She observed Daniel as he got dressed for work, realizing she had no idea where her own clothes were or whether she had her own drawer. To dispel any suspicion, she decided to take a bath too.
Her relief was palpable upon seeing the bathroom's feminine products, suggesting a long-term relationship between the sorceress and Daniel. However, the woman's excessive collection of cosmetics and hygiene items raised a frown. Marie-Rose preferred keeping only the bare minimum, a stark contrast to this woman's habits.
Returning to the bedroom with just a towel wrapped around her, she began inspecting the closet Daniel had taken his clothes from.
"Zoe, what are you doing in my closet?" Zoe, that must have been her name.
"Just checking to see if your clothes need to be organized..."
"How about cleaning up your own closet," he emphasized possessively. "I'm the tidy one, I don't need you to clean for me," he scolded, his sudden outburst baffling Marie-Rose. Unlike Marie-Rose, who maintained meticulous organization, Zoe was more careless with her personal belongings. Turning away, she disapproved of his cold demeanor. The man avoiding any affectionate names, she dreaded the revival of Zoe's memories, which she expected to intensify the ongoing nightmare.
'What a mess!' she thought, addressing both the chaotic situation and the disorder in Zoe's closet across the room.
"Aren't you getting late for work?" he inquired, noting her relaxed stance with curiosity.
'I don't even know where I work!' she fumed inwardly, her frustration mounting at the uncertainty of her situation.
"No, I'm not in a hurry!" she lazily responded, continuing to inspect the closet while keeping her back to him. Her priority was visiting Anne, where she hoped to uncover details about Zoe and arrange a medical leave to return to her own workplace. There was unfinished business waiting for her there.
Marie-Rose and Anne had become friends when the latter's boyfriend became the target of obsessive individuals who mistook him for the male lead in one of Marie-Rose's novels. Marie-Rose had used his image for a romance book cover, acknowledging his exceptional beauty, even surpassing that of Jayden. However, her attraction to Jayden was incomparable and incurable.
After Marie-Rose disclosed the harassment she faced from stalkers, Anne and she collaborated to devise more effective strategies to cope. Anne, being a pediatrician, had previously assisted Marie-Rose in her work at the Child Protection Department before the incident.
Impatient for Daniel to leave for work, Marie-Rose couldn't understand his delay. According to the information she had as Marie-Rose, his work started at 7 am, and the light outside suggested it was already past seven. With her phone nowhere in sight and no clock on the wall, she couldn't shake off her distress.
Before she knew it, two male arms encircled her, Daniel's hands now resting on her chest, no, Daniel was actually grabbing her peaches in his hands. Just as Jayden used to do whenever he had the chance.
Now, with Jayden absent, she longed for him intensely. She had been on the verge of reconnecting with him to share the news of her pregnancy when this inexplicable situation occurred, robbing her of her life.
In the drawer mirror before her, Daniel's hands revealed two unsettling truths. His wrist displayed a watch indicating the time as twenty past seven, while a ring adorned his finger. How long had the two been in a relationship?
"Take your hands off me," she cut him off abruptly, halting whatever Daniel had in mind. Her action was driven more by what her eyes had noticed than the uncomfortable touch with its suggestive undertones, which made her feel guilty as if she was cheating on Jayden. Her stomach churned once again, ready to retch.
It wasn't just her experiencing this unsettling sensation; she realized in an instant that the woman's body was also feeling morning sickness, just like her before she died. How was it possible that they were both pregnant at the same time? How far along was the pregnancy?
"But I want to spend time with you." he confessed with a hard-on sticking into the flabbiness of her back.
'Well, I don't. I don't want to spend time with you. I want to spend time with Jayden.'
"I'm sick, you idiot!" Again, she wasn't lying, yet she derived a certain satisfaction from using the cliché response to reject him.
But she didn't care about any of that. Right now, all she wanted was to take care of Jayden's dxck, and Daniel could very well spare her from his advances. It didn't matter to her that this was his wife's body; she was determined to find a way to be with Jayden. He didn't deserve what was happening to him. Jayden was the one who deserved to have her as his wife, and Marie-Rose didn't give a damn if he could find someone younger and more beautiful than her. He belonged to her, and she would fight to the death to win him back.
Daniel had meddled in her and her former boyfriend Alexandre's love life for so long that she couldn't help but wish the worst for him. He had bullied her for so many years; did he really think she could forgive him?
Acting like an almighty god with the authority to intrude into their private moments, he was nothing but social garbage in reality.
After dealing with numerous cases of childhood sexual abuse, including Alexandre, this was how society rewarded her. There seemed to be no hope left for humanity.
Daniel and his unsightly gov men had shattered her mental well-being in their relentless quest to humiliate her. She could no longer live a normal life or have a normal love life, as these monsters had publicly shamed her, shouting remarks about her private life in the streets.
'You never truly know who might violate the sanctity of your matrimonial bed with their impure thoughts,' she concluded, alluding to his saying once again.
But at least she had performed social work with this, as Soul Paragon, one of her favorite writers had suggested. However, it was revolting to imagine them witnessing her and Jayden engaging in an ancient ritual of love, the sanctity of which they had stained with their impure minds. A monster like Daniel would always perceive things through his tainted lens.
But well, it seemed to be part of their job, or so they believed. They felt entitled to intrude, apparently.
Nonetheless, there would be a price for this. After their deaths, they would not be able to stand upright before divinity at their final judgment. They would be guilty—they now knew about the true sacred union and had no more excuses. Did they really think it was an apple that Adam and Eve had bitten in the Garden of Eden? It was a reminder to never meddle in matters that don't concern you. You never know whose sins you might end up paying for.
To cure herself, she had decided to work at an online chat. If they were going to rub the magic stick anyway, at least they should do it for money. She became her own opposite. Marie-Rose wondered what effect this had on her counterpart. She should aim to do everything she did in reverse, in one way or another. But did this imply that Zoe had been working at a chat before the switch occurred? Marie-Rose made a mental note to verify this detail.
Death was only the minimum punishment that Daniel deserved.
Well, at least he got what he deserved: Marie-Rose was now his wife, as indicated by the ring on his finger. Thus, he would get to experience what it was like being married to Marie-Rose. Awful. But not for long. She had other plans in mind.
She watched him carefully, noticing he had no white hairs. Most of those working in the branch had gray hair, but this jerk had none. He seemed to have aged gracefully, without any visible signs of work-related stress, which felt like a grave injustice. He had lived his life so peacefully.
Until now. Everyone gets their godfather. Well, godmother in this case. Old Marlon Brando must be smiling at her from heaven right now, just as he did from the poster in that restaurant where Daniel had invited them.
As Marie-Rose watched their reflection in the mirror, her attention was caught by his hands resting on her bosom, and she noticed the brand of the watch on his wrist: Sea Star 1000 by Tissot. It was the watch she had wished to gift Jayden with. He truly deserved it; he was a true gentleman. Not like this homeboy from the fence-leaning brigade, supporting the walls while spitting sunflower seed shells and making unsolicited comments about her life.
The sight of the watch reminded her that she was running out of time. She had to find Anne as soon as possible. Her plan was to call Jayden on her way to Anne.
She withdrew herself from his unholy embrace, leaving him to deal with his arousal, and headed straight to her bedside. Nevertheless he followed her. She finally found a pair of underwear in a bottom drawer, and in the topmost drawer, she found her phone and her ring. Apparently, Zoe didn't sleep with her ring on.
She left the ring inside; she didn't want to show the world that she was connected to Daniel in any way. Then, the first of Zoe's memories struck her.
Zoe and Daniel were only engaged. Daniel had proposed to her one month ago. It had happened oddly quickly. What was the reason for such a rushed proposal?
Marie-Rose realized they were not yet married. It had all happened too rapidly; they had only been dating for two months. Unlike Jayden and her.
On the contrary, Jayden and her had separated about two months ago after briefly getting back together again. Daniel was the reason they had separated.
Just as she was pondering, Daniel's phone rang twice, announcing an incoming message. He suddenly forgot his prior interest, reaching for the phone and his demeanor changing after checking the display.
As quickly as he reacted to receiving the message, he let go of her to grab his jacket and throw it over his forearm, clearly in a rush.
"I need to go to work right now. See you tonight, Zoe," he said. Marie-Rose couldn't wait, as she had a lot of clarifications to seek from his side to clear her suspicions. Once she regained her host's memories, it would be easier to direct the conversation in the direction she needed.
In no time, she took a cab and was off to search for Anne. Staring out of the car's window, another round of memories flooded her mind.
"Oh, no, Lord, please have mercy!" she exclaimed as she was met with a string of last night's intimate moments between Zoe and Daniel. All she could do was laugh.
'He can't hold it for more than 20 seconds. As expected!' The thought prompting an inappropriate outburst of laughter.