POV: Elsa
One and a half years ago, in a hospital in Singapore, "Quick... quick!" Several nurses pushed a bed on which lay a weak, legless girl into the operating room. They immediately wheeled the bed to the operating table without moving the girl. "Bang!" A doctor, wearing a head covering, mask, and full green scrubs with gloves, entered.
"Let's begin the heart transplant surgery," the doctor said.
The doctor and his team began operating on the weak girl on the bed. Two nurses assisting him whispered behind them.
"That girl is amazing, isn't she? She survived being brought here by plane after a car accident and receiving first aid," whispered one nurse.
"Yes, and she's so lucky. We just received a fresh heart from a donor who just passed away, even though she shouldn't have lived because the lower part of her heart was punctured by metal. Her will to live is truly extraordinary," whispered the nurse next to her.
"I'm truly amazed, this is a miracle," the first nurse replied.
"But it's a shame about her parents; they didn't survive. She's now all alone because she's an only child," said the nurse next to her.
"She has her grandmother; she's the one who arranged everything and brought her here," the first nurse said.
After that, the two nurses stopped gossiping because they were reprimanded, and six hours later, the operation was completed and successful. The doctor felt very relieved and then checked the girl's condition.
"Okay, safe. Keep monitoring her, and if there are no problems in another two hours, move her to the inpatient room," the doctor said.
"Yes, Doctor Kelvin," the nurses said.
The medical team left the operating room, and the nurses along with a resident doctor continued to monitor the girl's condition for the next two hours. At that time, because everyone was tense and fully concentrated on monitoring the girl's condition, no one noticed that the girl's eyes were moving even though they were closed.
"Uh," Elsa opened her eyes. She was surprised to find herself sitting on the floor of a white, seemingly endless room.
"Wh-where am I? Am I dead?" she asked, her face filled with fear.
"Hello,"
Elsa, startled, turned around and saw a beautiful middle-aged woman in a lovely dress whom she didn't know standing behind her. Seeing that Elsa had no legs, the woman approached Elsa and knelt in front of her.
"What's your name?" the woman asked.
"I-I'm Elsa. Who are you, Auntie?" Elsa asked.
"My name is Irene. How old are you?" Irene asked.
"Um... 13 this year, but next month I'll be 14," Elsa replied.
"Hmm, I see. You're strong, aren't you?" Irene said.
"What do you mean, Auntie?" Elsa asked, confused.
"Even though your condition is like this, your face doesn't show despair. I admire you," Irene said.
"Th-thank you, Auntie. Who are you, really?" Elsa replied, growing more confused.
"Hmmm, me? Do you know that you've just finished a heart transplant operation?" Irene asked.
"I don't know, Auntie. The last thing I remember... I was in the car... Oh... Mom... Dad... how are they, Auntie? Am I dead, Auntie?" Elsa asked, suddenly panicked as she recalled the car accident she had experienced a few days ago.
"Calm down first. You're not dead. You're alive, and I'm inside your body now," Irene replied, touching Elsa's head.
"You're... inside my body?" Elsa asked, surprised.
"That's right, I've just been put into your body. I'm your new heart, or perhaps I am the memory of your heart," Irene replied.
"I don't understand, Auntie," Elsa said, confused.
"Hmm, it's like this: I also passed away, and then I donated my heart, and now my heart is in your body. Right now, I'm just a memory left in the heart," Irene said.
"Wh-what? So... so you're a ghost, Auntie?" Elsa asked, slightly scared, crawling back a step.
"Of course not. I'm a memory, a remnant of my heart. I'm no longer in the world, understand?" Irene replied.
"Then how can you talk to me?" Elsa asked.
"Because there's something I want to tell you. Perhaps, more accurately, I want to ask you for a favor," Irene replied.
"What favor, Auntie?" Elsa asked.
"My husband is still alive. Can you meet him and deliver my last message to him? Because I died in an accident and didn't have a chance to say goodbye to him," Irene replied.
"Um... your husband, Auntie?" Elsa asked.
"Yes. I'm sorry if I'm troubling you. Of course, you yourself are already burdened, aren't you? I'm not forcing you to find my husband. If by chance you meet him, or if fate brings us together again, I want to tell him something," Irene replied.
"I understand, Auntie. What do you want to tell him?" Elsa asked.
"Please tell him that I love him very much. I know he divorced me in my last moments. I realized my mistake, and I didn't want to divorce him. I apologize for all my actions that hurt his heart," Irene replied, crying.
Elsa, seeing Irene cry, immediately moved forward and hugged her. Irene hugged Elsa back and sobbed. After Irene calmed down,
"I'm sorry, Elsa," Irene said, wiping away her tears.
"I understand, Auntie. With my condition like this, it feels difficult for me to find your husband, but I will try to help you, hehe," Elsa said, comforting Irene.
"Thank you, Elsa, but Auntie asks you not to push yourself. Live happily. You don't have to make this request of Auntie's your main task in life, okay?" Irene said, holding Elsa's cheek and smiling.
"I understand, Auntie, but I really intend to help you," Elsa replied, smiling.
"Thank you once again, Elsa. Auntie is happy that you received Auntie's heart. As a gift, Auntie will pass on Auntie's abilities to you," Irene said.
"Eh... what abilities, Auntie?" Elsa asked, confused.
"When I was alive, my eyes couldn't see since I was little, and my husband was always by my side since childhood because we were childhood friends. So, I had much better hearing than people who can see," Irene replied.
"Your hearing, Auntie?" Elsa asked.
"That's right. Auntie could hear a person's heartbeat, so Auntie could tell if someone was lying or not based on their heart rhythm. And Auntie could hear if there was a sound in the next room, meaning Auntie's hearing could penetrate anything clearly and from a very far distance. Auntie also had good intuition because Auntie was blind, so I was more sensitive than ordinary people, and sometimes Auntie's predictions were accurate, allowing me to anticipate what would happen. That's why Auntie never had difficulties in life and could go about daily activities as usual (she bowed her head) except for one thing."
"Except for what?" Elsa asked.
"Auntie had never seen my husband's face, hehe. Only in my last moments, when I was hit by a car and he hugged me, I could faintly see his crying face," Irene replied, tears welling up.
"So you married him without ever seeing his face?" Elsa asked.
"Yes, because I knew him since childhood, and he never lied to me. Oh, and Auntie's abilities couldn't detect if he was lying or not either, the reason being he was also like Auntie," Irene replied.
"What do you mean, Auntie?" Elsa asked.
"He was mute and deaf. He once told me his eyes were good, the opposite of mine, haha," Irene replied.
"Oh, I see, Auntie. But why did he divorce you?" Elsa asked.
"Because it was all my fault. At that time, I was too focused on having a child and blamed him so much that for three years I didn't speak to him, and I didn't even want to share a room with him. But when I casually went for a check-up at the doctor's, it turned out my uterus was the problem, and I regretted treating him that way. But... he couldn't take it anymore and divorced me. I actually wanted to tell him everything and apologize, but then I had an accident and died," Irene replied in a soft tone.
Elsa remained silent. She just took Irene's hands without saying anything because she understood the suffering and regret Irene was experiencing.
"Auntie, I'm the same. Before I had the accident that led to you being inside my body, I desperately tried to reconcile Mom and Dad, even though they were already divorced. They divorced because of me, Auntie. See, I've had no legs since birth; they blamed each other because I was born. But just when I was almost successful in reuniting them, we had an accident. Right now, I don't know if they're still alive or not because I myself am here now," Elsa said, looking down.
Irene immediately moved forward and hugged Elsa after hearing Elsa's story. "I hope they're okay. Auntie will pray for them too," Irene whispered into Elsa's ear.
"Yes, Auntie, thank you, Auntie," Elsa replied, crying.
"Elsa, listen to Auntie. Whatever happens when you wake up later, accept it with an open heart. You must live. Auntie wants you to live and never say that your mom and dad fought or divorced because of you. Auntie is sure you can be happy in this life. We were both born with disabilities. Auntie was strong because I had my husband, who was with me since childhood. Auntie is sure you will also find someone like Auntie's husband who will be by your side your whole life and be your strength," Irene whispered.
"Y-yes, Auntie, I understand, Auntie," Elsa replied, crying.
"You're still young; you have a long way to go. Auntie will keep praying for your happiness later," Irene replied.
The two hugged each other tightly, shedding tears. Both shared similar feelings and could understand each other.