Fragments of memories surged forward like broken glass cutting through her mind.
The hospital.
The constant beep of the heart monitor.
The smell of disinfectant.
The sharp sting in her veins.
Her weak body lying helplessly on the hospital bed.
Her eyes roaming over a white ceiling and the sterile lights above meeting her gaze.
Then her eyes slowly widened as another memory surged forward. The memory was too vivid as it replayed in her mind over and over.
The sound of the door opening from the outside, the taunting voice of her husband and the familiar voice she trusted the most.
Her best friend.
Cyndi.
Sonia's breathing hitched. Her pupils trembled as the memory continued unfolding mercilessly.
Cyndi was leaning on the hospital bed, her husband Alex holding her in his arms.
Their lips pressed together. Their hands tangled in each other's clothes. Right there, beside her hospital bed.
Beside her body, which they had assumed was unconscious.
Alex pleading for time, Cyndi asking for a home for their baby. They had been together for four years, and the baby needed a home.
And more painful was they had banked on her death.
Sonia's fingers curled weakly against the sheets. Her chest tightened painfully.
No…
Her breathing quickened as she recalled every single piece of betrayal, the humiliation, and the despair she had felt and the decision she had taken at that moment.
But her body was already so weak and couldn't withstand the shock.
And the result was she had felt all her body systems shutting down at a fast rate despite her strong will to live.
Despite her desire to pay them back in their own coin.
When the doctors rushed into the ward, she had felt that cold piercing gaze that tends to have her pinned to the great beyond.
"You can do this." The voice whispered into her ear at that time-- anxious and cold.
But it felt familiar… as though she had heard it somewhere.
Sonia had then wanted to nod her head in acknowledgment. She recalled her lips parted and with a trembling voice she mouthed her plea.
A plea to the doctor to save her even as her consciousness slipped away faster than she had imagined and the despair swallowing her whole into darkness.
And the moment when her heart had finally given up.
But another voice echoed through the darkness, through the dark void where she couldn't find any source of light.
It was like a cell holder, she couldn't see anything, not even her hand or feet.
"Sonia." The man's voice echoed. It was calm, mocking, and persistent.
"… are you really going to remain asleep because you were asked to?"
Her brows furrowed.
That voice again. It kept speaking.
Again and again, like a stubborn echo that refused to fade. "You are really easy to bully."
Easy to bully? That isn't possible.
But being held in this hell hole, shouldn't that mean she was really easy to bully?
Sonia couldn't take it, and then the most devastating… "funeral?"
What funeral?
Her heart thumped weakly. It can't be, it was all a dream.
But that voice… It sounded so close.
So real. That she could only draw one conclusion... She wants to see who thinks she was easy to bully.
*****
Her lips parted slightly.
Her lashes trembled, she shivered at the understanding she didn't want to admit.
"Dead… I was dead."
Before or now?
Otherwise why do I have to be on the hospital bed again?
"Who owns that voice?" Her voice was barely a whisper.
Just then, the door outside the room opened and footsteps approached.
Sonia's breath caught.
She felt deja vu and was more certain this seemed to be the same way she lost her life.
Was she going to lose it again?
Her gaze traveled to the door but rather than Alex Hort, it was another man.
Kelvin walked back into the room with a slight frown on his face. He had left too quickly earlier.
In his frustration, he had forgotten his phone he placed in the wardrobe before attending to her.
He walked to the wardrobe and retrieved the phone. But the moment he turned around to go out…
He froze.
His eyes immediately landed on the hospital bed.
The file slipped slightly in his hand.
Because the woman who had been lying motionless for days… and even moments ago was staring straight at him.
Awake.
Kelvin blinked once. Then again.
For the first time since entering the room,
Sonia saw the man clearly.
Tall and imposing, his features were sharp and distinct. Brown eyes that looked both cold and dangerously observant.
His expression was one of rare disbelief.
The silence stretched.
Then Kelvin slowly closed the door behind him. His gaze never left her as he walked over to her bed.
"Well." His voice broke the quiet. A faint smirk tugged at his lips. "So the sleeping princess finally woke up."
Sonia stared at him blankly. Her mind still struggled to catch up with reality. But one thing felt strangely clear.
This man… was he the same as the voice?
Her dry lips moved again.
"You…" Her voice trembled slightly. "… who are you?"
Kelvin raised a brow.
Then he stepped closer to the bed.
"You don't remember?" He tilted his head slightly as he studied her.
Sonia shook her head. She really doesn't remember. It seems this time, she only had the memory of Alex and Cyndi's betrayal.
"That hurts my feelings." Kelvin teased. A faint glint flickered in his eyes.
"I'm sorry." Sonia murmured.
Kelvin didn't say anything but bent down and pressed a button on the bed. With a faint hum, the bed elevated her posture.
He quickly did a quick check on her body.
"Do you feel any pain?" he asked calmly.
"Anywhere?"
Sonia shook her head yet didn't withdraw her gaze on him as though her eyes could get the answer.
"Who are you?" She muttered again.
After a brief pause, his lips curved slightly.
"Kelvin."
"Kelvin Thorne."