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Cursed Wish of the Bride
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00:00As long as I speak a wish aloud, it comes true.
00:03But fate never gives anything for free.
00:06When I was a child, to cure my brother.
00:12I fell into a coma for a week.
00:15Later, to keep my gravely ill mother alive, I paid with my voice for two years.
00:22So after she died, I continued to pretend to be mute.
00:28That way, no one could force me to make wishes.
00:32But I was sold anyway.
00:34The Ashford family was offering a fortune for a bride for a spiritual marriage arrangement.
00:39Everyone in town thought the ritual smacked of something ominous.
00:43Whoever married into that family was basically being shoved alive into a cold coffin.
00:51Yet my father, Ray, submitted my natal chart anyway.
00:55The day he took that massive family settlement, there wasn't a trace of reluctant on his face.
01:05I thought I would die in this absurd marriage.
01:09But the way Adrian looked at me held no pity or disdain.
01:14Even though he was being dragged to the brink of death by his illness, he still pitied my background.
01:20Afraid he would drag me down for the rest of my life.
01:24In the warmth of his voice, I couldn't help but let myself believe, just one more time,
01:28a man like him shouldn't die on this winter night.
01:32This will set you free.
01:35And so, I opened my mouth.
01:38I was born in Brayer Creek.
01:40A river cut right through the middle, flanked by low, disoppedated houses.
01:45My father, Ray Quinn, used to run a small logistics company.
01:51During the holidays, people would even drop by with cigars and whiskey.
01:56Later, he got hooked on online gambling.
02:00He lost everything we had.
02:02There was no money left.
02:04Not even to treat my brother's high fever.
02:06He smashed the coffee pop, taking it out on me.
02:10You're completely useless!
02:11If he dies, I'll strangle you!
02:15I looked at my brother's fever-purpled face, terrified, and instinctively pleaded with the heavens.
02:21Make him well.
02:23He did indeed recover, but I fell into a coma for a week.
02:30Evelyn, you scared Mommy to death!
02:33Only my mother cared about me.
02:35Later, she fell ill too.
02:38Women were fragile, and if she couldn't make it, it was God's will.
02:45Mom, please stay with me a little longer.
02:49My mother truly improved, but I lost my voice.
02:54It wasn't until she truly passed away that I gradually found my voice again.
02:59I knelt before her tombstone, listening to Ray and the relatives bicker over how to cut corners on the funeral,
03:05and decided to keep playing the mute.
03:09I was afraid that if he learned of my ability, he would recklessly force me to make wishes.
03:17That winter, a notice was posted on the Briar Creek Community Bulletin Board.
03:22Adrian, the heir to Boston's Ashford family, was critically ill.
03:26They were offering a vast sum to find a woman of appropriate age for a spiritual marriage arrangement suggested by
03:31a family medium,
03:32requiring a perfect astrological compatibility match.
03:35A baby-willing candidate would receive a $300,000 settlement, plus a condo in downtown Boston.
03:46To many here, it was an astronomical price they wouldn't see in a lifetime.
03:52They were the ruling family of the top-tier tech consonal, Ashford Biotech,
03:56with a threshold so high that even the richest man in town wouldn't dare try to climb it.
04:03But he was dying, marrying him waiting to become a widow.
04:07Old money families had many superstitious rules.
04:10This kind of ritual reeked of the macabre.
04:14Who knew if the girl who married in would be dragged down by the same bad luck?
04:21Neighbors said all the right things about what a shame it was to pass up so much money,
04:25then quietly kept a tighter watch on their own daughters.
04:28Lily!
04:30Only Ray was tempted.
04:32He owed gambling debts,
04:34and my brother would need money to establish himself in the future.
04:39So he submitted my natal chart.
04:45When the Bentley parked in front of our house,
04:47half the street came out to watch the spectacle.
04:50Ray couldn't read the words on the NTA.
04:53He just took the money.
04:55For once, he spoke to me gently.
04:57Evelyn, you're going to live the good life.
05:00A pedigree like the Ashford,
05:01so many people couldn't climb that ladder,
05:03even if they tried.
05:04Once you're there, be obedient.
05:07Don't make yourself a nuisance.
05:09Now, as it rested on my shoulder,
05:11I didn't resist.
05:13This home had never belonged to me.
05:15Going anywhere else was all the same.
05:17A mute for a vegetable is a fitting match.
05:26I got into the car,
05:28holding only the old silver ring my mother left behind.
05:32The car drove into Boston.
05:35High risers stood one after another,
05:37slicing the sky into narrow strips.
05:39Through the car window,
05:40I spotted the prayer booth that hadn't yet been entirely cleared from the estate grounds.
05:44The butler, Mr. Harris,
05:46abruptly changed his expression and hastily ordered them removed.
05:49But I had already seen them.
05:51The flowers and signals ritual markings used for the spiritual ritual
05:55were plastered on the gateposts,
05:56like frozen blood.
05:58Madam, we have arrived.
05:59Please.
06:00The union ritual was extremely simple.
06:02I stood in the center of the hall,
06:04wearing a white gown that did not fit.
06:06There was no groom beside me,
06:08only a massive portrait.
06:10The man in the bookings was handsome,
06:12yet pale,
06:13his features gentle.
06:15His life,
06:16which should have been bright,
06:17was slowly dimming in the winter night.
06:19After the ritual,
06:20Mr. Harris led me upstairs.
06:22Corridors were lined with thick carpet.
06:25What a depil made absolutely no echo,
06:27which made was sirely marvel.
06:29He pushed open the bedroom door
06:30and said in a low outs,
06:36Mrs. Ashford,
06:37please go in.
06:38I peeked carefully inside,
06:40my eyes widening in astonishment.
06:45Adrian was even weaker than the rumors suggested.
06:48He leaned against the headbed,
06:50connected to monitors.
06:51The veins on the back of his hands stood out,
06:54densely dotted with needle marks.
06:55Yet his expression was exceptionally calm.
06:58After Mr. Harris' withdrawal,
07:00it was just the two of us in the room.
07:04Logically,
07:05he should have asked for the details of my natal chart.
07:07Or,
07:08like Ray,
07:09told me to be obedient from now on.
07:11He merely raised his hand
07:13and pulled a document folged from beside his pillow.
07:16Miss Quinn,
07:17at midnight tonight,
07:19someone will pick you up at the side gate of the estate.
07:22Inside is cash,
07:23a trust-funded card,
07:24and a ticket to a small town in Maine.
07:26I stared at him,
07:28stunned.
07:28Adrian coughed twice,
07:29his lips going even paler.
07:31He caught his breath for a moment,
07:33frowning as he explained to me.
07:36My mother,
07:37desperate to save her son,
07:38resorted to superstition and made a mistake.
07:41I apologize to you on her behalf.
07:44But you shouldn't ruin your life just because of me.
07:47My gaze fell on his still trembling hands,
07:49and for a moment,
07:51I couldn't distinguish what I was feeling in my heart.
07:54So many people had walked through my life.
07:57Some despised me for being mute.
07:59Others called me trailer trash.
08:01Trailer trash!
08:02My own blood treated me as a tool to hoard wealth,
08:05something to be used and easily discarded.
08:09Other than my mother,
08:10only this man before me,
08:11a complete stranger who was sick and dying himself,
08:15wanted to push me out of the mine.
08:22I set the folder back down and chose not to leave.
08:25Adrian assumed I was afraid of the Ashford family's retaliation.
08:29He propped himself up and pressed the call bell.
08:32Soon, a young man pushed the door open and entered.
08:35His name was Ethan,
08:37Adrian's assistant.
08:38Send her away.
08:39Ethan looked troubled and cast a fleeting glance
08:42at the security camera in the corner.
08:44Mr. Adrian, Madam already knows.
08:47Adrian let out a low chuckle.
08:50Then tell her I am not dead yet.
08:52My wife answers to no one.
08:57My wife?
08:58Hearing that title,
09:00my eyelashes fluttered slightly.
09:04Not out of any romantic shyness.
09:07Just as Adrian finished speaking,
09:09his body suddenly conrusted violently.
09:11The monitors blared an alarm.
09:12He hunched over and coughed up a mouthful of blood.
09:15Crimson trailed down the corners of his pale lips,
09:17dripping onto the sheets.
09:22Ethan's face drastically changed
09:24as he turned and rushed out.
09:25Doctor! Doctor!
09:26To shout for a doctor.
09:28The door was thrown open and shut,
09:31leaving the room filled only with the chaotic blare of alarms.
09:34I knew Adrian was truly about to die.
09:37Right before my mother passed,
09:39she looked exactly like this.
09:40Evelyn, don't be afraid.
09:42Mommy will get better.
09:44She was in so much pain,
09:45she couldn't sleep all night,
09:47yet she still stroked my head.
09:49That was the first time she broke a promise.
09:52Later, my stepmother, Linda,
09:54moved into the house,
09:56bringing new rugs, coats,
09:57and a cabinet full of skincare products.
10:00She complained to anyone who would listen
10:02about her bitter fate,
10:03having to marry in a family
10:04and raise the kid left behind by the ex-wife.
10:07But the truly bitter one
10:08couldn't even open her mouth to speak.
10:10I thought I was already used to it.
10:12Until Adrian gripped my wrist.
10:15Don't worry.
10:16He's in such a state,
10:17yet he's still trying to comfort me.
10:19His breath was incredibly weak,
10:21yet he didn't forget to urge me to leave.
10:23I will make them let you go.
10:25The rest,
10:27leave it to me to handle.
10:29The doctor's footsteps approached,
10:32getting closer and closer,
10:33yet Adrian's heart rate line
10:35slumped down little by little.
10:36I took out the silver ring.
10:38It pressed against my palm,
10:40repeatedly reminding me to keep silent.
10:42But I still used my throat,
10:44voiceless for years,
10:45to pray.
10:46Adrian, you must live.
10:51But I still used my throat,
10:53voiceless for years,
10:54to pray.
10:55Adrian, you must live.
10:58In the next second,
11:00the heart rate line on the monitor
11:01incredibly began to stabilize.
11:03When Ethan burst in with the doctors,
11:07I had already lowered my eyes again,
11:09making not another sound.
11:11The doctors crowded around him
11:13to check while Adrian stared at me,
11:15stunned.
11:17Did you just speak?
11:19He asked whoresly.
11:21I held onto the edge of the bed
11:23as my vision suddenly went dark in waves.
11:25The chicken noodle soup my mother made for me.
11:28The dogwood blossoms that bloomed on the tree by our door.
11:32The serene profile of her face
11:34as she sewed my backpack at night.
11:36The winter sun in our yard.
11:39Those images flashed past my eyes,
11:42frame by frame,
11:43only to be torn to pieces by an invisible hand.
11:46Just as expected,
11:48the toll had begun.
11:52The next morning,
11:53Adrian woke before noon,
11:55something that hadn't happened since his accident.
11:58This was a rare occurrence since his car accident.
12:01Doctors wheeled equipment in and out.
12:04When the test results came back,
12:06the few people standing by the bed
12:07had changes in their expressions.
12:09The neuroinflammation markers have dropped significantly.
12:11Heart failure data is also rebounding.
12:13Oxygen levels are far more stable than last night.
12:15The attending physician flipped through the report three times,
12:17bewildered yet deeply over Lyle.
12:19This does not conform to medical logic.
12:21But everyone in the family believed
12:23the spiritual advisor was dead on.
12:24They said my natal chart brought immense vitality to my husband,
12:27and the marriage arrangement truly worked.
12:29By the time those words reached me,
12:30I was sitting by the window,
12:32already struggling to remember.
12:34I found I had forgotten the taste of my mother's chicken broth.
12:37I also could not remember whether the tree by the door
12:39had ever bloomed with white flowers.
12:41I remembered that they existed,
12:43but it felt like reaching through a layer of fog,
12:46entirely untouchable.
12:47Soon, Eleanor rushed in.
12:49Her footsteps were hurry as she entered the room.
12:52A black coat was draped over her shoulders,
12:54her makeup still impeccable,
12:56but her eyes were heavily bloodshot.
12:58She was Adrian's mother,
13:00and the board chair of Ashvin Biotech.
13:04I heard the butler say that when she was younger,
13:06she dominated the corporate board so fiercely
13:09that the old herd directors didn't dare lift their heads.
13:12Her methods were decisive,
13:14cool to the point of ruthlessness.
13:17When she saw Adrian sitting up on his own,
13:20her eyes instantly reddened.
13:22She was speechless for a long time.
13:25Mother.
13:26At that single word,
13:28Eleanor's tears fell.
13:30She quickly turned her head away,
13:31as if unwilling to lose her composure in front of outsiders.
13:34After a long while,
13:36she walked over and gently took my hand.
13:38Evelyn, thank God you are here.
13:41I had never been on the receiving end of anyone's gratitude before,
13:44and I felt somewhat at a loss.
13:47Eleanor didn't force me to speak.
13:49She had someone prepare a new suite for me in the West Wing.
13:55Clothes and daily decissities,
13:57all meticulously selected,
13:58were delivered.
14:01I stood at the entrance of the walk-in closet,
14:04staring at a rail full of unfamiliar new clothes,
14:06feel even more bouldered.
14:10Back in the Quinn household,
14:11whenever Linda bought new clothes,
14:13they were always for my brother first.
14:16She said girls didn't need to dress too well,
14:18since they'd end up belonging to another family sooner or later.
14:22I didn't dare touch those clothes.
14:27When Adrian found out,
14:29he didn't mock me.
14:33He had Ethan download a handwriting app for me.
14:36Then he sat by the bed,
14:37and taught me how to type on the tablet.
14:39His body was still weak,
14:41yet he taught with utmost patience.
14:43It's okay.
14:44If I typed a letter wrong,
14:46he waited.
14:47If I hand wrote slowly,
14:48he waited.
14:49Once,
14:50I stared at the screen for too long,
14:52my fingertips hovering,
14:53unable to move.
14:55Evelyn,
14:55it's okay if you don't want to write,
14:57but you will always have the right to express yourself.
15:00Since childhood,
15:01I was demanded to be decile,
15:03keep my mouth shut,
15:05and just follow orders.
15:06But now someone was telling me,
15:08whether I remained silent or spoke,
15:10I could follow my own heart.
15:11He didn't press me about my ability,
15:14giving me space.
15:15This was far more precious than pity.
15:17Unfortunately,
15:18the Ashford family didn't consist only of Eleanor and Adrian.
15:21When the relatives from the collateral branched came to visit,
15:28their words were sharp and grating.
15:30This girl hit the jackpot,
15:32just a spiritual medium's ritual,
15:34and she gets into the Ashford estate.
15:38If Adrian really recovers,
15:39he surely can't spend the rest of his life with a mute country girl,
15:43right?
15:47The servants laughed behind my back,
15:50mocking me for slipping my way into an old money pedigree.
15:53They thought Adrian was just too blinded by illness right now to see clearly.
15:59Once he fully recovered,
16:00naturally,
16:01he would regret it.
16:03I didn't have much of a reaction,
16:05let alone argue with them.
16:07Forgetting cold scares and swallowing pain was what I was best at.
16:10At lunch,
16:11Adrian ate very little.
16:13The nutritionist had prepared a delicate meal,
16:16but he took only two bites before setting down his silver airs.
16:20I remembered the doctor saying he needed to replenish his nutrients.
16:24So I went to the kitchen.
16:26I found some ingredients
16:27and wanted to make him a light bowl of stewed soup.
16:31The live-in housekeeper,
16:33Mrs. Doyle,
16:34stood watching,
16:35her expression tight with disapproval.
16:37Mrs. Ashford,
16:38you can leave these things to us.
16:40You've likely never seen these ingredients before.
16:43It would be a waste if you ruined them.
16:46A maid next to her couldn't hold back a snuff.
16:49What could she possibly make?
16:51Coming from a rust-felt town,
16:53I bet she only knows how to boil cheap oatmeal.
17:00The year my mother was ill,
17:02I made soup for her many times.
17:05The heat had to be low,
17:07simmering it until tender,
17:09so it wouldn't upset the stomach.
17:12After the soup was ready,
17:14I carried the tray upstairs.
17:17Just as I reached Adrian's door,
17:19Mrs. Doyle hurried after me.
17:22Madam,
17:23Mr. Adrian's diet is strictly arranged by the nutritionist.
17:26Don't harm him with these things of unknown origins.
17:29I wake up to complain,
17:30so her disrespect was entirely unkized.
17:32The door suddenly opened from the inside.
17:34Adrian stood there,
17:35leaning on the door porm.
17:36She is the lady of the Ashford estate.
17:38Under what authority are you stopping her from entering my room?
17:40Sir, I was just worried.
17:42He had no patience to hear her finish,
17:44and indifferently instructed Ethan.
17:46Check the kitchen security footage.
17:48Fire anyone who said an ugly word to Evelyn today.
17:50Yes, sir.
17:54Mrs. Doyle turned deathly pale from terror,
17:56while Adrian took the bowl of soup.
17:59He sat back on the edge of the bed,
18:01drinking it in large swallows.
18:03By the end,
18:04even the bottom of the bowl was clean.
18:07Evelyn,
18:08in the Ashford estate,
18:10you never have to swallow your egregious.
18:12He paused,
18:13a very faint smile surfacing in his eyes.
18:16You are my wife.
18:18I will always protect you.
18:20In this cold old house,
18:22a light was finally willing to shine for me.
18:27When spring arrived,
18:29Adrian began regular physical therapy.
18:31The snow in the courtyard hadn't entirely melted,
18:34but new buds were already forming on the branches.
18:36He walked in the corridor of the medical wing.
18:39I supported his arm,
18:40walking even more tensely than he did.
18:44Afraid I'll fall?
18:45I nodded.
18:46He shifted his cane to his other hand
18:49and gently brushed my fingertips.
18:51I'll walk slowly,
18:52so don't be afraid.
18:54Slowly,
18:54he was able to walk to the gardens.
18:57When the wind blew,
18:59he would stop to catch his breath
19:01by the white rose trekkly.
19:05Eleanor was so delighted
19:06that she sent things to my room almost every day.
19:09I didn't dare accept them,
19:11afraid that fate had once again
19:13secretly attached a price laid.
19:17But Adrian accepted them on my behalf.
19:19You're not just boarding here.
19:21There's no need to be so reserved.
19:22From then on,
19:24he taught me many things.
19:26Recognizing vocabulary,
19:28researching information,
19:29and even reading legal contracts.
19:33Sometimes when he was tired,
19:35he would lean back on the sofa
19:36and close his eyes to rest.
19:38I would then copy everything
19:40he had just taught into my notebook.
19:42I learned extremely fast,
19:44and he would encourage me.
19:46Evelyn is very smart.
19:47It's just that no one gave you the chance before.
19:50It wasn't long before Ray came knocking.
19:54He brought Linda,
19:56making a scene all the way to the estate's main gate,
19:58when the security guards blocked him.
20:01I am Evelyn's biological father.
20:04My daughter married into the Ashford family
20:06and is the lady of the house.
20:08On what grounds are you keeping me out?
20:15Adrian was at physical therapy in the medical wing.
20:18Eleanor initially had them brought into the formal sitting room,
20:21wanting to save me some face.
20:25But the moment Ray walked in,
20:27he crushed all dignity.
20:30He looking around with wide eyes,
20:32then put on an act and sighed.
20:39He said I had a hard life since childhood,
20:41and my mother dies early.
20:43How difficult it was for him to raise me all by himself.
20:47Eleanor's face darkened,
20:49but Ray didn't even notice.
20:51Evelyn can't speak and doesn't have any skills.
20:54For her to marry Mr. Adrian
20:56is thanks to the good morm of the Quinn ancestors.
21:01Now that she's moved up in the world,
21:03she can't ignore her blood relatives.
21:05I stood at the top of the stairs,
21:06my face gradually turning pale.
21:08Those words weren't new,
21:10but spoken in front of them,
21:11it still felt like being stripped naked in public.
21:13Eleanor turned around and noticed me.
21:17She dropped all pretend of civility.
21:19Mr. Quinn,
21:20you didn't give your daughter away in marriage.
21:23You signed an NDA
21:24and sold her for a clearly marked price,
21:26and now you're trying to extort the Ashvin family?
21:34In law?
21:35That's an ugly way to put it.
21:37I...
21:37Eleanor had already issued the order to revict them.
21:40From today on,
21:41if you harass my daughter in life again
21:43in the name of family,
21:44I will have security physically remove you,
21:46and my legal team sue you for extortion.
21:48But we're her blood relatives.
21:51Her home is here.
21:53What kind of family are you?
21:54Get out!
21:59You ungrateful little bitch!
22:02We raised you,
22:03and this is how you repay us?
22:05As he left,
22:05he cursed me for being ungrateful.
22:07I'd gotten ahead
22:08and turned my back on where I came from.
22:11Eleanor pulled my shoal snug around me,
22:13restoring her gentle demeanor.
22:16In the future,
22:18you don't have to see people like them.
22:20She was genuinely aching for me,
22:21because her eyes looked so much like my mother's.
22:24When news of Adrian's recovery got out,
22:27Charlotte returned from abroad.
22:29She was once the person closest to Adrian during his youth.
22:33After his accident,
22:34someone in the family had sounded out the Sinclairs about a marriage.
22:38The Sinclair family refused quickly.
22:39No one wanted to marry their daughter to a dying man.
22:42Now,
22:43Charlotte had come calling with gifts.
22:45Eleanor saw right through her intentions,
22:47her attitude lukewarm at best.
22:49Yet Charlotte still found an opportunity to see me alone.
22:52She stood in the sunroom,
22:54her tone soft.
22:58Miss Quinn,
22:59you must know that Adrian only married you out of desperation during a critical time,
23:04resorting to superstition.
23:06He has always preferred educated, sophisticated girls with polish.
23:12And that we're liven.
23:14Yeah, I don't know that I know it's...
23:18You can't speak,
23:19and you don't understand his world.
23:21Once he's completely recovered,
23:24your continued presence by his side will only make everyone embarrassed.
23:28At a time when I should have been angry,
23:30I suddenly panicked,
23:31because his face was also gradually becoming blurry to me,
23:35and I was terrified I wouldn't be able to hold on to even this shred of warmth.
23:39A few days later,
23:41the uncle's collateral branch hosted a dinner party.
23:44During the dinner,
23:45someone deliberately asked me to give a toast.
23:47Mrs. Ashford is a mute.
23:49Why not write a few words for us to see?
23:52I heard that kind of ritual is very effective.
23:54If you're really that capable,
23:56why not make Adrian recover completely by tomorrow?
23:59Isn't he still Bedrin?
24:03Why do you always tease the country girl?
24:05She doesn't even understand.
24:07Surrounded in the middle,
24:08I felt as if I were back in the post,
24:10being mocked by the crowd.
24:12Suddenly,
24:13a loud noise echoed from the doorway.
24:15Adrian,
24:16dressed in a casual suit,
24:17had rushed over.
24:19His gaze was cold and clear,
24:20without a hint of decay.
24:22With one sweeping glance,
24:23the entire hall fell dead silent.
24:28He walked slowly to stand in front of me.
24:31My wife is not here for your amusement.
24:33Whoever embarrasses her again can get the hell out of the Ashford family.
24:37I stared blankly at his back.
24:39Like my mother,
24:40he was a man of his word.
24:41He truly would protect me?
24:43He didn't ask for anything in return,
24:45nor did he question whether I possessed the right pedigree.
24:48Simply because I was Evelyn.
24:50Adrian purged swiftly against the collateral branch.
24:53He was ill,
24:54but not weak in the slightest.
24:55For several consecutive days,
24:57Ethan and the legal team swept through various properties,
24:59making examples of the offenders.
25:01From then on,
25:02no one dared to look down on me.
25:04Adrian started taking me out.
25:06He took me to Chinatown for dumpling soup.
25:09The shop was tiny.
25:11The glass windows fogged with steam.
25:13When the dumpling soup arrived,
25:15he pushed the saucer of vinegar towards me.
25:17You should like this.
25:19I lowered my head and took a taste.
25:21It was so hot,
25:22it numbed the tip of my tongue,
25:24but I still couldn't resist eating another one.
25:27Adrian smiled.
25:28Slow down.
25:29We can order more if it's not enough.
25:31He also took me to stroll through the markets.
25:34I loved listening to the vendors shouting their wares.
25:37He bought me a paper cone of roasted cheanuts.
25:40The paper bagged was hot,
25:42but holding it in my hands,
25:43I couldn't bear to let go.
25:44He just stood beside me,
25:46peeling them for me one by one.
25:48In that moment,
25:49I thought,
25:50I must have fallen in love with Adrian.
25:52His body gradually improved.
25:55From only being able to walk for 10 minutes,
25:57to being able to come downstairs for breakfast.
26:01Everyone changed their tune,
26:03praising the magic of the spiritual marriage
26:04and saying I was blessed.
26:07Only I knew it wasn't a blessing.
26:09It was traded for my spoken words,
26:11and the toll was beginning to show.
26:14My memory was getting worse and worse.
26:18One day,
26:18I stopped in the middle of the corridor.
26:21I suddenly couldn't remember which room was the bedroom.
26:27When Adrian found me,
26:29I was gripping the hem of my shirt,
26:31trembling.
26:35Evelyn,
26:36I'll help you look for it.
26:37Later,
26:38small labels were put up outside every room in the estate.
26:41Written on the master bedroom door
26:43was Evelyn and Adrian's home.
26:45Something ached deep in my chest,
26:47and I couldn't help but shed tears as I looked at it.
26:50Adrian also prepared many little notebooks for me.
26:52Some to write down daily trivia,
26:55some to note the names of family members,
26:58and one exclusively for things between the two of us.
27:01On the title page,
27:02he had written in his own hand,
27:04I am Adrian.
27:06If one day forget you forget me,
27:08I will walk up to you and introduce myself all over again.
27:12When Eleanor realized my memory was fading,
27:14she cried in secret several times.
27:16I saw her staring blankly into the garden,
27:19dabbing her tears endlessly with a handkerchief.
27:21She even went to see that spiritual advisor.
27:24After returning,
27:25she remained silent for a long time.
27:30That night,
27:31she came to find me.
27:32This historically dominicing woman stood at my door,
27:36seemingly afraid to come in.
27:38I typed on my phone,
27:39it's not your fault.
27:41After Eleanor read it,
27:42her eyes grew red again.
27:44She cared for me as if I were her own biological daughter.
27:49I wasn't used to being cared for like this,
27:52yet,
27:52as if trying to make amends,
27:54she wanted to give me the best of everything.
27:56During lunch,
27:57she suddenly put down her silverwares.
28:01Evelyn,
28:03when I brought you into the estate,
28:04I had my own selfish motives.
28:06I was afraid Adrian would die all alone,
28:09and I was afraid that after his death,
28:10the collateral branch would fight for power
28:12and no one would protect what he left behind.
28:14At that time,
28:15I never thought that you were just a poor,
28:17suffering child, too.
28:18I am sorry.
28:19I never expected someone like her
28:21to bow her head and admit fault.
28:24She held my hand,
28:25but it's different now.
28:27No matter what happens to Adrian in the future,
28:30whether you want to stay or go,
28:31the Ashford family will protect you.
28:35I slowly typed in my phone's memo app.
28:38Thank you, mother.
28:40This time,
28:41Eleanor couldn't hold back.
28:42She broke down and wept bitterly in front of me.
28:46When I returned to my room that night,
28:48Adrian was sitting on the edge of the bed
28:50waiting for me.
28:53Evelyn?
28:54I stopped and waited for him to speak.
29:00Adrian reached out,
29:01and gently pressed the back of my hand.
29:04From now on,
29:05you don't need to make exceptions for me.
29:07Put yourself first in everything.
29:10I don't know exactly what is happening to you,
29:13but I can sense that every time I get better,
29:16it doesn't come from nothing.
29:20If the toll falls on you,
29:22then I would rather not have it.
29:24My eyes grew hot,
29:25and I shook my head vigorously.
29:27No!
29:28You being alive is the best response
29:30I have ever received.
29:31I couldn't shout out loud.
29:33I only dared bury love deep in my heart.
29:36Adrian leaned in and hugged me,
29:38his voice trembling.
29:40Please don't make another wish for me.
29:44I want to live,
29:45but I don't want to live at the cost of your life.
29:50The unconditional favoritism he gave me,
29:52the silhouette of his back as he shielded me,
29:55these things should remain in my memory,
29:57never to be erased.
29:59But fate never asked if I was willing.
30:01It only cared about taking.
30:04Half a year later,
30:06Adrian officially returned to Ashford Biotech.
30:10As the head of the Neuro Regeneration Project,
30:13he attended the corporate launch Bala.
30:15All of Boston watched Adrian take the stage once more,
30:18standing tall.
30:19In a black suit,
30:20he was composed and sharp,
30:22every inch of him restored to his former edge.
30:24He commanded an even more intimidating presence than before.
30:27When the cameras panned over him,
30:29the audience fell briefly silent.
30:31Everyone knew that doctors had once declared this man
30:34had at most three months left.
30:36Yet now,
30:37he stood under the spotlight,
30:39explaining the latest technology with utmost clarity.
30:43Because of this,
30:44some in elite circles could no longer sit still.
30:46With him back at the summit,
30:48I became an eyesal.
30:57His family is just grateful for her bedside care.
30:59Are they really going to let her be the lady of the house
31:02for the rest of her life?
31:03Adrian will divorce her sooner or later.
31:06While reviewing the consortium's project documents,
31:09I accidentally saw these online comments.
31:11Adrian had taught me.
31:13Other people's slighting remarks
31:15were not the truth about me.
31:17As for whether I was worthy,
31:19that certainly wasn't for them to decide.
31:22Therefore, I wasn't angry.
31:24The launch gala was my first time
31:26attending a public event as Adrian's wife.
31:28My evening gown was picked by Eleanor,
31:31a light, understated color.
31:34Nervous?
31:35Adrian helped me put on my earrings.
31:38I shook my head,
31:39though in truth I was terrified of embarrassing him.
31:43If there's anyone you don't want to deal with,
31:45just ignore them.
31:48The gala.
31:49Many people came up to make small talk,
31:51but their eyes couldn't hide their opposing scrutiny.
31:55Adrian was called away by corporate partners
31:57to discuss business.
31:58So I stood alone by the terrace.
32:01Before long, Camille walked over,
32:03holding a glass of champagne.
32:04She was the partner's daughter,
32:07stunning and vibrant.
32:09Miss Quinn,
32:10do you know what kind of person Adrian used to be?
32:17He won international awards
32:18while studying at an Ivy League university
32:21and took charge of major projects by 22.
32:24The people standing by his side
32:26were always the absolute elite.
32:29You can't speak.
32:31You have no degree and no pedigree.
32:33You can't even integrate into a circle.
32:35Don't you find it exhausting standing beside him?
32:39I took out my phone and slowly typed,
32:42Are you done?
32:43Camille gave a soft cot,
32:45raising her brows.
32:47You should go ask him
32:48instead of coming here to harass me.
32:50She probably never expected
32:51that someone like me would fight back.
32:54Charlotte approached right at that moment.
32:57She had likely heard about my failing memory
32:59and deliberately asked,
33:01Miss Quinn,
33:02do you still remember who I am?
33:04My mind was completely blank.
33:08Her name had sunk to the bottom of the water,
33:11impossible to dredge up.
33:13Charlotte noticed my hesitation,
33:15a gleam of triumphant pleasure flashing in her eyes.
33:19Can someone like you,
33:20who can't even remember faces,
33:22truly take care of Adrian?
33:24Or are you just clinging to that tiny bit of past favor,
33:27refusing to leave?
33:29I hurriedly opened my small notebook,
33:32trying to find her name.
33:33The pages rustled beneath my fingertips.
33:36The mockery from onlookers had already swarmed in.
33:39Evelyn, affection shouldn't be about extorting gratitude.
33:45Camille quickly chammed in.
33:47You simply don't deserve him!
33:50The jeering abruptly stopped.
33:52I saw Adrian walking over.
33:54I didn't know how much he had heard,
33:56but his eyes were cold and dark.
34:02He took off his jacket and raped him over my shoulders,
34:05then turned to the crowd.
34:07You are all wrong.
34:10She isn't clinging to me.
34:11It's that I am entirely incapable of leaving her.
34:15Adrian grasped my hand.
34:17She exhausted herself for taking care of me and fell a little ill.
34:21It doesn't matter what she forgets.
34:22I will tell her anew every single day.
34:24The position of Mrs. Ashburn has never been about who can speak,
34:28or who has the best pedigree.
34:29He put his arm around my shoulders.
34:32Snow melted away.
34:33And once again,
34:34I saw the new buds of spring in his eyes.
34:37I only want Evelyn Quinn.
34:42Therefore,
34:43our marriage will not be dissolved.
34:44In the future,
34:45all family benefits and assets linked to Ashford Biotech
34:47will be written solely in her name.
34:50For my entire life,
34:52she will be my one and only wife.
34:54In Charlotte,
34:54the wine glass trembled slightly.
34:57I too really felt that all the hold meals,
34:59hold glares,
35:00and bitterly cold nights
35:01I had twallowed over the years
35:03found an echo in disness and hate.
35:06Finally,
35:06someone was explicitly telling them,
35:09I was not someone left over.
35:11My throat felt as if it had been moistened by warm water.
35:14I didn't dare to speed's broke through my fear at this moment.
35:18I stood on my tiptoes,
35:20leaned close to his ear,
35:21and pushed myself to voice the words,
35:24Adrian,
35:25I love you.
35:29I might forget this gala,
35:31forget who Camille is,
35:33and what Charlotte said.
35:35But this frantic heartbeat right now,
35:38I wanted to fight to keep it forever.
35:41Adrian resumed his investigation into the car accident from back then.
35:45The car had plunged off the overpass,
35:48smashing through the guardrail,
35:50and flipping onto the access road below.
35:53The driver died on the spot.
35:54When Adrian was brought to the hospital,
35:56he had multiple fractures,
35:58severe nerve damage,
35:59and fell into a coma for nearly half a year.
36:02Everyone said it was an accident,
36:04but he never believed in coincidences.
36:07The investigation revealed,
36:09the braking system had been tampered with.
36:12A week before the crash,
36:14the driver's account had received an offshore wire transfer.
36:18The funds were routed through three layers,
36:21ultimately tracing back to an offshore shell company
36:24owned by the uncle's collacral branch.
36:30At that time,
36:31Ashford Biotech had core patents about to launch.
36:34Adrian was the project head.
36:36If it succeeded,
36:37all the power his uncle had cavately expanded
36:39on the corporate board over the years
36:41would be crushed back down.
36:43That was why he had his accident.
36:45After his coma,
36:47his uncle's branch
36:48sieved the opportunity
36:49to infiltrate the board.
36:51Under the guise of stabilizing the corporation,
36:54they took half of the consortium's empire.
36:56Now that Adrian was back alive,
36:58of course they panicked.
37:02And when they panicked,
37:04they started to bite.
37:06Not daring to attack Adrian headbond,
37:09they aimed their blades on me.
37:11Soon,
37:12many posts surfaced online.
37:14Claiming my father was a gambling addict
37:16and my family background was filthy.
37:19Claiming I had swindled the family
37:20through the supertitious means
37:22of a spiritual medium,
37:23causing Adrian to abandon
37:25a proper old money marriage.
37:26Ray went on camera
37:27and cursed me
37:28as a heartless res wretch
37:29who had been rotten since birth.
37:32Linda chimed in,
37:33wiping away fake tears
37:35and hinting that I had
37:36a bizarre personality.
37:38I was shoved into the center
37:39of the tabloid storm.
37:44It felt like being thrown
37:45into a black, freezing river,
37:47surrounded on all sides
37:48by voices condemning
37:49and humiliating me.
37:56Faced with the malice of strangers,
37:58I was momentarily speechless.
38:01Adrian had the viral headlines pulled
38:03and issued cease and desist letters.
38:05The uncle's branch
38:07quickly struck back
38:08by exploiting a procedural loophole
38:10in a comordium project.
38:11They planned to force him
38:13to hand over power
38:14at the corporate board meeting.
38:16Wait for me to come home for dinner.
38:20Before he left that morning,
38:22he smiled and reassured me.
38:26But what I waited for
38:27turned out to be
38:28a call from Ethan.
38:30At the board meeting,
38:32the collateral branch
38:32had used my identity
38:33as ammunition.
38:36They proposed that Adrian
38:37was compromised by my influence,
38:39his judgment impaired,
38:40and his post-illness
38:41mental state unstable,
38:42rendering him unfit
38:43to continue overseeing
38:44the consortium's core technologies.
38:45Adrian presented
38:46all sorts of evidence
38:48on the stant,
38:49turning the tables on them.
38:50Yet as he was leaving,
38:52the elevator suddenly malfunctioned.
38:55It was the exact same method
38:57as before.
39:11Adrian's trauma response
39:12erupted again,
39:13his heart rate plummeting.
39:15By the time I rushed
39:16to the hospital,
39:16he had already been taken
39:18into the emergency room.
39:20Eleanor had one hand
39:21against the wall,
39:22fighting hard not to collapse.
39:24Madam,
39:25the doctors say
39:26you need to prepare
39:27for the worst.
39:27The first wish
39:28merely pulled Adrian back
39:30from the edge of death.
39:31But someone still
39:32wanted him dead.
39:33The ER doors
39:34opened a crank.
39:35A nurse came out
39:37with a critical condition notice
39:38for the family to sign.
39:40I suddenly remembered
39:41that night
39:41when he held me
39:42and gently urged,
39:43I want to live,
39:45but I don't want to live
39:46at the cost of your life.
39:47If I didn't speak now,
39:49he truly would have
39:50no hope left.
39:51Then what meaning
39:52would my life have anyway?
39:54My throat ached
39:55as if it were splitting apart
39:57as I heard myself say,
39:59Adrian, you must come back
40:00safe and sound!
40:05As soon as the words fell,
40:07it was as if someone
40:08had hit the mute button
40:09on the world.
40:10Eleanor was shouting for me.
40:12Ethan rushed over
40:13to hold me up.
40:14The paper in the nurse's hand
40:16fluttered to the floor.
40:17I could see their lips moving,
40:19but I couldn't hear
40:20a single thing.
40:22The light above the ER went out
40:24and the doctor
40:24pushed the door open.
40:26He said a great deal.
40:28I saw him take off his mask,
40:30his expression finally relaxing.
40:32I felt like I was standing
40:33in a silent blizzard,
40:35everyone drifting further
40:36and further away.
40:38And then the world spun
40:40and I plummeted into darkness.
40:43When I opened my eyes,
40:45I saw a young man
40:46sitting by the bed.
40:48Even frowning,
40:49he looked handsome.
40:50Evelyn.
40:51Realizing I was awake,
40:52his eyes instantly crinkled
40:54into a smile.
40:55I didn't have much of a reaction,
40:57continuing to study him.
40:59The man's face was pale,
41:01his features gentle,
41:02but I didn't know him.
41:03I shrank back,
41:05my voice horsky and dry.
41:07Who are you?
41:11That sliver of light in his eyes
41:13instantly shattered
41:14without a sound.
41:15Yet very quickly,
41:17he forced a smile
41:17back onto his face.
41:20My name is Adrian.
41:21I am your husband.
41:23It's okay.
41:23Don't be afraid.
41:25I'll take my time
41:26and tell you everything.
41:26The uncle's family
41:27was taken away by the police.
41:29The truth of the car accident
41:31was made public.
41:32Adrian reclaimed
41:33absolute control
41:34of the consortium.
41:35Those who used to stand by
41:37and watch the spectacle
41:38changed their tune.
41:39They said I was lucky
41:40and Adrian was so devoted.
41:43The suffering had passed
41:44and the sweetness had arrived.
41:46It seemed the ending
41:48should be perfectly whole,
41:50but the truly agonizing days
41:52were only just beginning.
41:53I had completely forgotten Adrian.
41:57I remembered Briar Creek.
41:59I still remembered
42:00that Ray sold me.
42:01But all memories regarding love
42:03had been utterly erased by fate.
42:06When Eleanor came to see me,
42:07she also felt like a stranger.
42:11I watched her hesitate to speak,
42:13holding back tears.
42:15My heart felt like a piece was missing,
42:17but I didn't know why it inked.
42:21Mother, Adrian, Eleanor,
42:24the people who had once
42:25made me feel warm
42:26had all vanished from my memory.
42:31Every morning, Adrian would sit by my bed
42:34and gently introduce himself.
42:35Good morning, Evelyn.
42:36My name is Adrian.
42:38I am your husband,
42:38and I love you very much.
42:40The first time,
42:41I retreated in fear,
42:42and he stopped instantly.
42:44Okay, I won't come closer.
42:46The second time,
42:47I frowned at him.
42:50He placed our marriage certificate
42:52and photos on the table,
42:54not forcing me to look at them.
42:55The 30th time,
42:56I finally asked him,
42:58Doing this every day,
43:00aren't you tired?
43:01Adrian smiled slightly.
43:03Not at all.
43:05Being able to meet you all over again
43:06is my good luck.
43:10Later, he took me out for dumpling soup.
43:13The shop was in an old alley,
43:15steam fogging up the glass.
43:17Used to like adding a bit more.
43:19He pushed the vinegar towards me.
43:21I frowned at the sourness,
43:22and he poured me half a glass of warm water.
43:25He took me to the market
43:26to buy paper bags of roasted chestnuts.
43:29Used to complain they were too hot,
43:31yet couldn't bear to let them go.
43:33Holding the paper bag,
43:34watching the steam rise through my fingers,
43:36I still felt a sense of unfamiliarness,
43:39yet I didn't dislike it.
43:40He took me to see the white roses in the courtyard.
43:44He said one of the bushes was planted by me,
43:46and its name was Snowdrop.
43:48I crouched before the pot.
43:50The blooms weren't spectacularly beautiful,
43:52but they had been exceptionally well cared for.
43:55At first, I always felt Adrian was simply
43:58an overly patient stranger.
43:59But gradually, I got used to him appearing every day.
44:02Got used to him looking at me earnestly
44:04when I felt uneasy, telling me,
44:06I will not leave you behind.
44:07However times you forget,
44:09I will tell you again.
44:11I opened those small notebooks.
44:14Adrian is wonderful.
44:15He doesn't love me out of guilt.
44:17If one day I forget,
44:19please try to believe him,
44:21believe him one more time.
44:22I will definitely fall in love with him all over again.
44:25Those words were clearly written by me,
44:28yet they felt like a letter left by someone else.
44:31Did I really love you that much before?
44:37Yes, but that doesn't matter.
44:39The you of right now can decide all over again
44:41whether you want to keep loving me.
44:45He respected the me of every single moment.
44:50Even if I might leave at any second,
44:52he refused to imprison me.
44:55Many years later, my memory was still poor.
44:58I would forget the date,
44:59or whether I had just watered the flowers.
45:02Waking up on certain mornings,
45:04I would gaze quietly at Adrian in a trance.
45:07He would hold my hand,
45:09just like when he was young.
45:10My name is Adrian.
45:12I am your husband, and I love you.
45:14He handed the consortant over to trusted aides,
45:17carving out more time to stay by my side.
45:23We lived by the sea,
45:25and in the mountains,
45:26and we even returned to Breer Creek.
45:28The old bulletin board had long been torn down.
45:32That notice seeking a spiritual marriage
45:35from all those years ago
45:36felt like an absurd old dream.
45:39I stood at the entrance to the town,
45:41looking at the widened street.
45:43Did I want to leave this place very badly back then?
45:46Adrian squeezed my hand.
45:48Yes.
45:49Did I leave in the end?
45:51He looked down at me,
45:53a very gentle light in his eyes.
45:54You left,
45:55and we went to many places.
45:57We saw deep oceans and snowy mountains,
45:59and ultimately,
46:00you stayed by my side until today.
46:03I leaned softly against his shoulder.
46:06No matter how much time passed,
46:08I would never be able to remember
46:10the entirety of my past.
46:13But this life was entirely worth it.
46:18Epilogue, Adrian's Perspective
46:20The Boston winter covered the city lightly,
46:22like raven feathers.
46:24Ethan handed me the file.
46:26The marriage candidate, Madam found.
46:28Name, Evelyn Quinn.
46:30Age, 22.
46:31Origin, Breyer Creek.
46:33Natal chart attached.
46:38In just a few thin pages,
46:40she wasn't written like a human being,
46:41but as data.
46:43Whether I had three months left
46:45was highly up to heaven's will.
46:46Was my mother truly gonna drag her
46:48into my deadly trap.
46:50She had been tough her whole life,
46:51since I could remember
46:52she was the most cold-blooded leader
46:54of Ashford Biotech.
46:55Only when facing me
46:57did she utterly collapse.
46:59Adrian,
47:00Mom just wants to try one more time.
47:03I didn't blame her.
47:06When people are pushed
47:08to the absolute brink,
47:09they will always grasp
47:10at irrational things.
47:12Her fear of losing her son
47:14didn't mean someone else
47:16had to lose their life.
47:17So before Evelyn even walked
47:19through the door,
47:20I had already arranged everything.
47:23As long as she wanted to leave,
47:25no one in the family
47:26could stop her.
47:28Lying in bed,
47:29I heard the brief sounds
47:30of the ritual downstairs.
47:32She was led in by the butler,
47:34wearing an ill-fitted white dress.
47:39That night,
47:40I was actually on the verge
47:41of giving out.
47:42I could clearly feel
47:43my body sinking.
47:45Like a receding tide
47:47exposing the desolate riverbed.
47:49The taste of blood
47:50welled up in my throat,
47:51yet all I could think of
47:53was letting her go.
47:57Then,
47:57I heard her voice.
48:01Adrian!
48:02You must live!
48:04As light as rain
48:05falling on a windowsill,
48:06yet it pulled me back
48:07from that cooling,
48:08dark night,
48:09helping me reclaim
48:10my vitality.
48:11For many days after,
48:12I told myself
48:13it was a hallucination.
48:14A dying man
48:15would likely hear voices
48:16that didn't exist.
48:18My body gradually recovered.
48:24My mother said
48:25her prayers
48:25were finally not in vain,
48:27but I grew
48:27increasingly uneasy
48:29because Evelyn
48:30started forgetting things.
48:32She was always
48:33looking anxiously
48:34at the room signs,
48:35like a lost child.
48:37When I walked over,
48:39she immediately
48:40hid her panic.
48:44I researched
48:45countless materials
48:46and asked many doctors.
48:47I even went to see
48:48scholars who studied
48:49parapsychology.
48:50The wishes of certain
48:51individuals can interfere
48:52with reality,
48:53but such interference
48:54always demand a toll.
48:56Outside the window,
48:57the traffic flowed endlessly,
48:58my mind in turmoil.
49:01So fate hadn't shown me
49:02great mercy at all.
49:03It was her bearing
49:04the sprunt of it for me.
49:07Sometimes,
49:08love is not a sudden,
49:10overwhelming flood.
49:11It's more like
49:12a fine, steady dribble.
49:14At first,
49:15it merely lands
49:16on your shoulders.
49:18By the time you realize
49:19it, your entire heart
49:20is soaked through.
49:23I tried hard
49:24to shower her
49:25with favoritism.
49:28She had been mistreated
49:29by the world
49:30for too long,
49:31so I wanted more than anything
49:32to let her know
49:32that being loved
49:33is not something
49:34that requires paying a price.
49:36When my uncle
49:37made a move against me,
49:38I was actually prepared for it.
49:40I had found the evidence
49:42of the car crash,
49:43and I had set a trap.
49:45But I never expected
49:47them to strike again
49:48right after the board meeting.
49:49The moment the elevator plunged,
49:51my body remembered
49:52the car crash
49:53before my mind did.
49:54The loss of control
49:55in a confined space,
49:57the sound of grinding metal,
49:58all of it forced me
49:59to face death directly.
50:00When we met again,
50:02she had forgotten me.
50:03I hated my own life
50:05with a passion
50:06for causing her
50:07to suffer once again.
50:08Many people said
50:09Evelyn was lucky
50:10that marrying into
50:11the Ashford family
50:12had changed her fate.
50:14Every time I heard that,
50:15I found it laughable.
50:16The one whose fate
50:17was truly changed
50:17was me.
50:18I paved the road
50:19for her to study,
50:20to seek treatment,
50:20to start her life anew.
50:21I hired the best doctors
50:22and psychologists
50:23and set aside
50:24enough assets for her,
50:25all written exclusively
50:26in her name.
50:27I wanted her to be able
50:28to live well,
50:28even if one day
50:29she left me.
50:31Every morning,
50:31I sat by her bed,
50:32keeping just the right
50:33amount of distance.
50:35Good morning, Evelyn.
50:37My name is Adrian.
50:38I am your husband
50:39and I love you very much.
50:43She forgot the bond
50:44between us
50:45that transcended
50:45life and death,
50:46but she was still
50:47the very same Evelyn.
50:48She would stop
50:49when she saw a stray cat,
50:50quietly push the carrot
50:51she didn't like
50:52to the edge of her bowl,
50:53and cup chestnuts
50:53at the market,
50:54blowing on them carefully.
50:55She wasn't a replica
50:56of the past,
50:57nor the lover
50:57from my memory
50:58who absolutely had to return.
51:00I wouldn't demand
51:01she remember me,
51:02so when she asked me,
51:03I gave her the power
51:04to choose.
51:05Humans are always greedy.
51:07I also wanted her
51:08to remember everything,
51:10especially her standing
51:11on Tipso to tell me,
51:12but compared to having
51:13her remember,
51:14I wished even more
51:15for her to be free.
51:16She had already lost
51:17too much because of me.
51:19I could not let love
51:20turn into yet another
51:21form of extortion.
51:23I took her to eat
51:24dumpling soup,
51:25to buy roasted chestnuts,
51:27to look at the white rose bush
51:29named Snowdrop.
51:31Every single time,
51:32I treated it as the first time.
51:34If the things of the past
51:35couldn't be kept,
51:36then I would simply
51:37give them to her
51:37all over again.
51:38I had a long enough lifetime
51:40to slowly pay her back.
51:44Many years later,
51:46I still remember
51:46that very first night.
51:48The faint sounds
51:48of the monitors in the room,
51:50the rain falling
51:51outside the window,
51:52Evelyn opening her mouth
51:53to save me
51:54for the first time.
51:55Countless times,
51:56I thought,
51:56if time could rewind,
51:57I must never let her
51:59speak those words,
52:00yet if she hadn't spoken them,
52:01I would never have had
52:02the chance to love her.
52:04This is the most painful,
52:05yet most cherished
52:06paradox of my life.
52:08Even later on,
52:09we both grew old.
52:10My condition had long
52:11since stabilized,
52:12though I was still weaker
52:13than an average person.
52:14I'd cough when the weather
52:15turned cold,
52:16and my old injuries
52:17would ache faintly
52:18before the rain.
52:19Evelyn's memory
52:20remained poor.
52:21Our home was covered
52:21in labels everywhere.
52:23Waking up in the early morning,
52:24she gazed at me quietly
52:25for a long time again.
52:27This happened often.
52:28She would briefly forget
52:29who I was,
52:30unable to tell
52:31which year it was today.
52:32I was already used to it.
52:34My name is Adrian.
52:36I am your husband,
52:37and I love you.
52:38But Evelyn suddenly smiled.
52:40That I remember.
52:42I was stunned,
52:43and she slowly added
52:44another sentence.
52:46You've said it for a lifetime.
52:48The sunlight streamed in
52:49through the window,
52:50soothing my heart.
52:51It turned out that fate
52:52wasn't cruel every single time.
52:53It had taken away
52:54many of her memories,
52:55but it had left me a lifetime
52:56to articulate my love
52:58to her over and over again.
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