Lina's face may have looked calm when she left the room, but I knew better.
Behind those glassy eyes and practiced stutters was a storm brewing.
And just like before, she went running—to him.
The man I once loved so deeply I forgot my own name.
The man I sacrificed my pride, my dreams, and my family for.
The man who, in the end… killed me.
"She humiliated me, Aiden!" Lina sobbed into the phone, pacing the rose garden like a heartbroken heroine. "She lied to Auntie and Uncle and twisted everything. I—I tried to defend her. But she keeps turning them against me. You have to come. Please…"
And like the fool he had always been, he came.
I was seated in the drawing room, flipping through a book I wasn't even reading, dressed in a pale lilac gown that kissed my skin like sunlight.
Soft. Calm. Untouchable.
Then the air changed.
I felt him before I saw him.
Aiden Devereux.
My former fiancé.
The man whose every word I used to live for.
He entered the room with sharp eyes and a stormy presence, every inch the cold heir of the Devereux legacy. Behind him, Lina followed, her arms crossed, chin trembling like she hadn't rehearsed this entire scene in her head.
I looked up.
And when our eyes met… I smiled.
Soft. Innocent. Like I didn't remember how he and Lina drove a dagger into my back in my first life.
"Good afternoon," I said, voice as gentle as a breeze.
He flinched.
Because the girl before him wasn't the one who used to run barefoot into his arms.
This girl sat straight, eyes clear, and made him feel like a stranger.
"I heard you were… bullying Lina," he said tightly, folding his arms. "That's not like you."
Not like me?
I nearly laughed.
Instead, I tilted my head. "Oh? She must be mistaken. Lina and I have such a deep bond, I'd never do anything to hurt her. Right, Lina?"
Lina forced a smile and nodded quickly. "Y-Yes… I must have misunderstood…"
But Aiden wasn't letting it go. No, he came here to play hero.
"You should apologize to her," he said, stepping closer. "You know she's sensitive. If this is how you treat her, then maybe we should call off the engagement."
For a second, there was silence.
In my first life, those words would have broken me.
I would've begged. Apologized. Maybe even slapped myself to prove my loyalty.
But in this life?
I stood up slowly, the book sliding shut with a soft thud. I walked toward him, each step echoing with confidence.
I looked up at him, eyes glimmering.
"You're right."
He blinked. "What?"
"If this is what makes you want to break our engagement," I said sweetly, "then go ahead."
The room fell into a still silence.
Even Lina froze, her lips parting like she couldn't believe what she just heard.
"I don't want to hold on to anything… or anyone… that doubts me so easily," I added with a smile. "Besides, shouldn't you be marrying someone who truly trusts you, Aiden?"
His jaw clenched.
Lina's face twisted in panic. "She—she didn't mean that! She's just angry—"
But I had already turned away.
Back straight. Heart steady.
Because this time, I wouldn't fight to keep love.
I would only fight to keep myself.
Aiden stood frozen.
My words still hung in the air like the scent of perfume—sweet, lingering, impossible to ignore.
He stared at me, brows furrowed as if trying to solve an equation that refused to balance.
This wasn't the girl he remembered.
The girl who cried when he was cold.
The girl who stammered apologies every time Lina sniffled.
The girl who once knelt before him, begging for scraps of affection.
She was gone.
And the one before him?
She was calm.
Untouchable.
Like a queen dismissing a pawn she no longer had use for.
"Aiden…?" Lina's voice cracked beside him, small and trembling.
She looked like she'd been slapped. No tears yet—but I knew they were coming.
I walked out of the room without another word.
If he wanted closure, he'd have to earn it.
But Lina?
She always had a flair for theatrics.
The moment I was out of sight, she broke.
"Aiden—" she gasped, reaching for his sleeve as her face crumpled. "Aiden, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't want her to say that. It's because of me, isn't it? The engagement… it's ruined now…"
Her shoulders shook with sobs, hot tears finally streaming down her cheeks like a silent confession.
She fell to her knees.
Exactly like I did… once.
"I'll talk to her," she choked out. "I'll make it right. I'll speak to her brother. Please, Aiden, don't let this end like this…"
Aiden didn't speak immediately.
He just stared at the door I had walked through moments ago—still seeing that calm face, that unnerving smile.
Something was wrong.
She looked the same… but it wasn't her.
The girl he remembered would have clung to him.
Begged.
Explained.
But she hadn't even flinched. She dismissed him.
"Aiden…?" Lina sobbed louder, pulling at his sleeve. "Please say something. Don't shut me out too…"
He crouched beside her slowly, his arms wrapping around her in mechanical comfort.
"There's nothing I can do," he said flatly.
She shook her head violently. "No. No, I'll fix it. I promise."
He sighed and pulled her into his chest.
But his eyes stayed distant.
Still trying to figure out the girl who didn't chase after him.
Still haunted by the realization that maybe… he didn't know her anymore.
Lina's cries softened to gentle sniffles, her face buried in Aiden's chest, tears soaking into his crisp white shirt.
He rubbed her back in slow, mechanical circles.
"Don't cry," he muttered, his voice deep but laced with irritation. "You didn't do anything wrong."
She hiccuped, raising her red-rimmed eyes to meet his.
"It's all her," he continued, jaw tight. "That clingy girl—always acting like she's the victim. Maybe she thinks this is some game. Maybe she wants me to chase after her… to beg her."
He scoffed, eyes darkening as he stared at the floor.
"Well, let's see who begs who."
Lina's lashes fluttered.
That wasn't what she wanted exactly—not the broken engagement, not Aiden getting confused by her sudden shift in behavior.
But…
As she lay against his chest, feeling his arms still around her, hearing the frustration in his voice directed not at her…
A small, twisted smirk curled at the corner of her lips.
No, this hadn't gone according to plan.
But maybe it didn't need to.
Because Aiden still chose her.
Even if the perfect little façade was cracking…
Lina was still in control.
Or so she thought.
She nestled closer to him, hiding that smirk beneath a fragile expression.
"Just don't leave me too, Aiden…" she whispered, her voice trembling. "Please…"
He didn't answer.
But he didn't let go either.
Meanwhile, just down the hallway, a girl who once lived for their approval now sat in a garden of blooming camellias—plotting the quiet destruction of everything they thought they controlled.
Because they hadn't realized something vital yet:
She wasn't playing games.
She was playing chess.