Page 57 of Malachi

My desire to remove myself from the conversation heightened. I made it to the door and almost out of it completely before she called out to me again.

“Do you believe in rein— Do you believe in the transferal of souls?”

“Whatever it takes to turn that dream of a jewelry company out of your head and to reality, I’m willing to help. Whatever it takes, Aeir. Life’s too fucking precious to waste a second.”

Without another word, I continued out of the door with a bleeding heart and eyes.

“Malachi,” she shouted. “Did you hear me?”

Of course I’d heard her question. It held significant weight as I journeyed toward my home, stumbling, but not from intoxication—from displaced pain and a wounded heart. The heaviness of her words were like shackles on my feet, making it harder for me to reach my destination. And by the time I did, I was exasperated and unable to move forward. My body landed on the porch. It was as far as my legs would take me.

I could hear her footsteps in the dark. The sun was setting, leaving a lightless sky. The moon's glow was hardly enough to provide alone. Or maybe it was only on this side of the tracks, where hurt was hoarded and misfortunes made themselves at home.

“Malachi,” she rushed out.

“Not right now, Aeir,” I pleaded, never having pled for anything in life except for my wife back. Hearing someone make false claims that she was now part of their anatomy made me crumble.

“Please. Just listen to me.”

“Aeir.”

I shook my head because it was all I could do. The fight had been drained from my body. I had none left in me. All I could do was move my head from one side to the other, trying to convince her to stop before she even got started.

“Just please. Just listen to me, Malachi,” she requested, sitting next to me on the porch and placing both of my hands between hers.

“Since I woke up from my coma, weird things, really weird things, have been happening to me. Things I was unable to tell anyone because I was afraid of the judgment. Things that would make others look at me differently. Things I didn’t feel like explaining my way out of. At first, I thought they were results of the coma.”

She gestured with her hand, animating her words and making it harder for me to focus.

“Blurred visions almost every time I closed my eyes. That only lasted the first two or three days. After that, the visions became clearer and felt so real. I was always there, in the visions, with someone. First, it was the dark skin and the deep baritone that I didn’t recognize but felt so familiar at the same time. It was like a lullaby to my soul. The clarity increased, helping me make out the multiple markings on the dark skin.”

She described things she’d seen in full detail.

“From the top to the bottom of the arms was full of ink, beautiful displays of passion and priorities. Still fresh out of a coma, I felt unlike myself and unsettled in my location. My heart was screaming Berkeley, but when I blindly selected it on a map, I knew it was where I was supposed to be. It didn’t matter how well or unwell I might’ve been, something kept pushing me toward this city as if I belonged here… as if something here belonged to me. I searched the internet to find a job here in Berkeley.”

Everything sounded as unreal as it felt. Though I wanted to stop her, I wanted to keep listening just as much.

“Absolutely nothing piqued my interest until I stumbled upon your entry. When I saw that you’d just listed it the night before, I knew it was meant to be. I went the extra mile to call you and when you answered the phone, the lullaby began again. This time, it wasn’t in my head. It was on my line. Immediately, I felt things and there was a yearning so deep, it frightened me. I put all my eggs in one basket, hopped on a plane and came to Berkeley. From the moment I touched down, it felt like home. My home. But, not my new home. It felt as if I was returning to the place I was destined to be. Vaguely, I remembered this place, but I was unsure of how or why. I’m still unsure. But, it wasn’t foreign territory. Not at all. I navigated the grounds easily, finding you without hassle.”

Anna added it to the list of properties on our shared notes. Of course she would’ve remembered it, but it still didn’t convince me of why Aeir did.

“The moment I saw your face… When I saw your face, Malachi, my heart knew. It was torture, maintaining my composure and refraining from running and jumping into your arms. That vision, the one of me doing so, replayed in my head over and over while I stood there, talking to you. That’s why I couldn’t leave. Two months felt like a lifetime away and I couldn’t wait that long to be in your presence again. That ache that came with your absence didn’t feel good. It made me unwell, left me with a hole in my chest and a burning desire for the unknown.”

I knew about that deep, uncompromising hole she spoke of. I’d been there, in that abyss, since the day Anna was taken from me.

“Because, essentially, that’s what all of this was until now. From the moment I stepped foot on this property, the visions have gotten stronger and clearer. They’re like little time capsules of our lif—you and Anna’s life. But, it’s ours, too. Not really, but it is. I just… see, this is why it’s so hard to explain. I just know that… that soulmates are real, Malachi. And, up until two nights ago when you entered me, returning home and knotting our souls again, I didn’t believe it.”

Thoughts of that night, of her body and the way she felt like home for me, invaded my space.

“Now, I do. Parts of your Anna is with me. She’s here with me, Malachi, and as baffling as it is, it’s real. I’m real. She’s real. Together, we’re real.”

I had no words for what she’d just revealed. I sat in silence, letting it all sink in. I believed nothing of it, but her case was solid. There were holes, tiny ones, but it was a solid case, nonetheless. The issue with it all was that what she was trying to convince me of was impossible. I didn’t believe it and I hoped she didn’t believe it, either. But the way she’d explained herself and the conviction in her eyes led me to believe otherwise.

Bullshit.

“What’s my daughter’s name?” I asked, challenging the theory she’s given. It was atrocious and bold, but if there was one thing she could do to convince me, it was recite my daughter’s entire name. She paused, gathering her thoughts. I waited with my heart on the pavement as the night critters played in the silence.

“What’s her name?” I insisted with patience that was wearing thin.

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