Days After 1 Through 17 - David

1.

Today, a policeman called and asked me whether I was the owner of Apartment D in Downtown City.

I said yes. The voice on the other end of the phone was silent for two seconds before reporting softly, "It's like this Mr. Beckett, due to some wiring issues, your house caught fire last night."

I gave him an "mn", feeling some inexplicable pain in my heart.

He continued, "We found a corpse in your house. The initial determination of her cause of death was illness, because there were a lot of pills scattered around the body and the body had already begun to decay… My colleague looked at the identification of this woman. Her surname is Tara, is she your friend?"

I couldn't speak.

He kept going, "We're contacting you right now because we want to ask you to come claim the body. We tried to contact her family, but there has been no news…"

"Sir?"

"Are you listening?"

She's dead?

Tara, died?

2.

I went to the hospital to claim her body today.

I still… do not really believe that she is dead.

When the doctor examined the body, he suddenly paused briefly. He looked at me, then said softly, "This woman is already rotting and needs to be cremated as soon as possible."

He seems to be comforting me.

Tara.

Tara.

I repeated her name in my mind.

3.

She had a pale complexion. I'm not really brave enough to look at her, but if I don't look at her, I will never get to see her again.

She is Tara, my Tara.

She's dead.

4.

The staff of the funeral home asked me to select an urn for her long-term sleep. There were ceramic, sandalwood, and jade ones.

I chose a pretty one. A rosewood box that carried a flowery fragrance. If it's possible, I don't want her to live in the box. I want her to come home with me.

When she came out, she was a handful of dust. She was wrapped in a brocade cloth. She was grayish-white with some traces of black. I heard she was ill. I don't know where she went to examine it. They said that when people take too much medication, their bones would turn black.

Holding the rosewood urn, I walked out of the funeral home. The sun was bright, so dazzling that it was annoying.

I held her.

She's so light.

5.

In the villa, only the corner where the TV cabinet is located got burnt. I asked someone to renovate it. I remembered she said she would put a Doraemon figure on the TV cabinet. It's so that she wouldn't have to look everywhere for the remote next time. If she had Doraemon's 4D pocket, she could have so many remote controls.

Such stupid logic.

As childish as a child.

I went downstairs to the supermarket nearby and bought a Doraemon plush. I couldn't find a figure. The store clerk said they didn't carry it.

The TV cabinet hasn't been repaired yet. I put the plush beside him.

Make do with this for now. Your husband will buy it for you later.

I smiled as I told her. I wanted to see her glare at me unhappily. I waited for a long time.

I won't get to see it anymore.

6.

Sarah came today with a handful of iris flowers. I asked her to sit down first and went to pour a glass of water for her in the kitchen. I saw a layer of dust on the juicer Tara used every day. I couldn't help but wash it. This girl, really… how can she just leave the thing she uses every day like this.

Sarah took the water. She looked at me sorrowfully and said, "President David, I didn't know that Tara lied to me… She told me that she had told you, and I thought she would treat it properly. If I knew, I would…" As she talked, the rim of her eyes turned red. She sniffed her nose, "She even made me a big table of food and told me she would be fine soon. I was thinking about treating her back next time, how could she…"

I didn't know what to say. I turned back to look at Tara.

How about I raise another pot of pretty flowers?

Tara, what do you want to raise?

Didn't you always say you wanted to?

7.

After seeing off the person who came to see Tara, I went to the kitchen to cook.

When I opened the refrigerator, I found that the fruits inside were all droopy. They were probably kept for about a week. Other than the fruits, there were two boxes of curry and a few eggs.

I took out the fruits and threw them away. I took three eggs and was getting ready to make egg-fried rice. I asked her in the living room whether she wanted any.

Probably still angry, she ignored me.

I'm already eating egg-fried rice. Stop being angry, please?

8.

In the evening, I cleaned up the room and found a lot of empty medicine bottles in the drawer. On them were his bored doodles. Such as "a Little Panda on his belly". Next to it was a picture of a little bear puckering his butt up and laying down on his belly. There was also a "the 87th day of Little White waiting for Little Black", with a kitty squatting in a corner pitifully. When I saw this, I accidentally dropped one bottle on the ground. I picked it up and looked at it. There was only a line of crooked words – he hates me.

She was probably too bored, and there were only medicine bottles to accompany her.

I didn't feel too good. I turned around and stroked the wooden box. I told her, Tara, I was just acting sulky towards you.

I didn't ask you to leave me.

9.

I went to the company today. My secretary invited me for a meal. She said that the hotel I liked eating at had a new menu item.

I said there was someone waiting for me at home.

She said with a smile, "President Tara, right? President David, you made up with her?"

Probably so.

I nodded.

She added, "Then when will President Tara come back to work? I'm almost tired to death without her. Next time you two argue, can you not make things so difficult for a small character like me~"

I smiled at her, "It's been hard for you. She's not coming back. If it's too busy, hire a few more people."

She groaned, then complained, "It's not so easy to train newcomers. You keep showing off your love, stop torturing single dogs like us okay? By the way, President David, does President Tara know that I was just pretending to be your mistress? Is that why she won't come back?"

I shook my head and said that Tara doesn't know.

I want her to know.

10.

Today, I took my vacation time at home. The figure I asked someone to get also arrived. The TV cabinet was repaired to how it was originally. I placed the figure on it. Thinking that there would always be a certain person looking for the remote barefooted every summer, I couldn't help but want to laugh.

That certain person is always so forgetful every year. Not only does she not repent, on the contrary, she's feudal and superstitious. As if reposting two koi fish on Facebook will make it possible for her to pick up money from the ground tomorrow. Especially having all types of false reasonings. If she can't find the remote control, she'll repost Doraemon.

"Tara, call my name just once."

"I miss you."

11.

Had a dream.

I dreamed that she was sitting on the balcony talking to herself.

"When will David come back?"

"Probably not coming back? He seems to hate you."

"Nonsense. He said he loves me the most."

"But he also said he hates you the most…"

I want to say that was me lying to you, because I was angry. Just coax me, if you coax me, I would come back.

12.

The wooden box ignores people.

13.

There is a tree in the yard. There is a sign on the tree that says 'Tara's tree'.

I watered Tara's tree, then went back to the house and slept with the wooden box in my arms.

14.

I brought a lot of fresh fruit back home after work. In the past, she always came to take over the things in my hand when I'm changing my shoes. She always left work earlier than I did because she loved the crab roe tofu and rice cake boxes at the school gate. The owner of that shop always closes the stall at 5:30.

Our company leaves work at six. She always leaves early taking advantage of the fact that she is the boss.

I like the way she leaves early with an immensely proud look every time, saying she wants to go home and wait for the young master to come back and spoil her.

So cute.

I like it when she comes to receive me at the door every day, that she calls out to me.

I took the fruits to the living room and saw her all alone on the coffee table. Suddenly, the corners of my eyes tinged.

How could someone, once angry, leave me with zero chances?

15.

I remembered that not only was I angry with her, but also shouted at her, saying that she was selfish, unreasonable, and thoughtless.

In the afternoon, when I went to get her death certificate, I visited her family.

I never thought that there would be parents in the world that would ask where the inheritance was when they found out about the news of their child's death.

Why did I have to shout at her?

Am I dumb? Why did I have to bully her?

16.

I don't feel good. I held her and talked to her for a while.

I asked her, have you never thought about what I would do if you left?

Later, I fell asleep. I seemed to have heard her say, then did you think about what I was supposed to do when you left?

17.

There are many building blocks at home. I was a little bored. I held her as I played with the blocks. I built a kitty. I named it Tara.

I said, Tara, do you love me?

I suddenly remembered how heartbroken she was when I questioned that she didn't love me.

Does she love me?