Mathias's eyes slowly opened as the groans of the wounded Confederate soldiers around him grew louder and louder. He felt as if his head were about to burst. Fever burned his cheeks. Never in any of his lives had he felt more miserable than he did at that moment. He remembered this pain well. All he had to do was wait for her to show up.
"Mr. Køhler," a soft voice said to him. "You are unwell."
He felt a cool, wet rag being placed against his cheeks. It helped relieve his fever just slightly. His mouth twisted into a smile. "You're wonderful, Miss Lovise." Mathias slowly opened his eyes to see the young nurse smiling down at him.
"Mr. Køhler, you're burning with fever," Lovise sighed, smile turning to a frown of concern.
"I am?" Mathias asked. His voice was cracked and hoarse. He felt slightly delusional. Was she even real? "Miss Lovise, I beg of you, please don't leave my side!" His hands fumbled around for hers.
Lovise grasped his hands firmly. "Please calm down, sir," she calmly told him. "I need you to be calm until we can tend to you."
Mathias squeezed his eyes shut and gasped out as it felt as if fire spread through his leg when he tried to move it. "That really hurts," he hissed out, cringing.
"Your leg is broken, sir," Lovise responded. "If you keep moving it like that, you will never walk again."
"I'm not 'sir'," Mathias groaned out. "It's Mathias. Just call me Mathias."
"Mathias," Lovise softly echoed.
He smiled. "My name sounds nice when said by you," Mathias told her. He opened an eye to see her smiling down at him as she squeezed his hands gently. "Please say it more often."
"I'll try to," Lovise said, smile growing slightly wider. "Now please rest, and I will be back later."
"Promise?" Mathias asked her.
She squeezed his hand once more. "I promise, Mathias."
.
Mathias woke up to Astrid whining at the end of the bed. He rubbed the sleep from his blue eyes and blinked down at the puppy at his feet. His eyes narrowed as she continued whining.
"Why are you such a pain, pup?" he groaned, getting out of bed. "You always need to go outside right in the middle of a good dream." He opened his bedroom door as the puppy scampered under his feet and down the hallway. "I was dreaming about Lovise, you know," he muttered at Astrid. "It was about when I was a soldier in the Civil War…"
Astrid ran to the front door of the apartment and yipped at him. It were almost as if she were telling him to get over it. She jumped up on the door and yipped a little louder, indicating that her needs were more important than his, or at least that was how Mathias saw it.
Mathias yawned and hooked a leash onto her collar. "Let's go, Astrid," he sighed, opening his apartment door. He was glad that he was at least on a ground-floor apartment. That way he wouldn't have to take her down any stairs or on an elevator of any kind. "Just make it fast," he grumbled at her as they got outside.
He began to contemplate the dream he was having. Ever since he had met Lovise in this life, he had been having constant dreams of their past lives together. The night before was her giving birth to their firstborn child in their first life together. Even thinking about that moment brought tears to Mathias's eyes. Their first child then ever had together had been so beautiful, but she had gotten sick and died at three years. Lovise had been so crushed that she wouldn't eat for weeks, no matter how badly Mathias begged her. It was a pain unlike anything they could have imagined.
Mathias frowned as he thought of his first little girl, the one who had looked so much like her mother. He was so destroyed when she died, and nothing was ever quite the same no matter how many more children they had together. He was thankful that, in this life, they had the technology and utensils to save a small child. At least he wouldn't have to worry as much about losing a child the way he had lost his first.
Astrid scampered back over to Mathias, yipping happily. She was ready to go back inside and snuggle up with him in his warm bed.
He smiled down at his puppy. "You know, you're pretty cute," he told her, bending down to pick her up. Mathias kissed the top of her head. "Let's go back to bed now, sweetheart. You look tired. Come on, princess." He carried her inside and sat on his bed. He waited for her to settle down and curl up before laying down. Hopefully, he would have another dream like the one he was having.
.
Lovise walked into the apartment she and Lara shared after getting off work late. She went into the kitchen for some hot chocolate before bed and nearly screamed.
Before her stood a well-built Asian man a little shorter than her. He was clad in shorts and her sister's fuzzy bunny slippers. His expression was made of pure astonishment as he stared at Lovise, mouth hanging open. If Lovise wasn't interested elsewhere and if her sister wasn't already sleeping with him, she might've found him attractive.
"You're not Lara," he slowly said.
"I'm her sister, Lovise," she responded. "And who are you?" Lovise gave him a quizzical look and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Uh, I'm Leon," he answered.
Leon. Where had she heard that name before? She remembered Lara mentioning a "Leon" once or twice.
"Her boss?" Lovise asked.
Leon's face turned a bright red. "Uh, yeah," he timidly answered.
"What you do with your underlings is none of my business," Lovise stiffly stated. "But if you hurt this one particular underling, it will become my business. Are we clear on that?" she asked, locking Leon into an icy blue gaze.
He gulped and nodded. "I have no intentions of hurting Lara," he quickly assured.
"Then we won't have any problems," Lovise said with a sly smile. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some hot chocolate to make." She pushed past him and made her way to their cabinet to get a packet of hot chocolate out of their box.
Only once Leon left the room did she turn around. She was glad to have the kitchen to herself, yet she wished she could've grilled Leon a little more. Lovise worried for Lara. Sleeping with your boss was never that wise of a choice. Why couldn't her little sister just keep things in the workplace in the workplace?
.
Mathias smiled as Lovise walked into his office a few days later. "How's it going, Lovise?" he asked her, leaning back in his desk chair. "Anything you would specifically like to talk about?"
"My sister is sleeping with her boss," Lovise said, sitting on the couch across from him. "I don't know how I feel about that." She glanced down into her lap. "If things go sour, she could easily get fired. Why doesn't she see that?"
"Does she like him?" Mathias asked her, resting his elbow on his armrest and resting his head on his fist. He cocked his head to the side slightly. "Or do you know that?"
"I can't really tell," Lovise admitted. She sighed and looked up at Mathias. "Is this just me being a concerned older sister again?"
"What do you think it is?" Mathias asked her. He raised his eyebrows at her as he waited for her to respond.
"I don't know," Lovise sighed. "That's why I asked you, Mathias." She blinked her sapphire eyes at him. "I'm all messed up right now."
"I can tell you're a bit out of sorts," Mathias said with a nod. "Let's talk about how you found out about this."
"Well I came home from a late shift at work to find a half-naked man in my kitchen," Lovise told him. "I nearly screamed if it wasn't for the fact that I have neighbors. I mean, he's highly attractive, but not really my type. Plus he's sleeping with my little sister."
Mathias had to hold back his smile when she said the man wasn't her type. He listened to everything she had to say and answered with, "Do you believe that your sister is capable of making her own decisions?"
Lovise nodded. "I do. Yet I still worry sometimes regarding the decisions she makes. I mean, everyone knows that love in the workplace is bad. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that shit out. It's extremely taboo, almost like falling in love with your therapist or something!" She quickly closed her mouth, realizing what she said.
"Excuse me, but did you just say 'falling in love with your therapist'?" Mathias asked her, grinning. He was really hoping his ears didn't deceive him. Why else would Lovise mention something like that if it wasn't on her mind?
"N-No," she mumbled, looking back into her lap. "That's just ridiculous, Mathias." She could feel her cheeks burning with blush.
"Is it so ridiculous?" Mathias asked her. "Therapy sessions are all about honesty, Lovise. Why can't you be honest with your therapist?"
Lovise's head snapped up to look at him. "What are you talking about? I am being honest with you." She took a deep breath. "Come over here. Come sit by me for a moment."
Mathias followed her request. He went over to the couch and sat next to her. Though he would never admit it out loud, he was happy to be so close to her. It was almost an internal struggle to not put an arm around her and pull her closer. "Okay, now what?" Mathias asked her. His heart was racing from being so close to her, but he needed to focus on her needs instead of his own desires.
"Now close your eyes," she said, shifting her weight as he closed his eyes. Lovise took a deep breath and rose to her feet. She then moved over to his lap and straddled his hips, bending her legs beneath her. After taking one more deep breath, she cupped his face in her hands and pressed her lips to his.
Mathias's eyes flew open as he realized Lovise was straddling and kissing him. He wasn't expecting something like that. He knew he couldn't make the first move since it was a therapist and client relationship, but he never expected her to make a move on him. But he was glad that she did as he rested his hands on her hips and began to move his lips on hers.
Lovise let out a small gasp of surprise when she realized he was kissing her back. She wasn't expecting him to return her feelings in a situation like this. Her hands moved down to his shoulders and she pressed herself closer to him. She wanted this moment to last as long as possible.
Yet as Lovise kissed him, she couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarity. It was almost as if she had kissed him before, but there was no way that it was possible. She also felt a sense that this was how things were supposed to be. And as their lips were moving on each other's, she couldn't help but wish she could have more.
It was Mathias who finally broke off the kiss. He needed air for sure, but he regretted releasing those soft lips of hers. How he wished he could kiss her for all eternity.
Lovise's face was flushed and her eyes were hazy. She felt that she couldn't see straight. Everything she saw was Mathias. All she wanted to feel was Mathias. She didn't realize how heavy her breathing was until her mind began to come back to her.
Mathias didn't realize that he was slightly aroused until he regained his senses. He was so glad when he realized it wasn't noticeable. All he had to do was keep her away from that area.
Lovise gazed into his ice blue eyes. "I know that I barely know you, but you're always on my mind first thing in the morning and last thing at night. I feel as if I've known you forever. But…" Her voice trailed off for a moment. "I know that's not possible."
He knew that he couldn't mention past lives. It would ruin the moment, and this was a moment he had been waiting all this life for. "Sometimes people can fall for someone pretty fast."
"Have you fallen for me, Mathias?" Lovise softly asked him.
"I have," he admitted with a nod.
Lovise felt her heart rate speed up. "You're not lying?"
"What benefit would I get from that?" Mathias asked her, raising an eyebrow.
She bit her lip. "I just have a suspicion that some therapists use this tactic to seduce their clients, and then they just stop talking to them after they are no longer their clients."
"Do I really seem capable of that?" Mathias asked her, cocking his head to the side. "I mean, honestly. Do you think I would really do that?"
"I would like to believe that you wouldn't," Lovise answered. She lifted a hand to his face and traced his lips with her index finger. "But then again, you never know."
He had to internally struggle to keep from telling her that he's been waiting all his life for her. All he wanted was to tell her that he's been in love with her all his life, but he knew that he never could without sounding insane to her.
"I want to believe that you truly fell for me as well," she slowly said, gazing into his eyes. "I want to believe that you wouldn't lie to me about that."
"Then why don't you believe it?" Mathias asked her.
"It's hard for me to trust people on what they say," she said, gaze falling to his chest. It was easier for her to talk to him like this if she didn't have to look him in the eyes. "I've been screwed over by too many people, Mathias. I can never believe what they say to me anymore."
"So I'll have to prove it?" Mathias asked her.
Lovise looked back up at him, eyes widening in surprise. "You want to prove that?" she asked him. "Why is it me?"
"I feel as if you're the girl I've been waiting for," Mathias told her. "Please don't prove me wrong."
She smiled in relief and pulled him into another kiss. Though she knew that he could lose his job over kissing her like this, she just couldn't help herself. Mathias was the most amazing man that she had ever met, and she wasn't about to let him slip away.