Re:life with Karmic Gacha (Modern Family)-Chapter 362: Regression.

[General POV]

Larry King Now is a dynamic online talk show hosted by the legendary broadcaster Larry King, where he engages in candid conversations with celebrities, politicians, and thought leaders.

The show streams on platforms like Netflix and Spotify, allowing audiences to listen or watch at their convenience. On Netflix, it is broadcast live, attracting around 10 million eager viewers waiting for it to start.

Set against a sleek, modern backdrop, the studio features a minimalist design, highlighted by a large desk where King conducts his interviews. Surrounding him are vibrant LED screens displaying graphics and highlights from the guests' careers.

Edward sat casually, a bright smile illuminating his face as he awaited the show's beginning. Dressed in a leather jacket that accentuated his bad-boy persona, he sported a silver chain and rings that added to his edgy image.

"Welcome to the Larry King Show," Larry announced, his gentle, slightly raspy voice resonating as he looked straight into the camera, his prominent wrinkles and receding hairline a testament to his years of experience.

"My guest today is Edward Newgate: musician, actor, inventor, and international heartthrob. At just 17, Edward has already shattered the King of Pop's record for the best-selling album worldwide, with over 400 million copies sold. He's a friend of the President, the director and star of a billion-dollar movie, and the founder of a diabetes cure, among countless other accolades that would take up all our broadcast time if I listed them all."

Edward nodded in acknowledgment, eliciting a chuckle from the audience.

Larry turned to him, "Thank you for joining me. I know your schedule is packed, but you've still made time for this old man."

"Oh, I'm a fan of your show," Edward replied earnestly, although he had never actually watched it before. His smooth delivery flattered Larry.

"You've just wrapped up your tour. The last stop was in Italy, right?"

Edward nodded. "Yeah. On the final day, there were over 300,000 people at the stadium."

Larry was astonished. "They waited outside just to catch a glimpse of you?" Part of him felt starstruck, despite the vast age difference.

"Yes, they did. I had to leave the venue in a helicopter. It was one of those moments when everything felt surreal, and I couldn't believe I was receiving such love and affection from people around the world."

They spent about five minutes discussing his world tour. With only 30 minutes for the show, they had to move through topics quickly.

"Recently, an article mentioned your close connection to the Cuban revolution. You said you wanted to address that," Larry prompted.

"Absolutely. I need to clarify that."

"Is there any inaccuracy in the article?"

"Well, the article claimed my mother was dead. I have no idea where that information came from. She's at home right now, watching this interview live on TV," Edward replied casually, slightly waving at the camera.

[Flashback]

Inside the doctor's office at a mental health care facility in Canada.

"She regressed to her 6-year-old self?" Edward asked in disbelief as the doctor explained the situation. In the next room, his mother played with a Barbie doll, supervised by the nurses.

"That's our prognosis. It seems her mind couldn't handle the pressures of the real world anymore. We've seen several cases where patients adopt this coping mechanism, retreating to a simpler time to escape the harshness of reality."

Edward listened intently, worry etched on his face. Although he didn't want to see her again, he envisioned her living peacefully in Canada, far from the memories of her attempted suicide and struggles with mental health.

Guilt washed over him. After his meeting with the doctor, Edward slowly approached his mother in the other room.

"Hello, Miranda. Do you know who I am?" he asked, hopeful.

His mother turned to him, her eyes widening with childlike wonder despite her frail appearance from prolonged depression.

"Ah! Edward Newgate! Músico!" she exclaimed, rushing toward him with excitement, unaware of who he truly was beyond having seen him sing on TV.

"Yeah, that's me." Edward forced a smile and said, his voice cracking, "What are you playing? Can I join you?"

"Yes! We can play together!" Miranda handed him a Ken doll and explained the background story for her role play. "See, Ken is Barbie's dad. He won't let her go play outside, so she's going to find the winged pegasus to help her."

Edward's chin quivered slightly, but he maintained his smile as they played together.

"I hope my dad will come pick me up soon! I hate it here..." Miranda complained while they played.

Edward was stunned and slowly turned her body to face him. "Miranda, look into my eyes for a moment."

She complied without saying anything. Edward activated his sharingan and entered her mindscape. His heart almost stopped when he saw it shattered into a million pieces.

What Sage had told him came to mind: the resentment he felt—was it born from anger toward her, or from his own hurt at her leaving?

After two years of therapy, Edward had gradually moved away from his anger, though some lingering feelings made it difficult for him to face his mother.

He didn't want to understand her, nor did he want to forgive her. But fate, the ever-cruel mistress, made it so that he was the only one who could save her while also forcing him to confront her memories.

"Miranda, I'm actually your family," Edward said, tears welling in his eyes.

Miranda's eyes lit up, but before she could express her excitement, she noticed his expression and became emotional too. "What—why are you crying? Don't cry; you're going to make me cry."

"Ah, sorry. Something got into my eyes." He quickly wiped away his tears and tried to act normally. "So, why don't you come back home with me?"

"Mom told me not to go around with strangers," Miranda replied, but then added, "You feel like family. So I guess it's fine."

"Definitely—definitely don't go around with strangers. I'm going to tell your parents about it," Edward joked.

Miranda looked surprised, her chin quivering before she broke into a smile. "Don't tell them! I'm sorry!"

She leaned in and gave him a hug. Edward was momentarily taken aback, but he couldn't hold back his tears any longer. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"It's fine. I'm sorry too. I was just joking, so don't cry. I won't tell your parents," he comforted her.

Although the meaning of the apology was different, it struck deeply at Edward's heart. He cried for a while as he hugged her, his guilt tortured him endlessly.

He noticed the bandage on her right wrist, and he said to Miranda, "Let's go home. I'll take you home, so don't feel like you're alone anymore."

"Really? You promise?" Miranda asked in a childlike manner. "Pinky promise?" She extended her pinky at Edward.

Edward wiped his eyes and interlocked his pinky with her, "Pinky promise."

As soon as he promised, he immediately analyzed Miranda's situation. His rationale returned as he vowed inwardly to fix her broken mind.

"She can converse in English, so her skills haven't regressed. Otherwise, we'd be speaking in Spanish the whole time. If her mind has regressed as a coping mechanism, it will be hard for me to help her unless I can convince her it's safe to come back."

It took some time for him to persuade Miranda to come back home with him. His aunt followed, and they stayed at his house for now.

Three days had passed since that day. Edward entered Miranda's mind daily while she slept, trying to mend her shattered memories. He witnessed moments that made him cry and began to understand why she chose to hide in her 6-year-old self.

While observing his childhood from his mother's perspective, he pinpointed the starting point of Miranda's parental issues and felt an intense anger rising within him.

[Flashback Ended]

Back to the Larry King show. Larry was surprised to hear Edward announce that his mother was alive.

"She—she's alive? The article stated she's a freedom fighter who lost her life two years ago. Is there any hidden truth in that story?" Larry asked.

Edward nodded and replied casually, "Yeah. She was fighting for Cuba two years ago. Then she was shot and went into a coma. When she woke up, months had passed, and her group had failed."

"My mom spiraled after losing everything. She began showing symptoms of depression, and when the Cuban revolution ended, she tried to take her own life."

Larry was momentarily mortified by Edward's deeply personal story. He glanced at the producers, concerned that they had strayed off-script—this wasn't what they were supposed to be discussing. But after receiving the producer's nod, he regained his composure and responded with sensitivity. "If the country had toppled the regime she fought against, why did she decide to end her life?"

"I think it's because she felt there was nothing left to live for now that her obsession was complete."

"What about family? That's something to live for," Larry said with concern.

"I guess I have a part to blame in this. I resented my mother; I didn't even know what she was doing when she left four years ago. She never told us about her true identity. I only learned about it when my aunt contacted me and revealed my Cuban heritage." Edward's voice was slightly agitated.

In the Palisades area, the Dunphy family watched the interview live on Netflix, along with 20 million other viewers. This became the most successful episode of "Larry King Now," eclipsing the typical peak of 300,000 viewers.

Cameron wore a worried expression. "Isn't he oversharing? Shouldn't they stop the broadcast?"

Phil was concerned too. "It must be hard for him to open up about his past. Why is he doing this? And his mother attempted suicide? When did that happen?!"

Claire feared for Edward, worried that the tragedy had affected his mental state.

Alex, however, sensed another motive beneath her family's worries. She felt Edward was intentionally agitating the listeners for some reason, but she couldn't decipher why. Her palms grew sweaty, and she instinctively held her grandpa's hand.

Enid, Jenna, Haley, Abby, Taylor, Selena, Barbara, and especially his girlfriend Vanessa were all anxious about the outcome of the interview.

Edward continued without interruption from Larry. "We don't have a great relationship. But when she left without a word, that hurt me deeply. I felt... abandoned. I spent the next two years trying to fill the void she left. I did that when I met my neighbors."

"I debuted as an artist and became quite successful, and then she came back. Imagine my irritation at that time."

Larry nodded in understanding. "You felt like she was going to take advantage of your success. Did that happen before she left?"

"Yes. I felt that way too. Nothing I ever did was good enough for her. She never once said 'I'm proud of you' or 'I love you' when I won the classical music competition or was recognized as a musical prodigy at age seven. I did everything to gain her love and recognition, but it never came."

Larry deeply sympathized with Edward, as did millions of listeners. Lily, the fan club president, was already in tears.

"I suffered mentally, thinking I was never enough, that she didn't love me. So when she tried to return, I sent her away, telling her to never come back into my life. When she attempted suicide, I felt responsible."

"But you know it isn't your fault, right? You're just a kid; it's not your burden to bear," Larry said wisely as he let Edward vent.

"But it felt like my fault. I should have tried to understand her. It's easy to see why she did what she did; I just never tried to figure it out."

Larry was intrigued. "Wait. So you believe there's a reason why your mother never gave you the love you needed before she left?"

"It's not just 'a' reason. There's a whole book of reasons." Edward reached into his jacket and pulled out a book. "This is the entire reason for it: Needy Baby, Greedy Baby, written by Dr. Beverly Hofstader. This book is the reason for the rift in my relationship with my mother."

In Pasadena, Leonard's heart skipped a beat as the book was mentioned.

"Oh no." He exclaimed, feeling that something bad was going to happen.

Larry grabbed the book from Edward and said, "So you think the book was the reason you and your mother had a strained relationship."

"I don't think so. I know so." He was clear about it as he saw it in his mother's memories. After the book was released, his mother became of the readers and she began implementing the techniques in the book to him. To live in a rewards based environment.

The joke book from the Big Bang Theory had influenced his childhood greatly. Edward almost ended up like Leonard– broken and without any sense of self esteem because of the damn book.

Edward leaned forward, his voice steady but filled with passion. "You know, the more I think about Needy Baby, Greedy Baby, the more I realize how damaging its ideas can be. Take the story of the child who wore makeup and his mother's bra when he was five. The book portrays it as a desperate attempt to get attention, but that child wasn't seeking attention—he was trying t...o break free."

Larry raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "What do you mean?"

Edward continued, his frustration evident. "The child felt trapped in a suffocating environment. He wore green makeup to pretend he was the Hulk, emulating a hero who could escape his mother's emasculating demeanor. It wasn't about attention; it was about frustration. He wanted to be a child, but instead, he was treated like a science experiment. It was something that Dr Beverly Hofstader could figure out if she actually talked to her child."

"Imagine a 5 years old child wanting to run away from the house because of the way his mother treated him. And I wasn't making it up as I listened to the child's story from the subject of the book himself."

The audience was silent, captivated by Edward's intensity.

"When did I ever tell him that?!" Leonard exclaimed in frustration. Sheldon was astonished as he viewed Leonard's mother highly, so seeing her get attacked on the TV show was unsettling for him.

"So he lied? It wasn't the truth?" Sheldon asked Leonard, wanting some hope.

Leonard actually shook his head to Sheldon and said, "No. It's the truth. I'm just not sure how he knew about it."

"His mother constantly experimented on him, stifling his curiosity and putting down his natural instincts as 'stupid' and 'exasperating.' It was disheartening to read the book when you actually know the guy." Edward said with a sympathetic expression.

"Can you imagine that? Instead of nurturing a young boy, she turned him into a lab rat, always comparing him to his siblings who excelled academically. It's no wonder he started wetting the bed. The pressure was unbearable."

Leonard was astonished at the second reveal and held his head in frustration, screaming at the screen, "PLEASE STOP TALKING!"

Larry nodded thoughtfully. "That's a heavy load for a child to carry."

"Exactly! The book suggests that creating a reward-based environment is the key to success. But what kind of environment is it when the child can't even celebrate his own birthday? His mother claimed it was her achievement, not his. On Christmas, they had to write research papers instead of leaving cookies for Santa. How is that nurturing? There were a lot of things being left out in the book in her attempt to sell the misguided technique of child rearing. "

"That sounds incredibly harsh," Larry remarked, concerned. "What impact do you think that had on him?"

"It stripped him of his self-esteem. He grew up believing he was never good enough, always in the shadow of his siblings. That almost happened to me because my mother was following the book's advice. Instead of being a son, he was just an experimental subject, molded and reshaped into whatever his mother wanted him to be."

Edward paused, taking a breath to steady himself. "This isn't just a story; it's a reality, and many children are suffering because their parents are following the book. They're not allowed to explore their identities because they're too busy trying to meet unattainable expectations. And that's something I refuse to accept. "

Larry leaned in, clearly moved by Edward's passion. "So you believe that the book's approach can harm more than help?"

"Absolutely," Edward said forcefully. "It promotes a false narrative that emotional needs are a burden. Children need to feel loved and accepted for who they are, not just for their achievements. I know this firsthand. I've seen what happens when a parent prioritizes their own needs over their child's emotional well-being."

The audience was silent, absorbing the weight of Edward's words as he continued to challenge the ideas presented in Needy Baby, Greedy Baby.

"The book has sold a million copies. You'd think with that money, Dr. Beverly would try to pay for her child's college fees, but no. He still had to take out a student loan, even though the book was about him," Edward added, his frustration palpable.

Leonard, who was in a fetal state on the floor, perked up his ear at the mention of the book royalty. "Yeah. I'm the subject, why am I still paying the student loan?" He mumbled, slowly sitting upward.

The interview quickly gained traction, and social media erupted. People began dissecting the book online, sharing their own stories of childhood trauma. Edward, fueled by a desire for revenge, didn't interfere as Twitter users slammed Dr. Beverly Hofstadter.

Children who had suffered in silence were now asking their parents if they had ever bought the book. They began sharing their experiences, recounting the ways they had been emotionally neglected or manipulated under the guise of fostering independence. And there were a lot of them.

In response, Dr. Beverly Hofstader tweeted, "Edward Newgate's ire is misguided. His anger and decision to attack the book is part of his traumatic response to his mother's attempted suicide, and he is reaching for something to blame."

She continued, "I was just an easy target for him to redirect all of his anger toward."

However, many other psychologists began to speak out in criticism of her book. Though it had been released 15 years earlier, the resurgence of interest on social media brought to light a wave of criticism that had previously gone unnoticed.

With the internet amplifying voices that had long been silenced, it became clear how many people had bashed the book when it first came out. Yet, despite the backlash, it remained on the shelves, untouched.

Psychologists began to share their own analyses, pointing out the harmful effects of the book's core principles. "A child's emotional needs are not a burden," one psychologist tweeted. "They are a fundamental part of healthy development. Ignoring them leads to long-term mental health issues."

Edward watched as the online discourse grew, feeling vindication. The tide was turning against Dr. Hofstader, and he hoped that her book would finally be held accountable for the damage it had caused.

"Still, I don't feel as satisfied as I thought I would be." Edward muttered as he began to drink straight from the wine bottle.

Inside his house, numerous empty alcohol bottles were laid out all over the living room. Edward sat on the couch and finished his 31st bottle of wine, burping slightly, and finally began to feel drunk.

He began drinking immediately after he finished with the interview. It was 8 in the evening, and someone pressed the intercom at the front gate at the foot of the hill, wanting to talk with Edward.

(A/N: I know that fixing his relationship with his mom can cause potential backlash considering how I wrote her so far. I actually used the 'unreliable narrator' technique when he was talking in a first person point of view, so his opinions were greatly biased while he was telling the story.

I also had made several parallels between him and Leonard throughout the series and also made it seem like Edward felt a sense of connection to Leonard. This is the reason why. I didn't go into details, but you got the gist of it, right?

Edward's spiralling moment will only occupy 2 Chapters. I won't drag this out cause I know many of you are here for the light hearted stuff lol )