In May, the weather felt a bit hot. Ayunda yawned widely as she found herself in a white hospital room. Despite the room being slightly cold, it didn't stop the sweat from running down her body. She thought about changing clothes, hoping to find someone to ask questions, but in the large room, she was all alone. An IV drip was still attached to her arm. Ayunda couldn't quite remember what had happened. The last thing she remembered was being on a secret mission for her country to capture a spy, but she woke up in a hospital room. It seemed like she had been injured during the mission, and her partner had brought her to the hospital.
As she surveyed the room again, Ayunda realized it was a nice space. The mission she and her partner had been on was to visit a rural village on an island. To reach the island, they had to take a boat for a forty-minute journey.
Ayunda checked herself over; there were no visible scars left. Her palms were thinner and felt so smooth, as though the wounds and calluses from her tough training had disappeared.
Before she could process her surprise, a voice interrupted from the direction of the door. A girl with pink hair stood there, her appearance eccentric, with hairpins decorating her hair. The girl walked up to her, hands on her hips, pouting.
"Finally, you're awake!" she said. "How could you get hit by a car while crossing the street?" The girl huffed and then sat down in a chair beside her, pushing a thermos of porridge towards her. "Our maid made this for you. The doctor said you're also malnourished."
"I don't know how much you hate home, but malnourished? What would people say if they knew the daughter-in-law of Sagara Group is malnourished?" The girl rolled her eyes, her voice full of annoyance.
Ayunda just stared at her blankly, not seeming to hear what she said. "Where are we right now?" she asked.
The girl turned her head in surprise. "Jakarta," she answered sharply. "You're not having amnesia like in the movies, are you?" she added reluctantly.
Ayunda shook her head. She hadn't lost her memory except for how she lost consciousness and ended up here. "But… who are you?" she asked.
"Huh?" The girl's mouth dropped open in surprise. She quickly closed it, trying to regain composure. "Sister Dan, please call the doctor," she shouted towards the door. A woman's voice from outside replied in the affirmative.
"I'm Naura, your most beautiful sister-in-law in the world," the girl said, confident.
Ayunda looked at her in disgust. No matter how she tried to reason, this was her first time meeting a girl who unabashedly called herself beautiful.
Before Naura could defend herself after receiving Ayunda's judgmental stare, a doctor entered.
"I'll check you over first," the doctor said calmly. Naura stood up and followed closely behind.
"Can you tell me what you remember last before the incident?" the doctor asked. Ayunda shook her head, genuinely not remembering how she got hurt and ended up in the hospital.
"It seems you're experiencing temporary amnesia," the doctor said sympathetically. "Don't worry, this condition often happens after head trauma."
"Oh no, I need to call brother Nolan," Naura exclaimed, quickly reaching for her phone. "Sister Dan, did you run into Naren earlier?"
"I just came back from the bathroom." A man, almost as tall as the door frame, stood with his arms folded, staring at the doctor, silently asking for an explanation.
"The most severe injury was to the head, which caused trauma. For now, the patient will experience memory loss, but it should return gradually," the doctor explained.
"Alright, thank you, doctor," Naren said politely.
After the doctor left, the man leaned back on the sofa, observing Ayunda, who seemed like a completely different person. The girl on the bed was calm, but there was a slight look of confusion on her smooth face. If it had been the usual Ayunda, the angry woman would have said something sharp as soon as she saw them—or at the very least, glared at them with hatred. Realizing his own thoughts, Naren cleared his throat and turned to his sister-in-law.
"Brother Nolan is probably already at the airport for departure, so you don't need to call him again," Naren said, his tone softer. "You can explain things when he gets here." He glanced at Naura, who was busy staring at her phone. "I've also contacted Ayunda's family," he added, checking the time on his watch—it was just before 8 AM.
Ayunda scratched her head absentmindedly, many questions swirling in her mind, but she couldn't find a single clear answer.
"So… What year is it?" Ayunda asked quietly, causing all three people in the room to turn towards her. She bit her lower lip, nervous, feeling the need for some reassurance.
"2024," Naren answered. "Last night, you were hit while crossing the street. Your friends contacted our family."
"Friends?" Ayunda asked awkwardly.
"Based on how annoying you are, I'm surprised anyone still tolerates being friends with you, sis," Naura whispered to Naren, not realizing her voice was still loud enough to be heard.
"Then who are all of you?" Ayunda asked, growing impatient.
"I told you already," Naura huffed, "I'm your most beautiful sister-in-law! This is Naren, we're twins. And this one is Danesa, my manager." Naura said, looking Ayunda up and down.
Danesa, who had only planned to drop Naura off, cleared her throat. She smiled faintly at Ayunda before glancing at Naura, who was now crossing her arms. "I'll head home now, I'll contact you if anything comes up." Naura nodded without hesitation. After all, her manager was an outsider, and she probably didn't want to get involved in her family matters.
"Okay, take care, Kak! Thanks for taking me this early!" Naura waved her hand as her focus returned to Ayunda, who seemed to have lost half of her soul.
"So, Ayunda, shes is already married?" Ayunda sighed quietly. It didn't make sense to be in someone else's body, let alone in the body of a married woman.
"Wow! Using third-person speech?! How bad is your injury?" Naura stared at her with exaggerated sympathy, which made Naren roll his eyes in annoyance. His twin didn't seem to have much empathy.
"A year ago, you married with my brother, Nolan. Since we're both his siblings, that makes us… siblings too," Naren explained gently, trying to comfort his sister-in-law a little. But seeing her intense focus on one spot, he sighed. It seemed like it would take time for Ayunda to fully grasp her own situation.
"Ren, since sister Ayu has amnesia, let's sabotage her memory!" Naura whispered excitedly, getting closer to her twin.
"Sabotage how?"
"Happy marriage and a harmonious family!" she said confidently.
"You really need to stop watching soap operas!" Naren flicked Naura on the forehead with a click of his tongue. Even though they shared the same womb, something about her seemed completely different from him.
"What's wrong with that? Who knows, maybe next year we'll have a niece or nephew!" Naura pouted, unrelenting. "We have to work together!" she added firmly, as if there was no room for argument.
"Work together for what?" A flat voice suddenly interrupted, making all three of them turn towards the door. In the doorway stood a tall man, exuding calm and composure, with no expression on his handsome face.
Ayunda glanced at the two twins, who looked shocked. Seeing their reaction, Ayunda couldn't help but come to one conclusion: the man standing there was deeply connected to the body she now inhabited.