Chapter 2

"Chloe."

"Chloe!"

Liam was calling my name, and so was Sloane from the crowd.

I snapped back to reality and looked at Liam. He was holding out a diamond ring, wearing a smile I had once believed was full of deep affection.

The memory of dying in my past life was too vivid. Fear instantly gripped my nerves, and a wave of nausea churned in my stomach.

"Chloe? What's wrong?"

Liam frowned slightly. The delayed response was ruining the vibe of his perfect proposal, and it clearly annoyed him.

He reached out, trying to grab my wrist.

"Don't touch me!" I pushed his shoulder away on reflex.

Caught completely off guard, Liam staggered a step back.

The cheering and applauding classmates around us instantly fell silent. Everyone stared at us in shock.

But I couldn't care less about keeping up appearances right now. I couldn't even force out a single word of accusation.

I grabbed the hem of my dress, turned around, and shoved my way through the crowd, running blindly until I reached the safety of my familiar dorm room.

I locked the door behind me and slid down against the wood, collapsing onto the floor in sheer exhaustion.

It took a long time for my racing heart to settle. Slowly, I forced myself to stand up and walked over to the full-length mirror.

The girl staring back at me had flawless makeup. Though her face was streaked with tears, her skin was firm and glowing with youth.

I quickly glanced down to check the date on my desk calendar, then frantically yanked up the long sleeves of my gown.

There were no festering sores. No dark, bruised patches of infection. And most importantly, no track marks.

My arms were smooth and flawless.

I had actually been reborn.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed violently on the desk. Liam’s name flashed across the screen, followed by a relentless barrage of text messages.

He demanded to know what the hell was wrong with me, telling me to stop this embarrassing farce at once. He even used that familiar, condescending tone to order me to come back immediately.

That was exactly how he had controlled me throughout our marriage in my past life.

Staring at those all-too-familiar texts, I fought down another wave of nausea, unlocked the screen, and blocked his number along with all his social media accounts.

The room had barely fallen quiet again when the phone started ringing once more.

This time, the caller ID showed my father's name.

"Chloe, sweetheart?" came my father's deep, comforting voice the second I answered. "I just got a call from Liam. He said something was wrong with you, that you seemed really upset. What happened at the prom?"

Hearing his voice, my fragile facade instantly crumbled.

By the time I ended up on the streets in my previous life, my father had long since passed away. I couldn't even remember the last time I heard him speak.

I curled up on the floor, gripping the phone as tears streamed uncontrollably down my face.

"Dad..." I sobbed, "I don't want to marry Liam anymore..."

I buried my face in my knees, practically choking on my own tears.

"Alright, sweetheart, take it easy. Deep breaths," my father coaxed, his tone immediately softening to the way he used to comfort me when I was a little girl.

"Of course you don't have to marry that boy. If you don't want to, no one can force you. If you don't like him anymore, Daddy can find you a gentleman a thousand times better than him, alright?"

"No, don't find anyone else..." I shook my head frantically, even though he couldn't see me. "I don't want to get married at all. I don't want to be a perfect wife anymore..."

I wasn't just throwing a tantrum.

I truly realized that the reason Liam was able to bleed me dry in my past life was because I had pinned my entire future on marriage.

But now that I was finally abandoning the very dream I’d held since childhood, my mind was completely blank.

Unlike those fiercely ambitious girls, the word "career" had never even existed in my life plan. Right now, all I felt was a profound, directionless void.

"Okay, then no marriage," my father agreed patiently, his voice full of unconditional support. "So, what do you want to do? Tell me. Whatever it is, I've got your back."

What did I want to do?

Amidst this paralyzing uncertainty, my eyes casually drifted toward the trash can next to my desk.

A sudden thought sparked in my mind.

I scrambled over to the bin, digging frantically through the crumpled paper.

Finally, my fingers brushed against a thick, heavy envelope. It was the Ivy League acceptance letter I had personally thrown away, all for the sake of becoming Liam's wife.

I clutched the wrinkled envelope tightly against my chest, as if it were the only lifeline I had left to hold on to.

Speaking into the phone, I choked back a sob and announced to my father in the most resolute tone I had ever used:

"Dad, I'm not going to be a trophy wife anymore... I'm going to college."