Chapter 4 - Caring Family

  ...

  Linda felt very emotionally moved, feeling the deep concern and affection from the older dy in front of her. Nobody hated being loved, especially not Linda, who had just been through an identity crisis. The support from elders meant a lot to her, as she resolved to repay the love and concern a hundredfold in the future.

  She also reaffirmed her mindset and resolve to adjust to her new body quickly, especially for her new retives' sake.

  Having now decided to completely accept her new identity and having chosen to live well, Linda decided to put the faulty system in the back of her mind and to focus on living her new life well.

  With such a cute daughter to dote on and with such supportive in-ws, Linda felt that her new life gained a lot more worth struggling for.

  A gentle smile appeared on Linda's face as she covered her mother-in-w's hand with her own and spoke reassuringly,

  "Don't worry, Mom. I know what to do now. It's just that... there is something that I need to discuss with you privately."

  Linda's mother-in-w looked confused, but chose to listen to Linda's sudden request. Soon, only Linda and her mother-in-w were left in the private ward.

  ...

  "I see... so that's how it is. Don't worry, it must not be something permanent. You did well not telling Diane about it, Linda. I will do my best to assist with your memory recovery. The doctors did an MRI after your accident, and the reports all came out okay."

  Linda sighed in relief as her mother-in-w accepted her excuse for not having the ex-host's memories. The fact that she was still being pampered despite everything that had happened made Linda value her mother-in-w very highly. She resolved to at least let her parents-in-w live a happy and peaceful life, leaving no insecurities to trouble them; to provide for them and to take care of them till their old age.

  After excusing herself and getting the promise not to inform her daughter Diane about her loss of memories, Linda went to the dies' room to address the nature's call. Just when Linda saw her own reflection in the mirror, she became stunned and confused at the sight. Her body froze up mid-motion while her eyes began to tremble crazily.

  "This dy... isn't she the one that I tried to rescue before? What?? Does that mean that... I am still in the same world as my past life?! No, it must mean that I wasn't reborn or transmigrated. I just swapped bodies with the dy that I rescued before! And, my past life parents... they must still be around!!"

  "Oh, thank you so much, God! Thank you for giving me one more chance to care for my old parents. Don't worry, Mother, Father... your son won't let you down this time! But... I am a woman now. How do I get them to believe that it's me? To tell them that their son became their daughter..."

  Linda cried out in a mix of relief and anxiety, yet the tears of happiness and relief streamed down her face as she celebrated her good fortune, arriving at st. As Linda was thinking about that, something else came to her mind.

  "Wait... then what happened to my original body? Is Diane's real mother in my old body now? No, how did this crazy body swap happen in he first pce?! Ah... so many questions! No, I must try asking my mother-in-w about it. She must know something about the accident."

  Linda absentmindedly finished her business, forgetting to notice a key difference in her body. Still used to her male body, she didn't notice anything special. Her mind still occupied with the many questions about the past accident that Linda washed her hands in a hurry and adjusted her clothes before leaving the washroom.

  Upon meeting her mother-in-w again, Linda held her mother-in-w's arm anxiously and asked in a low tone,

  "Mom, about the guy who tried to rescue me, what happened to him? Is he... alright?"

  Her mother-in-w sighed in relief, as she assumed that Linda's memories might be coming back to her slowly. After which, an awkward expression appeared on her face as she spoke,

  "That man... he didn't survive the accident. I know that you must be feeling sorry for him, but he couldn't make it till reaching the hospital. He was a really good and selfless man, daring to protect a stranger. Sadly, he lost his life trying to do a good deed. I also feel sorry for the man's parents. How much they must be suffering... I am able to understand that too. They must have raised him well with a lot of effort, but... as."

  Seeing her mother-in-w shedding silent tears for her past life parents, Linda realised that she must be recalling her own son's passing away sometime earlier.

  Although Linda felt devastated and confused over his past life body being decred dead, effectively killing off any chances for his return to his old body, and of letting Diane meet her real mother, Linda decided to console her mother-in-w as she held her shoulder closely while her mother-in-w shed silent tears of sorrow. Linda waited for her mother-in-w to calm down slowly, knowing that mere words of comfort or consotion might not be good enough in her case. The loss of a young and healthy child for their parents is always devastatingly difficult to overcome or forget.

  Linda became more and more worried about her past life parents' well-being, who must have suffered in he same manner as her mother-in-w. Linda made a promise to herself to only tell the truth about her body swap to his past life parents. To assure them that their son was still around, albeit in a new shape, form and identity.

  ...