ログイン“Claire, calm down. Don’t force yourself to dwell on the past. Take a deep breath, and exhale slowly. Come on, you can do it,” Paul said, giving her instructions to help her regain her composure.Claire followed the doctor’s advice, just as she had done when she was with Arsen. “Do you feel calmer now?” Paul asked.“My head is spinning so badly,” Claire complained, holding the side of her head.“Alright, you should rest for now. We’ll resume the therapy tomorrow,” Paul said as he took a small syringe filled with clear liquid and injected it into Claire’s arm. “Now we should all leave this room so Claire can rest and clear her mind,” Paul suggested as he packed up his equipment. Leo smiled at Claire briefly, then left the room, followed by Andreo.“You have to be strong, Claire. You have to believe that you can control your alter egos so the therapy process succeeds quickly. The most important thing is to confront James, and you’ll find peace within your heart. Be certain that you a
“Emily! How dare you, James!” Leo shouted as he lunged at James, but he was too slow—James immediately parried Leo’s attack. Andreo hugged James from behind and locked his arms, but James was so strong that Andreo’s energy was immediately drained. Meanwhile, the blond man quickly found the crook of James’s arm and jabbed the syringe there, causing James to curse angrily and rail against the blond man. “Leo, help me! I can’t take it anymore!” Andreo’s muffled scream left Leo momentarily torn between choosing Emily or helping the man. But in the end, he chose to help Andreo. “Paul, please take Emily to the hospital,” Leo pleaded as he helped Andreo restrain James’s thrashing. “No, you’re the one who has to take her. That way I can treat Claire as soon as possible,” Paul replied, holding back James’s increasingly frantic movements.Leo finally obeyed Paul’s words. He hurried over to Emily and untied the rope binding her body. He didn’t dare pull out the knife—it would only make thi
Right now, Emily's body was tied to a wooden chair with rope. Rose just smiled amusedly at Emily’s reaction, then walked back to the red sofa in the corner of the room.“Damn you!” Emily cursed, still unable to free herself from the ropes.Rose turned to face Emily, laughing derisively. “Go to hell!” Emily shouted angrily, breathing heavily.“If you want to come along,” Rose replied casually as she approached Emily. “Do you still love Arsen?” she asked once she was right in front of Emily, bending down so she was eye-level with her. “Of course! I’d have Arsen in a heartbeat if only Claire, that slut, hadn’t stolen him!” Emily shouted loudly.Rose immediately straightened up, and the atmosphere turned silent. For a moment, Emily thought the girl had finally come to her senses, but she was wrong. Rose stared at her with a cold gaze and a blank expression. The sight immediately reminded her of two previous incidents that had successfully driven her paranoid. There was no movement from
Arsen’s eyes widened at her question, then he burst out laughing. He immediately hugged Claire again. “No, you don’t need surgery. You have to believe in yourself—that you’re strong, stronger than all your alter egos—so you can control them.” “If I may ask, what are my alter egos like? I was once spoken to by a Dutch student in his native language, but I didn’t understand a word. He said that I’d often spoken to him in Dutch before,” Claire asked, pulling away from Arsen’s embrace. “That’s your alter ego named Rose. She’s Dutch, 24 years old, and flirty.” Arsen stopped speaking when he saw Claire’s eyes widen and her mouth drop open. “You’re joking! She’s flirty? Flirty… flirty like… like to tease…” Claire’s face flushed instantly when she saw Arsen nod. “Did… did she ever tease you?” Claire asked, biting her lip.“Eh? That… umm…” Arsen was at a loss for words, so he rubbed the back of his neck to hide his awkwardness. “Ahem, let’s move on to the next alter ego. His name is James,
“Claire! Claire, hey! I’m here, don’t be afraid. There’s no one here but the two of us.” Arsen clasped her hand with both of his, realizing that Claire was starting to get scared again. “Come on, let’s talk over there on that white sofa, while we enjoy the red-leaved trees on this sunny Sunday.” Claire could only comply as Arsen pulled her toward the long white sofa near the glass wall. He positioned the sofa facing the wall so they could chat while taking in the view outside the apartment.“Actually, I’ve felt this way for a very long time. It feels like I’ve missed out on so much. When I fell asleep at age 10, I suddenly woke up at age 15. I didn’t even realize my living situation had changed. As far as I remember, I used to live in Russia, then my father kicked me out, and suddenly I was in Jerez, then Australia, Brooklyn, and finally here. I didn’t dare tell anyone about all that. I was afraid they’d think I was crazy, since I could move places on my own without realizing it.”
Arsen rested his head on the steering wheel after parking his car in the apartment basement. After waking up with his whole body aching and catching Rose returning around 3 a.m., he decided to stay in the car and wait. He should have just ended it all and gone back to living a normal life. He wouldn’t have to feel paranoid when Claire was in his apartment, wouldn’t have to be startled when she suddenly turned into a different person, and wouldn’t have to deal with love anymore.But he couldn’t just walk away from it all, walk away from that girl. After all, ever since Claire and her alter egos had arrived, his perspective on life had begun to shift, little by little. He no longer felt bored with his life, no longer hated autumn, and had begun to forgive his father, even though it was very difficult. So why should he leave that girl just because she has alter egos? If Claire could choose, she would surely want to live happily with her family, not be seen as strange or crazy, and be a
"I knew you’d be captivated by her too." Leo’s voice drew Arsen’s attention to the girl. "Who is she?" Arsen asked curiously. "Her name is Rose. She’s every man’s fantasy. But none of those men have ever felt her body," Leo explained, his gaze fixed on Rose. The girl sat at the bar counter, s
A 25-year-old young man was looking out at the row of high-rise buildings through the glass walls of his apartment on Northwest Park Avenue. The autumn chill didn’t make him shiver at all, even though he was currently wearing only a thin gray T-shirt. His gaze shifted to the polished wooden floor
Rose looked at her blood-stained hands. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, but then rolled her eyes in boredom. "Always such a hassle," she muttered irritably. "I told you I hate seeing blood. Why is he so annoying and stubborn?" She stepped over Albert’s battered body, wearing a look of disgust w
The deafening din of the music did nothing to disturb a beautiful girl dressed entirely in black. She walked like a Victoria’s Secret model with blonde wig and lips painted a deep maroon. Her elegant, confident stride carried her toward the bar which already crowded with patrons at one of Portland







