5

Emma Whitcomb

"Emma, open your eyes, please..." He panicked, his voice shaky.

I stood there, staring in confusion.

"Stay with me, please! Emma..." His hand pressed against my stomach as he yelled.

I swallowed hard. Why was he worrying? We are not even close.

Mr. Cole and I first met at the orphanage six years ago when I went to volunteer there. He was also there to volunteer.

We didn't speak much that day though we worked together. After the orphanage incident, we met a few times on different occasions, before I finally found out he was Daniel's uncle.

The last time I saw him was the day after our engagement, but three days ago, I saw on the news that he was back into the country to handle his billion-dollar business... Moreau Luxe.

He is the founder and the CEO of the biggest fashion company in the country... Moreau Luxe.

Why was the man whom I'm not close to, affected by my death this much?

“Emma!”

I knew.

It didn’t matter.

It was already too late.

The world around me began to blur, his voice fading, the room dissolving into a distant haze.

“Emma…”

This time, the voice sounded farther away.

Fainter.

As if it no longer belonged to this world.

Darkness slowly closed in, swallowing everything whole.

******

Then—

Something pulled me back.

Air slammed into my lungs.

I gasped violently, my chest heaving as if I had been drowning for far too long. My body jerked slightly, every nerve waking all at once, cold sweat clinging to my skin.

My heart pounded wildly, loud enough to drown out everything else.

For a moment, I couldn’t move.

Couldn’t think.

All I could feel was the overwhelming, terrifying sensation of being alive.

My fingers twitched.

Warm.

Steady.

Not covered in blood.

Not numb.

“Emma? Emma?” a faint voice echoed in my head.

I blinked, my vision still unsteady, light flooding in too quickly.

The first thing I noticed was the weight in my hand.

A microphone.

Then the rose gold fitted gown, and finally, the sound of my pounding heart echoing in the sound system speaker.

I was standing on a stage before a crowd… cameras flashing on my face… Mom and dad also stood in the crowd, smiling proudly.

My eyes swept around, confused.

Their dresses, the settings… They looked familiar.

What's going on? Aren't I supposed to be dead

“Emma? Are you okay?” Then I finally noticed Daniel standing beside me.

I blinked. He was wearing a familiar dress. The same gray suit he wore on our engagement.

I swallowed hard.

My eyes swept around the crowd, halting abruptly on a familiar man. He stood in the corner of the hall, his eyes locked on me… he wasn't just staring. He was watching me.

He was tall… handsome. A powerful presence that couldn't be ignored.

Mr. Cole... The man who cried heavily while holding my body moment ago.

But what is going on? Why am I suddenly here?

“Emma…” Daniel's voice echoed, and I finally turned to him. He was holding a ring. A familiar one... The same ring he gave me on our engagement day.

My breath caught as everything clicked… I was reborn.

I was reborn back to the day Daniel and I got engaged. On this day, I was really excited and couldn't wait to finally be with him, little did I know that three years later, he would choose another woman over me.

My fingers tightened at my sides as I looked over to mom and dad. Their eyes were filled with love. I believed they really did love me back then. I was mistaken.

Eleanor will be found one month from now, and everything will change.

“What are you doing? You need to take the ring, Emma…” Daniel whispered to me.

I stared at him, my chest burning with anger and hatred. All I could think of was the horrible things he did to me. How he left me for Eleanor... how he dismissed me when I begged him desperately to save me... how he made me lose not only my life, but that of my baby.

I turned to the crowed.

Everyone was waiting. But I won't make the same mistake again.

I will live my life for me this time. I will choose me this time.

My eyes went back to Mr Cole... Our eyes locked.

A smirk curled my lips. I will change my fate this time.

Without a second thought, I grabbed the ring from Daniel, heads turning to look at me as I walked straight to Mr. Cole.

I won't choose Daniel this time... I will choose the man who cried for me. The man who looked like he'd really lost someone dear to him, even though I didn't know why he acted that way... and I will make Daniel pay for everything... Not only Daniel, but my parents too. And when Eleanor finally comes back later, I will make her go through ten folds of the pain she caused me.

Mr Cole's face lit up with surprise as I halted before him, but he didn't move. He didn't look away either.

Then I said, “Let’s get married,”