NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6
Her hand holding the file folder trembled slightly. This was undeniable proof. She’d held on to a sliver of doubt, but what he had said was real. Her memory was the wrong one. Accepting this truth, an indescribable terror washed over her.
How much of it is true?
Which of my memories are real, and which are fake?
The moment she doubted ‘herself’, it felt like the ground beneath her feet crumbled. Below, a dark, bottomless abyss opened its jaws wide. Once she was swallowed, she would never escape. Not unless “that thing” let her go…
As she fell, she pleaded in terror.
No. Save me. Anyone, please grab my hand and stop me from falling into that hell!
In that instant, a strong force effortlessly lifted her. The being who had rescued her from the wicked abyss, defying even the laws of gravity with his absolute power, whispered sweetly in her ear.
“It’s alright. I remember you.”
“Ah…”
“If there’s anything you don’t know, just ask me. I know everything about you.”
Touched by her husband’s kind words, tears welled up in her eyes. Was this what it felt like to be saved by John the Apostle? She hugged him back, burying herself deeper into his arms. He smelled incredibly good. But it was fleeting. As time passed, her heightened emotions subsided and her rationality returned. She started to feel embarrassed.
What should I do?
She had been fine until a moment ago, but now that she was aware of their position, she didn’t know what to do with her body. Her limbs stiffened, and her stomach clenched. Hugging a man she barely knew… it was too much for her.
While fidgeting awkwardly, trying to figure out a natural way to detach herself from him, she heard him chuckle softly, the sound reverberating through his chest and gently falling over her.
“Feeling better?”
“Yes.”
So… could you please let go of me now? If you don’t, I won’t be ‘feeling better’ in a different sense…
As if sensing her inner plea, he released her. As she pulled away with a sigh of relief, her eyes caught a glimpse of his open sleeve.
“Huh?”
“What is it, honey?”
“Weren’t there cufflinks on your sleeves? Metal ones, round shaped.”
She’d clearly seen them fastening his cuffs earlier.
“Ah, I took them off when I went to my study to look for your application. You even remember what they look like?”
His tone was casual, but for some reason, she felt like he was displeased. No matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn’t find anything offensive in what she had said, so she figured she must have been mistaken.
* * *
“How could… you… be… impossible…”
It sounded like someone was mumbling in their sleep.
Irae opened her eyes, feeling stiff. The black cat was staring down at her from the side table.
“Shan?”
She managed to recall its name and called out, but the cat showed no reaction. Judging by how readily it nodded at her husband’s words yesterday, it must have recognized its own name. It was clearly ignoring her.
She sighed softly. Not only was she in a pathetic state with her incomplete memories, but she was also being given the cold shoulder by a cat, of all things.
“Show some respect.”
Her husband’s voice rang out. The cat jumped in surprise and then prostrated itself before her. Not in a cute, loaf-like manner, but sprawled out on the floor with all its limbs extended. It was like a full-body bow.
Stunned by the bizarre sight, she turned to look at where her husband was standing. He was dressed more formally than what was considered casual wear for lounging around the house.
“Are you going somewhere?”
“I have no other plans other than going to the hospital with you.”
She figured that was his preferred style. It was quite admirable, and she nodded in approval. He looked perfect from the neck down, as usual.
“What do I look like today?”
Curiosity laced his playful question. She hesitated for a moment before confessing.
“Your head is a flower garden.”
“Hmm?”
“Not in the metaphorical sense, but literally. Your head has turned into a flower garden.”
Where his neck and head should have been, all sorts of flowers were blooming in abundance. The colorful display of flowers of various shapes and sizes was quite a sight to behold. It would have been even more so if they weren’t growing on top of his shirt collar.
How did they even sprout there? Was his body the soil? The more she imagined it, the more creeped out she felt.
“Why that expression? Do the flowers look like they’re going to eat you?”
“No. Just… ordinary flowers.”
Perhaps ordinary was the scariest thing of all. That thought crossed her mind as she stared at the flowers in place of his head.
Turning her head to the side table, she noticed that the cat had disappeared.
“Shan is quite elusive. I wanted to hold him.”
Cat owners described cats as liquid. So soft that you wouldn’t believe they had bones, stretching endlessly when you pulled them, and if you weren’t careful, they’d just melt away. She didn’t have the energy to even consider raising a cat, but she was curious about that texture.
“I wouldn’t recommend hugging it.”
“Why not?”
“I think you’d be traumatized.”
Why would she be traumatized by holding a cat? Was it heavier than it looked? Her husband seemed to have no intention of explaining, despite seeing her confused expression. She decided not to ask any further. She was curious, but not curious enough to pester him for an answer.
“Was the bed uncomfortable?”
“No, I fell asleep right away. Did you sleep well?”
The moment she lay down on the bed, she was astonished. The mattress cradled her body perfectly. Firm yet soft, gently enveloping her from head to toe, it felt like heaven on Earth. Compared to this, all the beds she’d slept on before were basically straw mats. No wonder she was still lounging around, not wanting to get out of bed.
As she basked in her contentment,
“I felt empty without you next to me.”
He replied, fiddling with one of the flowers blooming in place of his head. Her jaw dropped at the bizarre scene. What on earth was he doing? Was he touching his hair in reality? She quickly looked away, deciding it was better for her sanity, and responded awkwardly.
“Oh, I see.”
They slept in separate beds. He’d respected her opinion that she wouldn’t be able to sleep in the same bed. Luckily, there was more than one bed in this house. Surprisingly, every single one of the numerous rooms had a bed.
“Wouldn’t it get boring if doing it in the same bed every day, don’t you think?”
Those were the words that came out of her husband’s mouth when she asked why there were so many beds when only two people lived here.
Apparently, her husband had a bit of a spending problem, and his stamina… was exceptional, to put it mildly. The problem was, she was nowhere near equipped to handle it. She was an ordinary modern-day human, whose physical condition fluctuated between average and below average, depending on the day.
How did I even live before I lost my memories? Did I work out or something to keep up with him?
She tried clenching and unclenching her fist as a test. It didn’t seem any stronger than usual. She tilted her head and decided to let the mystery be. She’d figure it out eventually.
“Um… Did we sleep together every day?”
“We’re married, so of course.”
He replied casually, approaching her and sitting down on the edge of the bed. He looked down at her, his face close to hers. Though the bouquet didn’t have eyes, she could tell by the angle.
The flowers in full bloom looked too real to be an illusion created by her brain. She felt like she could smell their sweet fragrance if she buried her nose in them.
The yellow one looked like a forsythia, and the bright pink one next to it, an azalea? The white one, a cherry blossom? She could recognize tulips, roses, and lilies, but she wasn’t very knowledgeable about flowers, so she couldn’t be sure about the rest.
As she stared blankly at the colorful, swaying flowers, his hand reached out.
“To be honest, you sometimes wanted to sleep separately. You said I was bothersome.”
His fingertip grazed her cheek lightly as if he were touching a fragile baby.
“But you were always too tired to move to another bed and fell asleep next to me.”
She had a feeling asking what he did to tire her out to that extent would be a recipe for disaster. She desperately pretended not to understand.
“I guess I’m lacking stamina. I should exercise more.”
“If you do that, I’ll be grateful.”
Wait, why are you grateful for it? What are you planning to do to me after I build up my stamina?
She shivered as a sudden chill ran down her spine. He chuckled, poking her cheek again.
He was a man who laughed a lot. In the photos, he seemed like a cold beauty, but to think he smiled so easily… She couldn’t imagine what he looked like. She’d be able to see it with her own eyes one day, right? Once this cosmic horror filter that had been forcibly installed in her eyes was removed.
She reached out for her phone on the side table. Pressing the camera button, she checked the photo album. A handsome man, head tilted slightly, was looking at her with a playful expression. He was so handsome that she wanted to clutch her heart.
Looking at it again, she realized it perfectly matched her taste, so perfect that she could believe it came from her imagination. It felt like her ideal type had been brought to life. It was fascinating.
“Love the real me, not just the one on screen, honey.”
He covered the phone screen with his large hand. Disappointed, she looked up, only to find the bouquet looming over like it was about to fall on her face. Startled, she pressed herself against the headboard of the bed.
“What, do you think I’m going to eat you? You said they don’t look like man-eating flowers.”
“That’s true, but it’s still a bit overwhelming.”
“Because I’m not in human form? I’m still 90% human, you know?”
Proportionally, he was right. Everything below his shirt collar was human. But his face was a bouquet of flowers.
“It’s a bit… difficult, without eyes, a nose, or a mouth.”
“Wouldn’t flowers be scarier if they had eyes, a nose, and a mouth?”
“Eeek!”
She imagined it without thinking and recoiled in horror. Flowers with eyes, a nose, and a mouth… She’d rather have tentacles with eyes. At least that would just be something creepy becoming even creepier, so the mental blow wouldn’t be as great.
“Imagine a flower, moving its mouth and rambling on. Sticking its tongue out and asking for a kiss.”
“Ugh.”
His detailed description made her feel even more uncomfortable.
“Why are you torturing me like this first thing in the morning?”
“I’m telling you, compared to those, I’m not so bad. So please try to see me in a better light.”