Jet lag really is miserable. After hearing that, Hezze waved her hand generously.
"Alright then, I forgive you."
"Hezze the Great really is a good person!" I exclaimed dramatically, casually grabbing her wrist. The two of us laughed and joked noisily until the class bell rang, and only then did we finally settle back into our seats.
The moment Hezze sat down, she leaned closer, blinking as she whispered,
"Didn't I text you a few days ago? About the transfer student."
"Yeah. Did that person arrive already?" I asked offhandedly, not particularly curious.
"She did. She enrolled yesterday." Hezze pouted. "And she's pretty. But she's exactly the arrogant type always talking with her nose in the air. Just looking at her is irritating."
"That exaggerated?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I'm serious." Her eyes suddenly lit up as she grabbed my hand. "Look, there she is! Rosy, take a look, that's her. Doesn't she look super arrogant?"
Curious, I lifted my head.
Just one brief glance and it felt as if a bucket of icy water had been poured over me. The blood in my body seemed to freeze, my heart pounding so hard my ears rang.
Why was it her?
Rose.
Wasn't she supposed to be in Ravenholm? Why was she here at Hathaway? And… in the same class as me?
Hezze's voice was still ringing beside me, but I could barely hear it anymore.
"Rosy, you see it too, right? People like that, as if the whole world owes them something. She's pretty, sure but I don't think she's prettier than you…"
I couldn't hear another word. My mind went blank, as if I'd fallen into a desolate world with only myself standing there. The cold seeped into my fingertips, my breathing growing heavy.
Perhaps my gaze was too obvious. Rose suddenly turned her head.
Our eyes met.
The air around us seemed to twist. Her gaze lingered on me, filled with an emotion I couldn't quite name anger, resentment, as if someone had just stolen something that rightfully belonged to her.
I looked straight back. The chill in my body gradually dissipated, sensation returning to my limbs, yet my thoughts only grew more tangled. I would never forget the first time I'd met her at the Bailey household: I'd been dressed shabbily, sitting awkwardly at the dining table, while Rose stood there in expensive clothes, arms crossed, her contemptuous gaze like a queen looking down on a beggar.
After that meal, I was sent to Captian's side. Rose continued living her luxurious, carefree life abroad until today.
She had come back.
"Rosy."
Rose's voice rang out, cold and sharp. "After class, I'll be waiting for you at the café."
She stood right beside my desk, arms crossed. After speaking, she turned and left without waiting for my reply.
Rose was very beautiful. Her skin was slightly tan, but with proper makeup, it was hardly noticeable. Added to that was her familiar arrogance chin always lifted, making people uncomfortable at first glance.
"Huh? Rosy, do you know her?" Hezze asked in surprise.
"You could say that," I frowned. "We met once before."
Once… but enough for me to remember for a lifetime.
Hezze grabbed my hand tightly, worry written all over her face.
"Are you really going to meet her? I don't think she has good intentions."
I hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"How about I go with you?" Hezze grew even more tense.
My mood had already been heavy, but her concern warmed me a little. I shook my head.
"No need. There are some things I have to deal with myself. Don't worry, it'll be quick."
Hezze didn't say anything more, but I knew she wouldn't truly feel at ease.
All through class that day, I couldn't focus. One question kept looping in my mind: Why did Rose come back? Could it be… that she wanted to reclaim her identity and return to the Anderson family?
The thought sent a shiver through me.
If things stopped there, maybe it would still be manageable. But now the marriage registration was public, everything was blowing up all over social media. If Rose told Captian that I was just a substitute, that she was the real "Miss Bailey"…
I didn't dare think further.
A man like Captian, if he found out he'd been deceived would definitely go mad. And the first person to die… might be me.
After class, I went to the café near campus. It was quiet, old, as if on the verge of closing, a perfect place to talk without being overheard.
Rose was already there, in a private room.
She looked at me with her usual disdain. But when her gaze swept over my face, her expression froze for a brief moment. I knew why, because now I was… completely different from before. My clothes were neat, my features more refined, my complexion brighter. I was no longer that grimy girl cowering in a kitchen corner years ago.
Rose's eyes faltered for an instant. The jealousy within them wasn't hidden at all, like a crack splitting open right in front of me.
"Looks like you're doing pretty well," she said.
I didn't bother responding, going straight to the point.
"You didn't come here to reminisce."
Rose let out a cold laugh and straightened, chin slightly raised, her familiar arrogance returning.
"I regret it. I want everything back."
"Everything?" I frowned, an inexplicable chill rising in my chest.
"Yes." Her eyes were wild. "Everything you have now, all of it was originally mine. If I hadn't lent you my name, do you think you could've become Captain's wife?"
I almost laughed. But inside, I was ice-cold.
"I'm the real wife," Rose grabbed my shoulders. "You're just an illegitimate child borrowing my name."
She pulled me up, her voice urgent.
"Come on. We have to make this clear to Captian right now. You're fake, I'm the real Bailey."
I shoved her hand away.
"I'm not going."
Rose froze, then shrieked sharply,
"You won't go? I knew it! You can't bear to give up this life!"
I couldn't take it anymore. I struck a pressure point, leaving her numb as she collapsed back into the chair.
"Just so you'll stay quiet and listen to me." I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stay calm. "From the beginning, I was never willing. You all decided on your own to turn me into a substitute, did you ever ask me?"
Rose stiffened, unable to speak.
"I'm asking you," I stared straight into her eyes. "Do you know who Captian is? Have you forgotten the rumors about him? If he finds out he's been deceived, do you think he'll spare either of us?"
Rose's face went pale.
She was unwilling to accept it. I knew that. But I also knew once the truth was exposed, I wouldn't be the only one to die. She wouldn't escape either.
"Then what do you want?" Rose gritted her teeth. "To steal my identity completely?"
I looked at her, a headache pounding.
"If you hadn't decided things on your own, would I have had to stay in that hellish place at all?"
That question I didn't know whether I was asking her… or asking myself.