When I wake up, the sun is streaming through the french window next to the four-poster bed. I don't need to check to know that Alex was already in the kitchen, preparing breakfast for me.

 After freshening up, I enter the kitchen, and as expected, find him in there. He hums, bobbing his head from side to side. I walk closer as silently as possible and take in the play of muscles under his grey Ramond T-shirt.

It is a good look on him. I make a mental note to get him a few more when I go shopping next time. More concerned about my well-being than his, he has never been one to take care of himself, my Alex. Warmth fills me. I am transported back to simpler times. A time of carefree, naive innocence.

I sigh inwardly and tap his shoulder. 

 "Morning, sleepyhead." He says without looking at me. "Set the table, will you?" He requests. "But first taste this." He lifts the spoon and brings it to my lips but stops abruptly as our eyes meet. His bow-shaped full lips purse for a second, and I catch my reflection in his dark orbs.

He schools his features and smiles brightly before urging me to try the Lotus stem soup: his mom's specialty and my favorite.

Mrs. Lian Reed, Alex's mom, was a Chinese American. She was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside. More often than not, I used to ditch my mom's grilled cheese toasts in favor of the exotic eastern delicacies that aunty Lian used to serve.

"Hey," I hear Alex call me, and I can't help but smile. He looks so much like her. "How come you are daydreaming first thing in the morning, hum?" He asks as I take a sip of the delectable soup and direct a thumbs up at him.

 He beams; a need to pinch his cheeks overtakes me. I proceed to do just that.

"Dude, that's totally uncool!" He cribs as he has always done. But a second later, his face darkens. He sets the soup on the table. "David asked to look at the will again. Mr. Harald had to comply."

I shrug. "Isn't it good that we changed it before I became a vegetable?"

Alex purses his lips. "Mel, don't."

I knew that my harsh words had hurt him. "I am sorry, Alex." I apologize, and he averts his gaze. "Mel, I will leave first. Take a cab to Mercy." He instructs without looking at me. I can hear his foot tapping rhythmically under the table.

I lean across and take his tightly fisted hand in mine; unclenching them, I intertwine our fingers. "Calm down. Last night you told me that you will protect me, and I know you will."

He nods and gazes at our hands. "If you feel even a little threatened, remember that I am only minutes away, alright?" He tries to reassure me. I can see that it is as much for his benefit as mine.

I nod, and we have our meal in silence. 

 Just as he is about to walk out the door, his almond eyes drift towards me, and in long strides, he closes the distance between us and pulls me in his arms. 

 "Don't hesitate to call me whenever at any time." He whispers, stroking my back.

His frame radiates heat and a musky fragrance that only belongs to him. My heart hammers in my chest as he cups my face and looks into my eyes. 

 The woman in the reflection is still unfamiliar.

"Mel...damn it." He curses softly. Pain and regret color his words; he brings his lips to my forehead, and then he is out the door, leaving me alone.

I hear the cooper pull out of the driveway and rush to the window. I watch Alex glance my way through the rolled-down windows of the steel gray vehicle and smile at me before driving out of sight. Since the past few days that I have been living here, I have noticed many things that I had previously taken for granted. For instance, the smile that he had directed at me just now was not his usual carefree, charming one. It was more: soft, almost intimate, and now that I think about it, I am the only one who has ever been at its receiving end.

An unexpected forlorn feeling grips me, and I find myself reminiscing about the night before when he had held me in his strong arms and given me the strength to follow through with the plan.

An hour later, I hail a cab and arrive at Mercy. I walk the familiar halls and have to physically stop myself from turning the corner and entering the Activity corner next to the pediatric ward. Instead, I stand at the door and watch the children play with each other, draw, and build blocks to keep themselves engaged.

"Janice." I hear an unfamiliar voice and turn, coming face to face with Beatrice, Janice's best friend at Mercy. This was the first time I was seeing her in person.

"Hey, girl," Beatrice waves her hand in front of my face, and I realize that I had zoned out.

"Sorry, Bea, I couldn't sleep last night." I lie, trying to sound like Janice.

"Girl, first you leave our pad, then you avoid me." The hazel-colored eyes narrow at me suspiciously before the brunette asks, "Are you breaking up with me?"

Lucky for me, Alex had warned me about her unusual way of speaking; I just smile, "Never. I love you. Now, and forever." I lie again and throw my arms around her in a quick hug before letting her go.

She smiles. "How about dinner?" She asks hopefully, and I nod, agreeing to the proposal. "Sure." I chirp, knowing full well that I probably wouldn't be able to make it.

Before she can return to interrogating me, however, my phone vibrates. I knew it was Alex.

Beatrice mouths a 'who?' as I pull the phone out.

'Doctor Reed.' I mouth back and receive the call. I catch a mischievous glint in the woman's eyes before she waves at me, winks and leaves.

What was that all about?

"Yes, Doctor," I answer the call, and as planned, Alex instructs me to bring Melissa's...my charts, to the VIP room.

I knock and enter the room with my charts firmly clutched in my arms. I avoid looking at my body and at David, who was sitting next to it, stroking my freckled motionless hand.

I smile at Alex. "Good morning, Doctor Reed." I emulate Janice's tone and body language as I had seen her do when she had tended to me a few times when I was lying paralyzed from the neck down a few days ago.

Acknowledging the nod, Alex accepts the file and purses his lips. But when I turn to leave, he stops me. "Janice, a moment, please."

I stop and turn back and fringe surprise. "Yes, Doctor? Is there anything else you need?"

Just as planned, Alex looks at me hopefully. "Janice, you have been looking after Mel...Melissa since she was brought here."

I nod and look at my unmoving form solemnly. "Yes. I am sorry, Doctor Reed. I heard that you were close."

"Melissa is Reed's soulmate," David interjects and walks towards me.

I hold my ground. "Excuse me?" I quirk my brow and glare at my cheating, knitting husband, who had tried to murder me twice now within a span of few weeks.

Do you really hate me that much, David?

David sighs and pats Alex's back like they were close. They weren't. 

 "This man here calls my wife his soulmate. And yet, he wasn't able to do anything for her....until now."

I look at Alex. Anger flashes across his face. "Stop talking in circles, David. She doesn't have time to waste." Alex's fists clench. There is no way for me to tell if this is real or an act. I don't care as long as it looks convincing.

I pretend to ignore David. I can see anger or maybe frustration dance in his pale blue-grey eyes in the reflection of the steel frames of the bed where my almost lifeless body lies. "Doctor?" I urge Alex to speak, and he turns to me. "I have a proposition for you, Janice. You don't have to do it if you don't want to," he speaks cautiously. He doesn't get far.

David steps in front of him. The tips of his lips turn up in a hesitant smile, and he reaches for my hand. "Janice Moore, I need you." He is the epitome of politeness and humility.

I wonder how I had not seen through this act before it was too late.

 No, it was not too late. I still had a chance. This chance...this body: Janice's body.

I step back and fix him with a cold, stern gaze. "Mr. Drew, please refrain from acting familiar."

David's smile doesn't falter, but a look of determination crosses his cool blues.

 He steps back and puts his hands up in surrender. "My bad." He turns to Alex. "Reed, I think I might have a better chance if you suggest it."

Alex directs a tight smile at me. "We can't do anything more for Melissa here. The kids miss their mother. David...Mr. Drew would like to take her home. He would need a full-time nurse to the care of her."

"Doctor Reed, are you offering the role to me?" I ask, bewildered, and he nods. "It is similar to what you are doing now. The only difference will be that Melissa will be your one and only patient, and you will be on call 24/7."

"Why me?" I narrow my eyes and look at David over my shoulder. "Did he ask for me?"

Alex nods. "He thinks that Melissa is more responsive when you are around." His eyes swim with tears. "Janice, Melissa means the world to me. She is not just my soulmate; she is my family."

"Doctor Reed-" I hold Alex's warm hands in mine. And the heat from them spreads to my heart. It is precisely then that the depth behind the word soulmate- that Alex had been using for more than a decade- becomes clear. My heart sinks as his dark almond eyes meet mine.

Alex was in love with me, and I was oblivious. I had failed to see what was right there in front of my eyes all along.

 I hear David clear his throat; it pulls me out of my reprieve. A look of annoyance colors his countenance. "I am sure Reed will be grateful if you will accept."

"I do...I mean, I will take it." I reply confidently and look at David. "As long as you promise not to act familiar."

 David bows exaggeratedly. "I will be on my best behavior, Ms. Moore, cross my heart and hope to die."

I will hold you to your words, David. This time I will definitely do that.

I give him a curt nod and turn my attention back to Alex. "Doctor Reed, when do you want me to start?" I enquire already knowing the answer, and he speaks the words we had practiced a dozen times over. "Now, Janice. You can start now."

I smile at Alex. My beeper goes off, reminding me of my duties.

"I will leave her in your care then, Janice." Alex states and leaves. Ignoring David, I walk over to the bed where Janice lies trapped in my body. "Mr. Drew, could you leave us, please?"

David leans towards me, but before I can protest, he leans further and kisses his wife's cold forehead. "Goodbye, my love." He whispers, and with a disarming smile, leaves me with his wife's body, my body, a body that is presently home to Janice's soul.

The door swings shut, and I take the woman's hand in mine. Her...no, not her, my...my copper curls look like they had just been combed; my green eyes are closed. I look like I am sleeping peacefully. I am sure Janice is restless. After all, she hadn't asked to be trapped like this. I contemplate holding her hand but decide against it. Instead, I lean in and whisper in her ear, "Janice, I am sorry that it has come to this...that I am here instead of there. I don't know how to thank you for this gift that you have given me, this second chance."