Please, don't leave! You promised you wouldn't leave me!
She gazed at the man crying in her lap.
I promise, I will find you. I will follow you into your world, he vowed.
The words lingered in Kaye's mind as she woke from the haunting dream once more. She couldn't shake the question: why did these dreams keep invading her nights?
Rubbing her temples, Kaye groaned, "What time is it?" Her eyes darted to the clock – 9:30 am already.
"Ouch!" A sharp pain shot through her back as she forced herself to rise.
She remembered what happened last night. Mikhail and she did it. But she was already wearing her nightdress. Did Mikhail dress her?
Examining herself, she noticed kiss marks and bites, made by that pervert.
She sighed, "I have to leave this place. But how?" Unfamiliar with the surroundings, she pondered her predicament.
Meowww...
A cat's cry caught her attention. "Huh?" Kaye listened intently.
Attempting to stand, she stumbled immediately, her legs shaking, devoid of strength. "Damn you, Mikhail!" she muttered.
Gathering determination, she forced herself upright and staggered towards the balcony.
Meow! Meow!
The cries persisted, leading her to a ginger tabby cat on the roof with a ribbon around its neck.
"Why is there a cat here? Is it Fuentebella's pet?" Kaye wondered aloud. "Having a cat doesn't suit them; wild dogs would be more fitting."
"Come here, kitty!" she called, attempting to coax the feline.
Despite her efforts, the cat remained aloof, stuck on the roof. Kaye decided to take matters into her own hands and climbed onto the balustrade.
"Come here, kitty! I won't hurt you," she reassured.
The cat hesitated but kept its distance. "It's okay, you can trust me. Come here."
Balancing precariously, Kaye struggled to reach the cat, aware that one wrong move could lead to a fall.
.
.
Mikhail furrowed his brows, questioning, "What do you mean the cat escaped?"
"The maid tried to feed it, sir, but the cat got scared and ran away from its cage," Kira explained.
"Tsk. Find it! I'm sure it's just roaming around the mansion. And make sure Kaye won't see the cat," he ordered.
The cat was his gift for Kaye, and the escape frustrated him. It was delivered earlier, and he instructed them to feed and bathe it first, but they let it escape. A simple job, yet they couldn't do it properly.
Picking up the paper bags, he headed to his room, where Kaye was still sleeping. He had left her there, wanting to surprise her with gifts. He had ordered Kira to buy clothes and accessories for her promptly, and now he carried them to his room.
Opening the door, he found Kaye missing. "Kaye?" Confused, he wondered where she could be.
Hearing her voice on the balcony, he rushed there and panicked when he saw her standing on the balustrade, dropping all the paper bags he was carrying.
"Kaye!" he called.
Kaye, holding the cat, was crying. Did she intend to jump because of him?
"K-Kaye... Please get down from there," he pleaded.
Ignoring him, she only stared.
"Kaye, please. I know I made a mistake, I admit it. I forced you, but please," he walked towards her slowly. "Please don't do this." Tears streamed down his face as he kneeled. "Please don't kill yourself. Please don't leave me again!"
Terrified, he feared Kaye might jump and leave him forever.
Kaye looked at him, confused. She had only grabbed the cat from the roof. Her tears were because she liked the cat so much and was sharing a story to the cat.
"Kaye, please get down now!" Mikhail begged. "I will send you home now. I won't force you again to remember me, so please don't kill yourself."
"Really?" she asked. He would send her home now?
"Yes. Whatever you want, I will give it to you. I will do everything," he promised.
Kaye smiled, quickly getting down from the balustrade. "It's a promise?" she asked again.
Mikhail nodded, hugging her tightly. "I promised, so please don't do it again. You scared me to death."
Although it wasn't her intention, he thought she might jump, explaining his tears.
But who cared? He promised to send her home, and perhaps the cat brought good luck to her.
.
.
....
"Are you really sure about this, sir? I thought you wanted her to stay with you forever?" Kira inquired, observing Kaye getting into the car.
"I have no choice; this is better than her taking her own life," Mikhail uttered as he smoked.
"But how about you?" Kira pressed for more information.
"I will return to XX City tomorrow. Grandpa called; he wants me back as soon as possible. I will instruct some of our men to watch Kaye while I am away," he explained.
Kaye didn't remember him, and he needed to give her more time. He believed that one day she would recall everything, and when that time came, he wouldn't let her go again. "You must go now; it will be a long trip. Make sure she returns home safely."
"Yes, sir." Kira left him and approached the car.
He watched it depart. Kaye, even if you forget me, even if you don't want to remember me, you will always hold a place in my heart and in my life. I'm sorry if I came late. I will miss you...
.
.
Kaye stared out of the car window silently. When she left, Mikhail hadn't said a word to her, just watched her leave. Although she should be happy about returning home, an unexplained sadness lingered.
Meow...
She looked at the cat, a parting gift from Mikhail according to Kira. She didn't want something that would remind her of Mikhail, but she couldn't abandon the cat; she liked it too much. Cradling it, she hugged it tightly.
.
.
....
At J General Hospital, Kurtis had just completed a surgery when a nurse informed him that Tristan was waiting in his office. He headed straight there and found Tristan accompanied by Shin.
"Something happened?" Kurtis inquired.
"Kurtis, we have good news!" Tristan exclaimed joyfully.
"What is it?" Kurtis asked, checking his schedules.
"We finally got information about Kaye!" Tristan announced.
Kurtis paused, looking at him intently. "Really?"
"Yes, I saw someone who looks exactly like her in the CCTV at one of the stores in the mall. My uncle has a friend working at the Intelligence agency, and I asked him to look into her background information. He sent this to me earlier." Shin handed an envelope to Kurtis.
Opening it, Kurtis read it.
Kaye Jin Mañago, an illustrator and webcomic artist. The woman in the photos looks exactly like Aria, the only difference is her hair and eye color.
"Kurtis, let's go to Kaye now. Let's meet her; I'm sure she misses us too," Tristan suggested eagerly.
"Yeah, but before we meet her, we have to make sure that it was really her," Kurtis insisted.
"But can't you see? She looks exactly like Aria. I'm sure it was really her. Are you doubting our Kaye now?" Tristan protested.
"Chill, bro," Shin said, attempting to calm down Tristan.
"Of course, I believe that this is Kaye. I can also feel it. What I want to say is, before we meet her, let's make sure that she won't get confused. We have to ready ourselves to explain everything. I'm sure she will also ask about the others," Kurtis explained.
"You have a point. Besides, we have to prove to her that we are really the people she met at the Serolf Empire," Shin agreed.
"That's what I'm talking about. There's a chance that she will doubt us, so we have to prove that we are really her husbands. Let's not do things that will make her scared and hesitant. My plan is to meet her first; let's not go to her together at the same time. I'll be the one who will explain everything since I brought you guys here," Kurtis added.
"Alright, I will leave everything to you," Tristan conceded, though he was eager to see Kaye. He trusted Kurtis's judgment.
"When do you plan to meet her?" Shin asked.
Kurtis glanced at his appointment list. "I have two hours of free time tomorrow."
Tristan smiled and patted Kurtis's shoulder.
.
.
....
Kaye stepped out of the car, now standing outside her apartment.
"We are leaving now, Miss Kaye. Please take care of yourself," Kira said before getting back into the car, and they departed.
Kaye gazed at her apartment; she was finally home. Swiftly, she entered. "Haaa... I missed this place!" She joyfully leaped onto her bed.
It had been a month since her last visit to her apartment. "Ah, right, my phone!" She retrieved it quickly. Kira had handed it to her before leaving. Upon unlocking it, she wasn't surprised by the numerous missed calls from Timothy, along with some from Tin, Rubie, and her parents. She dialed her mom's number and called them.
After a lengthy conversation with her parents, she finally could take a rest. She managed to provide excuses to avoid worrying them. Her parents were unaware of what happened; Timothy had informed them that she was on vacation with him, citing poor signal as the reason for not keeping in touch.
"I'm glad Timothy didn't inform them about what happened to me," she muttered.
She didn't really want her parents to worry about her; they were old. If they found out what happened, she feared they would end up in the hospital due to shock and stress.
Mikhail suddenly crossed her mind, memories of that night resurfacing.
Shaking her head, she admonished herself, "No, you should forget about him, Kaye. You will never cross paths again in the future." She decided to erase all memories associated with Fuentebella.
Meow...
She smiled at the cat. "Except you..."
Carrying it to her bed, she drifted into sleep.
.
.
....
Kira returned and found Mikhail drinking alcohol on the terrace.
"She returned home safe, sir," he reported.
"Good. We'll be leaving early tomorrow morning," Mikhail announced. He had already made the decision to leave.
"How are the new recruits?" Mikhail inquired.
"According to our Capo in the south, the two managed to complete their tasks faster than expected. They were quick learners and obedient. They are now ready to become official members of the family," Kira reported.
"Good. You may take a rest now," Mikhail instructed.
Kira nodded and left him.
Mikhail gazed at the sky, contemplating, "Until we meet again, Kaye..."