Room 808.
Trach Dong frowned, his gaze stopping at the fountain pen just placed on the desk. Sunlight streamed at an angle through the large window, glittering on the embossed patterns of the pen, as if awakening something distant in his memory.
"Hieu Linh, did a girl bring this pen to you?" – He asked, his voice even, yet a subtle, unnamed emotion flickered in his eyes.
"Yes, sir. She said you dropped it." – Hieu Linh replied, bowing slightly, her voice soft as if afraid of stirring something unseen.
He simply nodded and waved her away.
The room fell silent again. Alone in the wide space, Trach Dong picked up the pen, turning it gently. His fingertips traced the delicate engravings, stirring a memory he could not fully grasp.
A vision passed through his mind, unclear, unreal, like a fragment of a shattered dream: a pair of dark, shining eyes, long hair cascading freely, a soft voice as gentle as spring wind.
Yet he could not hold onto it.
The feeling was not memory, not a recollection. It was a premonition. A vague tremor, as if somewhere deep in his heart, a door had just opened, letting through the first light of something long forgotten.
"Familiar." – He murmured, his eyes darkening. – "But why?"
It was not a memory. It could not be a recollection. He was certain he had never met that girl before. Yet why did his heart stir so violently?
His gaze rested on the glass, reflecting his own image cold, calm and indifferent. But deep within, something had just sparked, small, fragile, and impossible to control.
Third floor.
Bach Lan sat before a stack of files, the smell of old paper mixed with printer ink making her head spin. She tried to focus, but her eyes drifted wearily across the pages until they landed on a name that made her heart skip a beat.
"Trach Dong."
Her eyes widened, a shiver running down her spine.
"Chief Executive… Trach Dong?"
She flipped through the files, comparing the face in the company ID photo with the tall figure she had seen in the elevator this morning. There was no mistake.
"So it's him." – she murmured, anger tightening in her throat. – "No thanks just because he's the boss?"
Yet the feeling inside her was more than irritation. That name, those eyes, stirred something deeper. It wasn't just annoyance. It made her feel strangely out of place.
That sensation… it was as if she had met him before, had stood close to him, yet could not remember where or when.
"Strange." – She whispered, shaking her head, trying to push away the hazy, familiar feeling.
That evening.
The small house glowed warmly under yellow lights. The kettle whistled, bowls and chopsticks clattered in the kitchen.
"Bạch Nhi, dinner is ready! What are you staring at?" – Thanh Nhi called, carrying a bowl of soup to the table, looking at her younger sister who was sitting frozen in her chair.
"Oh… yes, right away!" – Bach Lan jumped, quickly putting away her documents, forcing a smile as she rushed over.
"So, how was your first day at work?" – Thanh Nhi asked, watching her closely.
"It was… fine. Really fine."
"If you say it's fine, the sky will fall." – Thanh Nhi snorted, but didn't press further.
Late at night.
Bach Lan lay still in bed. The clock ticked each second. Darkness swallowed the room, leaving only the pale, cold moonlight outside the window.
She could not sleep.
Her mind was a tangled mess. Trach Dong's face flickered in and out of her thoughts. But what unsettled her most was that the man in her dream looked similar and yet not the same.
She could not recall his features clearly. The shape of his face, his figure, all blurry. Only a warm feeling remained, a protective embrace and gentle eyes that seemed to have once belonged to her.
But was it Trach Dong? Or someone else?
Her mind drifted deeper into the hazy darkness.
***
In the dream.
Flames flickered, and the wind blew fiercely. The small, thatched house in the mountains appeared like a place apart from the world.
He stepped forward, his eyes gentle, and placed a hand on her hair.
"Little Bach."
She turned to him, her eyes sparkling.
"Why haven't you rested yet?"
He said nothing, only pulled her into his arms, his hot breath brushing her ear.
"No matter what happens in the future… don't ever leave me."
A sense of peace spread through her. But it lasted only for a moment.
The wind suddenly roared. The door was thrown open. A thick black smoke poured in from outside, cold as the darkness of death itself.
She screamed, clutching at him, but the wind twisted like it had a life of its own, ripping her from his arms in an instant.
"Little Bach!!!" – He shouted, his eyes filled with absolute panic.
Her hand was pulled away. Her vision blurred with tears, lips trembling as she called out:
"Trạch… Trach Hien."
Chaos surged for a brief moment. The wind tore through, scattering leaves everywhere.
Then that call faded.
Everything sank into nothingness.
***
"Ah!"
Bach Lan sat up with a start, sweat pouring over her body. Her chest heaved, her heart pounding wildly, as if it would leap out of her chest.
She stayed still, eyes wide, staring into the empty space before her.
Her mind was a chaotic storm.
What was the name she had just called?
She buried her face in her hands, tears streaming uncontrollably.
Why couldn't she remember? Why… couldn't she see his face clearly?
Only the feeling remained. A sharp, aching sense of loss, a familiarity so deep it made her throat tighten.
Each time she woke, the boundary between dream and reality seemed thinner and thinner.
Was she remembering someone from this life, or someone from a life long past, far beyond her reach?
And did they still remember her?
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