Written by _adrilia_, AHyperFerret, One_Pan_Band, ShinyTheWeirdo, and beesandsunflowers

The night air was fresh and cool. The stars twinkled in the dark sky, unobstructed by the clouds tonight. The moon cast a dim light over the campsite, but the campfire was aiding it tonight. It crackled cheerfully, washing the background in a warm orange light.

The four figures occupying the campsite sat on the logs surrounding the campfire, their shadows being the only thing interrupting the orange backdrop with their grey forms as they bantered easily with each other, while they toasted marshmallows with the fire's warm flames.

"Do you think that we're going to look back on this night and laugh like it was the good old days?" Beef asked through a mouthful of sticky marshmallow, his eyes shining.

"Good old days? Are you implying that it's only going to get worse from here?" Etho asked with a grin, seemingly not taking the thought to heart, though he did.

"You know what I mean. Like, two years into the future, are we going to look back on tonight and just have a flood of memories?" Beef looked to the others, blinking curiously.

"Two years..." Doc trailed off. "Damn. Do you guys think we're still going to be friends then? I mean, two years is a long time."

"I hope so!" Bdubs piped up, shoving his tenth marshmallow onto his bright brown stick. "Seriously. I can't imagine a life without you guys," he added, with slight concern in his tone as he spoke truth, he couldn't ever imagine life without the others.

"Yeah," Doc said, turning serious as the night became darker, the moonlight not making up for it's darkness.

Time felt like it was moving faster, as if any moment could be the four's last day together. The thought made Bdubs's heart swell with concerns. No, they'd be together, they'd always be--

"I mean, you guys have put such an impact on my life." Doc finished, cutting off Bdubs's thoughts, and making them halt in place.

"Good or bad?" Etho asked, returning the lighthearted mood. The other three chuckled quietly as the fire cast a warm, welcomed glow onto them all, bringing more light to the dark night.

"Oh, shut up."

The four of them couldn't stop thinking about Doc's question, though, even if they tried to brush it off.

"Hey." Bdubs broke the silence, looking to the sky. "Hey, future me. Do you remember this night? I want you to never forget this, okay? If you forget these lovely people, I'm gonna...uh...do stuff. Bad stuff. Alright??"

Soon that question turned into a threat...well, not really a threat, since it was directed to himself. Either way, Bdubs still stared into the dark sky dotted with bright stars as he thought to himself.

"You're cracked," Doc said, knocking on Bdubs's skull playfully, snapping the man out of his deep thoughts. Bdubs shook his hand off with a smile and once again trying to brush away the thought. The smoke from the fire disappeared into the sky, unlike his thoughts, which stubbornly lingered.

"Anyway. Who wants to play a game?"

The others muttered assent.

Bdubs turned over his stick, watching the marshmallow slowly golden due to the fires cradling it, crowding around the marshmallow as if the fires themselves could save it if it fell.

"Okay. What about this. Would you rather..." he paused to think about what to say next, pulling in the marshmallow. "Ah. Would you rather have a future where we're all still together or a future where we're separated?"

"Separated, obviously," Doc remarked, though he was obviously joking. "I can't stand you guys."

"Love you, too, Doc," Etho laughed.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'd love to keep in touch over the years," Beef added. "You guys are my closest friends. I don't want to forget you guys."

"Me neither," Bdubs said, pulling Doc into an arm hug despite his many complaints. "Promise to never forget?"

There wasn't even a moment of hesitation before they answered.

"Promise."

"Never forget."

"Yeah."

Bdubs pulled a camera out from his inventory and held it at arm's length, a grin clear on his face as an idea came to his mind once more. "We should take a picture!" Bdubs claimed, looking to the others who sat around the flames.

"No, no, that's not necessary--" Doc objected. Bdubs rolled his eyes at the protest and grinned. Doc sure wasn't getting out of this that easily, and although Doc was aware of this, he still tried.

"Oh, come on, Doc. Just one," Bdubs replied, drawing out the last word as if he was begging. He wasn't, because he knew Doc would give in at the end, even if he was complaining while doing so.

"You say that, then take two dozen," Doc remarked knowingly.

Bdubs ignored him and gestured for Etho and Beef to come closer. The four of them leaned in, and Bdubs snapped the picture.

"There. Now we'll never forget this day."

He smiled at his own words. Doc shook his head, but halted his complaints. Bdubs assumed he was for once appreciating the moment, and he was as well. He nodded as he thought about the lesson learned.

Never forget.

┈ ┈ ┈ ⋞ 〈 ⏣ 〉 ⋟ ┈ ┈ ┈

Bdubs turned the photo frame over in his dusty hands. He remembered that day like it was just yesterday. Like the fire had been put out by the likes of water just hours ago. As he thought, his finger followed a small crack that had wormed across the front of the frame, cutting the photo in half. He didn't even remember how it had cracked, the memory lost to time, similar to many other memories he'd made with them...

How much more would he forget?

They'd promised they'd never forget, and yet...the memories were already starting to fade away, like the wisps of the flames of that night, where the promise had been spoken.

The thought was daunting.

In the photo, the firelight was illuminating the starry night sky, the fireflies were blinking in the forest, and the four of them were grinning with their arms around each other. When they had gotten home after camping, the four of them had signed the picture. And written on it...

Don't forget.

It was the day they promised to always stay in touch, to never forget.

But he hadn't kept his promise.

None of them did.

"We promised to never forget..."

And yet...

They did.