Tabitha's POV
Just then, my gut told me not to go in.
My hand froze on the doorknob. But the next second, Derek's hand covered mine, and he whispered softly in my ear, "Don't be afraid. I'm here with you."
Together, we opened the door. Inside, there were no sealed-up monsters or bloody scenes.
It was just a pink room stripped bare of all its furniture, leaving just a carpet.
Judging from a few baby toys in the corner, I guessed this used to be a nursery.
The moment I came in, a heavy feeling settled over me, and I felt like crying.
I walked through the vacant space until I stopped at a spot.
Slowly, I crouched down. Even though I couldn't remember anything, my body seemed to know where to go.
"What used to be here?"
Derek, who looked surprised by my behavior, sat down next to me and answered, "A crib."
I surveyed the empty room, and a thought popped into my head.
"So we used to have kids?" I asked.
"Yes."
I stammered, my lips trembling, "Then... W-where are they now?"
Derek explained in a low voice, "You went into premature labor, and they didn't make it."
It was such a hard truth to swallow that tears fell down my face before I realized it.
"They didn't make it? Why? Didn't you say I loved them so much?" I choked out.
With a worried frown, he tenderly stroked my hair. "Tabitha, you were in poor health to begin with. And you had a car accident back then, which triggered the premature labor."
"Car accident?" I murmured. "So that's why I lost my memories?"
"That's only part of the reason. After that, you had been feeling depressed because you couldn't come to terms with the death of our pups. Plus, your parents had passed away. So eventually, you lost your memories."
His words came as a bolt from the blue. I clutched my chest and asked in disbelief, "My parents are gone too?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Holly died of an illness, and John had a brain bleed that left him in a coma for a long time before he finally passed away."
I covered my head, refusing to accept this fact.
Derek wrapped his arms around me and soothed me in a whisper, "Tabitha, it's okay. You still have me. I'll always be by your side. Once you're feeling better, we can have more kids."
I choked up, not knowing what to say. There was so much swirling around in my mind that if I tried too hard to remember anything specific, my head would throb with pain. I could only quietly nestle in Derek's arms to calm myself down.
After a while, I felt a little better. So I murmured, "Tell me more about our past, okay? I don't remember anything. How did we even meet?"
Derek lifted me onto the window seat where the soft carpet cushioned us beneath. It was warm in the room, while snowflakes danced down from the sky outside.
I leaned against Derek's chest, feeling the warmth from his body and listening to him telling me our stories with his deep, pleasing, and magnetic voice.
"Eleven years ago, I was severely injured, lying on the ground covered in blood. And you were the first to find me. You were just a kid back then. Although you seemed terrified, you didn't walk away. Instead, you called for the werewolf doctor and even wiped away my blood with your handkerchief."
As Derek reminisced about that moment, his lips curled into a small smile.
"At that time, I was barely hanging on. But the warm smile you gave me before leaving was indelibly printed on my brain. Since then, I'd vowed that I'd find you one day to repay you."
"And?" I wondered.
Dereck went on, "I got super busy after that, and it was already a couple of years later when I came looking for you under the guise of giving lectures at your school. Even now, I still remember the scene of our meeting on the playground.
"You were wearing a school uniform with your hair tied in a ponytail, and your face had matured beyond childhood innocence. That bright smile you wore took my breath away."
As I listened, an image of a man in a white shirt flashed through my mind.
Sadly, it went by too fast, so I failed to catch who he really was.
I couldn't help wondering, 'Is that Derek?'