Chapter 34: Longest Conversation
Third Person's POV
Astra and Armann arrived home late. They don't have time to stop somewhere to eat because they want to rest at home.
—Click— the sound of the door being unlocked as Armann pressed the Enter button on the lock.
They entered, and Astra threw herself onto the soft sofa while Armann headed straight to the kitchen to get some water from the refrigerator.
With a glass half-filled with water in hand, he walked back out of the kitchen to approach Astra.
"What do you want for dinner?" he asked.
"Anything, I'm too tired to think about what to eat," came Astra's weak response as she buried her head in the pillow.
Armann accepted Astra's answer and returned to the kitchen to check what's available.
When Armann opened the refrigerator, he was greeted by an empty fridge. The only thing inside were bottled waters.
They had missed lunch, so Armann was starving, prompting him to decide to order food online.
While waiting for the food to arrive, he went to his room to change clothes.
A few minutes passed, and dinner time arrived. His ordered chicken wings also arrived, so he served them on the dining table.
Meanwhile, Astra remained lying on the sofa. She was too exhausted from the day's events, so sleep quickly overtook her.
As she slept soundly, Astra entered the REM stage and began to dream.
In her dream, two figures stood in the distance, their faces obscured from her view. She tried to approach them, but each time she drew near, they moved further away.
This pattern repeated until...
"Astra! Astra!" A voice suddenly called out to her.
Armann gently shook Astra's body to wake her up.
"Why?" She exclaimed, startled.
"You're always so sleepy. Dinner's ready. Eat first before you go to sleep," Armann said.
Even though she felt lazy to get up, Astra followed Armann to the dining table because she's also starving to death.
"Chicken? Did you cook this?" Astra asked in surprise as she took a bite of the chicken wing.
"Do I look like I cooked this? I just ordered it from the chicken house nearby," he replied, defending himself.
During Astra's brief stay with Armann, she learned that he only knew how to make basic dishes and often relied on takeout for meals. That's why she's surprised but she didn't think he would take it to heart.
"Easy, I'm just asking. Don't be so defensive," Astra stated, but there was a teasing tone in her voice.
She smiled slightly because every day, she learned new things from Armann.
"Tss," Armann muttered. "I thought you didn't like talking? Why are you so chatty when you're here?" He changed the subject. He was also curious, so he asked.
"It's not that I don't like it. Sometimes, I just choose to stay silent because I do believe that silence is the best answer. Besides, I'm not really quiet. I just avoid speaking too much to others because I'm afraid of saying something wrong," she explained.
"Wrong?" Armann asked, placing another batch of chicken in front of Astra as she finished the first.
"Yeah. I'm a dissociative person. It means I forget some details easily," she replied.
"Something like Amnesia?" Armann asked with feigned curiosity. He already knew that Astra had this condition, but he acted as if he didn't know anything.
"Yeah, kinda like that. For example, if there were events yesterday and you asked me about them, I wouldn't be able to answer because I forget the details," Astra explained.
"Oh, I see," Armann replied. "So, it's basically related to Dissociative Identity Disorder," he unconsciously murmurs, concluding the idea.
"Hmm, they're similar but different in various aspects. Dissociative Identity Disorder refers to multiple identities in one person, while my condition is just Dissociative amnesia. In simple terms, my condition is like being on level 6 in an elevator, while Dissociative Identity Disorder is level 7," Astra explained again, taking another bite of her chicken.
"Sorry for asking for more but I'm really curious…. So, does that mean you might develop Multiple personalities in the future?" Armann asked curiously again. He was slightly surprised by what he learned, but deep inside, he was glad because he was learning from listening to Astra.
"Maybe," Astra simply replied.
"I'm speechless! How do you overcome that?" Armann asked next, eager to know more.
"Well, I used to have a notebook. My journal served to help me remember each of those days, but not anymore," she pointed out their burned house. "But it's okay because I stopped writing a long time ago," she said.
"Why?" Armann asked, focusing on knowing.
"I don't know, maybe because I got tired of adjusting for others. The only reason I did it was so that when my classmates used to chat, I wouldn't feel out of place, but they're not around anymore," sadness lingered in Astra's eyes.
"Are they dead?" Armann innocently asked, which made Astra wide its eyes.
"Wow, jumping straight to death? You're intense," Astra remarked.
"It's your fault because of the way you speak like they are already dead," Armann pondered the reason, his brow furrowed in thought.
Astra responded with a grumpy huff, her irritation evident.
"So, what then? If they're not deceased, where could they possibly be?" he pressed further, curiosity etched in his voice.
"I don't know, I can't remember," Astra laughed at her own statement.
"Tss," Armann grimaced. He thought he guessed right, but apparently not. "By the way, we're out of food stock," he mentioned.
"Oh yeah, I noticed there's nothing in your fridge except water, but I forgot to tell you earlier," Astra said, then took a sip of water.
"I'll buy groceries tomorrow when I get home. For the meantime, you can just order food. You can use the money in the box on the counter for payment," Armann suggested. He was hungry but he hadn't finished his first chicken wing because of his curiosity. He wasn't comfortable eating while talking so Astra ate half of them already.
"Hmm, what if I go grocery shopping instead?" Astra suggested, deep in thought.
"Why? Do you have something specific in mind you want to buy or eat? I can get you that later when I go shopping," Armann responded.
"I don't have anything, I just want to go out. Take a stroll and breathe some fresh air," Astra replied, realizing how plain the unit is.
"Well, I can accompany you—" Armann began, but Astra interrupted him abruptly.
"It's okay, I can handle it. Trust me," she insisted. She didn't want to be a burden to Armann, especially since he still had work the next day yet still needed to buy groceries.
"Okay then, if you say so," Armann replied simply, finally picking up his utensils. "I'll write down the things you need to buy later and leave some cash too," Armann responded, ready to eat.
"Okay," was Astra's final answer.
Finally, the dining table fell silent, and Armann was able to eat peacefully.
Afterwards, Astra volunteered to do the dishes.
Armann headed to his room to take a shower. After that, he took a minute to add more protection to his entire house. Then, he simply dressed in their black uniform coat and lay down on his bed, ready to sleep.
He was ready for work. Gradually, Armann became comfortable in his bed until his body started to detach from his soul. He began to astral projection.
He adjusted his hat slightly before taking out his book.
This book contains the names and locations of people they needed to visit. These were the individuals experiencing unwanted dreams like nightmares and visions they weren't aware of.
As he opened the book, he noticed the red lines next to some names.
Due to recent events, Armann had been quite busy, unable to do his usual work. The red marks meant that someone else had taken over his tasks.
"I need to treat him soon," Armann thought to himself, thinking of a particular person in his mind.
After reviewing the list for the day, he started to work and left his room. He made his way to Astra's room to check on her before leaving.
He noticed she was getting ready for bed, so he felt reassured to leave.
Not far from his home, Armann teleported to an apartment building with three floors.
He entered and made his way to the third floor. Here, there were two rooms.
Armanns had a special ability unique to them. They could see the thread of dreams, meaning they could see the white light connected to their book and the person they needed to visit.
Using the door, he passed through and entered the unit where the other end of the thread was. Inside, there were two more rooms. One was near the door, and the other was at the far end.
He followed the thread to the room at the end and passed through the door again. His client this time was a young girl.
She was having disturbing dreams not suitable for her age. With just a wave of hand, Armann trapped the child's dream cloud into a bubble, placed it in the book and closed it shut. In an instant, the bubble disappears, turning into a picture. Then, he waves again to change her dreams with a happier one.
"I'm done here, onto the next," he muttered, swiftly leaving the place to go to the next person.
As he proceeded to his next assignment, he couldn't shake the sense of satisfaction from knowing he was helping others. These feelings were a welcome return. With each encounter, he sharpened his abilities and reaffirmed his commitment to his vital mission of bringing comfort to those troubled by distressing dreams.
~ To be Continued ~