Chapter 4: Six Children
Frank had finally remembered who he really was—his true identity.
In his previous life, he was an ordinary man named Wang Shusheng, living a quiet life. One day, while trying to save someone, he was hit by a truck and killed. The next time he opened his eyes, he had become Frank.
When he first crossed over and woke up in this new body, his consciousness had been foggy. The disorientation was real, and he had suffered a brief bout of amnesia. It wasn't until he got a good night's sleep that his mind began to clear and fragments of his past life started returning.
The reason he had gotten so emotional over having children?
It was because, in his previous life, he couldn't have any.
He was still young, and it wasn't due to any... functional issues—his body had worked just fine. The problem was with his sperm. After a full medical workup, the diagnosis was grim: his fertility was extremely low due to a genetic condition. Even IVF had a low success rate. It was untreatable.
That had been the greatest regret of his past life.
Wang Shusheng had always loved kids. He'd dreamed of adopting as many as he could—he didn't care if they were his biologically or not. But he wasn't old enough at the time to meet the legal requirements for adoption.
He had even considered marrying a single mother and raising her children as his own, loving them like they were his flesh and blood.
But before he could make any of those dreams a reality, he was hit by a truck and died—only to wake up as Frank.
Back at the hospital, he had nearly recovered all his past memories during a short nap. But just as the memories were starting to flow back, someone had woken him up too soon, interrupting the process. As a result, his recollection failed and he ended up in a state of amnesia.
Still, even without remembering who he was, the moment Frank found out he had children, something deep in his subconscious had flared with joy. It was pure instinct. A desire so deeply rooted, it had carried across lifetimes.
That rude awakening at the hospital had caused significant memory loss. Much of his previous life was now a blur. He could remember his name and some key facts about himself, but everything else was scattered fragments.
But none of that mattered to Frank.
After all, it was his past life. He now considered this a rebirth. And the most important part?
He had children now. Several of them.
"I have kids! I have kids—la la la~" Frank hummed happily as he got dressed, feeling an overwhelming sense of joy.
"Dad? You up yet?" A knock sounded at the door just as he finished pulling on his shirt. Debbie peeked her head in.
"Good morning, Debbie!" Frank scooped her up and planted a big kiss on her cheek. This was his precious little girl, his sweetheart.
"Dad, did your memory come back?" Debbie asked.
"Not yet," Frank replied with a grin, "but honestly, it doesn't matter. Memory or no memory, nothing's going to change how I feel."
Frank only remembered fragments of his past life. As for the memories belonging to this body, they were still completely blank. But like he'd said before—having children was enough. Memories didn't matter.
"I'm showering first!"
"You went first yesterday! It's my turn today—damn it!"
Still holding Debbie in his arms, Frank heard the chaos break out outside the room—kids yelling, footsteps pounding, the usual morning mayhem.
The house had two floors, each with a bathroom, but only the one upstairs had a working shower. And with so many kids, there was always a mad scramble for the bathroom every morning.
"I need to take care of Liam!" Debbie called out as she ran back to her room.
Frank made his way downstairs and sat at the table with the kids. They glanced at him briefly but didn't say anything—one look told them he was still in his amnesiac state.
Breakfast was the usual: cereal biscuits and watered-down milk.
"We need to pay the electric bill this month." Fiona bustled about, placing a small box on the table. Each child took out crumpled bills and coins from their pockets and dropped them in, even little Debbie who wasn't yet ten.
Only Frank and baby Liam, who couldn't even talk yet, didn't contribute.
"Uh..." Frank looked embarrassed, patting himself down but finding not even a single cent.
"Don't worry about it, Frank," Lip said as he crunched on his cereal. He had clearly noticed Frank's awkwardness.
"I'll tutor after school. I should be able to make another ten bucks or so."
"Carl, did you chip in? You're almost nine now—it's about time you learned to help support the family."
"Yeah, get a real job. And stop swiping money from the donation box at Saint Tim's."
"I'm working today," Fiona said while feeding Liam, "so I'll cover whatever's missing. And if it's still not enough, we've got Frank's disability check."
"Here, let me take him. You eat," Frank said, quickly reaching out to take Liam from Fiona.
"Who's watching Liam today?" Fiona asked while taking a bite of a dry biscuit.
"I've got exams today," Lip replied.
"I have work after school," Ian added.
Fiona glanced at Carl, who was busy dunking toys into his cereal milk, and skipped straight past him. She turned to look at Debbie.
"No, no, you all focus on school. I'll take care of Liam," Frank jumped in.
"You will?" Fiona hesitated, clearly not convinced he could handle it. But she was too swamped today—juggling multiple jobs—and simply didn't have the time.
"It's okay! I'll help Dad take care of Liam after school!" Debbie chimed in quickly.
"Well... okay. But if anything happens to Liam—" Fiona handed Liam over to Frank with a barrage of instructions, too many to count.
"Dad, we're heading out!" the kids called as they rushed out the door. Only Debbie paused to give Frank a kiss on the cheek before leaving.
And just like that, the house that had felt like a chaotic farmers' market went dead quiet.
"Just the two of us now, huh, Little Chocolate?" Frank looked down at Liam in his arms.
"Aha~" Liam giggled, waving his tiny spoon with glee.
Frank carried Liam and walked around the house, exploring this unfamiliar yet oddly familiar place. As he did, he pieced together the situation.
He had six children in total.
The eldest, daughter Fiona, was in her early twenties—probably around twenty-one or twenty-two. She'd dropped out of school and worked full-time to support the family.
The second and third, sons Lip and Ian, were both teenagers, not yet eighteen, and currently in high school.
The fourth and fifth, daughter Debbie and son Carl, were both in elementary school. Debbie was just over ten, and Carl wasn't quite ten yet.
The sixth, the baby of the family, was little Liam—a Black infant, just a few months old. He could crawl and stand, but wasn't walking or speaking yet. He required the most care.
Looking at these six children who had practically dropped into his lap, Frank was overwhelmed—equal parts thrilled and anxious.
He was excited because having children had been his lifelong dream, and now he suddenly had six—boys and girls, big and small, Black and white. It was everything he'd ever wanted, all at once. If there was any "flaw," it was just that there weren't any yellow-skinned (Asian) ones.
But he was also anxious. Six kids—five of whom were still in school. Fiona had dropped out to work, but she was only in her early twenties. In Frank's eyes, she was still a kid who should've been in school herself.
This whole household… it was one massive, precarious balancing act.
And now, he was a single dad whose wife had apparently run off.
How the hell was he supposed to support a family this big!?