My Husband's Inner Voice Called Out My Sister’s Name — Part 2

After we got married, I continued working at the bakery, looking after my husband and cooking hearty, delicious meals for him. At night, we’d fall asleep in each other’s arms, and we lived a very happy life.

That’s why, when I heard his voice during our after-dinner relaxation one evening, I froze, unable to understand what it meant.

“I want to see you.”

At first, I thought the sound I heard in Max’s voice was something he had spoken aloud.

“Huh? Max, did you say something?”

“No, nothing.”

“I see… It must have been my imagination.”

Maybe I’m just tired.

Just as I was about to stand up and make a fresh pot of tea, I heard it.

“Hannah… I want to see you.”

This time, I clearly heard Max’s inner voice. I couldn’t help but hear it.

Hannah.

That was the name of my late sister.

Could it be that my husband is having an affair?

Maybe he’s seeing a woman who coincidentally has the same name as my sister, and in the middle of drinking tea and chatting with me, he suddenly had the urge to see her. …That feels a bit far-fetched.

More likely, he approached me deliberately, knowing from the start that I’m Hannah’s sister.

People often said that Hannah and I looked alike. Could it be that Max was my sister’s lover or at least had feelings for her, and after she passed away, he sought me out as a replacement, seeing her in me? Now that I think about it, when we first met, he already knew my name and walked straight up to me without hesitation.

I see.

So that’s it.

And here I was, foolishly thinking Max loved me with all his heart.

My gift only lets me hear words that people strongly think in their hearts. Even if the thoughts aren’t about me—whether they’re about Hannah or anyone else—as long as they’re strongly felt, they reach my ears.

If only he had told me that from the beginning. If I had known about Max’s feelings for Hannah from the start, we could have mourned her loss together, shared in the grief of never being able to see her again, and remained good friends for a long time.

But now, it was too late—I had fallen hopelessly in love with him.

As days passed without me confronting Max about Hannah, I started feeling terrible dizziness. When I realized I had missed my period, it finally dawned on me—I was pregnant.

What should I do? I can’t tell him I’m carrying his child…

Max had always longed for a family of his own, so he would probably be happy. But then again, maybe he wouldn’t be happy at all, knowing the child was with me, his replacement for my sister.

…The more I overthought it, the more impossible it became to confess anything. Now I had two things I couldn’t tell him.

As the day ended and I slid into bed next to Max, I forced my eyes shut, but I had no hope of sleeping.

This can’t go on. Tomorrow, I’ll have to tell him I’m pregnant.

Determined, I focused on my breathing to relax, inhaling and exhaling slowly. But just as I was drifting off, I heard another voice.

“I love you, Paul.”

What? Paul? Who the hell is Paul?!

My emotions were already on edge due to the pregnancy, and now my anger surged to the boiling point.

Before I knew it, I had balled up my fist and punched Max square in the jaw—only to hurt my own hand, tears welling up in my eyes from the pain.

“Ughhhhh!”

“Jessica! Are you okay?!”

Max sprang awake, immediately sitting up and holding me in his arms. But this wasn’t the time for him to be worried! I just hit him!

“Who’s Paul?”

I couldn’t believe how cold my voice sounded, even to me.

“Paul? Did I say that in my sleep?”

Seeing the look of panic flash across his face as he hastily covered his mouth, my anger flared up even more.

“Paul is clearly a man’s name, right? I’m already overwhelmed dealing with your feelings for Hannah, and now you’re saying you love some guy named Paul?”

“L-love? Wait… Hannah too? You think I—?”

“You said it.”

“No! Jessica, I—”

“That’s enough. I’m leaving.”

I grabbed a large bag from under the bed and began throwing my clothes into it one after another.

The tears streaming down my face weren’t because I was sad—no, it was because my hand hurt from hitting him. At least, that’s what I told myself.

"Wait!! It’s not what you think, I’m not involved with them the way you’re imagining!"

"Oh, really? Well, I don’t need to know anymore anyway."

As I picked up the bag and moved to open the door, he circled around and blocked my way.

"Move."

"Listen to me! They… they are… our children!!"

…Huh? What is he talking about?

“…It might be hard to believe, but Hannah is our first child, and Paul is our second.”

Max has a gift… or so he claims.

His gift is that he dreams about the future.

Hearing that, it sounds like a special ability, but the limitation is that he can only see himself relaxing in the future, so it’s not exactly practical.

For instance, if he could see a national emergency or a life-threatening situation involving himself, he might be able to avoid or prevent it. But instead, he only dreams of his future self lounging around, which makes his ability about as unimpressive as mine.

“…But this ability saved me. When I became completely alone as a child, with no one left in the world, I was so miserable and hungry that I thought about joining my family in death countless times. But the family I was destined to have in the distant future stopped me.”

“That’s Hannah and Paul, right?”

“Yes. And you, of course, Jessica. I’ve been in love with you ever since I was a child. When I saw you through the bakery window that day, I thought, ‘I’ve finally found the woman of my destiny.’ I was so happy, I rushed things, and it made you wary of me… I learned not to tell anyone about my gift after that. …Can you believe me?"

"I believe you. I’m sure I’m the one who named Hannah."

—Hey, Hannah. It looks like I named my daughter after you, my beloved sister.

"Please, don’t leave me. I’ve been dreaming of our future together for so long. Don’t take away that happy future from me."

On those lonely nights, when he felt like the world had abandoned him, the warm and happy family he saw in his dreams must have been a beacon of hope for Max. How many times had he whispered our names to stave off his loneliness, waiting for the day we would finally meet?

"I’ll stay by your side, Max. After all, Hannah is already here with me."

When I pointed to my stomach, Max let out an incoherent shout of “Uoohhh” as tears gushed from his eyes. He wrapped his arms around me, careful of my belly, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Oh, Jessica, Jessica, thank you! Hannah! Paul! I love you both, thank you!!"

Moved by the powerful unison of his words, I let my own tears fall softly—but there was more to his inner voice.

"Roman, Rita, Simon, Veronica, Alf, Colleen! I love all of you!!"

Wait, wait. All of those are our children? Am I going to give birth to all of them? That’s… a lot of kids!

My tears instantly dried up.

The awkward excitement of my first pregnancy, my anxieties about giving birth, my doubts about whether I’d be a good mother—everything was completely overshadowed by this new information.

…Okay. Got it.

I’ll do it. I’ll give birth to them. I’ll raise them.

If it took this many children to fill the lonely void in Max’s heart, then that’s just what it’ll take. I’ll do everything I can, one step at a time.

But first, I need to calm down my husband, who’s bawling so loudly in the middle of the night that the neighbors are going to come over and complain.

And I’ll send the biggest cheer to my future self.

The me who will one day be running around, crying, laughing, and, as Max would put it, scolding, in what’s sure to be a chaotic and lively daily life.

Hang in there, future me!!  

[The End]

Description