The Pet Tiger

Frank had been sticking persistently with Julia ever since he had woken up. All the doctors and priests called by Raymond had a really hard time trying to diagnose him.

Though, Frank was at least listening to Julia was a great relief, it posed problems in its way. He tried to follow Lia everywhere. This made daily activities such as bathing and other personal care for Lia very difficult. Whenever they were separated from each other, Frank would through a tantrum and use his newly unleashed powers without any restraints. This made it difficult for everyone at the Shuzar estate. The classes were temporarily canceled, so Hannah often helped control Frank while Lia was away.

Lloyd was summoned to the royal palace on an emergency basis by the king. 'A pain in the ass' as he called it with the reasons being ambiguous in the letter he received. In any case, he was supposed to be absent from the estate for the entirety of a month.

In the meantime, many priests and doctors who visited the estate, called Frank's state to be quite queer. Given his current temperament, it was hard to believe that he was once a sweet and cheerful child. Now, he looked at everyone with indifference and cold eyes. Even Lia, whom he refused to let go of even for a second, was no exception.

"What do you expect then?" Hannah said sipping the tea from her cup as she stared over to the tree under which Frank and Lia sat, supposedly playing. The weather was quite nice so they accompanied the children who were playing outside. It was much like Lia leading Frank on how to play.

Raymond who was sitting in front of the governess on the table placed his teacup back and with a solemn look asked, "I don't expect him to become what he used to immediately. But it has been two weeks since that day. He hasn't uttered a single word since then."

Hannah looked back at Raymond, his pale blue eyes stared at her through the slightly titled glasses. She sipped again and said, " Have you ever died, Mr. Scarlett?"

"I suppose no, since I'm still in front of you, well and alive," Raymond answered smiling.

"A near-death experience then?" (Hannah continued)

"No, not at all." (Raymond answered without hesitation)

"Did you hear from Miss Julia what she explained about Frank when he fell in the lake?"

"Yes."

"Wasn't it painful? I heard he experienced excruciating pain. Miss Julia said that if Frank hadn't gone numb because of the pain, she might actually have died of a heart attack."

"Yes, I heard."

"I have seen a case like this before. A person suffering pain because they chose to die for someone they loved. They didn't completely die though. They were saved just in time, as in fractions before dying."

"What happened to them?"

"They never talked or stood up from their bed anymore. It was as if they had given up on life. They were once very bright just like that brat, but after experiencing something so close to death, they were like as if they weren't living at all. When they finally spoke after ten years, do you know what they said first?"

"What was it?"

"They asked 'Is the afterlife like this? I don't see it much different from when I was alive. I thought I could just rest and stop doing anything if I died. Why am I still breathing?' I remember their words very well. For the ten years of silence, that person believed he was dead. And he thought that everything he was seeing was a part of the afterlife. He lost his memories because death had already started taking in his body. For reincarnation and passing the forest, you need to let go of all that you desire in this world. No normal person can resist that. He was in a state where he had been prepared to be sent to the forest to cross over to the afterlife. In other words, he was saved too late. I think that is the case with Frank. At least part of it is. I think he believes he died too and therefore, is indifferent to all things. But his memory is not completely gone."

"How so? He clearly doesn't remember anyone."

"He remembers Miss Julia. The connection they had during that incident, made him preserve his memories through Miss Julia. That is why he clings to her. He may not know, but his subconsciousness knows that Miss Julia can return him his memories."

"You mean he can go back to normal if he stays with Miss Julia?"

"So is the theory, I'm not a priest or a doctor, I am simply speculating based on what I know."

Raymond cast a look over Frank with worried eyes and sighed.

Lia and Frank had started spending way more time together since the lake incident. Though Frank's clinginess was sometimes excessive, Lia didn't entirely hate it. She liked it if anything. Frank didn't talk to her but followed what she told him and only listened to her. He replied to her sometimes with simple gestures such as nodding and raising his hands.

Frank had grown a lot since the lake incident. All his previous clothes were now too short for him, so Lloyd had permitted them to access his clothes from when he was younger. He was quite taller than Lia too. Though his behavior had taken a turn for the worse, his overall features made him so beautiful in the eyes that no one on the estate could bring themselves to hate him. His deeper blue eyes now and his mint hair color were what stood out the most.

Lia often found it hard to look Frank in the eyes. Because unlike before, he now looked right back at her. She often found him staring at her face in the middle of the night and when she ate with him. Her heart fluttered. His gaze was innocent from a third person's view, but Lia roughly felt his emotions through the connection they shared. His gaze was neither innocent nor admiration. It was full of possessiveness. He very openly stated his desire to possess her and keep her all to himself.

It was almost scary. But she still liked it. She liked it very much actually. Because her desire for him to obsess over her and her only was also equally strong.

In this relationship, which had progressed from innocent love to a crazy obsession with each other, they had made some silent rules that none of the adults knew. Frank would obey Lia and Lia would kiss him. Frank would eat properly and Lia would hug him to sleep. Frank would not hurt people who tried to separate them and Lia would spend the rest of her time with him.

These conditions were going on quite well for them. The problem was, Frank followed her instructions too well and he had lost all his sense of time, place, and situation. He would kiss her in front of the servants, gallantly hold her hand while snatching it away from Lloyd (which pissed him off), and shamelessly demand to be allowed in her bathroom.

As his sense of personal space had completely diminished, he didn't pay any attention to where he touched Lia and would often send her jumping by touching her waist and chest.

Lia went through one hell of a time while training Frank how to act around people. It felt as if she was raising a pet tiger who was completely obsessed with her and wanted to cuddle at all times.