2 Nightmares

"Grandma, that boy is sweating a lot even though we have cleaned and patched up all his wounds..." Taeko said while looking slightly worried at the boy's uncomfortable expression as if he was struggling with something.

"Hm? He is just having nightmares, it's understandable considering what has happened to him." The older woman just spared a single glance at the boy before turning away and replying to her apprentice.

Hearing the reason for the boy's excessive sweating and uncomfortable expression, Taeko wanted to shake his shoulders to wake him up but she was immediately stopped by her mentor.

"Stop...Let him get through that by himself. It's better this way if you really want me to take him under my wing."

"...Alright" Taeko looked a bit disappointed but she accepted without questioning. Instead, she kept staring at the boy's face, most likely cheering for him in her mind.

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Within the boy's nightmares...

"What do you mean you don't want to become a doctor?! What about all our money we poured into your education? Are you just going to-" Boy watched as a tall dark figure kept shouting at a certain young man? The boy had no idea why the young man is the only one he can see clearly but he felt some kind of connection to him.

"-Whoever asked you to pay for that kind of education?! Ever since my childhood, all I can remember is you and your mother pushing your ideas on me! You never asked about my opinion, I have never misused your filthy money and I have never caused any trouble in society! Now you are being all worried about the money you poured into my education without MY opinion?!" The young man snapped back with a really angry expression. It was visible that this wasn't the first time they were discussing such things.

"Son, they won't accept you anywhere...I am willing to think about another major but it has to be in the medical field" The dark figure said in a colder tone as if revealing their true face.

"Calling me son while threatening me...hahaha! Good one. Don't worry, I already know how deep your connections are but there are still places where your arm will be too short." The young man said with a slightly crazy smile as if he wanted to get away from his parents' influence no matter the price.

"Eh?" For the first time, the dark figure released a surprised voice.

"Army...you and mother always wanted me to become a doctor, right? So I will make sure your dreams come true and I will become a medic." The young man said with a wide smile and his smile only got wider as he noticed his father's expression. Unfortunately, the boy witnessing all of this couldn't see much from their expressions.

.

.

They continued arguing with each other for a few minutes before the young man practically ran away. The young man went to the army where he completed Basic Combat Training and since he already had some education in the medical field, he could focus more on his physical training.

The young man was doing quite a good job on the front and within a few years, he became quite well known among the army for how many people he managed to save from the dire situations. The boy who was watching the war and everything involved couldn't help but throw up several times.

In the end, everything ended with the young man dying on the sniper who was especially targeting him.

"Don't close your eyes! You are going to make it!" The comrades who were with him quickly dragged him behind the cover to treat him.

"...All I ever wanted is normal loving parents. Was I asking too much from my life?" The young man muttered, coughing blood out of his mouth.

"?! Man, get your shit together!" The one who was treating his wounds looked shocked before he shouted at him with red eyes.

The young man didn't listen to him and just closed his eyes while ignoring the voices all around him.

'If I am to be reborn, my only wish is to have loving parents, it doesn't matter if they are rich or poor...I don't care-'

"Eh?" The boy started looking around him with a panicked expression as he heard the young man's final thoughts in his head.

The scenery quickly changed to the said boy's childhood, making him widen his eyes with a frightened expression. And as he thought, good memories came after other good memories until the day those bandits raided his village.

Seeing his parents get cut down right in front of him once again made him clutch his head in his hands while staring down. While hearing all the screams, he no longer could take it and started shouting too.

"AAAGH!! STOP! STOP!!!" The boy started violently shaking his head while strongly clutching it in his hands.

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"AH!" The boy suddenly woke up and sit up with an extended arm as if he wanted to catch something.

"Whe- UGH!" The boy started looking around with his eyes in hope that he was just having a nightmare but he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his side. When he looked down, he saw that his shirt was missing and the bandages where he felt pain started turning red.

'...It...wasn't a nightmare?' When the boy realized this, his green eyes filled with hope turned completely dull, and somehow even the pain he was feeling until now no longer bothered his "thoughts".

"Oh?! Don't move, you must lie down or you will-?! You already opened your wound..." Taeko who heard the pained groan entered the small room and when she saw the boy sitting on the bed, she quickly made her way towards him.

The boy just moved his lifeless eyes to look at Taeko without even moving his head. When Taeko arrived near him, she quickly began changing his bandages.

'Hm?' However she was quite surprised how obedient the boy was. She knew that he must feel the pain the entire time but he never even winced during her bandaging.

"Good, all patched up once again. You may lie down but don't move too much or you will open your wound once again." Taeko said with a small smile while keeping some distance from him since she could tell that it wasn't the best time to get to know each other.

However, her request just went in one ear and out the other, the boy remained sitting while staring into empty space.

"Lie down kid, don't let my apprentice hard work go to waste." The older woman appeared in the doorway, looking down at the boy with a cold piercing gaze. The air around her would be capable of scaring adults not to mention little kids.

'...Just as I assumed.' The older woman thought when she noticed the boy staring back at her without a single ounce of fear in his eyes. There was no defiance or subservience in his eyes, if the older woman were to describe the boy's eyes in few words, it would be "dead grass".

Even someone experienced as the older woman couldn't tell what he was thinking behind that blank expression.

"Lie down" The older woman narrowed her eyes and instantly appeared in front of the boy, thrusting her knife right next to the boy's cheek but the only reaction she received was the confused look in the boy's eyes along with him slightly raising his head by few inches.

"Grandma?!" Taeko panicked a bit but she didn't question her mentor's actions.

"Already more resilient to threats and tortures than most soldiers and assassins...However, if it continues like this, you will become just an empty doll." The older woman sighed before using her index finger to lightly push the boy's forehead who in response just fell back down on his back while staring at the wooden ceiling above him.

"Taeko, let's go, we have much to discuss regarding this boy." The older woman said as if the person she was talking about wasn't present. She walked out of the room without waiting for her apprentice.

"Eh? Um...Good luck!" Taeko looked a bit surprised but she still followed however before she left the room, she turned around at the boy to awkwardly wish him luck before running out of the room while closing the door behind her.

When they left, the boy raised his right arm towards the ceiling while looking at his palm. This was the first time he moved so much except for sitting up when he still had some hope visible in his eyes.

'Who was that man in my dream? W-Was that me? No...that advanced technology must have been from the very distant future and that man had absolutely no good memories of his parents while I hav- had plenty...'

[If I am to be reborn, my only wish is to have loving parents, it doesn't matter if they are rich or poor...I don't care-]

When the boy remembered the last thoughts of the man in his dream, his eyes widened and he started gritting his teeth in rage. The boy had no idea who was the young man in his dream but he subconsciously started hating him even though there were some thoughts about the young man being him. He subconsciously started hating himself.