The Baby Isn’t Yours

At Simon’s words, Kalia chuckled softly.

Simon couldn’t take his eyes off Kalia’s gentle, rising smile.

Finally, she looked from the child to him.

“Simon.”

“Yes, tell me. Kalia.”

Simon kissed the back of Kalia’s hand gently. In the dimly lit room with a faint light, her soft voice rang out.

“I will definitely find this person.”

“Yes. I will help you.”

Simon, who had been wandering his lips over Kalia’s hand, let his lips slide up her wrist.

“So if we find him…”

“Yes.”

“…We will definitely kill him.”

Simon’s lips moved closer to Kalia’s cheek.

His refined voice lingered at her ear before rising to her forehead.

“Of course, Kalia.”

His lips touched her forehead.

Looking into Kalia’s eyes, he softly whispered with a light kiss.

“Whatever you want, whatever you want, I will do it.”

Kalia’s eyes seemed to blaze as their eyes met.

“I will do anything for you.”

Simon reverently pressed his lips to hers, whispering from the bottom of his heart.

* * *

‘Where I am?’

Kalia opened her eyes in an unknown place.

She was greeted by the old ceiling, the clatter of plates, and the smell of fragrant potato soup.

At that moment, her eyes filled with tears for some reason.

‘Why do I feel so nostalgic?’

As she sat there in a daze, not even thinking about cleaning up the dripping water, someone called her.

“Kalia, it’s time to get up. Dad made you your favorite potato soup.”

The bright, blond-haired man who stuck his head out of the door beamed at her.

“My fairy, you are still in bed. Can daddy help you up?”

A man approached her with a smile brighter than the morning sun.

His appearance in an apron did not look ridiculous at all. He opened his arms and lifted her slightly.

“Dady, Kalia wants to sleep.”

“Oh, dear, what should we do if our baby wants to sleep?”

“Mmm, I want to sleep. Let’s sleep more.”

The murmuring voice sounded like a child’s.

The man gently comforted her with a loving touch, rubbed her eyes, and led her to the dining table.

“Would you like a drink of cold water? Our baby is especially sleepy today.”

“Mm. Mmm.”

With almost half-closed eyes, the girl sat at the table and dozed over her plate.

The man tied up Kalia’s hair, who was sleepily eating soup, chose beautiful clothes, and sang to her.

“Oh, right! Did daddy tell you he loves our fairy?”

“No! He didn’t!”

“Ah, I didn’t say such an important thing?”

“Yes!”

Little Kalia nodded her head vigorously.

‘Is that what I looked like?’

Little Kalia laughed and jumped up and took her father’s hand. She hugged her father tightly when he said he loved her.

Little Kalia constantly and irreproachably received love.

“Daddy’s name is Patrick! Mommy’s name is Gaia!”

“Oh, why are you so smart? Who did she take after to be so smart? She looks like her mother, just as smart and daring!”

“Dad, Kalia misses her mom.”

“Mom misses Kalia too. Mom loved Kalya more than anyone in the world, very, very much.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Have you ever seen dad lie?”

“I didn’t see!”

The man gently stroked Kalia’s head as she responded vigorously.

His smiling face was beautiful, as if age had eluded him.

Walking beside the man who held her hand as the sun shone behind them, it was something like Simon.

“Oh, by the way, Kalia.”

“Yes?”

“Did your daddy say he loves you?”

“Yes!”

“Yes? Well, then I have to say it again. I love you, my Kalia!”

“Huh! And I love you, daddy.”

The little girl and her tall father hurried out of the dilapidated house and disappeared under the hill.

Watching them from afar, Kalia suddenly burst into tears.

Tears streamed down her cheeks like a broken dam without stopping. Kalia simply let the tears flow without sobbing.

The heart became heavy.

How could she live without those memories? Memories of such perfectly received love.

The time she didn’t know seemed cruel.

At the same time, she thought that if she had been left with those memories, her mind might have been more exhausted. A past that could be happy or unhappy.

“Uh… Uh… Hu-uah.”

Kalia sobbed softly, and a small hand wiped away her tears.

At that moment, Kalia’s eyes widened in surprise.

“…!”

In a room filled with dawn light, Gaia looked anxiously at Kalia.

“Why are you crying so sadly? Don’t cry.”

Gaia’s warm hands wiped Kalia’s wet cheeks.

Looking at her lemon-colored hair and gentle green eyes, the feeling of reality disappeared.

Kalia was a little dumbfounded.

“Kalia?”

Is it still a dream?

“Kalia?”

Was she still sleeping?

“Do you want me to hug you, Kalia?”

…If this is a dream, maybe I can say it once?

“…Mom.”

When the words she had just thought of suddenly escaped her lips, Kalia shuddered.

But in contrast to her surprise, Gaia was calm. She was obviously smaller than Kalia, but she opened her arms wider and hugged her tighter.

“Don’t cry, Kalia. When you cry, my heart hurts so much.”

Shh.

“So don’t cry and let you have beautiful dreams.”

Pat pat~

‘Yes, it is still a dream. It’s just a dream.’

Kalia leaned her whole body against Gaia’s chest and hid her face as tears threatened to spill again.

* * *

Knock knock.

Hearing a knock on the door, Kalia woke up.

She felt dizzy that she could not understand whether she was sleeping or already awake.

She remembered the sealed memories, and when she opened her eyes, Gaia comforted and stroked her. And she seems to fall asleep again under her soothing touch.

‘’Was Gaia also a dream or not?’

Although the vivid sensation convinced her that this wasn’t a dream, it was somehow a little embarrassing if it was real.

Gaia was her mother, but rather a spirit created from the memories of her mother.

‘And if this isn’t a dream, then how did Gaia appear? Can she go out on her own? And I don’t remember very well, but I think I had another dream. What was there?’

As she fiddled with her bracelet, thinking about those thoughts, Kalia heard another knock on the door.

“Kalia, it’s me.”

“Yes, come in.”

Kalia shook off her wandering thoughts and sat up.

“When did you get back in the morning? Where did you go…”

But her words were cut short when she saw Simon’s clothes as he entered the room.

If Kalia’s robe was a red uniform, then Simon’s robe was a white magical robe, symbolizing him as a wizard.

Dressed in a neatly tailored suit with golden shoulders and black gloves for magical instruments, he looked truly dazzling. And with the morning sunlight pouring down on him…

‘Anyway, your beautiful appearance is always on the top.’

“Am I late? Didn’t you say we were leaving at noon?” Kalia exclaimed with admiration and surprise.

“Right. But it’s not too late. So no need to rush.”

“But why do you…”

Kalia looked at him as if asking him why he was dressed up like that, and Simon smiled slyly.

With his long legs wrapped in white pants, he stepped forward and was suddenly in front of Kalia.

“I have to do something before leaving.”

“…What, why are you laughing again?”

Simon frowned at Kalia, who froze and stared at him.

Her eyes were red.

It’s only been a couple of hours, but what has already happened?

“What’s with your eyes?”

“Eyes? What’s with them?”

Seeing Kalia, who was clearly embarrassed, Simon raised his eyebrow.

He looked at her as if asking her to speak, but she avoided his gaze and turned away. She seemed embarrassed.

It seemed as if she had had a nightmare in the short time he had been away.

‘And how are you going to leave like this?’

Simon smiled bitterly and touched the corners of her red eyes.

A faint healing power flowed from his fingers and soothed her swollen eyes.

“Don’t cry in my absence.”

“Oh, I didn’t cry, Simon.”

“Liar. If I knew that this would happen, I would not leave you for a second.”

“Right. And who told you to leave me?”

Simon, who had cast a playful teasing glance at Kalia, who was blushing with embarrassment, stepped even closer to her and said.

“Well, from now on, we have not be separated even for a moment.”

“Don’t you think we’re already too close?”

“No, that’s not enough. Even when I hold you, it’s not enough. Sometimes I just want to eat you.”

“Isn’t it more plausible that I’ll eat you? I can eat more than you.”

“But I can fry you or eat you frozen.”

“…Well, then I’m at a disadvantage.”

Kalia and Simon, who were smiling, kissed each other tenderly on the lips, foreheads touching.

The sound of their light kiss was sweet.

Her heart naturally calmed when he smiled and kissed her cheek and ear.

Perhaps she was taken by surprise.

Kalia belatedly discovered the cold, thin chain wrapped around her wrist.

“What is this?”

A thin chain necklace adorned her scarred finger.

At the end of the long necklace was a pink pearl she had never seen before.

“I bought this when I went to the Tania region a year ago. This is a pearl symbolizing eternal love. And they say that lovers who exchange them will die at the same time on the same day. Kalia.”

Simon smiled vaguely and asked, touching his lips to the back of Kalia’s hand, which was clutching the necklace. His eyes were curved in a smile, but there was a slight tension in them.

“Can I die with you at the same time on the same day?”