When We Were Strangers Book 소설 & 이야기

NALANI It was as if I had been struck by a tidal wave. It seemed like there was a laser torturing my eyelids that instead of opening my eyes, I just closed it tightly because of the glary light from the bulb. The softness of the bed was unfamiliar to me—I immediately understood that I was not in my own bed. I buried my face in the pillow and suddenly someone tapped my butt and Esther's voice dominated, "I don't want to wish you good morning because I'm mad. So get up, the food is ready."

It was quiet at this time since it was the afternoon. As we walked, people came to us asking for pictures. Hamon and Mikhal pushed them to the side, as we weren’t here for that. Hazel mentioned we should go to a cafe for privacy. I ordered the table, but Hazel had already ordered it. We had a good time as we were laughing too much. Once it was time to go, a witness tripped and spilled hot tea on me. “GAH!” I screamed. That crap is hotter than Jabrel’s breath in the morning.

I lifted my gaze from my phone at the same moment Hawk immediately rose to his feet, instinctively positioning himself between me and the stranger. The man froze. I looked up at Hawk and gave him a small shake of my head, silently telling him everything was fine. Reluctantly, he sat back down, though his eyes never left the stranger. “How may I help you?” I asked politely. The man offered an awkward smile. “Can you recommend a coffee?” I raised a brow. “I’m more of a tea person,” he continued with an embarrassed chuckle, “but I decided to try coffee today and… honestly, I have no idea what to order.”

Almost instinctively, I pulled out my phone and checked my browsing history for the video from last night. In it, the side profiles of the two elderly people were identical to the faces of my in-laws standing before me now. If the clip hadn't flashed by so quickly, I would have recognized them right away. And in other videos—those fleeting, fragmented moments—my wife, Cynthia Muller, appeared again and again, holding a child in her arms. The little boy called her "Mom" with intimate affection. Under a sky lit by fireworks, the man held her close and kissed her.

"Pffft—yes, ma’am!" "Good. You’re no longer strangers to us," she said with a satisfied nod. "Anyway, I am—" "Hey, ma’am. Seems like you forgot something." A cold, stern voice suddenly cut her off, interrupting whatever Christy was about to say next. "Didn’t I tell the two of you not to talk to strangers so easily?”

It was the talk of a community that knew how to take care of its own, without fanfare. Halfway through lunch, the door opened, and an elderly man and woman entered, dusted with snow. They were strangers, but they had the look of purposeful visitors. They scanned the room, their eyes landing on our large, noisy table. They approached. “Excuse me,” the man said, his voice carrying a faint Scandinavian accent. “We are looking for… the Keepers?” We fell silent. The name, spoken aloud by a stranger in the dead of winter, sounded mythical.

Not like I did anyway. I surprised myself as I thought that. Not know him? How could he not? He was him. Who was I to say that he didn’t understand Victor? Wouldn’t he know him better than anyone? No. He wouldn’t. Because he wasn’t Victor. And Victor wasn’t him. They were two separate people with two separate lives. Honestly, I think they barely knew anything about each other. Rumors, stories, flashes of things that they thought they remembered. None of that could really be called “knowing” each other. In reality, they were probably little more than strangers.

On their wedding day, right as Elena Emerton and Kyle Fenton were about to exchange rings, a woman rushed Kyle with a knife. Elena moved on instinct, throwing herself in front of Kyle. The blade sank into her chest, and she crumpled into Kyle's arms. As the woman was dragged away, she screamed, "Kyle Fenton, we're not done! How dare you get married?" That was when Elena recognized her. Allison Smyth. Kyle's sworn enemy for the past six years. Before anyone could react, Allison broke free and held the knife to her throat. "Kyle, I'm tired. Let's end this." Kyle's eyes went wide. He dropped Elena and rushed to Allison, catching the blade with his bare hand. Elena hit the floor hard.

“Go, see it for yourself!” She never knew that she’ll be stuck in this place. But fate has its own way to play—their paths crossed again. As they both admit that they both liked the sexual connection between them, they created a contract. This is the best thing they can have—a contract. This is what they call “Strangers with Benefits Contract” This is to ensure that their connection will be purely about satisfying themselves. And, the contract she made will consist of 5 rules: Strangers with Benefits Contract

We had once walked side by side and loved each other deeply, and in the end, all that was left was two strangers on separate roads. From here on, his torment, his regret, his loneliness had nothing more to do with me. My road, my love, my gaze: everything lay ahead of me, as it always had.