"He did?"
I heard it right, didn't I?
She did say that Craige played a role in a drama that was adapted from HER novel, right?
She nodded and I had to stop myself from hugging her because she was looking at me with curiosity. "He did. He even won an award for that role. I think it was around two or three years ago."
Excitement was bubbling up inside me and it took a second or two for me to calm myself down. I knew that this was not the same Craige that I knew, but knowing that he was not that far from my reach made me really happy. "Were you able to meet him personally? Do you have his contact number?"
She stared at me for a while with the same strange look on her face then she burst out laughing. "Silly kid. Why would I ask for a celebrity's number? Hahaha!"
"Ah… Yeah… You're right." I was instantly washed with disappointment.
She peered at me. "I'm sorry, dear. Are you also his fan? Since when?"
Fan…?
Craige was my 'brother' in the world where I came from.
He was the one that supported and stayed with me during those times that I badly needed a friend by my side. And despite finding out that we're in love with the same person, he didn't treat me any differently. He said that as much as he loved Zee, he also cared for me just like a brother which he never had.
He's always been a nice guy.
That was the Craige that I knew.
But now… A fan…
It's a little sad to think that that's all I am in this world.
I chuckled. "Since I saw an interview that he did when I was in the hospital. He recently finished his military service and it was mentioned that he was given an award before for donating all of his earnings from his last movie to an orphanage. He seemed to be a decent person."
A true story. I saw that interview the day before I left the hospital. Although I knew perfectly that this guy was a stranger to me, I could not help but feel proud of what he did.
"He is a decent person." The sincerity in my step-mother's voice brought my attention back to her and she smiled at me once again. "I really don't know much about him but there's never been a bad rumor about him. Not even a dating scandal."
Her words lit up something inside me and made me smile with another surge of excitement. Then I whispered underneath my breath, "I guess I'll have to do the honours of directing his first ever dating scandal in history."
"What?" Auntie gave me a puzzled look.
"Nothing." I quickly shook my head and looked at my watch. "I'm sorry about this but I have to go now. I really appreciate your hospitality."
"What hospitality? This is your home, Arthur. It's about time that you stop tiptoeing around me and your sister." She said with a frown as we walked out of the library.
That made me stop on my tracks. "I'm sorry. It's just that… I still find it hard to adjust with all these. It's not just you and Rachelle. Even my own father feels like a stranger to me."
She looked at me for a long time then nodded. "I understand. You practically rose from the dead and came back to life recently. You don't know how grateful we all are that you finally woke up despite the doctors telling us that there was no hope for you to live through that."
"I'm sorry for making you worry." I said with utmost sincerity. And my chest tightened painfully at the thought of my own family back home. I could not help but wonder how they were handling the news of my death.
Do they even know that I died already?
Or is my body still drifting in the waters of the Pacific?
If time flowed at the same pace in both worlds. It should be a couple of months now since I've gone missing. If they haven't discovered my body yet, they must at least be looking for me at the moment, right?
Of all days that God chose for me to die, why did it have to be on Zee's wedding day?
He should've at least let a few days or weeks pass before taking me away. The last thing that I wanted was to be a hindrance in their happiness especially after my death. This was so cruel for Zee and Craige, having their wedding anniversary each year and being reminded of my death every time.
I must have been making a face because Auntie suddenly wrapped her arms around me which took me by surprise. "It's okay, dear. What matters is that you're doing well now."
"T-thank you." I was astounded. The warmth of her embrace nearly made me cry. I chuckled and slowly moved away. "I really have to go now."
"Do you really have to leave this early?" She tugged at my sleeves on my way to get my things from my room as if I was running away. "Stay for breakfast. Or at least until your father wakes up."
I looked down at her small frame with a shake of my head. "I'm really sorry to turn down that offer but there's someone that I have to meet as soon as possible."
That was not a lie.
I have to find a way to speak with Xescilliz. Seeing that she has kept her silence all this time was making me worry a ton. I looked at my hand to make sure that the markings around my ring finger were still there.
And seeing that they are, gave me relief for some reason.
She said that they meant Until Death Do Us Part.
But it suddenly occurred to me that, with all the changes that she has been going through, the promises on our fingers were probably not only pertaining to my death alone.
She told me that the only reason for a Shadow's existence to come to an end would be the demise of their subject.
But does that hold true for a Shadow that made a special contract with a Pure Soul like me?
There were so many questions that I needed to find answers to.
We entered this contract to prevent bad things from happening to the people around me. People who turned out to have nothing to do with me in the first place.
And it's driving me crazy that all I could do was wait for this Summer Solstice to come and get answers from this Heian whom I knew nothing about.
Until then, both Xes and I would be in the dark.
Completely oblivious of what could happen to either of us.