Chapter 3: A Fate's Joke...

For every other thing the doctor said or did, I didn’t pay attention — my mind was spinning too fast, like I was stuck in a dream I couldn’t wake from.

So… it really does exist. Rebirth.

Though I had read a few of those “reborn” stories online, I’d never truly believed they could happen in real life. And yet here I was — lying in a hospital bed, in someone else’s body. My body felt light, fragile, and foreign, but my thoughts were my own.

The only relief was that I was still in the same world — not some parallel dimension or fantasy realm with magic. I was still here, in the same city, maybe even the same timeline.

But if my soul had entered this body… what happened to my body? Was it lying lifeless on the street, hit by that trailer? Did anyone find me? Did my boyfriend, Caleb, know what happened?

My chest ached at the thought. I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly. Now wasn’t the time to think about that. If all those rebirth stories I’d read had taught me anything, it was survival — pretend to be the person whose life you’re now living. Pretend until you understand everything.

If I claimed to have amnesia, that would explain all the confusion and the questions I couldn’t answer.

I opened my eyes again as the doctor stood beside me, holding a chart and listening to my chest.

“Your vital organs seem to be doing fine,” he said, moving the stethoscope from my chest and placing it around his neck. His voice sounded relieved. “We’ll proceed with a full medical examination soon.”

He smiled politely, but there was something studying in his gaze — a kind of curiosity I couldn’t quite describe.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Doctor’s POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When the nurse rushed into my office screaming, “Doctor! He’s awake! The Pendragon boy is awake!” — I almost didn’t believe her.

After all, this was the same nurse who had cried three months ago after thinking the patient’s fingers twitched. Not that it wasn’t possible for someone in a coma to wake after years, but nine years? It was nearly impossible.

But as I walked into the room and saw the boy’s eyes open, I froze. He was awake.

Staring at him now, with his dark lashes trembling and his lips moving slightly, I found myself believing that maybe miracles really do exist.

Eli Pendragon — the boy who had been in a coma since the age of ten after a devastating car crash that killed his mother — was finally awake.

For a moment, I simply stared at his face. He was beautiful, almost unnervingly so. There was a gentle calmness about him, even in his confusion. I sighed softly, unable to stop the emotion rising in my chest.

With the severity of his accident, it was almost expected that he’d suffer memory loss, maybe even full amnesia. His head trauma had been extensive, and for years, we’d advised the family to prepare for the worst.

But they hadn’t given up. Especially his father. Nathan Pendragon had refused to pull the plug even when we suggested it. He’d said, “My son will wake up. I don’t care how long it takes.”

And he was right.

“Ho… how old am I?” the boy asked softly, voice trembling.

I smiled faintly, keeping my tone gentle. “You’re nineteen.”

His brows furrowed, confusion clouding his face.

“You’re wondering why you look younger, right?” I asked, already anticipating the question. “That’s because you had an accident when you were ten. You’ve been in a coma for nine years. Your body stopped growing at ten.”

I tried to explain it in a way he could understand, though I doubted he truly could. To him, this must feel like waking up in another lifetime.

~~~~~~~~~~~Eli’s POV~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wait. What the hell? This body is nineteen?

I totally thought it belonged to a ten-year-old. But… that actually made sense. If he had been in a coma since he was ten, then it was natural that his growth would stop.

Still, nineteen? That meant… this boy — or now me — had missed almost an entire decade of life.

Before I could process any further, the door burst open.

A man in his late thirties or early forties entered the room in a rush. He wore a perfectly tailored suit, the kind that screamed money and power. His presence filled the space instantly — tall, broad-shouldered, and confident, but his eyes… his eyes were trembling with emotion.

He froze when he saw me awake. For a moment, he didn’t speak. Then, slowly, he walked toward me, his hand shaking slightly.

“My child…” his voice cracked as he spoke. “You’re awake.”

He moved closer until he was standing right beside my bed. His hand lifted, trembling, before brushing the side of my face gently.

I blinked up at him, confused. And then it clicked. That face. I’d seen that face before — in magazines, on TV, even in the posters on the wall of the orphanage library.

The CEO of Apex Holdings, the same company I had dreamed of working for.

What was he doing here? Why was he calling me his child?,My mind spun in confusion, but he was already speaking again.

“My son…” he whispered, voice trembling with relief. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this day.”

I stared at him blankly, unable to say a word. Son?

No… that can’t be right.

“Sir, I think he’s still trying to process things,” the doctor said quietly, placing a gentle hand on the man’s shoulder.

But the man didn’t seem to hear. He crouched down beside my bed and smiled — a smile that made something in my chest twist.

“I prayed for this day every night,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “Nine years, Eli. Nine years of waiting. And now… you’re finally back.”

I swallowed hard. So, I really am Eli Pendragon now — the son of Nathaniel Pendragon, CEO of Apex Holdings.

My dream company. My dream job. And now… I’m his son. What kind of joke was fate playing on me?