of the night, you won’t remember a thing.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask, what exactly are you as a physical being?”

“This is difficult to explain in human terms. Think of me as a helper of sorts. That is my main purpose, my reason for being.”

“So, what is it that you’re running away from?”

“What?” Dr. O studied Rita, wary of her intentions.

“I asked what you were running away from.”

“I know, I heard you... I was just wondering how you knew.”

“I’m more than meets the eye. I have a sense for these things,” she giggled, scooting closer to Dr. O. “So, are you gonna tell me? What are you running away from?”

“Ah-ah, we’re not here to talk about me.”

“Why are we here?”

“To grab a drink. Or three. I had a long day at work and there was this customer who just wouldn’t leave me alone.” 

Rita was silent, realizing that she had overstepped. The drinks finally arrived at their table, allowing both of them some way to keep their mouths occupied before uttering another unwarranted comment.

The entertainment for the night had made their way out on stage, stealing the attention away from the two of them. To Rita, the performers looked to be a vampire/witch duo straight from the 1920s. Everything was so overwhelming, so surreal.

“So, you never told me what you wanted to forget. People usually come to me with a long explanation as to why they require my services,” Dr. O told her, finishing their 2nd martini.

“You really don’t remember me, do you?” Rita inquired.

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve come to you before. A long time ago.”

“I see dozens of patients each day. I’ve been doing this for years. You can’t expect me to remember one specific person,” they mumbled, leering at Rita. “The real question is how would you remember coming to me?”

With eyes locked, Rita let out an uncomfortable sigh. Digging through her belongings, she pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper. It looked to be a page ripped out from a notebook. With reluctance, Rita handed the note over to Dr. O.

The note appeared to be a reminder from past Rita to tell future Rita about Dr. O. It featured a brief explanation of what Dr. O’s abilities would do for her, as well as the address and days of operation with an underlined portion at the bottom that read “In Case You Need To Remember.”

Dr. O set the note aside, staring up at the stage for a second. “When did you write this?”

“I’m guessing it was before I came to see you all those years back. I was giving myself some way to retrieve my memories in the future.”

“I mean, you wrote this down. Did you not consider writing down all of your memories?”

“Writing a one-page letter is very different compared to a lifetime of moments,” Rita told them, sitting up. “Plus, I tried that. Filled up half the notebook, it seems. Didn’t make it too far in terms of lifetime recollections. So, then I’m guessing I wrote this note on the next page, telling myself that I was going to see you to help me get rid of them—claiming that I could get them back if I asked you.”

“Well, that was a lie. I lied to you.” 

“But-”

“I don’t have that kind of power-”

“But you said.”

“I don’t know what I said at the time and neither do you. I wish I could say that I’m sorry, but it’s just business.”

A mix of emotions swept over Rita, causing her to hop up from her seat. She made her way through the crowd, searching for the front doors.

Dr. O pursued her, knowing that if she went out into the night in her current state, things could get catastrophic. 

Rita ran up the stairway into the alleyway behind the bar, attempting to determine the safest route of escape. Instead of continuing on, she sunk to the ground.

Dr. O found her kneeling down, a fountain of tears running wild. “Why do you need to remember so badly?” They questioned.

“The same reason I needed to forget so badly.” Digging through her belongings once more, she pulled out her wallet. Sifting past her ID and various credit cards, she set aside a large notebook that was taking up space. Soon she produced what appeared to be a photograph. Pictured before them was Rita resting her head on the shoulder of another woman. “Emily.”

“Tell me about her.”

“Emily is the love of my life. We met years ago and it was love at first sight. I knew immediately, and according to my notes, I didn’t want to mess it up like I did with every other relationship. I wanted to leave my old life behind me because I knew I wasn’t the best person and not knowing my past made it easier for me to avoid thinking about it.”

“How did you know where to find these notes? I mean, if I made you forget it, then how would you know to look for it?”

“With Emily, like in most relationships, we would talk about growing up and being a kid, past experiences. However, there were many times that I’d stop talking because I’d draw a blank on certain things and it was happening a lot. I looked through past memorabilia to see if I could find anything to jog my memory and I stumbled upon the notebook.”

“Did you just stumble upon it recently?”

“No, a few months ago. I didn’t set off to find you just yet because I figured that if I wanted to forget in the first place, then there must’ve been a good reason.”

“So, why tonight?”

“We just got engaged. She asked me as we counted down the New Year. I’m gonna marry this woman because nothing else matters but her. I’ve already gone back and forth about if I’m gonna take her last name, Vazquez—her family is from Puerto Rico. I also might hyphenate. Rita Vazquez-Hau sounds cool, right?” Rita asked, wiping a tear. “But it made me realize that Emily’s been great to me and super open about everything. She told me all of her secrets and insecurities and I feel like I haven’t had the chance to be completely honest with her because I don’t remember who I was before her.”

“Maybe that’s a good thing?”

“What?”

“That’s why you did what you did. Because nothing matters before her. Anything you did before meeting her was you as a different person, living a different life. You wanted to leave your old life behind to start a new one with her. And now you’re doing just that.”

“But the fact that I know that there’s still a part of me missing that I can’t fix-”

Dr. O grabbed Rita’s hand, making eye contact with her once more. “I think you know what needs to be done.”

“But what if I find it again and remember everything?”

“Don’t worry, you won’t.” Dr. O’s left hand hovered behind their back, clutching Rita’s notebook, along with the letter. Maintaining physical contact with her, Dr. O started whispering something, keeping their eyes locked with hers. Their eyes started to glow as the wind picked up. Rita’s eyelids grew heavier until they finally closed. Dr. O leaned in close to Rita’s ear. “Welcome to your new life.”

In an instant, Dr. O had disappeared, leaving Rita alone on the ground. A few minutes had passed before she regained consciousness. Unaware of her location, Rita searched around for anything even remotely familiar.

On the ground beside her, she found a wallet with an ID card poking out of it. Next to that was the picture with Emily. She then read the address on the ID, believing it to be hers. Helping herself up, she found her way back home, not taking a second to ponder why she was there in the first place.