Chapter 4: From Now On, I Have a Name Too

Just before dawn, Kotoba finally completed her first creation—something that, in a certain sense, resembled a fluffy ball of cotton candy. With a slightly burnt aroma, she placed it before the child.

“Try it,” she said.

The child hesitated, clearly reluctant, but curiosity got the better of him, and he timidly extended his tongue to lick it.

“Is it good?” Kotoba asked.

A faint “delicious” escaped his lips, as if caught in his throat.

A subtle trace of energy clung to the cotton candy, slipping from above into the child’s body. Kotoba watched silently as the spiritual energy fused perfectly with his form, then exhaled deeply without a sound.

On the dimly lit long street, the shadows of the large and small stretched long beneath the moonlight.

Kotoba donned her mask, inhaling the sharp scent of antiseptic as she approached the hospital room.

On the bed lay a woman in a deep sleep, her expression fraught with unease, caught in a nameless nightmare; her tightly furrowed brow showed no sign of relaxation.

The child eagerly slipped into the room, lying beside the woman’s bed.

Kotoba reached out but failed to catch him, helplessly following inside. She pointed to the watch on her wrist.

“Remember, you only have ten minutes. When the time’s up, you must come out, or both you and she will be trapped inside forever, and she will never awaken.” With a wave of her hand, Kotoba watched as the child quietly nestled beside his mother and fell asleep.

—

Xu Luo felt her eyelids grow unbearably heavy, as if weighed down by a thousand pounds pressing painfully upon her, suffocating her breath.

Suddenly, she thought she heard someone calling her.

No—it was calling for “Mom.”

Tears welled up instantly; having just lost her child, the heavy blow seemed to drain all will to live from her.

She thought she might just keep sleeping forever.

A clear, crisp sound shattered her fragile sanity, dragging her back to reality.

A pristine little child stood before her, smiling sweetly, reaching out with soft, warm hands.

“Mom.”

Xu Luo shook her head. Her child should not be this big.

Yet, she patiently spoke to him. “Little one, are you lost? Your family must be worried.”

“My family is you, Mom. I am your child—what I look like when I grow up.” To see his mother, he had asked Kotoba to dress him impeccably, his eyes bright and clear.

What?

Xu Luo was stunned. It must be a joke! Yet she couldn’t help but look again, sensing a faint reflection of herself in his features.

A complex tide of sorrow and joy overwhelmed her mind as she cautiously took the child’s hand.

—

“What’s your name?”

“I don’t know—Mom, you haven’t named me yet.”

“How about Xu Yang?”

“Okay, I’m Xu Yang.”

Neither spoke of the incredulity between them.

Xu Yang basked in his mother’s love, reluctant to leave her side.

“You can eat whatever you want. Mom will cook for you tonight. I’ll also take you shopping for new clothes. Want a pretty doll? Or a little robot, a toy car?”

Yes, he wanted them all.

He was immersed in a dream, even wishing it could last forever.

But in the next moment, Kotoba’s warning echoed sharply in his mind.

Such a wonderful mother! How he longed to stay with her always. Yet he could not be selfish.

A wave of fear surged in Xu Luo’s heart as she hugged the child tightly.

Xu Yang’s small hands wrapped around his mother’s waist, too tiny to encircle her fully.

“Mom, I have to go now. It’s a pity I can only stay with you this long. Don’t cry—crying will spoil your face. You have to be strong. You’ll have more children in the future, very cute, just like me. They’ll be filial and take good care of you.”

What a pity!

The new clothes were his.

The beautiful doll was his.

The little robot and toy car were his.

Even Mom was his—eating her cooking every day, hearing her hum lullabies, resting his head on her arm as she told bedtime stories.

Just the thought made one envious.

“No, no. You can’t go. Please don’t go, Mom—I beg you. Mom didn’t mean to leave you. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

The little hands gently wiped away the tears from the corner of the woman’s eye.

“How could I blame Mom? It’s my own failure—I wasn’t strong enough, had a weak body. I was declared dead before I even got to meet her.”

Staring at the nearly translucent child in her arms, whose image was beginning to blur, Xu Luo could no longer hold back her sobs.

She was starting to forget what her own child looked like.

A cold warning sounded.

“Her will to live is fading. She wants to die with you.”

The child’s eyes widened in fear.

—

At the same time, the machines in the hospital room began to emit a harsh alarm. Kotoba withdrew before the doctors arrived.

Standing in the corridor, watching the bustling staff pass by, she toyed with the lollipop in her hand, irritation flickering across her face. She peeled off the candy coating and bit one end, pressing it against her lips.

The dream was collapsing. If they didn’t leave now, they would never escape.

If necessary, she would employ special measures.

Fragments of the dream began to fall away.

“Make a promise, Mom. Next time, I’ll still choose you as my mother.”

“Really?” Xu Luo’s eyes sparked with newfound hope.

To make her believe, even the childish pinky swear became their exclusive secret in that moment.

The child emerged from the dream. He vanished again, enveloped by the noisy surroundings—the voices, the hurried footsteps. He could only crawl by instinct to a young woman’s ear.

Softly, he called, “Mom, please wake up. I’m waiting for you.”

He had seen his mother’s face in the dream but couldn’t recall it outside.

Those small hands gently caressed the mother’s face, gradually painting a beautiful picture in his heart.

“My mom is very young. She has no wrinkles yet; her eyes are big, her lashes long... her hair is long. The way she looks at me is gentle. Her voice is lovely—the most beautiful in the world. My mom is someone else’s mom now.”

At that moment, it seemed he truly could see his mother’s face.

Kotoba watched as he stumbled forward, stubbornly wiping away tears.

From the emergency room behind them came the sound of a safe report.

“You know,” he said stubbornly, “what will Mom’s next child be like? Probably not as good as me.” Then, after a moment, grinning through clenched teeth, “Well, maybe a little better—so Mom will be happy.”

At the far end of the corridor, a timid child approached cautiously, seemingly afraid of Kotoba, moving very slowly.

Only when Kotoba toned down her presence did he relax somewhat.

“Are you Mom’s next child?”

Kotoba looked at the speaker, puzzled. He could see?

“I think I can,” he said joyfully, running to the other child and circling him. “Okay, I admit it—you really are cuter than me. Pale and fair, and your body seems healthier too. Pinky swear. This is my and Mom’s little secret. Now I’m telling you. Please take good care of Mom for both of us.”