1 A New Beginning

Jeremy was on his regular way to his regular classes, listening to the same old songs. He rested his head slightly on the train window, about to drowse off again. His life has always been this way: average and uneventful. At least, according to him.

He tried many activities during his school and college days, from fine arts to martial arts and even extreme sports. Although they were fun initially, he grew bored of them quickly enough. It was like all passion of his childhood had left him behind. Ultimately, he spent most of his time playing games, reading manga, and dreaming of a more magical life.

His imagination ran wild again. "What if a zombie apocalypse broke out, or portals to new worlds would appear? Wouldn't that be fun? I guess that's just wishful thinking. Perhaps I should see a therapist…."

As a desperate sigh escaped him, he noticed a red light from the edge of his view. He quickly turned to take a look, and then everything went dark.

An unknown time later, Jeremy could slowly feel his body again.

"What happened? Where am I?" He recalled his last memory and could have sworn that he saw a burning plane coming at him. Could that have been even possible? No, he should have heard a plane coming down before it was even near him. It didn't make any sense. Perhaps his memory was playing a trick on him.

He threw that thought into a corner of his mind and tried to open his eyes and move, but his body wouldn't listen. After a couple of attempts, he gave up.

"Maybe this is for the best," he thought. He was pretty comfortable, after all. It was so warm and cozy. He had never felt better in his entire life, and life was oh-so-boring.

Just as he was about to doze off in his newfound paradise, he heard worried voices, painful screams, and panting around him. But they were silenced as if a wall stood between them.

"What the hell? Is someone being killed there? Can't they do it somewhere else? I am trying to sleep here!" he grunted in his mind and tried to listen more closely.

"You are doing great, lady Marie. It won't take long now for the child to come out." He could hear an aged woman's voice followed by someone else's painful whimper.

"Childbirth?" he mused. Damn it! How could he possibly sleep through that?!

"It is time to push!" said the aged female voice, who was most likely the midwife, accompanied by agonized screams of lady Marie. "The baby's head is here!"

Suddenly Jeremy noticed a change in his environment. He felt as if a great force was trying its best to push him out of his comfort zone.

"Hey! Wait a moment! I want to stay here!" he screamed inside his head.

Why couldn't they just let him sleep?! He still couldn't move or talk. He

was utterly defenseless against that mysterious power.

"Push! Keep pushing! It's almost here!" said the midwife while Marie clenched her teeth and pushed. It wasn't her first time giving birth, but it sure wasn't any easier than the last one.

"A bit more! Just a little bit more! Push!"

After a while, the baby was finally out. The mysterious force finally squeezed Jeremy out.

"It's here!" The old midwife received the child while the helper cut the umbilical cord. After scrutinizing the newborn, she took him to a table where a fresh little blanket was already waiting for him.

"Lady Marie, it's a boy! A healthy boy!" announced the old midwife, full of joy. A maid immediately rushed off to notify the rest of the family.

Jeremy felt like he was carried by hands too large for humans to possess, but at least he could finally move. However, his thoughts were occupied by something else.

"No! I want to go back! Take me back!" he screamed as he wriggled around, trying to escape. But the people could only hear the cries of a baby. "I've finally found some peace of mind!"

"There, there." The old midwife gently wrapped the boy with the blanket.

"It's not over yet!" screamed Marie.

"By the Mother's grace! It's twins!" exclaimed the old midwife and immediately went to help Marie. She was truly startled, for there were no signs of Marie carrying twins before. After another hard-fought battle, the second child was born. Thankfully, the second birth went by faster.

"A girl this time," said the helper as she wrapped the girl with another blanket. "Congratulations, lady Marie. They are both strong and healthy. Not to mention, so very beautiful."

"Indeed they are," said the old midwife.

Marie was utterly exhausted from the labor. She was drenched in sweat and still panting heavily. However, as soon as she saw the cute little faces of her children, all of her worries and fatigue seemed to disappear, and a blissful smile blossomed on her face. She gently stroked their cheeks and gave them each a soft kiss.

Jeremy felt weird. Unable to comprehend what was happening to him. His mind was still hazy, and he couldn't form coherent thoughts. At the very least, he was comfortable again. So, that was nice.

As his wits slowly returned to him, he did his best to open his eyes. He never imagined the first thing he would see would be the giant face of a woman looking with a gaze full of love at him. Jeremy's eyes widened as he stared at the huge woman, wholly dazed and he closed his eyes soon after.

"Hey, welcome to the world, my love," said Marie gently. Her eyes were so warm and kind—although Jeremy refused to open his eyes again, afraid of what he might see. Out of sight, out of mind.

"I must be still dreaming," he thought. If this was a dream, he might as well keep on sleeping. There was no rush to wake up. Yes, just keep on sleeping. And so he slowly dozed off again. His sister followed his example; she didn't even bother peeking at the world.

"Asleep already? Aren't you two little cuties?" giggled Marie.

Suddenly the door to the delivery room slammed open, and a man seemingly in his thirties stormed in. "My son! Where is my son?!" he demanded in his loud voice.

"Shhhh!" shushed Marie. "What are you so loud for? They just fell asleep."

"They?!" he exclaimed but made sure to shut up after seeing Marie glare at him. The man gave an awkward laugh and went up closer to her.

Marie rolled her eyes at him. "It's always the same with you. Here," she gently placed Jeremy in his father's embrace with a smile, "say hello to your children."

"My son....this is my son!" He carefully looked at the boy and almost started to cry. Finally! He finally had a son. After two daughters, he almost lost all hope, but the gods graced him with an heir at last. "Hello, little one. I am your father."

A gentle smile adorned Marie's face as she looked at the two of them.

"Thank you, my love…thank you," he said to Marie, his voice full of emotions.

Marie shook her head at him. "There is no need to thank me. I am just as happy as you are. Here, don't forget to hold your daughter as well."

"They are as beautiful as you," he said, holding one baby in each arm.

"You must be tired. Take a good rest, will you? I shall look after our children." He kissed her goodnight and walked out of the room with Jeremy and his sister. Marie looked at them leave and slowly fell asleep with a peaceful smile.

In the living room was already a group of people waiting impatiently. As soon as Jenden entered with the newborns, they all stood up and circled around them.

"Daddy, daddy, is that him?!"

"Dad, let me see him!"

Two little girls jumped in front of him, trying to take a glance at the babies.

"Alright, alright, calm down and be quiet! They are still sleeping," chuckled Jenden and sat on a couch. "Here are your little siblings."

"Woah! There are two of them!" exclaimed the older girl. "They are so small and red, like a tomato!"

"So soft." The younger sister gently poked the newborn's cheeks, and the latter furrowed their brows.

All the servants, close friends, and family members looked at the siblings carefully. They congratulated the happy father with hushed voices so they wouldn't disturb the twins' dreams.

"Daddy, what are their names?" asked the younger girl.

"Oh," the man wanted to slap himself, "in my excitement, I forgot to ask your mother. It seems like we have to wait for her to wake up."