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nErich felt his heart bleed as he stood there with Erika wrapped around his back. He had lost everything twice now. And though the universe kept giving him more to live for, he feared that it would only be taken away from him again.

nAs much as Erika’s embrace helped the man deal with some of his internal turmoil, it only further increased his anxiety. If he dared to become close with his new wife, would she too die an untimely death?

nIt was times like this that Erich needed a battle buddy to vent his dark thoughts to, but they were all dead. Every comrade he had ever made perished in the war with the Naraku, and none of them were coming back. He alone had that privilege.

nNaturally Erika could not understand the complex emotions of a man who had lost so much on the field of battle, but she could tell that her husband was scarred for life, and it was not his flesh that was wounded. For that would have been an easy fix. But she felt compelled to do something for the man and said the only words that she could think of that might have a positive effect on Erich’s mind.

n“They say that time is a perfect healer… These nightmares, they will come to pass… You just need time to heal, that is all. And I will be by your side every step of the way. Regardless of the reason behind our marriage, we are now man and wife, which means it is my responsibility to care for you, especially if no one else will.”

nAs beautiful of a sentiment that this was, Erich did not hear these words, for he was living in his own world, almost in a trancelike state. The voices in his head, ones which belonged to his fallen comrades, and the plans that they had made together while they were still in the academy. As well as the visions he had of S’aleth calling out his name, they seemed so real, and yet they were nothing but figments of the imagination. Ghosts which haunted his memories.

nEventually, Erich just pried himself away from his wife’s arms and sat back down in the sand. The sudden outburst of emotion that he previously displayed had disappeared, as if it had not existed in the first place. Instead, he had the signature stoic look on his face that Erika had found to be utterly infuriating when she first met the man.

nThough the young pop sensation no longer felt angry when she saw this look, instead she felt pain, because she knew hiding behind that emotionless face was a heart that was bleeding out, and she felt guilty because she could not think of a way to seal the wound.

nThus, she decided to sit next to Erich in the sand, and watch the waves with him. Silence existed between the two of them for some time. In fact, Erika did not know how long they had sat there together. But, after what seemed like a lifetime had passed, she decided to ask her husband a question, but before she did so, she wanted his permission.

n“Can I ask you a personal question?”

nErich did not immediately respond, instead he reached into the cooler he had brought with him to the beach, which contained all of his beers, and cracked open another bottle. Where he took a long sip from it. It was only after doing this that he silently nodded his head, while still not looking at his concerned wife.

nUpon seeing this was the best answer she was going to get, Erika sighed before asking the question, which was perhaps the largest part of her conflicted feelings towards the man.

n“Why did you sleep with Yumi?”

nErich took another sip of his beer, and did not immediately answer his wife’s question. She was just about to give up altogether when he finally spoke of his reasons. This had kept the girl seated next to him, with her entire focus on his every word.

n“There was no reason in particular. She was an attractive woman, and as a mutant, I was never supposed to get married, or have children of my own. You probably have no idea what it is like to be a young man, but there are certain biological urges that we have, and she was the first woman who would let me vent them. That is all there is to it…”

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nErika looked at Erich with confusion on her pretty face, because by the way it sounded when Yumi spoke of her time with Erich, or at least alluded to it, she seemed to be quite fond of the man. And thus, Erika was quick to inquire further about this issue, which ate away at her mind, and prevented her from becoming particularly close with her new husband.

n“That’s it? You felt nothing for her? I don’t believe that for a second!”𝞸𝓋𝑳xt.𝒞𝚘𝕞

nErich simply scoffed in response to this, as he took another sip from his beer before responding to his wife with a particularly snide remark.

n“That is your prerogative….”

nThese callous words once more infuriated Erika. She was genuinely attempting to build a bridge over the gap that existed between her and the man she was forced to marry, but he did not seem to care in the slightest. And though she could tell that the man had endured a lot more than she could possibly imagine, she was still a woman, and in the end her emotions over ruled her rationality.

nThus, Erika stood up and dusted the sand off of her body before walking away. It was only after she realized that her husband was not following her that she turned around and asked him to chase after her.

n“Aren’t you going to follow me? I’m quite angry with you! Shouldn’t you be trying harder to earn my favor? Do you have any idea how many men would kill to be in your position?”

nDespite what she was expecting, Erich did not immediately “realize his mistake” and instead sat there with the same stoic expression he had worn ever since being resurrected for a second time, before softly speaking the words on his mind. Unfortunately, Erika did not hear them, and thus she simply harrumphed before storming off back to their mansion. Only Erich had heard what he had said, which was a prime example of his defeated mindset.

n“What would be the point of that?”

nThus, while Erika had gone back to the mansion and showered, before dining on a nice meal cooked by the villa’s staff. Erich sat alone on the beach as the sun went down, thinking about everything he had lost while drinking away his sorrows.

nIt was not until the man had quite literally run out of beer in his cooler that he finally decided to return to the mansion, and when he did Erika was seemingly fast asleep, but this time she had claimed the bed for herself.

nErich entered the shower and cleaned the sand off of his body, before entering the opposite side of the bed, and falling asleep with his back turned to the woman. Not realizing that she was in reality still awake, waiting patiently for his return.

nThere was a deeply concerned look in Erika’s electric blue eyes as she thought about once more hugging the man, but ultimately decided against it. Her conflicted emotions would not permit her to do so more than once on this day. Even if it was the best thing for Erich at that moment.

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