The Request (14): Shina

Cherry gritted her teeth in anger. In her entire existence, she had just experienced the worst day of her life. Not only was she stuck with a request involving a con artist trying to seduce some rich old woman for her wealth but her favorite cafe also ran out of tiramisu cakes. The request she was able to complete and blasted the con artist into eternal damnation by making him marry the old woman but she could not find those delicious tiramisu cakes anywhere else.

And just when she was about to reach home to relax, another disaster struck. Her idiot neighbor fainted on her doorstep. For a brief moment, she actually left him outside but the guard came by and knocked on her door, half carrying the unconscious moron.

"Ma'am we need to help him!" the guard had exclaimed and dumped Jinhyun on her before leaving.

Cherry wanted to throw the guard into hell but unfortunately, she was not allowed to do so without a request.

Meanwhile, the idiot was sleeping soundly on her couch. Of all the places, he just had to faint in front of her house. His temperature was high but Cherry suspected it was due to his medications. Still, she did not want to take care of this guy and sacrifice her sleep.

Jinhyun stirred in his sleep. He was half conscious but his mind was too muddled with confused thoughts. His eyelids fluttered, trying to see where he was but his mind was too weak to fathom his location.

"Err…" he groaned in his confused state. His throat was dry and parched.

Cherry was simply flicking through a magazine, ignoring him but he kept on groaning.

"Wa...err…"

Can I poison it? She wondered. What a drag!

She was highly reluctant to take care of him but if she threw him out, the guard may blab on her and it would only invite unnecessary trouble for her.

"Wait here," she snapped, getting up from her seat. She went over to the kitchen counter, poured him a glass of water and went back to the living room.

"Here!" she said, holding out the glass. Jinhyun tried to lift his hand but failed. He was too weak to get up. The medicines' side effects were too strong. Cherry let out a frustrated sigh. She went back to the kitchen and this time, brought a spoon and a first aid box back with her. She scooped some water on it and held it near his lips.

"Drink up," she ordered. Jinhyun somehow gulped the tiny drops of water. Cherry kept on feeding him like that until he turned away. She took out a thermometer from the box and put it in his mouth.

His body was burning up and he was sweating badly. Cherry turned up the air conditioner but he was too dazed. Jinhyun could not even open his eyes properly.

"Ugh, this is gonna be hard!" she complained out loud. She did not really want to see him after the way he had dismissed her at the hospital. It took her a lot of willpower to go visit him and yet, he did not believe her.

If she was being honest with herself, she was a little hurt by his arguments. Even though she did not expect Seyoung's reincarnation to believe her words, somewhere deep in her heart, she had hoped that he would at least give her the benefit of doubt. Whatever thoughts she had of Jinhyun being way different than the person he was in his previous life had diminished. He was exactly like Seyoung.

….

Jinhyun was fading in and out of consciousness. The images in front of his eyes were varying from a brightly lit living room to the interior of a palace. There were people surrounding him on both sides. He looked down to see that he was wearing an elegant blue gown. There was a crown on his head while bead chains hung over his face.

Where am I? He wanted to ask but the words would not come out. His body was moving on its own. He was clasping his hands, raised up to his shoulders. A man stepped in front of him. Jinhyun nearly shouted out seeing the man's face. Sekjong!

"Crown Prince," he said, bowing deeply. "You will be escorted to the venue-"

Jinhyun wanted to ask Sekjong what he was talking about but Sekjong's voice sounded like a badly tuned radio. He could not understand a word as Sekjong's voice boomed too loudly in his ears. The images were blurring in and out.

Help...Jinhyun wanted to say. Where am I?

He was scared and confused. The scene was changing in front of him as the image moved from the palace to a temple. Jinhyun was kneeling down. His body was moving on its own as he was forced to raise himself up. He glanced around, trying to grasp what was happening. There was someone next to him.

The girl's hair was tied up in a tight knot on her head, adorned with ornaments and was held together by a long, wooden pin. Her cheeks were colored with two red blots and she wore a heavy bell shaped gown. The gown was too big for her fragile build yet, she sat up straight. Her beautiful face was unreadable as she looked ahead without emotions. Decked up in the fine bridal clothes, she was decked up like a doll.

Then why...why was his heart aching so much? Why did he find it so difficult to breathe? He wanted to reach out to her and tell her the truth. But the words would not form. He did not know what he wanted to tell her.

The girl looked at him from the corner of her eye. Her brief gaze held nothing but contempt for him. Her skin crawled at his sight and she wanted to murder him on the spot. His existence was enough to make her want to kill herself.

But she was patiently biding her time. The man beside her did not have her permission to die yet. She will destroy him. And that was a promise she had made to herself.

It was as if Jinhyun knew what was going on in her mind. He knew she loathed him and was plotting to destroy him. She will gladly sell him to his enemies without batting an eyelash. Her hatred for him knew no boundaries. They were destined to be tied together by a cruel twist of fate and this will doom them forever.

And the worst part was that he will gladly let her destroy him.

….

"It's...not...true…" he mumbled in his half conscious state. Cherry raised an eyebrow. He was denying her claims even in his sleep? The man was clearly very delusional.

Jinhyun's words were incoherent. A frown formed on his face as he tried to struggle weakly in his sleep. He was calling out to someone, reaching his hands out. Cherry watched in amusement as he thrashed around.

"I didn't…" he moaned. "No…"

Cherry sighed. She was going to just leave him on the couch for the night. He had lost his marbles anyway and was simply delirious at the moment. She will kick him out first thing in the morning, sick or not.

She was about to get up and head for her bedroom when Jinhyun mumbled, "Shi...na…"

The mention of her name caused her to freeze on the spot. What did he say?

"Shi…" he whispered. Cherry turned her head, trying to listen to his words. But he went silent.

Did he take her name? Was he calling her Shina?

"No, that's impossible!" Cherry claimed loudly. There was no way in hell was he calling her Shina. It was not possible! People who were reincarnated never remembered their past lives. It was the law of fate. Once a person died, their memories were wiped out of their minds so that new reincarnations can live a different life.

Then why was he calling her Shina? Did Jinhyun remember his past life? How was that possible? No one could do that. Cherry never came across such a person.

Her heart was beating fast and her palms began to sweat. Why was this happening? First, she got the order to reunite the reincarnations of her ex-husband and his mistress, two people she hated with all her heart. Then Jinhyun keeps on pursuing her instead and their paths kept crossing at the most crucial times. And now he was calling her by her real name. Shina.

What was fate planning? Why was it playing its cruel tricks at a moment when Cherry is ready to die? Why?

"Tru…" Jinhyun's mumblings continued.

"What are you trying to say?" Cherry demanded, slightly shaking him. But he was silent as he fell into a deep sleep.

Cherry groaned, feeling angrier. Not at him but at her own fate. She must find the truth. This man was the key to her freedom and she must uncover all his secrets.

"Looks like I'll have to latch on to you after all," she gritted.

Meanwhile, Jinhyun drifted into an uneasy sleep, unaware of the murderous glares being thrown at him.