"Co on, Sophia," Dexter grabbed my wrist as I attempted to leave.
Before Joel, who was outside the door, could enter the house, Dexter kicked the door shut, trapping Joel outside.
Startled by his frustration, I asked in puzzlent, "What do you want— "
"I want to lock you up... in the basent, where I’ll be the only one knowing of your existence," Dexter’s voice was hoarse as if suppressing his emotions.
He pressed against the corner, enveloping with a pressuring deanor.
I had never seen him like this before; and honestly, I was rather scared by his current behavior.
It reminded of what Mom wrote in her log, how Dexter had imprisoned Sophia in the basent and abused her.
"Y-You’re not serious, are you?" I asked shakily.
Dexter pulled into his arms, sighing softly.
"Sophia... I just want you to live a normal life, with friends like Violette, and a normal... husband and children. Spending the rest of your life happily, safely, without worries."
"I’ll give you that regardless of the price to pay... " Dexter added softly.
Perhaps this was Dexter’s biggest wish.
My heart inexplicably raced as I listened, leaning against his chest and feeling his heartbeat beneath. For so reason, I had a bad feeling.
Sothing inside whispered that Dexter himself wasn’t included in that wish, as if he had always seen himself as a monster, outside the realm of being a "normal husband".
Did this an that he would eventually let go of ? Or perhaps, he had another life planned?
Feeling an inexplicable surge of anxiety, I instinctively clutched Dexter’s shirt and asked, "You still don’t believe that I’m Sophia Milford, do you? Must I recite the pi thing to prove it?"
Dexter ruffled my hair without answering. Though it was just a simple gesture of comfort, it managed to ease my emotions nonetheless.
Without those mories, I lacked a sense of security and was constantly enveloped in fear.
"You don’t need to pity , or try to test ... " I said stubbornly, worried that this might be another test.
Dexter sighed helplessly. "Your husband is a genius, isn’t he? So you should have more faith in him."
His words startled , and I realized that my numb heart could still feel sothing.
He noticed the slight bleeding from my angry steps earlier as he looked at my foot.
Visibly displeased, he lifted effortlessly into his arms, as though I weighed no more than a feather.
I discreetly poked his muscular arm, confirming that it was his formidable strength that made feel so weightless.
After Juliet’s upheaval and the kidnapping incident, I was physically and ntally exhausted.
Shortly after Dexter had settled on the bed, I drifted off into slumber.
Perhaps due to the effect of the sedatives, I had a severe headache and felt drowsy, slipping into a series of dreams.
"She lacks emotions. Do you truly believe she can comprehend love after losing her mories?"
In a haze, I overheard soone conversing with Dexter.
"Her feelings toward Damien don’t seem like love either; it seems more like a ticulously planned sche to destroy Damien in the cruelest manner possible..."
It was as though Damien had pulled the trigger, but the bullet had rebounded and struck him squarely between the eyebrows — and Sophia was the architect.
"She doesn’t love ... " Dexter’s voice sounded sowhat hoarse.
Given his intelligence, how could he possibly be unaware of whether it was love or not?
"She’s still searching for the sensation of love... obstinately yearning to love," Dexter said softly.
"Which is a good thing. Then, in the future... if sothing were to happen to , she could accept it calmly too."
Perhaps I was unsettled, so I couldn’t sleep soundly. After all, I had nearly been raped and trafficked.
I wondered how the old Sophia Milford would have handled it if she had been in that situation. She probably would have attacked Howard and Bobby with the knife before handing them over to the police, wouldn’t she?
Regardless, I wasn’t that Sophia anymore.
Sotis, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was the Sophia Milford whom Dexter loved. If Dexter still loved Sophia, then was I — who had lost those mories and personality — the person he loved?
If a person’s character had changed, would they still be considered the sa person?
"Sophia... I want you to live on, that’s all I ask."
"Dexter... You can’t hold back."
"Sophia Milford, please don’t be so cruel to ."
"But I have no heart... "
I had a nightmare. In the dream, I kept hurting myself, trying to end my life with all kinds of thods. I was seeking an escape.
Dexter chained up, cried, and begged not to continue. He even went as far as hurting himself in front of , threatening to end his life alongside mine if I wouldn’t stop hurting myself — I watched him coldly, without intervening.
"If you want to die, I’ll go with you; if you want to hurt yourself, I’ll do it too," Dexter threatened, though his voice sounded pleading.
I gazed at him coldly, struggling to break free from the chains. "It’s no use, Dexter. We can’t escape from this... I’m a monster. I won’t genuinely have feelings for you. Even if you were to die in front of , I won’t shed a tear for you."
Dexter looked at in despair, the knife in his hand fell to the ground, blood dripping from his fingertips. After a long silence, he spoke with reddened eyes, "Are you hungry, Sophia? I’ll go buy you sothing to eat."
Then, he left, consud by deep despair.
In the dream, I struggled desperately, the clashing sound of the iron chains causing my chest to ache terribly. I wanted to shout out to Dexter, to stop him from hurting himself.
"No... Dexter, don’t. Dexter!"
I woke up from the nightmare, breathing heavily, sweat dripping from my forehead and saturating my hair.
Dexter hugged from behind and whispered, "Sophia... did you have a nightmare?"
I looked at Dexter, still breathing heavily, and after a long pause, I leaned into his embrace.
I wasn’t sure what my feelings for Dexter were now — reliance, or perhaps sothing more... With those missing pieces of my mories, I wouldn’t label it as love, though.
"Please don’t hurt yourself anymore, okay?" I said softly, gently touching the scars on his wrist with my fingers.
Dexter’s body noticeably tensed as he held . "Does it pain you if I do, Sophia?" he asked softly.
I could sense he was hoping for a certain response, as though he had been waiting for this answer for a long ti.
I struggled internally, persuading myself that I had to give him the answer he wanted, even if it was only a lie.
"Dexter... " I held his wrist and whispered, "It pains if you do."
After a long pause, Dexter suddenly kissed my forehead excitedly and rolled around with in his arms.
I was left speechless, finding his reaction was rather childish.
"Stop rolling... " I protested, ending up lying on top of him.
Our position was too intimate; with one wrong move, sothing might accidentally unfold.
As Dexter gazed at , I couldn’t help but marvel at his stunning eyes, though I had always been aware of their beauty.
"Sophia... " Dexter whispered my na, his expression as joyful as that of a grown-up boy.
"You’ll always trust , won’t you?" I desperately sought reassurance.
"I’ll always... recognize you at first glance," Dexter pressed my head and planted a kiss on my forehead.
I leaned against his chest, quietly listening to his heartbeat.
"It’s still early. Go back to sleep," Dexter whispered. But I found myself no longer feeling sleepy.
Seeing that I had no intention of moving, Dexter shifted his body carefully yet uncomfortably. I didn’t notice anything unusual until I felt his body temperature rising.
"You’re torturing ... Sophia," he whispered in agony.
My ears flushed as I quickly sat up, unintentionally causing more discomfort for Dexter.
I swiftly lay down on my side, turning my back to Dexter, and remained silent.
Reviews
All reviews (0)