Seraphina stepped out from the bathroom, her body wrapped in nothing but a crimson towel.
For a moment, everything stopped. Whatever control Aric had left from earlier vanished. Heat rushed through him, settling in places he really wished it wouldn't.
God dammit! he screamed internally, This isn't fair!
Before he could react, Seraphina walked right past him without a word, heading into the changing room. The moment the door shut behind her, Aric sprinted into the bathroom, slammed the door, and locked it.
He sank into the bathtub, burying his face in his palms as frustration kicked in,
IVY! he hissed, Get online right now!
The notification screen flickered to life, showing Ivy leaned onto her chair as she was getting her manicure,
[What do you want Aric? What did I miss? Did Lady Seraphina finally drive you insane?]
This isn't funny, Ivy! Aric growled, glaring at her.
She walked out in a TOWEL! JUST A TOWEL! What am I supposed to do with that? Who walks around naked!?
Ivy raised an eyebrow, feigning innocence.
[Well, technically, she is your wife. You're allowed to look. And maybe, oh I don't know… a little more than just look?]
I'm serious! Aric hissed under his breath, his face burning hotter with every passing second.
This is impossible! How am I supposed to survive the night when she's walking around like that? Why the hell am I so painfully aware of how she looks?!
I wasn't like this months ago! Why are my thoughts suddenly so feral!? Is this some kind of syndrome?
[Ugh, don't be such a baby about it.] Ivy replied dryly, clearly unfazed. A soft metallic filing sound echoed faintly.
Aric could hear that and distant bubbling of water and… birds?
His brows furrowed, Wait...are you seriously getting a fucking manicure while I'm ranting over here?
[I did log off for the night, you know. You're basically calling me after office hours. But yes, if you must know, I am getting a manicure.]
Aric blinked, just now noticing the backdrop of Ivy's background. She was lounging in some lush garden. Ethereal lights danced through willow-like trees.
Wait! What the hell? Aric blurted. You're in some kind of… mystical garden thing! What even is that place?! And who are you, Ivy?
Ivy sighed like a teacher whose student had just discovered water was wet,
[Don't change the subject, Aric. But fine, I'll humour you for a second.]
She leaned back against the chair,
[Just like your world before had malls and cafes, my realm has its own luxuries. Just, you know, more ethereal. Timeless. Classier and a little less capitalist.]
She paused to sip from a delicate glass of wine,
[And yes, I'm also a person. Shocking, I know.]
[You've always treated me like I'm just a system or a voice in your head. But did you ever stop and think why I have a personality at all? Why I care? Why I stick around, even when you're being difficult?]
Aric opened his mouth, then closed it.
I...no. I didn't really think about it that way.
[Exactly. You want to know who I am, Aric? That's a conversation for another day. But what I need you to understand right now is this; I'm not just a system. I chose to help you. I chose you.]
She gave him a wink, then gestured for the servant to continue shaping her nails.
[Now, where were we? Right. Look, the best way I can explain this is that, since you're residing in Vayne's body, there's a good chance his instincts, hormones, and some lingering emotional patterns are still in there, colliding with your own.]
She sighed as she continued,
[You can argue that your thoughts aren't your own, sure. But can you really separate yourself from Vayne completely? Let's not forget that, you are in his body and she was his wife So like it or not, she's yours. Legally.]
[Romantically? Emotionally? Ehh, semantics. But she's your wife now. Deal with it.]
Aric remained silent, his thoughts racing as he finally began to understand that Ivy wasn't just a system and Vayne was still interfering, bleeding into Aric's personality.
So... like what that voice said was true? That I don't deserve to be here? That I'm a mistake, Ivy? That I'm a fraud?
She sighed, setting down her wine glass,
[No. You're not a mistake, Aric. Don't ever think that. To give you some credit, you've been through a lot. Physical, mental, emotional abuse from Seraphina because she thought you were Vayne.]
[And honestly? Maybe you do have a bit of Stockholm syndrome but Seraphina isn't just some captor you're trauma-bonded to. She's a woman trying to reconcile the past with the present. She admitted you're not Vayne. Do you realize how hard it is for her to do that?]
She paused, letting it sink in before continuing.
[She could've kept hating you. She had every reason to. You're wearing the face of the man who destroyed her world. And yet… she's trying to understand. Actively choosing to treat you differently.]
She gave a small, almost amused smirk.
[You weren't loved by your wife after the war. You weren't loved by your kids either and now here you are, in a world where even someone who once hated you is starting to try. To understand you. Not as Vayne. Not as some monster in her past. But you. Aric.]
Aric flinched, his emotions starting to turn into anger,
What? That's—That's completely uncalled for! Noah and Anais were just afraid, okay?! I came back different. Natasha tried! And Seraphina still hates me, this is ju-just some weird, confused phase she's in—
[Okay, maybe your kids get a pass. Sure. They were young. Confused. Traumatized, even. But you did everything, Aric. You went to therapy. You tried spending time with them. You reached out. Again. And again. And again. You fought to stay in their lives, and what did they do?]
She leaned forward, her voice turning hard now.
[They sided with your ex-wife. Every time. They ignored your calls. Didn't visit you. Didn't even call you back. You're their biological father, and they treated you like a ghost.]
Just stop, Ivy. His voice cracked. They're ki—
[Oh, fuck you.] Ivy snapped, [Don't you dare pull that line. I have every memory, Aric. Every voicemail you left. Every text. Every night you sat alone in that silent apartment waiting for a message that never came. You know the truth. So stop lying to me. And worse, stop lying to yourself.]
Aric clenched his fists. That's not fair.
Ivy raised an eyebrow. [You want fair? Fine. Let's talk fair.]
[Ever since you woke up in his body, all you've done is fix things. Solve Vayne's mess. Clean up his sins. Carry the burden of a man you never chose to become. You don't eat right. You don't sleep right.]
[You burn yourself out every single day. And as much as I adore you for pushing your creation magic and matter manipulation to the limit, we both know why you're doing it.]
[You're not doing it to be some hero or saviour. You're doing it so you don't have to feel. So you don't have to sit still long enough to face the emptiness inside.]
That hit him like a punch. I'm not empty.
[Not empty?] she challenged Aric,
[You have never once asked yourself what you want. You don't let yourself rest. You run toward problems because it's the only thing that makes you feel alive. You want to be needed. You want to be wanted. And more than anything, you want someone to love you. To choose you.]
He opened his mouth to protest again, but she didn't give him the chance.
[You do realize I have every single memory of you, right?] Ivy said flatly.
[Every moment. Every suppressed cry. Every desperate internal scream. I'm more than just some glorified system, Aric. I understand and feel. And you, my friend? You're not as unreadable as you pretend to be.]
That's not what this is—
[You know what, Aric? If calling it Stockholm syndrome makes it easier for you to digest, then fine. Go ahead. Call it that. But don't lie to yourself.]
She turned to face him fully, eyes sharp but shining.
[The truth? It's way more than that.]
[You're empty, Aric.]
[Not because you're weak. But because you're starved, Aric. Starved for something real. You've been surviving so long that the idea of just being—being loved, being wanted, being held without having to earn it? It feels like fiction.]
She let that silence hang for a moment, then added softly:
[You can argue that you have those yearnings because of Stockholm but you know what I think? You're suffering from being unseen. Unchosen. Unloved.]
[You were a soldier who came back from hell and found no one waiting at the door. A father whose kids stopped calling. A husband whose wife fell out of love with a man she couldn't understand. And now… now you're in a body that doesn't belong to you, cleaning up the mess of a man you never were. And despite all of that, despite everything—you're still searching.]
She paused, letting the weight settle in for Aric,
[You're not drawn to Seraphina because you're trapped. You're drawn to her because she's the first person who might actually see you. Not Vayne. Not a monster. You. And that terrifies the hell out of you.]
But thori-
[Sure, your bro Thorin was the first to believe you weren't Vayne. He saw through the surface, called you his brother, called you Aric and meant it. But Thorin didn't have to unlearn hate. He didn't carry the scars Seraphina did. She's choosing to look again. To see you. And that? That means more than forgiveness. That's faith.]
She slipped one of her earbuds in and nodded to a servant, who picked up the manicure set and gave her a fresh glass of wine.
[Anyway, good luck, lover boy. I gave your my advice as your guide.] she added, just as the screen began to fade.
The call ended as golden particles shimmered and dissolved, leaving Aric alone with his thoughts and the sound of running water.
He groaned loudly and sank deeper into the bath,
I have Vayne's personality seeping into me. he told himself,
His hormones, his instincts, his trauma. This isn't me. It's residue. Echoes. Chemical interference. It's not real.
Seraphina abused me. I'm not crazy for being confused. I'm not "drawn" to her—I'm just disoriented. It's not emotional. It's not romantic. It's trauma. Survival bonding. Nothing else.
He squeezed his eyes shut, I'm not empty. I'm not running. I'm just... trying to fix things. That's all. I'm trying to help people. That's purpose. Right?
And even if I am tired... so what? Everyone's tired. Everyone feels alone sometimes. Doesn't mean I'm broken.
But Ivy's words echoed like a bell tolling in the corners of his mind,
You can argue that you have those yearnings because of Stockholm but you know what I think? You're suffering from being unseen. Unchosen. Unloved.
I'm not unloved...
After being in the bathtub for 20 minutes, Aric forced himself to stand, water dripping from his body. He walked and stared at his reflection in the mirror,
"You're better than this." he muttered to himself, "You're not Vayne. You're not empty."
Aric conjured a simple black silk nightgown and wore it. He got out of the bathroom and avoided looking directly at Seraphina, focusing instead on the plush carpet beneath his feet.
When he finally glanced up, she was seated on the edge of the king-size bed, her posture was relaxed.
"I can make another bed you know. We don't really have to sleep on the bed together." Aric offered weakly, gesturing vaguely toward the floor.
"I could sleep on the floor as well you know."
Seraphina arched an eyebrow,
"Oh? And here I thought you were trying to prove you're different from the old Vayne. Running away already?"
"It's not running away." Aric protested, "It's… practical. You deserve your space."
She chuckled softly, "Don't be ridiculous. Sit down."
When he hesitated, she added, "Unless you'd rather spend the entire night arguing about it. In which case, we can do that too."
Defeated, Aric reluctantly lowered himself onto the opposite side of the bed, careful to maintain as much distance as possible. But even sitting this far apart, he could feel her presence like a magnetic pull, impossible to ignore.
"Alright" Seraphina began, leaning back slightly against the pillows.
"Let's start with something simple. What's your favourite colour?"
"Black." Aric replied without hesitation. It was an easy question, one he didn't need to think about.
"Black? Really? The old you preferred gold—flashy, ostentatious things that matched your ego."
He shrugged awkwardly, "I guess I'm just… different."
"Clearly." she murmured, "What about seasons? Do you have a favourite?"
"Winter. I've always liked the cold. Quiet. Peaceful."
Another flicker of surprise crossed her features.
"Vayne hated winter. Said it made everything dull and lifeless."
They continued trading questions, each answer revealing more discrepancies between the man before her and the husband she once knew. Food preferences, hobbies, music. It all pointed to someone entirely foreign.
Finally, Aric mustered the courage to ask a question,
"I… don't know when we got married. Or your birthday. Can you tell me?"
Seraphina had a smile on her face, "We got married on December 17th. My birthday is June 3rd."
He nodded slowly, committing the dates to memory. "Thank you. For telling me.
"March 8th is your birthday. Just so you know."
The mood shifted subtly as Seraphina leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. Her gaze softened, as she began recounting the past two years of her marriage.
"At first, you were tolerable. Not perfect. Far from it but manageable. You attended social events, stayed sober, played the part of a dutiful husband well enough to fool most people. But then…"
She sighed deeply, shaking her head. "Then you changed when you cheated on me with Callista. You went back to your old habits which you already know what it is. I don't have to remind you of your crimes for the millionth time."
"And now?" she continued, her tone softer
"Now you sit here, answering my questions honestly, reacting to me in ways the old you never did. So, who are you? Shawarma, winter, black...clearly, you're not Vayne."
Aric hesitated, his fingers tightening around the edge of the blanket. "I'm not sure where to start."
"Start with your name. Your real name."
He took a deep breath, steeling himself for what came next. "My name is Aric Lawson. I was born in a world very different from this one—a place called Earth. I died there… shot multiple times. And then I woke up here. In Vayne's body."