Chapter 3

At seven that evening, my mom knocked on the door.

“Hazel, Julian went to the party without you. Chloe went along to keep him company.”

Her voice was filled with disappointment.

“Look at you, pushing your fiancé away. Chloe’s the one knowing how to behave here.”

“Let her keep him company then,” I said.

“They make a great match anyway.”

Silence fell outside the door.

Mom sighed in frustration, her footsteps fading into the distance.

I leaned back against the headboard.

My phone lit up with a photo sent by Julian.

In the party hall, glasses clinked under glittering lights.

Chloe was wrapping her arm around his, smiling brightly.

It came with a text: “I wish you were here.”

I let out a cold sneer without replying.

Then he sent another message.

“Hazel, you feel like a stranger to me today.”

My fingers moved across the screen.

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. The old you would never treat me like that.”

I stared at the screen, deliberately typing out each word.

“The old Hazel died in the fire.”

I hit send.

No new message from him.

Outside the window, the night was as black as ink, and the wind howled through the dark.

This was my second chance, a fresh start.

They had their time acting out their script.

Now it was my turn, my story.

The next morning, Chloe came over.

She wore a beige coat with her hair pulled back into a ponytail.

Bare-faced, she looked like an innocent college student.

In her hand was a dessert box.

“Hazel!” As soon as she walked in, her eyes turned red.

“Did I do something wrong? You told me to... to get lost yesterday. I was so heartbroken I couldn't sleep.”

That earned sympathy from my mom.

“Chloe, come sit down. Hazel must be stressed out these days. Don’t take it to heart.”

Chloe shook her head, forcing a faint smile.

“I don’t blame her at all. Hazel’s my best friend.”

Sure I was.

I crossed my arms, leaning against the second-floor railing, admiring her act from above.

“Hazel!”

Chloe spotted me and held up the dessert box.

“I brought you some strawberry crepe cake, your favorite. Can we make up, please?”

Strawberry crepe cake.

In my past life, it truly was my favorite.

Yet every time I ate it, I would break out in hives.

Chloe always told me it was just a seasonal allergy, even went out to get me medicine.

Back then, I was touched beyond belief.

Only much later did I learn the truth.

It was never seasonal allergy.

She had been lacing the cake with ground peanut, which she knew I was allergic to.

Making me sick made me depend on her more and more.

“Come upstairs,” I said.

Chloe’s eyes lit up, and she carried the box upstairs.

She shut the bedroom door and set the box on the table.

“Hazel, what on earth is wrong with you? Julian is so worried. Your dad is not in good health, stop making him worry.”

Her words sounded so earnest, as if every sentence was spoken for my sake.

“Are you done?” I asked.

“What?” She blinked, caught off guard.

“Have you finished reciting your lines?”

I walked over to the table and looked down at the dessert box.

“How much peanut did you dump in this time?”

Her face turned pale for a fraction of a second before she regained her composure.

“Hazel, what are you talking about? I only used fresh strawberries—”

“Oh really?” I picked up the box.

“Come on, how much longer are you gonna carrying on your act?”

I fixed my gaze on her as the shadows fell across her face.

“Three months ago, you spent four hours drinking with Raymond Spencer of Apex Capital at Grandeur Club. The next day, Sterling Group signed a loss-making contract, and you took a three-million-dollar kickback.”

Chloe bit down hard on her lower lip.

“Two months ago, you sold my itinerary to the paparazzi, trapping me in the parking garage just so you could show up in time to save the day. The internet heaped praises on you while calling me a moron.

“A month ago, you wired five hundred thousand to Dr. Lynch to swap my dad’s medication.”

The room fell dead silent, save for the hum of the air conditioner.

Slowly, the innocent look melted off Chloe’s face, replaced by a sinister glare.

“How do you know all of that?” Her voice shifted, turning sharp and cold.

“Take a guess,” I sneered.

She stood up and stepped right up to me, lowering her voice.

“Best friend, you’ve changed.

“The old you was an absolute imbecile, stringed along like a puppet, bouncing between Julian and me. You didn’t even know how you died.”

When the word “died” left her lips, a glint flashed in her eyes—the exact same look I saw through the flames.

I leaned in close and whispered in her ear.

“That’s right. I did die once. But guess why I’m alive now?”

Chloe recoiled violently, her back slamming into the wardrobe with a heavy thud.

For the very first time, pure terror filled her eyes.

“You...”

“Stuff yourself with that cake.”

I threw the box at her feet.

The cake was smashed into a mess, cream splattering over her shoes.

Chloe stared intently at the ruined cake before snapping her head up to look at me.

“So what if you figured it out?” She hissed through gritted teeth.

“Sterling Group already belongs to Julian. You can’t beat us.”

She yanked the door open and fled down the stairs in complete disarray.

My mom’s shouts echoed from below.

I stood by the window, watching with cold eyes as she frantically drove away.