Chapter 1:

The woman in the movie spoke, her voice laced with emotion.

"Do you know why it’s so hard for me to fall in love again after having my heart broken? It’s because I don’t know how to make the next one special, when I already made the last one special—thinking he was the one."

Kacee frowned at the line.

"I fell in love with him without knowing if it was right. My life revolved around him to such an extent that my world fell apart when he left me. I pretended I wasn’t in pain, pretended I had forgotten him. I acted like I had moved on—but when we met again, one look, one smile, and I realized I was falling for him all over again."

Why were people like that? She just couldn’t understand. Why did some people fall in love again with those who had already hurt them?

"Should I give myself a chance to love him again, even though he broke my heart once? My mind says no, but my heart keeps telling me that despite all the pain and heartache, he’s still my one and only..."

Out of sheer frustration, she turned off the movie. It was ridiculously corny. Couldn’t she find anything decent to watch? Whoever wrote that script—ugh, so annoying.

“I thought you were watching a movie? Why did you turn it off?” Briana asked as she stepped out of the bathroom.

“They’re all so corny. I don’t like any of them,” Kacee replied.

“Everything’s corny for you,” Briana teased, drying her hair in front of the electric fan.

“So, how long do you plan to stay here?” Kacee asked, making Briana choke in surprise.

“Wow, Kacee! I’ve only been here for a day, and it already sounds like you want me gone,” Briana complained.

“Exactly,” Kacee said bluntly.

“What?” Briana exclaimed.

“Just make up with your husband already,” Kacee said, lying down on her bed. “You can see how small my apartment is. Besides, that’s your house—you’re the one who left.”

“I’ll go home soon,” Briana muttered.

“When? When does he come here to fetch you?”

“As if he would!” she rolled her eyes. “He’s probably happy I’m gone!”

Kacee clicked her tongue. “I still don’t get why you agreed to marry him. You two don’t even love each other—or maybe…” She smirked. “You’re starting to like him?”

Briana’s cheeks turned bright red at her friend’s teasing. Kacee couldn’t help but smile knowingly. After all, they’d been friends for so long—she knew Briana too well to be fooled.

“Even if the crows turn white, I will never like that man!” Briana denied firmly.

“Come on, Brie. You don’t have to hide it from me,” Kacee said playfully.

Instead of answering, Briana lay down beside her and hugged her tightly. “Let’s just sleep. I’m tired.”

“Okay. I won’t force you. You can tell me anytime,” Kacee said softly, hugging her back.

They both closed their eyes, and soon sleep pulled them into its quiet comfort.

The next morning, Kacee woke up to the smell of something delicious drifting from the kitchen. She slowly opened her eyes and saw Briana busy cooking breakfast. Reaching toward her pillow, she grabbed her phone to check the time.

“It’s still early,” Kacee greeted as she sat up in bed.

“I just suddenly craved fried rice and fried chicken,” Briana replied while plating the food.

“What? Are you pregnant?” Kacee teased, earning a sharp glare from her friend. “Why? You have a husband, so it wouldn’t be surprising if you were—” she added with a laugh, but Briana quickly cut her off.

“Stop it, Kacee! It’s such a beautiful morning—don’t ruin it,” Briana said in annoyance. “Besides, I also cooked for you. So you won’t have to eat burgers for breakfast again.”

Kacee walked over to her just as Briana finished cooking.

“I guess it’s not so bad having you here after all. It’s been a while since someone cooked for me,” she said with a bittersweet smile.

Honestly, Kacee was deeply grateful to have Briana in her life. She was the only one left. Her dad had passed away seven years ago, and her mom had left right after his death.

She never understood why fate had been so cruel to her. Happiness had been fleeting—only when her father was still alive and her parents were together. After that, her world lost all its color.

She often felt like her life had no meaning, no purpose. Sometimes, she even wondered why she was still breathing.

“Do you want me to just move in here for good? So you’ll always have someone with you?” Briana asked with a smile.

“I’d rather see you have a baby with your husband,” Kacee teased.

It was true—she might be a little bitter and sad, but she genuinely wanted to see her best friend happy. Briana deserved someone who would love her and give her the family she dreamed of.

“Never! I’d rather divorce him and live here with you!” Briana exclaimed dramatically.

“You really hate him that much?”

“Yes! I really do!”

“Careful, Brie.”

“Why?” she asked, frowning.

“They say the more you hate, the more you love.”

“Kacee!” Briana snapped in mock irritation, and Kacee burst out laughing.

After breakfast, Kacee started getting ready for work. When she finished preparing, she said goodbye to Briana and headed out.

She got into her car and began her usual drive. But halfway through her trip, bad luck struck—her car broke down.

“Damn it,” she muttered under her breath. Thankfully, she managed to pull over before it completely gave out.

She got out and kicked the tire in frustration. Why did this have to happen now—on the very day she had an important presentation and couldn’t afford to be late?

“Need some help?” a male voice called out.

Kacee turned toward the stranger who had spoken. She raised an eyebrow, eyeing him suspiciously, and didn’t say a word.

After a moment, the man extended his hand toward her and spoke again, a small, confident smile on his face.

“I’m Anthony—your savior for today.”