You sit on the couch, your legs tucked under you, trying to focus on the movie playing on the TV.

But your mind keeps drifting. Rion’s voice breaks through the haze, casual and light, recounting yet another memory from your past life—the one where you were an assassin sent to kill him. You don’t remember any of it. But Rion remembers it all.

He talks about it all the time—how the two of you fell in love after you missed your mark. How he was a powerful, dragon-like beast, and you were a sly, cunning assassin of the night. The details of her remain lost to you. The woman who almost killed him. The one who betrayed her orders and chose love instead.

As the story goes, you were punished with death for failing your mission. The love that bloomed between you and Rion— Orion back then— was fleeting. He searched for you for centuries, through countless lifetimes, until finally, he found you again. Here, in this life. With no memory of who you had been.

He speaks of her so fondly that sometimes it stings.

It was ridiculous. You knew that you and her were one and the same—but hearing him talk about her like that, with so much admiration… it made you wonder much of him was still in love with her.

“Well,” you murmur, turning your head to face him, “if she came back, would you still choose me?”

Rion pauses mid-sentence, glancing over at you with an amused expression.

“What do you mean by if she came back?” he repeats, unable to suppress a laugh as he raises an eyebrow, “You mean you? If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were jealous.”