Unexpectedly Married To You

twenty-three

"You didn't even come to my grave to visit me at my memorial," my mom said angrily. Her eyes were red with anger, her blood boiling inside her. I gulped in fear and kneeled in front of her, hugging her legs, "Mom, please forgive me. I didn't think I would live."

Her hands were trembling as she started choking me hard. I gagged and tried to push her away but she was too strong. My eyes formed tears out of fear and frustration. I blinked continuously until my eyes widened at the sight of my mom choking me in her car. A big tree was in front of us, the tree that the car crashed into.

She was crying tears of blood as she laughed scarily, "You don't deserve to live!"

"Mom! Please!" I yelled for help.

Jake drove the car silently as Edlyn slept next to him. Mrs Sim was staring at the view outside from the backseat. He flinched when Edlyn started whimpering in fear, "Mom, no. I'm sorry."

"Edlyn," he shook her to wake her up. She opened her eyes widely and gasped, taking deep breaths. "She's coming to get me, she's coming to get me," she mumbled to herself. "Who?" Mrs Sim asked worriedly.

Edlyn blinked continuously, making sure that it was just a nightmare. She thought for a while and sighed when she realised it was the day of her mother's memorial. She looked at her hands to check if there was blood.

"I'm sorry. I just had a nightmare," she apologised and stayed quiet the whole time, looking out at the window.

Mrs Sim happily walked up to the porch, "My husband and I planned a party to congratulate your wedding! Since we couldn't visit you in Seoul, why don't we have fun tonight? It's been so long since you've met your neighbours and relatives, Jake."

Jake nodded and smiled, about to walk into the house with his grandmother until Edlyn interrupted them, "I need some time alone. I'll be inside in a few minutes. Just wanted to see the lake closer."

Mrs Sim nodded before patting her shoulder, "Take as much time as you want."

She nodded and walked slowly to the lake. She looked at the clear water and picked up a pebble stone before throwing it into the water. She took out her phone and called her brother, "Jay?"

"Edlyn! How's Australia? Is Jake treating you well?" He asked happily from the other side of the call. She smiled softly since she missed her brother's voice, "Yeah, he is. How did the memorial go?"

"It was fine. We couldn't stay at the cemetery longer since dad is still sick."

The call went silent for a while and Jay sighed, "Did you have a nightmare again?" She lowered her gaze, "Every time. Mom was...angry."

"Edlyn, for the hundredth time, mom does not hate you. It's just that you can't let go of the accident that you started to see images of her trying to kill you. You have to overcome this trauma. You know dad and I will help you."

She chuckled and took a deep breath, "I'm being a nuisance again, am I?"

"No, you're not. You're my sister and I will help you until you can forget all of this. Mom loves you, you know."

The call ended with goodbyes and she sat down, burying her face into her knees. "What are you thinking about?" Jake approached her out of the blue, sitting next to her.

"Nothing," she lied and looked away. "The guests are coming soon. You should get ready," he said again, earning a scoff from her, "Says the person who is also not ready yet."

"Anyway, grandma wants you to wear the dress that she bought."

"Jake," she thought for a while, "When we first met on the rooftop, why were you kicking the wooden chairs?"

"I don't need to tell you that," he was about to stand up but she grabbed his hand, "I'll explain to you why I'm scared of blood if you tell me what happened during the anniversary party."

He sat back down and hugged his knees closer to his chest, "My girlfriend cheated on me that day. With Sunghoon."

She looked at him awkwardly, "Why am I not surprised about that?" He looked at her and laughed, "But I know it wasn't his fault. He was also shocked that she suddenly kissed him at the party. I found out she was dating me just to get close to him. He also apologised and we're good now."

"Although he flirts a lot, he would never betray a friend. It's not his fault," she smiled.

"What is it about you and blood? Why are you so scared?" It was his turn to ask. She sighed, "A few years ago, my mom was driving me home from the hospital. I just got well from having a high fever. We were laughing, singing and just talking about random stuff. We didn't know that the brake was broken."

"It was raining that day and the roads were slippery. She tried to press on the brake but failed and the car crashed into a tree. Luckily, I was alive and I opened my eyes. I saw my mom looking at me with wide eyes, blood was flowing down from her head. It was a scary sight. No one was there to help us and I was strangled with the seatbelt so I couldn't reach my phone to call for help."

"The ambulance arrived three hours after the accident and my mom's brain was too damaged. The doctors couldn't save her because the ambulance came too late. She lost a lot of blood. After that, I keep getting nightmares. She's angry at me because I lived and she didn't. She was so happy about her promotion and she couldn't even experience working as a boss for the first time."

"I should've died instead of her. I...didn't even have any goals to achieve that time so why did I live? Blood reminded me of her. The sight of her bleeding and just staring at me with her wide eyes."

He was speechless at the confession and didn't know what to say, "Then why do you want to be a surgeon?"

"My dad needed someone to take over his other hospitals. Jay already took a few so I didn't want to burden him more. I wanted to make my dad proud since he still thinks I'm traumatised and scared. I didn't want to be a disappointment to him. And I want to save people. I am not letting the accident happen ever again."

He smiled and patted her back, "You will be the best surgeon in the future."

They both stared at each other for a while, ignoring their surroundings. He was about to lean in for a kiss but she cleared her throat, "We need to get ready for the party."