Shelby Allen watched as Clem—Riot?—walked away from her, and could not find what to say. What were you supposed to say to the girl you loved more than anything, the girl who died and came back to life and did not remember who you were?
She watched, quietly, as the others went back to Clara's cabin, laughing and celebrating their friend's miraculous return.
"Are you not joining us?" Diggory asked when she did not go with them.
Shelby sighed. "I'm coming, just—" She turned back to look at the Museum of Broken Promises. "Just give me two minutes."
Diggory nodded and followed the others inside.
When Shelby stepped into the museum, she almost smiled. Clementine would have loved this. She would have spent hours exploring all the rooms, examining the objects in the museum's collection, making up stories about which promise the taxidermized walrus could have broken to end up here, and now…
"Clementine Maidstone, 2051 to 2065, promised her partner that she was fine, when she knew that she was dying," said the plaque next to Clem's remaining bones.
Shelby sobbed quietly.
She knew she had no real reason to cry. Clementine wasn't truly gone—but she wasn't truly here anymore, either. The person who had come back to life wasn't Clementine, or Riot. She was a stranger with her lover's face, and she had stared right through Shelby like she didn't recognize her at all.
"I miss you, Clem," Shelby whispered. "It hasn't even been a day since you died, and I already miss you so much."
She could almost hear Clem's voice, whispering sweet nothings to her like she used to when Shelby had a nightmare, could almost feel Clem's hand brushing hers, but when she reached out, there was nothing there.
"I don't know what to do without you. I just want you back," Shelby whispered. "Please, Clem... If I'm good, will you come back to me?"
There was no answer. Of course, there wasn't. She was alone.
For a while, she just sat silently, staring at the strange wallpaper and waiting for the tears to dry, until there was a soft knock on the door.
"Hey," Clara said quietly. "You alright?"
"Just tired," Shelby said after a moment and wiped away the last of her tears. "I'll be fine."