Fragments of You (3)
A passing billboard caught Elliot's eye as he walked down the street.
A New York office bathed in warm, gentle sunlight. Waking himself up with a cup of coffee, he began his workday. Elliot was an ordinary—no, a fairly successful office worker.
And everyone liked him, drawn to his easygoing nature as much as his competence.
Elliot processed his tasks with a bright smile. Rolling up his shirt sleeves and tapping away at the keyboard, he didn't leave his desk even when lunchtime arrived, making do with a simple sandwich.
Time flowed on into the afternoon. Just as Elliot finally snapped out of his focus and stretched, someone suddenly appeared beside him.
"Want to grab a cup of coffee?"
"No, why is everyone always offering coffee?"
Elliot chuckled. Only then did he go up to the rooftop with his colleague to drink coffee.
"Can't be helped. Everyone's just looking out for you."
"They don't have to. Honestly, when it goes on for over a year, it starts to feel like a burden."
"Everyone knows how hard of a time you had back then."
"...My psychiatrist told me."
Elliot took a sip of his coffee and looked at the billboard.
"Even the most painful and agonizing memories fade after about six months."
The world kept moving. No matter what someone went through.
"Well, I guess that's how it is. Honestly, now... I can't even remember her voice very well."
The camera angled obliquely to capture Elliot's face as he stared blankly at the words on the billboard, coffee cup in hand. That beautiful face evoked a myriad of emotions just by looking at it. Swallowing his loneliness, Elliot turned to the colleague standing beside him with a slightly awkward expression. A crooked, dry smile.
"So I guess that's why something like that actually works. Right?"
The screen transitioned smoothly. Under the setting sun, the man's back was shown walking emptily, as if recalling memories of the departed. Then, as night fell, a voiceover began.
A beautiful voice with a deep resonance. It wasn't the typical 'cave voice' style used in movie trailers, but it was perfectly suited to the atmosphere of this film. A peaceful daily life with a hollow space inside.
Elliot was meeting a friend after work over a beer.
"Tom. The people at the office are still constantly trying to look out for me. It's driving me crazy because it feels like such a burden."
"Well, of course they are. From where I'm standing, you still haven't gotten over it."
"No matter how much I deny it, if everyone else says I haven't, what am I supposed to do?"
"Really? Why don't you try going back to therapy?"
Elliot's hand paused at the question. But he just forced another awkward, crooked smile.
"Geez, do you know how much that costs? I've already done plenty. It didn't help anyway. I need to save up if I want to afford a decent retirement home later, man."
"Then... how about my company?"
"Your company?"
"Memory Company."
"...You changed jobs?"
"I got headhunted. They offered me a massive salary bump."
"Well, congratulations. I've been seeing their ads everywhere lately. What is it, exactly?"
Tom took a sip of beer and cleared his throat.
"We're in the business of turning moments into eternity. We retrieve and record memories stored deep within a person... and use them in various ways. For therapy, education, even memorial services. Why don't you try remembering Noah that way?"
"...What's the point of that? Noah is already dead."
A tiny sliver of emotion crept into Elliot's voice. Guardedness, and anger.
"What's the point of saving a dead person like that? No, isn't it an insult?"
"...It's not pointless, Elliot. There are different ways of dealing with things in this world."
Tom smiled awkwardly and patted Elliot on the shoulder.
"Quite a few clients have reached out to thank us, saying they found psychological peace through our programs. Human memory changes depending on the meaning we assign to it, and it's just as easy to trick. It might be futile, but we accept that truth and help people move forward."
"..."
"Anyway, it's a really hot technology right now. I have to be at work early tomorrow morning, so I'll head out first. Elliot, you have my number, right? Let me know if you change your mind."
"..."
Elliot didn't answer until the very end. Tom left, leaving Elliot alone. Staring down at his beer glass in silence, he finally stood up. And all the way home, he kept his mouth shut, his face completely expressionless.
The weather had a drastic temperature swing, and a light drizzle was falling. Shivering as he entered his home late at night, he stood by the door for a long time, looking around. In the dark, empty hallway, the cold draft felt even sharper.
With a face worn down by fatigue and alcohol, Elliot slumped onto the sofa without even turning on the lights. Then, turning away from the screen, he curled up like a child.
A man with a solid build curling himself up to look as small as possible. His face wasn't visible, but everyone understood the emotion the actor was trying to convey.
It was a very brief scene, but it etched itself into the minds of many.
It was the same for Elena, who was watching the movie.
‘...This was a scene Sion suggested.’
Elena, who had been on set at the time, had been utterly astonished by Sion's acting. Seeing it on the giant screen for the first time made the incredibly delicate, and therefore more authentic, emotions of this scene feel completely fresh and different.
‘Oh my...’
Thinking of the scene to follow, her heart already began to ache with sadness.
A moment later, Elliot stood up and walked toward the kitchen. The screen shifted to show Sion's face as he opened the refrigerator door.
‘Ah.’
‘Oh, gosh...’
In an instant, everyone gasped in shock.
His eyes were glistening with unshed tears. His face was flushed, and his hollow eyes held not a single spark of life. With a sullen pout, as if desperately trying to lock away his emotions, Elliot stared back and forth between the water and the whiskey. Ultimately, he grabbed the whiskey, gripped it tightly with both hands, and twisted the cap open.
Gulp, gulp.
He drank it all... and slid down against the wall, collapsing onto the floor.
"Ugh, *sob*... *hic*... *sob*..."
A suppressed sob. A husband who lost his wife. A cold, empty house. No one to welcome him, and no one to stop him when he suddenly downs a bottle of whiskey.
Just as his colleagues and Tom had said, Elliot had not yet overcome his wife's death.
The image of him huddled miserably faded out, the film's mournful melody tugging at the audience's heartstrings.
The next morning. The sequence showed scenes similar to yesterday, but in a faster montage.
Elliot working hard as usual. Everyone likes him.
He quickly wolfs down lunch at his desk. Yesterday was a tuna sandwich; today is a salmon bagel.
He goes up to the rooftop to have coffee with a colleague.
And Elliot...
...was standing in front of that very company.
"I must be out of my mind..."
An ADR monologue. The voiceover that followed explained the company called Memory Company along with the emotions he felt at that moment.
With tightly pressed lips, Elliot steps inside. The 'Memory Company' designed by the art department perfectly captured the near-future era the film aimed for.
People enter individual memory storage rooms to connect to the memory storage devices. Once inside, a professional programmer helps build a virtual world composed of the conscious and subconscious mind.
And Elliot's programmer was none other than his close friend, Tom.
"Are you sure you're okay with me? Memories are highly personal, so we usually don't assign them to people the client knows."
"I wouldn't have come in the first place if it weren't for you. And who else would I trust with this?"
"...Well, fine. Once the basic setup is complete, the personal parts are encrypted anyway, so no one but you can access them."
Shrugging, Tom taps on the keyboard to finish the setup and guides Elliot to the 'memory storage device.'
"It looks a bit like a therapy chair."
"Right? Once you put on this helmet, your job is done. Simple, isn't it?"
"What a world we live in."
"At the office, we handle the fine-tuning with your brainwaves and the base coding. Once you install the personal device at home later, you'll be able to log in whenever you want."
A room crafted into an elaborate set with a touch of sci-fi imagination. With the help of various experts, it featured a sleek interior reminiscent of a luxury hotel, decorated with charming props that sparked the imagination. In particular, the sophisticated design of the gently curved device caught the eye.
"Is this expensive?"
"The personal device came out pretty cheap this time, but for you, specially..."
"Specially?"
"I'll install it for you at the employee discount rate. Of course, that doesn't cover the server maintenance fees."
"My friend, if you coaxed me into this, shouldn't you at least cover half of it?"
"Good lord! You might as well squeeze blood from a stone, you cheap bastard."
The audience watched in awe at the 'memory storage device' and its control system depicted in the film. They were also intrigued by the futuristic system so closely integrated into daily life.
"Let's begin."
Seated in a large chair that was half-classic, half-cybernetic, Elliot finishes preparing by putting on the device himself. On the screen, Elliot's face is shown wearing a device that looks like a combination of a helmet, headset, and display. Soon, the camera scrolls out and the screen fades to black.
"Focus your mind. From now on..."
Tom's voice slowly fades away. And when he tells him to open his eyes, Elliot opens them in a barren, empty void where nothing exists.
The CG world, which Longday Studios had poured its heart and soul into creating, unfolded on the silver screen.
"W-what is this place?"
"This is the base. We're going to summon your memories here to build the virtual world."
"Damn it, where are you right now?"
"...Well, yeah. It's only natural to be startled the first time. Hang on."
"What on earth is—"
A rustling sound effect, half-natural and half-mechanical. Soon, particles coalesce to reveal Tom's form.
"W-whoa?!"
"How about that? Pretty killer, right?"
"T-Tom? Is that you?"
"Of course it's me. ...To be precise, I just put on a helmet and uploaded my consciousness too."
"Shall we walk a bit?"
As the two take a step, the space begins to shift. The ground bulges here and there, and particles form radial patterns before binding together. Crude polygon graphics, feeling somewhere between lumps of clay and building blocks, gradually transform into a realistic space. Though startled by the sight, Elliot speaks in a trembling voice as a familiar landscape begins to emerge.
"This is..."
"Where is it?"
"Where... I first met Noah..."
"Oh, you're starting from there. I guess it's because it's an old memory? If it were a recent one, it would have immediately pulled up the memory most deeply engraved in your consciousness."
It was clearly a green-screen studio—no, a virtual world. But the bewildered look on Elliot's face on screen made it feel entirely real.
"Elliot. We'll recall your memories one by one, starting with the most intense. I'll handle the foundation, but you have to do the rest."
"W-what does that mean?"
"It's simple."
A high-angle shot captures a sweeping view of the landscape, expanding into a peaceful, quiet small town. Before long, Tom vanishes, and people walking the streets fill his place.
"In your memory right now, where is Noah?"
"..."
Elliot slowly begins to take a step. His stride is somewhat awkward, but he gradually adapts. Every time the angle shifts and the surrounding scenery is pushed back, the clothes he is wearing change. Years ago, during his college days when his hair wasn't slicked back as neatly as it is now. A young man clad in a knit sweater and jeans moves slowly. The audience's hearts follow the young man back into the not-so-distant past.
A bus passes across the screen. Road dust scatters, and from beyond it, 'she' reveals herself. A slender female student dressed in a white shirt and skinny jeans. Her platinum blonde hair is tied back in a ponytail, and she holds her textbooks in her hands. She is wearing glasses.
"Ah..."
Breathing heavily, Elliot slowly approaches her, his expression trying to suppress his racing heart.
The audience watching the film couldn't help but marvel at the mise-en-scène.
‘Whoa...!’
‘This, this is it!’
‘This is real romance!’
Just by having these two beautiful people stand and look at each other, the ordinary street was transformed into a stunning painting. Having crossed an insurmountable stretch of time to meet Noah once again, Elliot's face was a storm of conflicting emotions. On the other hand, Noah's face as she looked at Elliot was filled with curiosity.
It wasn't a simple first meeting. It was a meeting of entirely different emotions, creating a palpable tension. The audience, well-versed in the dynamics between men and women, felt a sensation bordering on suspense.
What would Elliot say now? How would Noah react? And could the meeting of these two in a virtual world truly be called 'real'?
Amidst the crossing thoughts and emotions, Elliot's action was simple. He suddenly pulled Noah into a tight embrace. An impulsive act, driven by emotions he couldn't control. And Noah reacts.
"Kyaaaaaah?!"
"Oof?!"
With a scream, she whacks Elliot's face with the textbook she was holding.
‘...?’
‘Well, of course she would...’
The sequence flows on, drawing the audience deeper in with a touch of tension-relieving slapstick.
"Elliot! You idiot! You can't do that!"
"W-what? Wasn't this my memory?!"
"It is your memory! But your subconscious knows that if you suddenly hugged her the first time you met, she would have smacked you with her textbook! In your subconscious mind!"
"W-well, Noah would have done that, but..."
"Sigh, I'll summon her again, so do it right this time. Act according to the memories you actually have of Noah!"
"D-damn it, what is this even..."
Though grumbling, an uncontrollable smile spreads across Elliot's lips. Like a boy falling in love for the very first time.
“...”
And as she continued to watch his performance, a woman's brow twitched subtly. It was Olga Asimov, the mother of Elena Asimov, who played Noah.