My Second Chance To The apocalypse

Arya, run!”

Lucian's desperate shout rang out behind her.

“Don't worry about me! I'll hold them off. Just run, and don't look back!” Clutching her bag of supplies, Arya raced down the ruined street. Abandoned cars blocked the road, smoke billowed from damaged buildings, and the screams of fleeing people mingled with the snarls of the infected.

“Lucian, come with me!” she shouted, glancing over her shoulder.

“Keep moving, Arya!” The infected had surrounded him. He fought desperately to hold them back, creating a narrow opening for her escape, but more creatures were closing in. Another scream sounded behind her.

Arya's eyes burned with tears. Lucian was her childhood friend, the person who had always stood by her when everyone else turned away. Now he was risking his life to give her a chance to survive.

“Lucian…” Her voice broke.

Every instinct urged her to turn back, but she knew he wouldn't have sent her away without a reason. Swallowing her anguish, she forced herself to keep running.

The familiar house appeared ahead, and hope surged through her exhausted body. Ethan would open the door. He had to.

“Ethan! Open the door!” She pounded against it, her palms stinging from the force.

“Please! The infected are coming!” When nobody answered, she peered through the window beside the entrance.

Her heart sank; Ethan stood with Chloe in his arms, kissing her. Chloe clung to him without a hint of concern for the woman desperately begging for her life outside.

“Ethan?” Arya whispered. Neither moved toward the door.

As Arya continued pleading, Chloe raised an ultrasound scan with a smug smile. Arya's gaze shifted to Ethan gently caressing Chloe's stomach, then to the gold bracelet on Chloe's wrist.

She recognized it immediately. Ethan had given it to her on their second wedding anniversary, fastening it around her wrist while promising that his love would never change.

Now Chloe wore it as though it were hers. The deliberate display made the betrayal unmistakable. Chloe hadn't merely taken Arya's husband; she wanted Arya to see exactly what she had stolen.

Memories flooded Arya's mind. Ethan's business trips, his late-night meetings, and the countless times he had defended Chloe whenever Arya questioned their closeness suddenly made sense.

Her best friend had been sleeping with her husband. And now Chloe was flaunting it.

“Open the door!” Arya screamed, slamming her hands against the entrance. “Ethan, I'm right here!”

Ethan finally turned toward the window. Their eyes met, and Arya clung to the hope that he would come to his senses.

She remembered standing beside him when he had little to his name, helping him build his career, and supporting him whenever he needed her. Surely, he wouldn't abandon her now.

But he looked away and pulled Chloe closer. The snarling behind Arya grew louder. She spun around and tried to flee, but an infected lunged at her, knocking her to the ground. Her bag slipped from her grasp, scattering supplies across the street.

She scrambled to her feet, but more infected closed in. “Ethan, please!”

The door remained locked. Through the window, Arya spotted Susan standing beside the couple. She had treated her mother-in-law like her mother, paid her medical bills, and bought her medication without expecting anything in return.

“Please, Susan! Help me!” Susan stared through the glass, and then she smiled.

Laughter erupted inside the house. Chloe laughed openly, Ethan joining her as they watched Arya struggle. Susan joined them, unmoved by the cries of the woman who had spent five years caring for their family.

An infected man seized Arya's leg and sank its teeth into her flesh.

Her scream pierced the air. She kicked desperately, trying to free herself, but another creature grabbed her arm. Her fingernails scraped against the ground as she struggled toward the entrance.

“Ethan! Please! Don't let me die!” He didn't move.

The infected dragged her away from the house. Arya clawed at the pavement, desperately trying to resist, but their combined strength overwhelmed her. Pain tore through her body, and every breath became harder to draw.

Then she understood. The locked door, their cold indifference, and how they had stood by and watched her suffer, refusing to offer even the smallest bit of help.

This wasn't an accident; they had wanted her dead.

“No! Please!” Arya cried, reaching toward the house as the infected tore into her. “Ethan.”

Her voice dissolved into a scream. She fought until her strength deserted her, unable to escape the creatures tearing at her flesh.

Lucian had risked everything to save her, while her husband, best friend, and mother-in-law had abandoned her without hesitation. Her vision blurred. Her limbs grew heavy, and the surrounding sounds faded.

Then darkness swallowed her.

Arya shot upright with a strangled gasp, dragging air into her lungs. Cold sweat soaked her nightclothes, and her heart hammered as the memory of the infected tearing into her body overwhelmed her.

For several seconds, she couldn't move.

Her gaze swept across the familiar curtains, neatly arranged furniture, and bedside table. The soft vanilla fragrance she always used in her bedroom drifted through the air.

She stared around confused. She had died. She remembered Ethan refusing to open the door and Chloe laughing as the infected dragged her away.

How could she be here? Then she noticed the calendar hanging near the wardrobe.

Arya scrambled out of bed and hurried toward it. Gripping the edge, she stared at the date.

August 27, 2025.

She read it again, hoping her eyes had deceived her. They hadn't. In her previous life, the apocalypse had begun ninety days later. Arya slowly released the calendar. She had returned to the past.

Arya clenched her fists. This time, she would make them pay. She would live for herself. She had ninety days to prepare.

Downstairs, Ethan sat on the sofa reading a newspaper. His dark hair was neatly styled, and his crisp white shirt was buttoned at the wrists. He looked as composed as ever.

When he noticed her, he lowered the newspaper. “You're awake.”

“Yeah.”

He picked up a cup of coffee and held it toward her. “I made this for you.”

“Thanks.” Arya accepted it, placed it on the cabinet, and left it untouched.

Ethan's gaze lingered on the cup before returning to her face. “Are you okay?”

“I'm not feeling too well.” She turned to leave, but his next question stopped her.

“My mother needs money for her medication. Can you send it to her?”

Arya faced him, the memory of Susan smiling through the window still fresh in her mind. “Why should I keep paying for everything?”

Ethan frowned. “You've always made the payment.” Ethan studied her, clearly struggling to understand the change. He had grown accustomed to her agreeing whenever he or his family needed something. He had never considered that she might refuse.

Before he could respond, her phone buzzed. A message from Chloe appeared on the screen.

Bestie, the card isn't working. I need to get a bag. Please fund it.

Arya read the message and locked her phone. Even now, Chloe expected her to provide whatever she wanted unquestionably, not anymore.

Arya picked up her bag. “I'm going out.”

Ethan lowered his newspaper. “Where are you going?”

“I have things to take care of,” she shrugged.

“Arya, what's going on with you?” His voice sharpened. “First, you refuse to help my mother, and now you're ignoring Chloe. Have I done something wrong?”

She studied the man she had once loved, remembering how he had turned away while she begged him to save her.

In her previous life, she would have hurried to reassure him, explained herself, and tried to prevent an argument. She owed him none of that anymore.

“I want a divorce.”