REBORN 2 DAYS BEFORE ICE AGED APOCALYPSE: MY SECOND CHANCE

Stop, please! Do not throw me outside. I will freeze to death!

I begged Lucan, holding tightly to his arm as tears streamed down my face. My entire body was trembling, and I could barely feel my fingers anymore. The cold had already become unbearable, even inside the house, and I knew that stepping outside without proper protection would mean the end of me. I had watched people die in the freezing temperatures, and I had seen what happened to those who stayed outside for too long. I did not want to become one of them.

But Lucan seemed determined to get rid of me.

He looked down at me with an expression I had never seen on his face before. There was no love in his eyes, no concern, and not even the slightest trace of sympathy. The man standing in front of me was supposed to be my boyfriend, the person I had trusted with my life, yet he looked at me as though I were a stranger who had come to disturb him.

You are occupying space here, Lucan said coldly.

For a moment, I simply stared at him, struggling to understand what he meant. I searched his face for a sign that he was joking, but he did not even look as though he wanted to explain himself.

What do you mean I am occupying space? I asked, my voice shaking. Lucan, this is not funny. You cannot be serious about throwing me outside in this weather.

He pulled his arm away from my grip and stepped back.

I am serious, Anwen. We cannot keep wasting our resources on people who are not helping us survive.

People?

I could hardly believe what I was hearing. I was not some stranger he had picked up from the street. I was his girlfriend. I had stood beside him before the apocalypse, supported him when things were difficult, and trusted him enough to believe that we would face whatever happened together.

When the freezing began, I had shared my supplies with him and Mireya. I had given them food, water, blankets, and whatever else I could spare because I believed we were going to survive as a team. I had never imagined that those same supplies would become an excuse for them to throw me away.

But I still had something they needed. I had kept some of my supplies separate, hoping they would be enough to help us through the worst days of the disaster.

Yes, but I have supplies, I told him desperately. I still have food and other things we can use. I am not asking you to give me yours. I can manage with what I have, Lucan. Please, just let me stay here.

He shook his head without hesitation.

No. There is no need to waste them on you.

His words struck me so hard that I forgot about the cold for a moment. I loosened my grip on his arm and stared at him, waiting for him to take back what he had said. Surely, he could not mean it. Surely, the man who had once promised to protect me could not be standing there, looking me in the eyes while telling me that my life was not worth saving.

I turned toward Mireya, who had been standing nearby in silence.

She was my best friend. We had shared secrets, laughed together, and supported each other through difficult times. I had trusted her almost as much as I trusted Lucan, and I believed that even if the whole world turned against me, she would never do the same.

Mireya, please say something, I begged. Tell him he cannot do this to me. You know me. You know I would never abandon you like this.

She lowered her eyes.

That small movement frightened me more than anything else. I had been hoping she would step forward and defend me, but the way she avoided my gaze told me that she had already made her decision.

My heart began to pound painfully.

Mireya, look at me, I pleaded. Please. What happened to us? We have been together through everything. You cannot stand there and watch him throw me outside.

She remained silent for a few seconds before finally speaking.

I am sorry, Anwen, but we have to think about our own survival.

I felt as though someone had reached into my chest and crushed my heart with their bare hands. I wanted to scream at her, to remind her of everything I had done for her, but the words refused to come out properly. I had never expected gratitude for helping the people I loved, but I had never imagined that they would repay me by leaving me to die.

I turned back to Lucan, desperately searching for some sign of the man I used to know.

But this is my house! I screamed, tears running down my cheeks. This is my house, Lucan! I allowed you both to stay here because I trusted you. I shared my supplies with you because I thought we were going to survive together. How can you stand there and tell me that I am occupying space in my own home?

For the first time, his expression changed, but it was not because he felt guilty. He looked irritated, as though my crying had become an inconvenience he no longer wanted to tolerate.

Stop making this difficult, he said.

I could not believe him.

How can you do this to me? I asked, my voice breaking. I thought you loved me. You told me that you loved me, Lucan. You promised you would always be there for me. What did I do to deserve this?

He did not answer my question.

Instead, he grabbed my arm and started dragging me toward the door.

I immediately began struggling against him, trying to pull away, but I was too weak to fight him properly. I had not eaten enough in days, and the constant cold had drained what little strength I had left.

No! I screamed, grabbing the doorframe with my free hand. Lucan, please, do not do this! I am begging you!

He forced my fingers away from the frame and pulled the door open. A violent gust of freezing wind rushed inside, making me gasp as the cold struck my face. I tried to hold on to him, but he shoved me forward before I could find something else to grab.

I stumbled outside and fell onto the frozen ground.

Before I could even lift my head, I heard the door slam behind me.

For several seconds, I remained on the ground, staring at the closed door in disbelief. I could not accept what had just happened. I kept waiting for Lucan to open it again, perhaps realizing that he had gone too far. I waited for Mireya to come outside and help me up, telling me that everything was going to be alright.

But nothing happened.

I forced myself to my knees and crawled toward the door. My hands shook so badly that I struggled to knock, but I kept trying because I could not accept that they had really left me outside.

Lucan! Please open the door!

My voice was swallowed by the howling wind.

Please, I will do anything you want me to do. I promise I will not complain about anything again. You can have all my supplies. Just let me inside!

I pressed my forehead against the cold surface of the door, hoping that somehow he would hear how desperate I was. I had never begged anyone like this before, but I was no longer thinking about my pride. I only wanted to live.

Please do not let me die here, I whispered.

My fingers were becoming numb, and I could no longer feel my legs properly. I tried to stand, but my knees gave way, sending me crashing back onto the snow-covered ground. The cold was spreading through my body, making every movement harder than the last.

I knew I was dying.

The realization filled me with a terror I had never experienced before. I did not want to die alone in the freezing darkness, knowing that the people I loved were warm and safe behind a door they had refused to open for me.

I thought about my parents, about the life I had lived before everything fell apart, and about all the things I had wanted to do when the world was still normal. I had believed I would have more time. I had believed that love and friendship meant something, that the people closest to me would not turn their backs on me when I needed them most.

I had been wrong.

My body grew heavier as the freezing continued. The trembling that had shaken me for so long slowly faded, and the pain began to disappear beneath a strange numbness. I tried to call out one last time, but my lips barely moved.

Then the cold reached my head.

My vision blurred, and the world around me became nothing more than a collection of dark shapes beneath the falling snow. I could no longer hear the wind clearly, and I could no longer feel the ground beneath my body.

My final thoughts were not of Lucan or Mireya as I had once known them. They were of the betrayal, the humiliation, and the terrible realization that I had trusted the wrong people with my life.

I hated them.

I hated them for what they had done to me, and I hated myself for believing that they would never hurt me.

As my consciousness slipped away, one promise remained in my mind.

If I ever got a second chance, I would make them pay for everything they had done to me.

I would never trust them again.

I would never allow them to destroy me like this.

And if fate ever gave me another opportunity, I would make sure they regretted the day they decided to betray me.

Darkness swallowed the last of my thoughts, and my body finally became still.

I was dead.

**********

Ahhh!

My scream tore through the silence as I suddenly opened my eyes.

My hands flew to my head, and I squeezed my eyes shut as a sharp pain throbbed through my skull. I struggled to catch my breath, my heart pounding wildly as I tried to understand what was happening.

What was going on?

Where was I?