The Man (with a sinister smile):
"No, I found a new love.
I saw her... and she captivated me.
Beautiful, different.
I have a folder full of her pictures...
I love her, but she doesn't even know I exist."
Sera's Room – Midnight
Sera lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling with vacant eyes, her three cats purring contentedly around her. One stretched out by her neck, the second by her feet, and the third circled in place before falling asleep.
A moment of silence.
Then a voice in her memory... those last words Arin murmured.
She was staring into Becky's clear blue eyes, like a winter sky. A silent moment where time seemed to stop, and her gaze was lost in the depth of his, as if calm waves began to strike the shores of her memory, awakening something dormant within her... or perhaps burying it anew.
A few steps away, Aiden sat quietly beside the reclining Arin. Arin's hand finally moved, slowly, as if trying to remember how to move his limbs. His eyelids slowly lifted, revealing hazy eyes, covered in a thick fog. His voice came out hoarse, barely audible:
– "A... Aiden..."
Aiden froze in place, a moment of bewilderment etched on his features. He stared at him for a long time, then leaned in slightly, his voice low, carrying a confusion no one was accustomed to from him:
– "Finally... you're awake, Arin."
He paused for a second, then continued in a more serious tone:
– "I have many questions for you."
But no sooner had he finished his words than the ringing of a phone broke the silence. It was Arin's phone vibrating on the nearby table, its light glowing in the shadows.
Aiden reached for it, hesitated for a moment, then looked at the screen and said in a hushed tone:
– "It's your mother... she must be worried about you. I'll answer."
He pressed the answer button and put the phone to his ear, but as soon as the voice came from the other end, time stopped again:
– "Arin... I'm standing in front of the orphanage."
The mother was speaking without knowing that the listener was not her son.
Aiden furrowed his brows, and in a voice closer to a whisper, he repeated as if he couldn't believe what he heard:
– "The orphanage?"
And before he could utter another word, Arin struggled to his feet, as if the words had ignited a mysterious fire within him. He stretched out his trembling hand, snatched the phone from Aiden without looking at him, and hung up with a quick press. He said nothing.
Aiden stood stunned, his eyes following Arin, who had regained his silence, but his face concealed a storm.
Aiden stared at Arin for a long moment, arms crossed over his chest, before saying with a faint scoff:
– "Shouldn't you tell her about your condition, clever doctor?"
Arin didn't reply, only clutched his aching side, pressing it slowly as his face contorted in pain. He leaned his head back, took a deep breath, and his voice came out weak but decisive:
– "No... there's no need for them to know."
Aiden's eyebrows rose, then he said in a more serious tone:
– "So... do you have anyone? I mean, is there anyone who will stay with you?"
Arin shook his head spontaneously, and smiled with a scoff mixed with loneliness:
– "No! No one... I'm alone."
Silence fell for a moment, then was broken by Aiden's voice, low as if he was trying not to face a truth he didn't want to hear:
– "So why did you choose me? Why did you call me? Why did you tell me all that?"
Arin stammered, his lips moving in an attempt to reply, but he couldn't find the words immediately. He finally smiled, a faint, shaky smile, and said:
– "Didn't you say you didn't want to see me anymore?"
He paused for a moment, then added in a trembling voice:
– "When I was about to die... I thought of you. No one else."
On the other side of the city, Sera had finally succumbed to her dreams, her calm face illuminated by the pale light of the absent moon.
A few hours later, the first warm rays of sunlight emerged over the city of "Izora," threads of light seeping through the windows, awakening the smell of coffee in the small kitchen.
The mother was preparing coffee, her voice calling softly with a touch of repetition:
– "Sera, wake up, it's late for work!"
Ellen raised her eyebrow as she sat at the table:
– "Did Sera find a job?"
Rina replied from behind the newspaper:
– "Last time she said she'd only work for one year. She doesn't like having a boss."
Ellen scoffed mockingly:
– "I think she has a mental disorder!"
Sera opened the room door and quietly pulled her chair, picked up her coffee cup and replied with mature coolness:
– "Not a disorder. Nine hours of work for minimum wage... you two wouldn't tolerate that. Let's be realistic."
The mother said with tenderness mixed with worry:
– "But Sera, aren't all jobs like that?"
Sera picked up her bag, turned at the door, and said in a confident tone:
– "Twelve months... no more, no less. A promise."
She pressed the elevator button, and as she was on her way out, she made a call to "Aiden."
At that time, Aiden was finishing some paperwork in the hospital office, looking at Arin's discharge file.
The phone rang, he answered immediately:
– "Good morning, Sera."
Her voice came softly through the receiver:
– "Good morning, how are you today? Did Arin wake up?"
– "I'm fine... yes, he woke up."
He paused for a moment then added:
– "I'll be home in a little while. Did you leave? Right, today's your first day at work. By the way... I decided to take Arin home with me."
– "Wise decision."
Then she quickly said:
– "Listen, after you're done, come to the pharmacy."
– "Hmm... okay. Goodbye."
He hung up, but his voice continued to ring in Sera's ear. She carried something she couldn't reveal yet, that secret she alone knew, weighing her down with every step.
Meanwhile, Aiden was looking at Arin, who sat silently by the bed, a tired smile covering his face. Aiden said in a low but sincere voice:
– "You'll stay with me for a while, Arin, if you want, of course. I don't know why... but I can't leave you. Even though you didn't even tell your family. This will be nice... but you have to return it to me in the future."
Arin smiled gently, and raised his eyes towards him:
– "I promise... I'll return your kindness."
Then he whispered in a voice barely audible:
– "I owe a lot... only to you."
Arin (with a faint smile, his gaze directed towards the ground):
"Aiden... you know I'm a doctor, right? I'm used to taking care of others, and I'm fine too... no need to worry about me."
Aiden (stopping suddenly, looking at him with a long gaze, his tone confused between disapproval and fear):
"Alone?... Were you always... like this? Without anyone?"
Arin (looking at him calmly, then turning his gaze away, his voice dropping like a heavy cloud):
"Actually... I had an older brother, if he were still here... he'd be your age. I think... no, I'm sure he would have been afraid for me, hugged me, asked me if I'd eaten, if I'd slept well... but he disappeared."
Aiden (his voice softening, his steps slowing, as if he was beginning to touch a lost thread):
"Disappeared? You mean you... were in the orphanage?"
Arin (shaking his head, with a vacant look towards the gray sky):
"Yes. I knew he was there."
Aiden (with sudden seriousness, taking half a step forward, his eyes glowing with genuine determination):
"Tell me his name. Just his name, and I'll search for him, by all possible means. I promise you."
Arin (looking at him, his features changing, as if his heart had broken and wanted to mend itself with a faint voice closer to a whisper):
"His name... is exactly like yours."
Aiden (moving his lips soundlessly, his eyebrows slowly rising, as if he felt something stir within him):
"...What?"
Arin (with a sad smile, his eyes gleaming as if they held two clouds):
"His name... was Aiden."
Silence laden with a thousand possibilities. The air around them seemed heavier, as if time had stopped for a moment.
Arin (looking at him intently, his voice calmer than before):
"Strange, isn't it? Arin and Aiden... even the names are similar, as if we are... two versions of the same story, but with different pages."
He sighed, then stepped back and pointed to the waiting car.
"At least, let me drive you home. It's the least I can do."
Arin (looking at him with a long gaze, filled with deep gratitude that needed no words):
"Thank you... Aiden."
Inside the pharmacy...
Sera and Haya were busy arranging medicine bottles, the clinking of glass breaking the silence, and the scent of disinfectants filling the air. Sunlight streamed through the windows, bathing the shelves in golden rays. The atmosphere was still... until the door burst open, and the owner of the pharmacy entered, a man in his mid-fifties, broad-shouldered, walking with a confidence that suggested he tolerated no nonsense, his eyes gleaming with strict scrutiny and the sound of his footsteps echoing in the walls of the place.
He stood for a moment, looking at everyone as if sorting them, then his gaze fell on Sera, who was busy arranging cough syrup bottles, and hadn't noticed his entrance.
He said in his harsh, gruff voice:
"You... don't you know how to say good morning?"
Sera's eyelids fluttered, she turned quickly, her eyes wide with surprise, flustered, words failing her for a second, then she stammered in a low, confused voice:
"I... I didn't notice... Good morning."
His silence was harsher than his reprimand, and he didn't answer her, but turned towards his desk, leaving behind a cloud of tension.
At that moment, Sera's eyes filled with tears... a slight blur obscured the details of the place, but she closed her eyelids tightly, as if preventing those tears from falling, from bearing witness to her weakness.
She whispered to herself:
"Damn it... why am I here?! I always thought I deserved better... I always thought I was different... but now? I'm at rock bottom... this isn't my place."
Elsewhere...
Aiden had dropped Arin off at his doorstep. Before leaving, he turned to Arin and said:
"Arin... call me anytime. Tonight I'll stop by to check on you, and Sera will be with me. You have to meet her, my love."
Arin turned to him, and didn't reply with a word... but his gaze was long, silent, carrying what couldn't be said. He smiled, a faint smile to hide an unhealed wound.
As soon as Aiden left, Arin sat on the stairs, leaned his head against the wall, and said brokenly:
"My brother... you're burning my heart... how can I tell you what will shatter you? Oh God... what do I do?"
The pharmacy again...
Aiden opened the door, his steps confident, his body moving as if he knew his way through the walls without hesitation. He saw Sera... she smiled at him, but his eyes fixed on hers... a quick glance revealed what she couldn't hide.
He saw the silent glint in her eyes, the tears that hadn't found their way out, but were still there, stuck, bearing witness to a silent pain.
He heard her colleague whisper angrily to her:
"This is our job... we're like slaves here, there's still so much to do."
As soon as Aiden crossed the inner door, everyone stopped moving. Breaths were held, gazes followed him as he entered with strange confidence, as if he owned the place.
"Aiden?" Sera uttered his name, her voice trembling between surprise and embarrassment.
He approached her, raised his hand gently, and a tender touch rested on her cheek. His fingers were warm, reassuring, unlike the coldness of the world around her.
"I hate to see tears in your eyes... These eyes are my hope, so I won't allow anyone to shed a single tear on your cheek."
He came closer... then kissed her lightly on her cheeks, a kiss full of reassurance, without pretense. He held her hand, squeezed it gently, then stepped back and took her with him.
Sera, her cheeks flushed, held his hand as if clinging to her lifeline:
"Aiden... what are you going to do?"
He didn't answer, but continued walking until he reached the office door. Without knocking, he opened the door forcefully, and entered.
He sat firmly in the chair in front of the pharmacy owner, and the gazes of those outside the room followed the situation with indescribable astonishment.
Aiden said with confidence and calmness that hid a volcano of anger:
"There's one thing I can't stand in this world... seeing her cry. Insulting her, messing with her... this is not acceptable. She is my treasure, my hope, not a toy in your hands."
The pharmacy owner furrowed his brows and said sharply:
"But she works for me."
Aiden raised his eyebrow slightly, and said in a tone more dangerous than the man expected:
"Works for you? True. But there are limits. This time has passed... but next time, I will hold you legally accountable. And I will show no mercy."
The room fell silent, the sound of the air dropped, as if it were a suspended moment in time... Everyone was astonished, as for Sera, she was looking at Aiden with a heart that almost melted between gratitude and astonishment.
Then he smiled, but his smile was not warm, but cold as a knife's edge, carrying a veiled threat behind his calm facade. He leaned forward slightly, and in a low tone, like a devil's sigh who knew exactly what he was saying, he said:
"If the pharmacy owner is present, consider this conversation merely an introduction... only an initial one. Sera is a trust with you, and if I see her cry again, I swear I will be the first to tie your hands and shut your mouth. And you won't need the police then."
He stepped back, straightened his posture, and cast one last sharp glance at the confused man, then turned to Sera who stood stunned, pale-faced, staring at him as if she saw a phantom descended from the sky to take her hand.
"Sera, my dear... finish your work, and good luck." He said it, giving her a fleeting smile, resembling a passing glimpse of tenderness amidst a storm.
He then turned, his steps confident, as if the earth cleared a path for him, and with every step, the echoes of his words resonated in the air:
"You look like a broken chessboard, my man..." Then he paused for a moment, and raised his arm slightly as if addressing an invisible audience, and continued in a playful tone that carried a terrifying challenge:
"Oh! Right... the pharmacy owner and I, we love moving pieces. But, next time, there will only be one manipulator... and that will be me."
He reached the car, and amidst the looks of astonishment and bewilderment from passersby and employees, he opened the door calmly, as if announcing the end of a theatrical performance that had stunned everyone. But what no one expected was what followed:
A laugh... a hysterical, broken laugh burst from his lips, like the melodies of a broken instrument playing a mad tune, as if the pressures he carried began to sing in their own voice inside his head.