Echoes from a past never lived

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Minh's jaw dropped. Staring back at her from the photos was her young self besides a much younger, but equally chubby Clark. What shocked her wasn't how young, or different they looked. It was where they were, and how SHE was dressed. She wore heavy neon makeup. Much riskier than she'd ever dared to apply. She was also wearing a very skimpy outfit. A bra, thong and a see-through skirt that was more of a belt, really.
The location was easy to make out. She didn't know exactly where it was, but one thing was for certain. They were in a strip club in Vietnam.

Apparently Minh had been a full-time stripper before the met Clark. It wasn't LOVE that brought them together, more mutual interest. Minh had wanted to leave her low life of stripping and poverty. Meanwhile, Clark had traveled across the world as a sex tourist, looking for a potential wife that wanted a green card. The Clark of today would never have been able to fetch a woman as attractive as Minh, unless, of course....
She might be rather skinny, with a petite figure and no curves to speak of, but her face was still as pretty as ever. She could still turn heads walking down the street just like before. Though now it may be more due to her skimpy clothing more than anything.

It had become plain as day why she would've wanted her husband to throw the photos in the bin. They, along with her passport, were the only remains of the life she so eagerly wanted to forget. At least that was her "lore". Minh didn't actually know or feel any of these things. She was learning about it just now from her husband.

"If it keeps you happy, you can keep them. Hell, frame them for all I care"

The response shook both of them. Clark didn't expect her to give up on it so willingly. He'd experienced her to be quite adamant about these things in the past. The sudden change of tone really threw him off. Meanwhile Minh didn't actually want him to keep them, let alone frame them. Her submission level along with her agreeableness had nudged her towards letting him have what he wanted. There wasn't much fight left in her, poor gal. Not that it mattered anyways. She'd be moving out of town soon anyways, with her boss of all people!
Speaking of moving. She just remembered she'd picked loyalty again! Her face lit up ever so slightly as she prepared to voice her loyalty to her husband, sealing their relationship. She might not love the man in front of her anymore, as far as she was concerned, it wasn't _her _Clark. It was someone else, wearing his bloated skin. But he was in there somewhere! If she played the game right, she might even be able to get him back to somewhat normal.

"Clark, I'm completely lo-" Her words got cut off. Not by an interruption. She herself couldn't muster the words.

"WHATS GOING ON?!" She screamed internally. Why couldn't she pledge loyalty to her husband like she had her boss?? Then it dawned on her. Like lightning from clear sky. The app, evil as it was, didn't let her designate a new target for her loyalty, it simply increased the existing loyalty to her boss. Meaning she'd be hard pressed to ever abandon her boss now.. Fuck.

"What honey, anything on your mind?" His tone was more kind now. Maybe because Minh had finally given him the green on further dwelling into his race-play fantasies by allowing him to keep the photos and passport.

"Uhm. Nothing sweetie" There wasn't even a point in trying to fight the app. She'd tried twice already, both times had left her off worse than she'd like. First the piercing, then the tattoo. If she tried to fight it on her loyalty she'd probably get punished in imaginable ways. No thank you..

"I got a job offer. But it's out of town. I'll have to move. You can still come and visit me though!"

WHAT?! She didn't mean to say it yet?? She still had time to figure something out! Why had she blurted that out from nowhere?? The loyalty! It was etched so deep into her now that even plotting an escape contradicted the trait. Saying it out loud like this, more of a statement than a request or something that was up for debate. The way she'd phrased it, she wasn't asking. She was going, Clark's opinion be damned.

"WHAT?! Why did you accept the job? You know you don't even have to work, right?? I make more than enough for the both of us!"

The poor guy, he started crying. Not just a few tears, full on ugly crying. He knew full and well that losing Minh would mean spending the rest of his life alone. Sure he could meet up with her every now and then, but that wasn't nearly enough. He also knew that what he felt for her wasn't mutual. He'd learned to LOVE the woman he was married to. To her, he was just a means to an end. A way to safely stay in the states and lead a comfortable life. She didn't actually need him anymore as far as immigration was concerned, but she'd become quite accustomed to the life and luxury he could provide. She'd really struck gold back in Vietnam when she'd approached him there in that club. Too bad he wasn't attractive or charming, she might even have fallen for him back if he was..
Of course, these are all the motives and emotions of the fabricated Minh that originated from this reality. The actual Minh who was stuck as this person felt differently. With no recollection of their past, and a different impression of Clark all together, she was much more fond of him. It might not be love anymore, but he was still the last pillar in her now spiraling life.

Minh hated seeing her husband like this, but what could she do about it? Comfort him? Had she had any more self awareness she might've. Instead she did something completely tone deaf. She called her boss to tell him that she was ready to move right away. It was a short call, just a quick exchange of dates and addresses. The bottom line was that she could move tomorrow. Much sooner than previously anticipated. Turns out Mr Richards had received a note asking if he could start sooner just a few hours prior. 

It felt as though the world itself conspired against her. First she'd lost her face and body. Then her job, and now her husband who was still sobbing at his desk. 

"I still have ONE MORE change before I'm gone. If I can really make it count I might just be able to turn this around" She thought to herself. Conspiring against her loyalty might have gotten her to call her boss, but there wasn't much more to lose. She also half expected that the traits wouldn't interfere with her ability to select in the app. If that was the case, she'd be completely fucked. 

Not more than thirty minutes after her call with her boss, she received an SMS from an airline confirming her booking. Apparently he'd booked a flight for her out of his own pocket right after they'd talked. Usually that'd be the job of the secretary, but given that she was completely inept, most of those responsibilities remained with Carl.