IMDD CHAPTER 258 (Patreon)

In the kitchen, Eva stood by the window, staring outside. She took a deep breath, steadying her nerves before lifting the phone to call Hunter. The ringtone echoed in the quiet room before Hunter's voice came on the line.

“What's up, sis? Is everything okay?"

Eva leaned against the cool marble countertop. "It's Gage. He's... he's in denial. He outright refuses to believe that he's Gage Acheron. We need to do something, something concrete to convince him."

There was a pause on the line before Hunter responded, his tone serious yet supportive. “Alright, what do you have in mind?"

"I was thinking... photographs," Eva suggested. "Could you bring any clear photos of him?"

"Pictures of Gage, huh? You know how he was with cameras. It's like he had a sixth sense for avoiding them. His photos are as rare as a blue moon, always in sideviews, or always blurry."

Eva nodded in agreement even though Hunter couldn't see her. After Gage disappeared seven years ago, she had looked for a photo of him but to her dismay she could not find one that was not sideview, partly covered, or blurry.

Back then, she berated herself. Why had she never thought of taking a photo together with Gage? A selfie with him would’ve been more than enough but she didn’t even have a single one. And now, she couldn’t help but berate herself all over again.

“Sis?” Hunter called her name when she fell silent.

"Yeah. It's as if he knew when someone was trying to sneak a photo of him.” she sighed.

“Don’t you both have a selfie together?”

Eva shook her head. Her hold on her phone tightened. “I was never fond of photos too. Much less a selfie. And… I never even thought of it back then…”

"On that, you and Gage were two peas in a pod," Hunter mused. "But don’t worry, I'll dig through the family albums. Grandpa was the only one who could ever get Gage in front of a camera. It was like a family event whenever he succeeded."

Eva's eyes brightened at the mention of Acheron's family album.

"I'll dig it out from the Acheron family archives," Hunter joked lightly. "But is that all you're banking on? Photos might not be enough."

“I still have other plans. I just need to find the right time to reveal it to him.”

Hunter's voice grew serious. "Convincing Gage won't be easy, but if anyone can do it, it's you."

"I hope you're right, Hunter.”

“Alright, I’ll go grab the photo and bring it to you ASAP.”

“Thank you.”

…

In the living room, Gage was seated comfortably on the sofa, his posture relaxed as he leaned forward slightly. Gaia was gently combing his long hair with an innocent sparkle in her eyes. Her small fingers worked with care, treating each strand of hair with focused attention.

Gage on the other hand, was relentlessly sifting through his memories, searching for any lapse or any missing piece that might validate Eva's claims. Deep down, a part of him yearned for her words to be true—that he was indeed Gage Acheron, her husband and this little girl’s father.

But no matter how much he tried to search, his efforts were met with nothing but the flawless continuity of his memories.

This was the first time he met Eva in this current lifetime of hers. This was the first time he’d been in this world on this particular timeline as well. So how could her story hold any truth? He pondered again about the idea of arriving in this world before meeting Eva, which could lend some credibility to her story. Yet there was no recollection of such an event in his mind. His memory was a continuous, uninterrupted stream.

Still, Eva's certainty nagged at him. Every time he stares into her blue eyes, something in him felt that she was not being deceitful or delusional. He could also see just how much she truly believed what she was saying. But if she had not been lying or mistaken, then what could explain this? A doppelganger? That was the only thing he could think of that was actually plausible.

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CHAPTER 259>>