"Welcome to Dreamwave Healing Therapy. My name is Lucy, and I will be your guide as you journey into the depths of your subconscious."
A female-like voice emerges from the software as Jacques steps into the light. The ground beneath him ripples with each step, as if he were walking on water. Yet, when he feels it underfoot, it seems like solid soil. The water is black, with countless green leaves floating on its surface. As Jacques moves, the leaves drift away, following the ripples and revealing the water beneath. However, the water is too murky for him to see how deep it is—or what might be lurking below.
Jacques crouches and dips his hand into the water, but he finds no bottom. He can tell it's deep, but he has no way of knowing just how deep.
"So, what now?" Jacques asks.
"We are here to look into your soul. As you can see, the water is muddy. This means you have a lot of stuck emotions that need to be released," Lucy explains.
"Stuck emotions? Yeah, right. I don't think someone leaving me for another guy could do that much damage," Jacques chuckles.
"It's not that simple," Lucy continues. "Judging by how thick the water is, it seems you've buried a great deal of emotion. That's normal, considering you've been alive for a hundred years."
Jacques' brows furrow, and his eyes narrow. "What?"
"I'm calculating based on the density of the mud in the water. It indicates an accumulation of emotions over a hundred years," Lucy reports.
Sigma, who is also hearing Lucy's words in the dream world, reacts with the same shock as Jacques.
"Is the program malfunctioning?" Sigma mutters to one of the therapists operating the computer.
The therapist checks the system, curiosity piqued, but everything appears to be functioning normally. He frowns in disbelief. "There's nothing wrong with the bot."
"Damn... a hundred years old?" Sigma murmurs, deep in thought. Could this be the power of the boy's Astral Guardian—the black dragon? But how? Eternal life? Sooner or later, he would figure it out.
Meanwhile, in the dream world, Jacques' fingers swirl around the water's surface, causing the mud to shift. At first, it's a small, insignificant movement—like mixing espresso with cream. However, the motion gradually intensifies, shaking the entire body of water.
Flashes of memories flood Jacques' mind, and with them comes a nauseating sensation as long-buried emotions begin to rise.
Just as he feels the urge to throw up, a pair of glowing red eyes pierces through the black water, burning with rage.
Before the head of a massive black dragon bursts from the depths to swallow him whole, Jacques catches a glimpse of a face.
A beautiful face of an androgynous man.
...
...
Etienne.
...
...
It was a sunny day. Everything felt right.
Jared was at home, working on his motorcycle when a jingle sounded from his phone.
"Babe, let's go to the amusement park. Let's have a date," Etienne's message popped up on Jared's screen, and he quickly agreed.
A smile spread across Jared's face as he read his name. "Sure, let's go. When? Now?"
"You can do it now?" Etienne texted back.
"Yes, I can. I want to see you again as soon as possible," Jared answered with a longing smile.
"Then I'll put on my best dress. Let's meet there!" Etienne's message ended their exchange.
Jared excitedly jumped into the shower, making sure he smelled good. He put on a casual gray shirt and a pair of long black jeans. Just as he finished getting dressed, his phone beeped again—it was a message from his client.
"Can you help me with this? I need a quick edit on your previous work. The colors aren't showing as bright as in your preview!" the client wrote urgently.
"Alright, I'll do it real quick!" Jared replied, returning to his desktop to fix the issue.
But before he could save the file and resend it, the client texted again.
"Also, my partner and I think the character should have long hair instead of short. Can you fix that too?"
"Sure," Jared responded, "but that'll cost you another $10."
"No problem," the client answered, and soon after, a notification beeped—$10 had been deposited into Jared's account.
Jared worked quickly on the new hair design, but when he glanced at the clock on the wall, he realized 15 minutes had passed without him noticing. Etienne would be waiting longer than he should have.
"I'm sorry, babe. I'll be quick! I promise I'll make it up to you," Jared muttered to himself, rushing to finish the edit.
Another 40 minutes passed before the client was finally satisfied. Jared hurriedly grabbed his jacket and rushed out of the house, sliding onto his motorcycle. Just as he was about to leave, he realized he had forgotten his sunglasses, so he ran back inside to grab them.
When he stepped back outside, his motorcycle was mysteriously gone. Not sure how, but it's just gone.
With no other choice, Jared had to run all the way to the amusement park, where Etienne was waiting for him.
As Jared ran toward the amusement park, an old lady waved him down, looking distressed. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Young man, please help! I lost my keys in the sewer drain. No one will help me, and I'm so worried."
Feeling bad for the woman, Jared stopped to help. He peered into the sewer and spotted the silver glint of the keys. He needed something with a hook or a wire to retrieve them. So, he ran around asking people if they had the tools he needed.
As Jared searched, the old lady drew attention from passersby, and soon, more people stopped to assist. Eventually, someone found a stick and managed to fish out the keys. The old woman's face lit up with a relieved smile.
When Jared finally returned with a wire, everyone was gone.
Feeling like an idiot, he glanced at the clock—two hours had passed. Etienne must be waiting!
Panicked, he sprinted toward the amusement park and called Etienne.
"Babe, where are you? It's been two hours! I've been waiting at the entrance," Etienne's voice sounded anxious.
"I'm so sorry, babe! I got distracted. I'll be there soon, please wait for me, okay?" Jared promised.
"Okay, babe, but please be safe on the way."
"Go ahead and have fun while you wait. I'll be there soon." Jared hopped onto a moving truck, grabbing onto the side as it rumbled forward.
"Okay, love you."
"Love you too." Jared ended the call.
However, the truck soon veered off in a different direction. By the time Jared realized it, he had already traveled far off course. Panicking, he jumped off the truck, landing hard on the ground. Frustrated and exhausted, he groaned, wondering why everything was going wrong.
"I should've never answered that call..." he muttered, blaming himself and keep running.
Now, Etienne had been waiting for five hours. If only he hadn't gone back for his sunglasses, he'd still have his motorcycle, and they'd already be enjoying their date together.
Jared called Etienne again. "Babe, I'm sorry..."
"Where the hell are you? I've ridden every ride here by myself, and it's not even fun anymore," Etienne sounded upset.
"I'm so sorry, babe. You won't believe this, but the truck I hopped on went the wrong way. It'll take me another three hours to get there now... I'm so sorry. I'm so stupid—"
"Shh! Don't beat yourself up. People make mistakes. It's okay."
"Just go home, babe... I'm not gonna make it." Jared's voice was filled with sadness, as if he was on the verge of giving up.
Etienne's voice sharpened. "What are you talking about? Are you giving up?!"
"I don't want to. I love you. I want to be where you are... but I can't. I've made so many mistakes. I got distracted too much, and I lost my way. I can't reach you. I'm sorry. Just go ahead without me." Jared's voice was heavy with regret.
Etienne's tone softened. "Babe, it's only five hours. I promised I'd wait a thousand years if I had to, didn't I? Please don't give up."
Hearing such sincerity only made Jared feel even more unworthy of Etienne. "I don't deserve you. You deserve someone strong, someone smart, someone bold. I'm just a loser."
"Don't tell me what to do! Let me decide who I want to be with. If I said I would wait, then I will!" Then, Etienne's voice lowered, as if he, too, was feeling sad as he spoke. "Unless... you want to give up?"
"No, I won't! But wouldn't it be too late? You've already waited too long, and the harder I try to reach you, the more fate seems to pull us apart. Maybe... maybe you deserve better."
Etienne sighed. "Babe, what was that? Since when did you become this whiny? Is this really the man I fell in love with? How many times have I told you that I want someone like you—someone who's confident in their own skin? The you I first met—do you remember? You were so carefree. An unstoppable dreamer. That's the man I fell in love with. Do you remember who you are?"
"Maybe I've changed. Even my name isn't the same one you first knew me by. Maybe I've become someone else, someone who no longer matches you." Yet, no matter how hard he tried, Jared still couldn't remember his original name. Who was he before all of this? Jacques? No, that wasn't his real name either.
Etienne's voice was firm. "Babe, you are worth waiting for. No matter how much you've changed, no matter what version of you exists now, I will love you anyway. So, please don't give up on me, okay?"
But before Jared could answer, his phone battery died.
He let out a furious scream, cursing at the phone in frustration.
Now, stranded in the middle of the woods after jumping off the truck, he had no choice but to keep walking. Etienne was as stubborn as he was. Without a way to communicate, Jared couldn't tell him to go home or update him on his situation. He has no choice but to keep going.
It was going to be a long journey.
Jared walked and walked. Occasionally, he managed to hitch a ride to speed up his way to the amusement park.
But distractions kept appearing. A child crying because they lost their mother. A cat injured in a hit-and-run. People needing help. Even a kind old lady stopping him for a small chat, refusing to let him go.
The distractions keep interfering even after the midnight arrived. However, it was already late, and with Jared's phone dead, he had no way of knowing whether Etienne was still waiting for him as he had promised. Logically speaking, no one would be that patient. No one. Anyone else would have given up, left, and said they deserved better.
But Etienne…
Jared could only wonder if Etienne was still there. The chances were slim. Why would he still wait? He was gorgeous, rich, and knew his worth. He could have easily found someone else in the amusement park to have fun with rather than waiting for a fool who couldn't even get his act together.
"He's not going to wait this long. Go home!" a passerby muttered as they walked past Jared.
They were right. No one would wait this long—especially not for someone like Jared—when they could have someone better.
But… what if he really was still waiting?
If Jared went home now, assuming no one would wait that loyally, but Etienne was still there, how terrible would he feel? If Etienne had truly waited all this time and Jared never showed up, wouldn't that prove that Etienne really did deserve someone better?
As bad as Jared thought about himself, he couldn't take it if someone else take Etienne away from him. He had to go to the amusement park, just in case. If Etienne had already left, at least Jared would be relieved that his loved one didn't have to wait for nothing.
So, Jared pressed forward.
He has to reach Etienne, he must! Jared starts running, breath panting, in his head, he only has one thought: Please wait for me, Etienne! I'll be there soon!
The feeling is just so intense, the willing to reach amusement park as soon as possible. and suddenly he feel heavier, he can feel his body weight.
No! No!!
Don't wake me!
Don't wake me up!!
Let me keep dreaming!
He is waiting!!
But Jared returned as Jacques anyway. As his eyes opened wide, he stared blankly at the high ceiling where Sigma and his therapist were monitoring him.
Tears streamed down his face, his chest feeling unbearably tight.
And what hurt even more... he had forgotten the name again.