Chapter 7.1

At the moment my consciousness returned, I realized where I was. It was because of the cross-shaped light bulb that left a clear afterimage on my closed eyelids.

“No!”

I started thrashing and crying before I even opened my eyes.

Soon, I heard the sliding door open again, and people rushed into the room. I kept screaming and twisting my body, but soon I felt someone holding me down.

And at that moment, a sensation I desperately wanted to deny became vividly clear.

A syringe needle. An object that only existed in this place. I had no choice but to accept the fact that I had returned when I felt the needle piercing my body.

“Adrian. What am I supposed to do, what do I do about you?”

I didn’t even realize I was muttering in the language of Quinze-Nouais.

“Seyoung?”

“…”

“Cha Seyoung?”

Han Hyuntaek’s voice echoed in my ears.

“Please, answer me.”

But I couldn’t say a word. If I answered in Korean now, it would feel like I was accepting the fact that I had died in that world.

“Seyoung!”

Han Hyuntaek hugged me, who was not responding. His scent. The man’s scent I had liked so much. That familiarity now terrified me.

He started crying while holding me.

Tears, whether his or mine, kept flowing and soaking the pillow. I slowly began to fall back asleep.

“No. Don’t fall asleep again. Seyoung, my God.”

Then, I heard Mr. Sihyuk’s gentle, soothing voice.

“Hyuntaek, she’s fully awake now. She’s breathing even with the respirator off. It’s better not to stimulate Seyoung right now. You should let her rest for a while.”

The injection I was given must have been a sedative. I slowly sank into the swamp of sleep. And in the dream I had, I could see Adrian.

In the dream, I looked down at myself. I, in the familiar form of Claire Ianster, was lying limply in Adrian’s arms, not moving at all.

“Claire, let’s go. Let’s go home. Okay?”

I heard Adrian muttering in the distance. And my face, when I looked at it, was clearly that of a dead person.

‘So I died after all.’

I approached Adrian. And I hugged him tightly. I was so worried he would be cold from the water or catch a cold that it felt like I was going to die.

But soon, his form vanished like smoke before my eyes. And unlike other times, I slowly woke up as if from a real dream. I tried to sit up, but my muscles, which had not been used for a long time, would not move as I willed.

I turned my head slightly and looked down to see Han Hyuntaek holding his hand to his forehead, watching over me.

“Hyuntaek…”

He slowly lifted his face.

“Se… young?”

“Yeah, me… give me some water.”

“Wait, just a moment.”

Han Hyuntaek, with a dazed expression, brought me lukewarm water.

“Just wet your throat a little. I haven’t asked if you can eat anything yet. Understood?”

Anyway, not much water went down my throat.

I moved to sit up, leaning against the headboard, but Han Hyuntaek freaked out and stopped me.

It was strange that I had no other pain, just a lack of strength in my body.

Soon, Dr. Bang, Hyuntaek’s friend and my doctor, appeared.

“Seyoung, do you recognize me?”

I nodded.

“Do you remember my name?”

“Sihyuk.”

My doctor asked me a few more questions and examined my whole body meticulously, then looked amazed.

“My goodness, Seyoung, this is a miracle. We’ll have to do various tests soon, but from your current condition, everything is normal.”

But I don’t remember the events that followed very well. It seemed that my organs and brain, which had not been used for over a year, were not yet fully functional.

I think Han Hyuntaek massaged my feet and cried.

However, after three days, everything began to become clear.

I had returned. As Cha Seyoung.

According to my doctor, most patients who experience a year of unconsciousness have similar experiences to mine. And he said that many of them tend to confuse reality with a virtual world.

What on earth does that mean? Does it mean that this is my reality?

“Of course, I’ve never heard of a case where someone speaks in a strange language like Seyoung, but human unconsciousness is limitless. So, now, just think of Hyuntaek. The guy, he looked so pathetic from the side.”

So was all of that a dream?

Was the soft hair I held in my arms and the blue eyes that looked at me all a dream? Is it all a lie—the pain I felt when I gave birth to my child and the softness I felt when I kissed his cheek?

Han Hyuntaek stayed by my side the entire time. But he didn’t make eye contact with me. We acted as if nothing was wrong, but we already knew what was left wandering in each other’s hearts.

A year ago, I was on my way to get a divorce from him. And for a year, our time had stopped.

We talked, but the conversations always ended in silence.

I always felt sad about his absence, but now, being with him felt burdensome. I finally took a deep breath when Hyuntaek left for an urgent meeting.

If I hadn’t occasionally dreamed about him, I might still have hated this man.

But now, maybe this state is even more terrifying. I had no feelings for him. A little pitiful, maybe even a little pathetic.

“I’m going to be gone for a bit. I’ll be back soon. It’s a meeting I can’t miss…”

“Okay. Go ahead.”

When I urged him on, he scuffed his shoes on the floor for a moment, then, as if making up his mind, he stepped out the door. As soon as he left, I asked a nurse to bring me my cellphone.

Soon the nurse brought me my phone, but the screen was cracked and the battery was dead. I walked out of the hospital room myself, and the nurses were surprised and came to me.

“Um… a charger, please.”

“You should have called us. I’ll get it right away. You might get dizzy if you stand up suddenly like this.”

“Okay.”

The nurse soon brought the charger, and I turned on my phone with trembling hands. And I started looking for the novel I had been reading right before I left this place.

The app, which I hadn’t entered for over a year, started to update, and soon the page I was on opened. Like a lie, the novel was there exactly as it was.

Love Without a Brand

The last part I had read was the scene where Adrian, who had failed in love, killed me and then went to the crown prince to start a war. In the world I was in, he succeeded in the rebellion, but in the book, he did not. And the end was his death.

Adrian’s face followed me throughout the entire novel. When he expressed his desperate feelings for Celine, my heart ached just from the words, and I couldn’t think of anything else.

The content and the ending hadn’t changed at all. I couldn’t bring myself to turn to the next page.

So, I just sobbed uncontrollably.

Because I wondered if it was real, if I had really had a dream that was so incredibly vivid…

***

Soon it was my discharge day.

It has been a week since I returned here. In the meantime, my organs and brain had recovered their function.

The hospital recommended that I stay hospitalized longer, but I didn’t want to stay in this hospital for a single moment more. But that didn’t mean I wanted to go home either.

So where on earth should I go?

“Isn’t it nice to be home?”

Han Hyuntaek had hardly left my side since I woke up. He personally held a spoon to my mouth to feed me, sat me in a wheelchair, and even washed my hair himself.

“…”

“I’ll make you a delicious meal for dinner tonight.”

Han Hyuntaek can’t cook. In the three years I lived with him, he had never once entered the kitchen.

“…”

And in the week I was with him in the hospital, I acted like a patient with aphasia. It wasn’t that I wasn’t speaking; I genuinely had nothing to say.

“I want to rest for a bit…”

Every time I heard Korean come out of my mouth, I would flinch in surprise.

“Oh, okay? Then let’s go up to the room.”

When I came out of the bathroom after washing up, Hyuntaek had also finished showering and was in the room. And he strode towards me.

I remembered the last conversation we had in this room.

That day, too, I was painstakingly choosing a tie to match his suit.

<I’ll make your favorite seafood stew for dinner tonight.>

<Why go to all that trouble? We can just eat something simple.>

Around that time, he rarely looked me in the face. At the time, I just thought it was because he was tired, but that wasn’t the case.

And while I was preparing the seafood stew ingredients, I received a call from my mother-in-law.

“Seyoung…”

At his voice calling my name, I returned to reality. And he put his hands on my waist and hugged me. But I pushed him away and turned around.

“I’m tired.”

“Okay. I…I’ll go back to work normally starting tomorrow.”

I felt nothing even when I saw his hurt expression.

“You should. You’ve been away for too long because of me.”

“But now, everything’s fine. Everything’s back to the way it was.”

I couldn’t answer his words, which might have been a promise or a monologue. The conclusion was the same.

I would not live with him like this. Even if everything was a dream, even if the whole world told me I was crazy, the person I loved was not this person.

The next day, Hyeseon came to visit me.

Hyeseon was a friend from my orphanage days. Hyeseon, who had become a mother of two, would often come to my house to bring homemade kimchi or pan-fried pancakes.

However, I also knew that my mother-in-law would sometimes come to the house and throw away the side dishes Hyeseon had brought.

“You little bitch…”

When Hyeseon saw me, she immediately started crying.

“They said no one but a guardian could meet you at the hospital, and I didn’t even have your husband’s number. I was so worried I thought I was going to die.”

“I’m sorry… I’m really, really sorry.”

Ironically, the only people I had been close to in this world were the people I had met at the orphanage.

But Han Hyuntaek never acknowledged my past. No, it would be more accurate to say that he never brought it up at all. I was pathetic for being so timidly considerate.

“Are you okay now?”

“Yeah, of course I’m okay.”

“You little bitch… I made your favorite porridge for you. I put a ton of wild abalone in it, even more than my own kids get, so you have to eat every last spoonful, okay?”

Hyeseon skillfully went to the kitchen and took the porridge out of the thermos and put it in a bowl. I went behind Hyeseon and hugged her tightly.

“If I had a mom, she would have smelled just like this.”

“What are you saying, you…”

Hyeseon replied with a tearful voice.

“Hyeseon, I’m going to get a divorce.”

“What?”

She turned around to face me, not even noticing the abalone porridge splattering on the floor.

“I didn’t see it myself, but everyone knows how devoted your husband was to you.”

“Yeah, that’s true. But I’m still going to get a divorce.”

I gave a fleeting smile.

“I can’t live with him right now. No matter how much I think about it, that’s the only conclusion I’ve come to.”

Hyeseon turned her back again and scooped the porridge. I felt I knew what kind of expression she was making without even looking.

“Okay, okay, just eat this first. You need strength to get a divorce or do anything else. Do you even know how skinny you are right now?”

“Heh… okay.”

“Don’t laugh, you little bitch. Who can stop you?”

For the first time in a while, I hugged Hyeseon and smiled with a light heart. If there was anyone I missed while in Quinze-Nouais, it was Hyeseon.

I ate all the porridge she gave me and dressed up nicely. I even put on makeup with cosmetics for the first time in a long while.

There was no point in dragging this out.

I visited the lawyer’s office I had gone to a year ago and filled out the divorce papers again.

Since he was no longer a guilty party, the divorce would be difficult if he didn’t agree. But Han Hyuntaek would agree to the divorce.

Because he was that kind of man.

“Hello.”

– Ha, yeah, it’s me.

I heard his low sigh.

“Are you busy?”

– Not at all, I’m fine right now. To get a call from you again, it really feels like a dream.

“Are you working late tonight? I have something to talk about, and I’m in front of your office.”

– In front of my office?

“Yeah, that cafe we used to go to. I can wait here. So just come after you finish your work.”

– Ah, just a moment.

He seemed to be checking the time and talking to someone next to him.

– I’ll be out in 30 minutes. Wait for me.

“Okay.”

– Seyoung, I love you.

He said that and hung up the phone. As I heard him say “I love you” over the phone, I was reminded of Adrian. His lips that constantly whispered in my ear. The voice that constantly swore he loved me.

I closed my eyes for a moment and then opened them again. And I called Hyeseon.

“Give me some courage.”

– You crazy bitch. You’re asking for courage to go get a divorce.

I laughed out loud at Hyeseon’s refreshing swearing, forgetting my situation for a moment.

– Are you laughing? You’re not in your right mind. My Daebeom said to come over to our house. You’ll feel less depressed if you’re bustling around with the kids, so be sure to stop by the house.

“Okay, I’ll bring presents for Sieon, the second one, until my arms fall off.”

– Yeah, you better. Call me back after you meet your husband. Got it? Don’t go wandering around in weird places.

I nodded without answering. I took a sip of the Americano that was placed in front of me.

“It’s really delicious. I wonder how I lived without drinking this for so many years.”

When the coffee was almost cold, Han Hyuntaek walked into the cafe. His broad shoulders and perfectly handsome face, silhouetted against the light, were so good to look at that they stole the attention of everyone in the cafe.

I had already ordered coffee for him to match his taste, so the perceptive cafe staff member came over with his coffee as soon as he came in.

“I’m about to leave work, so why did you come all the way here?”

The emotions on his face were a mix of expectation and fear. I decided not to pretend I didn’t notice his feelings. And I slowly placed the neatly arranged documents on the table.

“What is this?”

“The documents I should have given you a year ago.”

“What…do you mean?”

Han Hyuntaek hastily opened the envelope in front of him. And soon, he frowned and stared at me.

“How…how can you be so cruel to me? I was going to explain everything. What happened then, you misunderstood it. Of course, I’m not saying I did everything right.”

“That’s not what this is about. I know what happened then was a misunderstanding. But we’re over anyway.”

“How…can you do this to me? I’ve lived in hell for the past year. Waiting for you, who wouldn’t open your eyes, looking at you, who wouldn’t look at me, because of you, who misunderstood me and distanced yourself from me!”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? You know? How can you be so easy? Did you dress up so nicely and come here just to say that? Did you do this on purpose just to mess with me?”

He was right. Maybe I was being spiteful towards this man. But how cruel can a woman be to someone she doesn’t love?

“I don’t want anything. Just let me get a divorce.”

Han Hyuntaek grabbed his head and agonized. People around us who recognized us glanced over, but he didn’t care at all. Soon, Hyuntaek got up from his seat, holding the divorce papers in his hand.

“You’re not in a state to make a proper judgment right now. You’re being too hasty. So I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear this.”

I grabbed his wrist as he was about to leave. My hand didn’t have much strength, so I had to grip it again a few times.

“No, besides being a little weak, I’m better than I’ve ever been. I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life.”

“Cha Seyoung! Is that what you have to say to me, who has tried so hard to save you for so long?”

“Yeah, you should have just let me die. Why did you try so hard to save me?”

“What?”

Han Hyuntaek, as if dumbfounded by my words, left the cafe. And that night, he didn’t come home until late. When dawn came, I heard a mechanical sound, and then I heard Hyuntaek enter the house.

Since I hadn’t fallen into a deep sleep, I went down to the first floor to greet him.

“Ah… my wife. You’re home. Right, Cha Seyoung is in my house now.”

I approached him like I used to.

“You’re accepting my clothes, and you’re waiting for me.”

It was very rare for him to be this drunk. He grabbed my arm as I turned to walk away. And he dragged me up to the second floor without a moment’s notice.

When we entered the room, he tried to hug me and kiss me. But even with a slight avoidance, he was too drunk to follow my face.

“Seyoung… I was wrong.”

“…”

“Don’t leave me. Please… I can’t live without you.”

After saying that, he collapsed on the bed and fell asleep. My hand movements—untying his tie, unbuckling his belt, and taking off his clothes—were very natural and familiar. Tears fell onto his white shirt.

“Ah, damn it…”

I wiped my tears. But even so, even if he was so pitiful, there was nothing I could do.

I no longer felt like this person was the one beside me. What could I do about the fact that Hyuntaek’s black hair and eyes seemed so unfamiliar, like a scene from a movie?

When I woke up at dawn, he was already gone.

About a week after Han Hyuntaek started going to work, a call came from his family home.

The word ‘Mother-in-law’ kept flashing on my phone screen.

“Hello.”

– Is this Seyoung?

I was getting goosebumps.

“What’s the matter?”

– Your father-in-law says we should have a small meal at home to celebrate your discharge from the hospital. I’ll send Kim the driver, so come to the family home on time.

The person who was my mother-in-law hung up the phone unilaterally after she finished speaking. Before I even put the phone down, Han Hyuntaek called me back immediately.

– I’ll tell my mother, so you don’t need to go to the family home today.

“No, I’m going. You come on time too.”

He had been avoiding me for the past few days. When he came home, he slept in the study bedroom and left the house at dawn. So I decided to go to his family home today. Since he wasn’t going to agree to a divorce easily, I decided to use another method.

At the appointed time, a black sedan stopped in front of the house.

When I arrived at the family home, Han Hyuntaek, who had left work directly, was already there.

In the past, I would have gone straight to the kitchen to help, but I just went to the living room sofa and took a seat.

Han Hyuntaek kept looking at me with an anxious expression.

When I first came here to greet them, I was very intimidated by the splendid and large house.

But this house no longer seemed big enough to intimidate me. The Quinze-Nouais imperial palace suddenly came to mind, and I let out a chuckle without realizing it.

And I met eyes with my father-in-law, who was looking at me with a bewildered expression.

“Are you feeling better now?”

“Yes…”

Then, with an elegant smile, my mother-in-law approached us from the kitchen.

“Honey, everything’s ready. Hyuntaek, you take off your suit and come sit comfortably.”

“Yes, Mother.”

The horribly suffocating dinner at the family home began again after a long time. The food was always immaculate, and their table manners were impeccable.

But I know now. How much ugliness they hide behind those perfect faces.

“Now that you’ve fully recovered, you should have a baby first.”

It was the first time I’d heard my father-in-law’s voice in a long time. The first thing he said was about pregnancy…

“Oh, Chairman Han. The child just got discharged; why are you already talking about pregnancy? Let me get her some powerful medicine first.”

At my mother-in-law’s words, a slight laugh escaped my lips without my intending to.

“Did you… just laugh?”

My mother-in-law didn’t miss my sneer. I couldn’t endure this charade anymore. So I put down my spoon on the table with a clatter.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

My mother-in-law stared at me with a sharp look at my action.

“Mother. What kind of medicine are you planning to give me this time?”

“What are you talking about? It’s for your health, of course.”

“Hyuntaek, do you know something?”

I called out to Han Hyuntaek, keeping my gaze fixed on my mother-in-law.

“For the past year, I… I was unconscious, but sometimes my hearing was alive.”

“What?”

My mother-in-law’s face turned ashen.

“Do you know what your mother, the noble lady of Daegun, came and told me?”

“Se-Seyoung, what are you talking about?”

His voice trembled, as if he had a premonition.

“Hyuntaek, are you curious? Your mother said she had taken measures to prevent her daughter-in-law from getting pregnant. You said that yourself, didn’t you, Mother?”

My mother-in-law jumped up from her seat and screamed.

“You, you… what are you saying? You must have gone crazy after being unconscious for a year.”

“You said I should have just died, and why was I still alive? You also said I was blocking Hyuntaek’s path, didn’t you? So I’m moving out of his way now.”

Just then, Han Hyuntaek grabbed my arm and stood up.

“Let’s go home first. We’ll talk there. Mother, Father. We’ll be going now.”

Then, my mother-in-law followed us and grabbed us as we were about to leave. Her face was already steeped in greed.

“You, child. What are you talking about? Moving out of our Hyuntaek’s path?”

“Mother! Do you want to see me die?”

Han Hyuntaek yelled, but neither my mother-in-law nor I stopped.

“Yes, it’s exactly as I said. I want a divorce.”

“Stop it, Cha Seyoung!”

Only then did I look straight at him. Hyuntaek’s taut jaw showed exactly how devastated he was right now. I didn’t want to be this cruel either.

Not feeling the need to be here any longer, I followed him as he led me out. The garden of the family home was still beautiful.

From behind me, through the not-quite-closed door, I heard my father-in-law scolding my mother-in-law. But I didn’t pay any attention.

Han Hyuntaek put me in the car and started driving. Before long, the car was quietly driving down a four-lane road. He didn’t say a single word to me the entire way home.

When we arrived home, he opened the passenger side door.

“Get out. You should go inside and rest.”

I looked up at him.

“Are you okay with this?”

“…”

“Your mother said she stopped me from getting pregnant. Oh… you don’t believe it?”

“Please, let’s just go inside.”

I got out of the car as he said.

“I’m not going in.”

“Seyoung, please, let’s talk calmly inside.”

I hugged him tightly from behind as he hurried towards the door, avoiding my eyes.

“Let’s stop this now.”

“…”

“Let’s stop. We’re already over. You know that too.”

Han Hyuntaek gently held my hand and turned to face me.

“No, I can’t do that. If your hearing was alive, you would also know that I didn’t betray you. So nothing has changed between us.”

“You’re not an idiot. Whether you slept with that woman or not, whether there was a child or not, it doesn’t matter. The fact that you abandoned me that day hasn’t changed.”

“No, I didn’t abandon you.”

“Yes, you betrayed me. And you protected your pride.”

“Seyoung, don’t do this. If you heard everything, you must know how much I suffered because of you for the past year. Can’t you forgive me just this once? Huh? Please.”

I wrapped my arms around Han Hyuntaek’s neck.

“Of course, I can forgive you. What you did that day wasn’t that big of a deal. You’ve lived your whole life that way, so it’s understandable.”

“Then why… are you leaving me? Now I’ve thrown away my pride and everything, and I’m clinging to you, saying I can’t live without you.”

That’s right, he was a man who deserved to be forgiven. But he didn’t know how easy forgiveness is to give to someone you no longer feel for.

I have no feelings for him now. It wasn’t like that from the beginning. If I had just woken up after lying there for a year, I would have loved this man again without a second thought.

But now, it just felt like a lie that I couldn’t go back to the way things were. And the fact that it all might have been an illusion I created was too terrifying.

“That’s not the problem.”

“Then what is it? Is it because of my mother? If that’s the case, I’ll make sure she never contacts you again. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“Hyuntaek. That’s not it. If I still loved you, I could overcome something like that anytime. But I don’t love you anymore.”

“What…?”

“Yes, you don’t hurt me anymore.”

He seemed to be in shock. The single phrase “I don’t love you” explained all of our identities.

“A year? What about just one year…”

I turned away, muttering to myself. But he didn’t give up on me.

“Seyoung. What are you talking about? I… I love you. You know I can’t live without you.”

“No, let me go now. This is how we’re supposed to end things. And you, you start over. You can. Okay?”

“Please, don’t do this. You’ve just been discharged from the hospital. So let’s just go inside first.”

I put strength into my arm and pulled his hand away from me.

“No, nothing will change over time.”

“Cha Seyoung, how can you do this? How can you…”

“I’m sorry, but you can start over. But Adrian… can’t.”

“What? Adrian? Who is that?”

Even in this serious situation, a laugh escaped my lips. It was because I was reminded of Adrian asking who ‘Hyuntaekssi’ was. But all of that was just an illusion?

“It’s someone you don’t know.”

“Is it possible for you to have someone I don’t know?”

I remembered what I had said to Adrian. And I smiled with a distorted face.

“Don’t think you know everything about me.”

It was as I was getting away from him and grabbing the front gate handle. Han Hyuntaek, who had paused for a moment, chased after me and grabbed me again.

“Who is he! What? You… you had another man?”

“Think whatever you want. I’ll come get my things tomorrow when you’re not here.”

Han Hyuntaek didn’t grab me a second time as I turned away without any regrets. After I had left the gate, I heard a dull sound of something breaking and shattering inside the house.

And soon, a car alarm began to blare throughout the upscale neighborhood.

***

It’s already been three months since I returned to this place. I was just barely living, feeling half-dead.

About a month after I left Han Hyuntaek’s house, his secretary came to see me.

He brought the divorce papers signed with Han Hyuntaek’s seal. I submitted the documents without hesitation and went through the procedures to get a divorce from him.

The man I met at the courthouse didn’t feel like the Han Hyuntaek I once knew. But this man would definitely be okay soon.

<How have you been?>

〈Don’t give a disease and then hand out the cure.〉

Our conversation was stifled from the very first greeting, and we didn’t exchange another word until we left the courthouse. But he grabbed me as I was turning to leave.

<I put some money in your bank account. Don’t refuse this, too. It’s not a big amount.>

<I don’t want it…>

<Even in a divorce by mutual agreement, you have a legitimate right to the assets gained after marriage.>

I just nodded. He probably put a large sum of money in my account, but it wouldn’t be a big amount to him.

<And I’ll wait. Because Cha Seyoung will come back to Han Hyuntaek…>

After parting with him like that and three months passed, I felt like I couldn’t live like this anymore. I still hadn’t used the money he sent, but I felt that if I kept doing nothing, I would become dependent on that money.

The season was changing.

It was the day I had put in many resumes and had an interview for one of the jobs. It was a small company, so they didn’t seem to realize that I had been a part of Daegun.

I came home from the interview and, as I relaxed my tense body, I fell into a light sleep on the sofa. And in my dream, I saw him.

It was definitely that place. A place that might just be an illusion in my mind. Quinze-Nouais…

And that feeling came to me. The feeling of not knowing if my consciousness was becoming blurry or clearer.

Soon, I heard a familiar language.

“Claire, please open your eyes. It’s already been more than five days…”

‘Adrian…’

“Please, open your eyes… I can’t bear it anymore. I’m afraid.”

Just then, the bed where I was lying sagged deeply, and I vividly felt a small hand touching me.

“Mom…”

‘Leo!’

I instinctively grabbed the child’s hand tightly. But at that moment, the loud vibration of my phone woke me up.

“Gasp, gasp.”

Hyperventilation came over me, and I jumped up. And I walked around the living room in circles.

“I’m not dead yet. Wait, I saw myself die so clearly… but this feeling is real. I’m alive!”