“Song.”

  “I’m celebrating our wedding anniversary properly this year.”

  “Without you… however, Song? There is hope, no?”

  “Truly, it took me some time to fully grasp what it all meant. There was no hope for so many years. Song? First, I felt scared.”

  “Imagine that.”

  “Scared because what if this Crystal was dead, like the other one?”

  “Secondly. I got used to the fact that I can reach anything, the information is accessible, I can project everywhere… your Crystal I cannot find. I cannot check on Planet Three, as it is detached. I told you about it.”

  “O, what a lesson to remind me that I cannot be overconfident.”

  “I need to work more. I will… Song? I agreed with Si that I would take over the land where our home was. I plan to restore our place and train my creation. I want to create everything myself—the lake, the woods, the house.”

  “Probably it won’t work fully, but I will learn. Amazing, no?”

  “I also started to think about how to prepare the initial information for you. If you were to wake up, what would the first thing you saw need to be? I have already given it a thought and decided that you should be provided with facts, something that won’t suggest anything. I think I know you well, Song, and you wouldn’t believe it whether someone told you who you were or who you loved.”

  “No, you need to recall it or feel it yourself.”

  “I will think about what to prepare for you and do it the best I can. You have to have a choice… about this. I read your brother’s notes again. Many times, honestly.”

  “Song, I avoided making us official for some time, not because I didn’t want you, but because I was trying to protect you. Your brother, now I understand more, why he was… he was telling me I should give you more time.”

  “Anders was saying he knew you the best and that you weren’t ready for commitment.”

  “Why did I believe him? Why did I allow it to sink into my head? I thought he was protecting you from me because he didn’t like me. Now, I am not sure what he wanted to achieve.”

  “Our wedding anniversary.”

  “It is so close to the other event that happened. The bad one.”

  “Clar—always in my life, always around. It is my fault; I am guilty. I know what you would say. Riley abused me. I know. But I caused it, no? I feel I am being constantly punished for it. That I still haven’t worked it off.”

  “I think about it because he died almost immediately after our wedding. Every time I think about our wedding—I think about Riley. Will it ever end? I wonder.”

  “I accept it; you do not need to worry.”

  “Song?”

  “I hope I will be able to find you. Am I worthy? I remember that I thought many times—before we were together and even when we were together—I believed you were too good for me, with me being unworthy.”

  “That was an additional reason for me avoiding anything official. To protect you from someone so unworthy as I was.”

  “Am I more worthy? I hope so.”

  “Our wedding anniversary—it is time to recall good memories.”

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  “I just finished practicing something special. Do you remember? The gift, the one from me to you—the wedding dance.”

  “I used my old projection from the City. It works quite interestingly, and I have started to try different versions. Song, I told you, and it still astonishes me every time. I can project myself from when I was a kid, though I don’t need to. Whatever my energy recalls, I can do.”

  “Back then, I borrowed an authentic sword from TU University to be able to train. How amazing it is that I can project myself from that time, and then I have this sword also.”

  “… Look at me—how strangely I dressed then, no?”

  “This dance you liked very much. You made a replica of this sword for me, so I could dance with it and practice fighting as well. I would like to dance it for you again.”

  “I danced in my wedding red robes this special dance—sword dance, and you then, Song… I know you liked it.”

  “I know.”

  “You sometimes loved me as if there were no tomorrow.”

  “Song?”

  “Because of this projection, this practice, I recalled that you saw me dancing this dance when we didn’t know each other. What a coincidence it was.”

  “It was at Alex’s place. I danced there not once, alone or with his troupe. Those hours offered some light. It was when I was still indebted to the cartel. Though, it got even worse after what the Clar family did to Rowan, so she had to leave the City. I was alone.”

  “I was under the dark clouds.”

  “And my choice then to taunt Clar was a very wrong one.”

  “Song… that you saw me then, once, when I danced with the lights off. So surprising. Alex, that it was you that Alex had a crush on. O, how surprised I was later when I found out.”

  “It was later, much later, when I discovered it. Months later, and after we understood our feelings, mutual ones. I was back in the City for a few hours. You had to go there for some reason, and I joined you. I went to visit TU; later, I wanted to dance, and I went to Alex’s club.”

  “I was about to go out after the dances were finished, and Alex went out with me. He was very excited, talking heatedly about his old crush visiting the place. He added that they hadn’t seen each other for a long time.”

  “Heise, he called his crush with this name.”

  “I remembered; I laughed. Alex then asked why I was laughing again. Again? I asked, and he reminded me about the situation.”

  “Correct. There was something like this; there was once when I danced with the lights off. Alex then was excited; he had this crush on someone; this someone appeared, and Alex was happy. Later, he told me that it was great; they made out and spent a few hours full of loving. He said that Heise was one of the best, tender, sweet lovers he had.”

  “I didn’t pay attention, to be honest, then.”

  “So, Alex, he tried to hide me, but I said my friend was waiting for me, so I would quickly go to avoid disturbing the reunion with Heise, his divine past lover. I laughed; Alex laughed. We went out; I saw you and waved my hand.”

  “… And then, only then, I noticed, first, your face, how you changed. Then, Alex’s reaction, as first he shouted Heise, then looked at me, waving to you. Alex went pale immediately.”

  “O, you were not happy. No wonder?”

  “However, Song, truly? Heise? You could choose better names, not those obvious ones, when undercover. What undercover it was?”

  “We left; you weren’t pleased. Song, I tried to explain back then; now I also repeat.”

  “Your past is your past. Nothing to worry about.”

  “But there was something else that bothered me. Something that Alex had said.”

  “When we were alone—I needed to ask.”

  “Tender? And a sweet lover?”

  “Song, from my perspective, if how we had made love was tender and sweet, then…?

  “I needed to ask—and it made you laugh.”

  “I know; now I know. I had time. Song, now I am aware. I act clueless when it is convenient, but I am aware. You would be very surprised.”

  “Back then, I didn’t know.”

  “You explained everything when we were back home. A sweet lover—you showed me how it looked. It was gentle, it was tender, correct, the description matched. Looking deeply into each other’s eyes, this I would like to repeat. Experience again.”

  “It was sweet, Song, it was. Until you suddenly asked me if I was bored. I was so embarrassed, I blushed. You laughed, so rare, you, laughing like that.”

  “You said you knew because I wasn’t as loud as usual.”

  “Song.”

  “Truly.”

  “Only then did I think about how loud I was every time. I flushed completely red… as if I weren’t already. And who had heard me being that indecently loud? Then you said you had always created a sound barrier.”

  “Song. I wasn’t bored; it was… I felt embarrassed that I was visibly not the type of sweet lover.”

  “You showed me a minute later what kind of lover I was.”

  “Tender? As you would say—hell no. Not tender. And loud.”

  “Amazing, I recalled it all, dancing today this sword dance, the wedding gift.”

  “… Song? I have thought about it a lot and come to understand that you were focused on me, attentive, and you did what I liked. I think it shouldn’t have been like this.”

  “I would do everything to make you feel good, to be happy. You said you were, and I believe you. But now, Song, I would do more.”

  “I would do everything for you, and by this, I mean—”

  “… Song?”

  “Look! Thinking about your… my projection, look! It is the first time it has ever happened to me, I mean, as a projection!”

  “It works! Look! O, how amazing! Song, my projected body—look!”

  “I am beautifully excited!”