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"He's so cute. What's his name?"
Ethan gently stroked the baby's tiny head.
"Ethan Jr — ‘Jr.’ as in memory."
I looked at Ethan Jr. then at Ethan. There was a bit of resemblance between them.
Ethan pulled out a marriage certificate and handed it to me.
"Bella, you’re my wife, and Ethan Jr.is our son."
It seemed that I was a happy woman, with a caring and handsome husband, and now a lovely baby boy .
Ethan wrapped both of us in his arms. I felt something warm fall onto my hair —
tears. I got tired easily these days. I lay down again but couldn’t fall asleep — just closed my eyes and rested. I overheard a middle-aged man talking to Ethan.
" Telling her is pointless . She might forget it all after just one nap."
"It doesn't matter. Even if it's just for a few minutes, I’m willing."
"She didn't really remember you. She just believed what you said."
"It's my fault. I brought this on myself ."
What were they talking about? Did I have a mental illness… amnesia? A serious one? I turned and looked at Ethan Jr. sleeping in his cradle. My heart tightened, bit by bit. After just one nap… I might forget even my own child. I wouldn’t be able to love him. Not just him — Ethan too. Everyone. I’d lose the ability to love.
As a mother, a wife, a daughter...I would be absent from all the roles in my life. Then what was the meaning of my existence?
Someone gently wiped away the tears on my face: "Bella, what's wrong?"
It was Ethan. Such a good husband, and I was going to forget him...
I choked back tears. "Ethan, I can't find the meaning of my existence."
Ethan sat on the edge of the bed and pulled me into his arms.
"Bella, if you’re not here, where will Ethan Jr. and I put all our love?"
I reached out and gently traced his face. "Ethan, you love me, don’t you ?"
Ethan's eyes were bloodshot. . He kissed my hair and murmured, over and over again, like a broken record— "Bella, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, love you..."
At this moment, I felt content and happy.
