An appointment with the doctor

Lina slept soundly for the first time in many nights. There was no nightmare, no screaming woman, no fires and no weeping in her sleep.

She dreamt more vividly of the wedding day.

It was the same image as the one in the photo frame next to their bed.

The two of them, just married, their hands interlocked with matching silver wedding bands.

But in her dream, this picture was moving.

It was a real memory.

She was wearing a short peach frock, her hair natural and way falling in waves down her back. It was a little shorter than it was right now, but it still flowed softly like the ripples in a brooke.

Her face was radiant and shining, even with only a little bit of makeup. Her skin was clear like the petals of an oriental lily and her eyes were like deep pools looking at the man who was to be her husband in total adoration.

Shen matched her radiance perfectly. He was wearing just a casual white linen shirt and his hair was messily falling into his eyes, just how Lina liked it. It gave this stern man such a boyish charm.

Even in her dreams she could feel her heart turning to mush as she looked at him, with so much brightness and expectation for the future they would share.

As the whole scene replayed in her dream, they repeated the vows to each other.

Lina looked down at his big hands and strong fingers, lovingly putting the ring on his finger.

"In this life, and the next, and all the lives ahead."

As she looked up to kiss the lips of the man her heart was beating for, she was thrown with shock.

Looking down at her with greed in his eyes was the face of someone she knew very well.

Someone claiming to be her real husband.

Victor Tachibana.

Tachi.

***************

The next morning, the dream was forgotten along with Tachi's face.

Lina awoke to the face she now knew she loved.

Shen Moshi. Her husband. The man she would be with for the rest of all the lifetimes they would live.

His sleepy eyes opened to her smiling face.

Shen's heart was once again warmed with happiness.

"Good morning angel."

He whispered to her and kissed her nose gently.

Could they just forget all their troubles, the organisations and corporations they had to run, the enemies lurking in the shadows and Lina's complicated past and identity and just remain in their private world, tucked in each other's arms?

Unfortunately, it was Monday morning and they had things to do.

"Good morning, hubby. I'm hungry and I want eggs and coffee."

She was acting like a spoiled bunny.

Shen smiled. It had been a while since they had such normalcy in their life.

He would pamper her with breakfast in bed before he brought her to the 9 am appointment with Dr. Hayama.

Today they would start dealing with her memory suppression and PTSD properly.

Lina would have to go through many stages of recovery. And mental recovery would be a huge challenge.

They needed to know the secrets of her past to keep her safe in the future.

As he brought her a tray full of fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, cappuccino and juice with lovely flowers on the side, he decided to tell her about the upcoming appointment.

"Baby, you know that we must actively try to ease you into bringing your memory back right?"

He asked her this question gently and slowly.

He remembered Dr. Yoshi telling him to make sure to allow Lina to do everything without force and at her pace with total consent.

Lina, focused on the food, nodded her cute little bedhead. Her hair was messy and the bruises were turning blue on her from last night's incident.

It made Shen's heart bleed for her. But she still looked adorable, stuffing her face, as if she had been starved all her life.

"So, angel, we have to take help and work with a world-renown professional who will help soothe your nightmares and exercise your memory. Is that okay?"

With her mouth full, Lina mumbled an affirmative answer.

"Mm hmm! Who is this...world renown professional, hubby?"

Shen laughed at her gusto, trying to talk with a full mouth.

"His name is Dr. Hayama. He's a well known and respected psychiatrist."

Lina stopped eating all of a sudden.

"A psychiatrist?"

She looked at Shen with an expression of scorn.

"Baby, this is the least intrusive way to coax your memory back. Dr. Yoshi has reassured me!"

But Lina still seemed skeptical.

"It's like telling me I need to be treated for being crazy!"

Lina knew that it was not Shen's intent and going to a psychiatrist didn't make her crazy. But her instincts were on high alert. She didn't like the sound of this.

"Of course not! Of course you're not crazy!" Shen protested.

But he understood that she was only emotional because it was a big step.

He had to be gentler with her. He took her in his arms and stroked her hair.

As he felt her body relax in his embrace, he continued speaking to her softly.

"You have suffered through many traumas, my love. If you want to regain your sense of identity, you have to accept these sufferings of the past. You need to be guided through it, and I will be there with you every step of the way..."

Shen's soothing voice and his touch made Lina more compliant with the idea.

She really did want to recover. She wanted to know herself better, her life, her past and her relationship with her husband.

"Okay...when do we go see the doctor?" she asked, quiet as a mouse in his arms.

"We leave in an hour. Is that okay with you, angel?"

"Mm hm. Let me finish eating first. I'm still hungry."

Saying that, she attacked the delicious scrambled eggs once again.