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Chapter 3

Ryan Hale was generous with himself but stingy with everyone else.

He didn’t like asking Elena to pay for everything, so once in a while he would whip up some meal or throw together an omelet in his dorm and make a big show of bringing it to her.

Ryan proudly called it “homemade meals from your caring boyfriend,” and people actually bought it.

Everyone in their department admired him; they thought Elena had struck gold—said she was lucky to land such a thoughtful, caring boyfriend who could even cook.

Glancing at the clock, Elena realized the day had slipped into evening.

She pushed down the chill in her heart and forced a smile. “I’m not hungry, sweetheart, but thank you. Oh—my parents said they’re coming tomorrow. Let’s have dinner together then?”

Ryan was surprised. “Tomorrow? What for?”

She put on a sweet, playful tone. “Duh! Here to meet their future son-in-law, of course!”

That made Ryan uneasy. Last year, Marcus had come by to check him out and left with a poor impression, hinting more than once that Ryan was living off Elena’s money.

Even on this trip, Ryan had promised to cover expenses, but he found every excuse to push the bills onto Elena.

In the end, he even walked away with a fine piece of emerald amulet she had bought for him.

In his mind, it was only fair. After all, her family was richer than his, and Elena wasn’t attractive—shouldn’t she be grateful and spend her money on him?

Otherwise, who would want her?

“Elena, tomorrow I already promised some classmates I’d go look for internship opportunities with them. I can’t make it. Maybe another day?”

Elena softened her voice, pretending to be naïve and innocent. “Ryan, my parents are also coming to help me buy a car. Didn’t you say you wanted an Audi around 200,000 dollars? I could just wire you the money now so you can get it.”

Ryan’s tone instantly brightened. He asked excitedly, “How much are they giving you?”

“Well, at least 100,000 dollars for a car, right? Tomorrow I’ll push them to give me more.”

Ryan hesitated. “But if they’re coming, won’t they want to go to the dealership and buy it with you? Then whose name would the car be under?”

Elena almost laughed. This was Ryan in a nutshell—selfish and greedy. She couldn’t believe how blind she had been in her last life to fall for him.

“Of course under your name. What’s yours is mine, right? I’ll just tell them tomorrow that I’m only going to take a look, then later I’ll come back with you to actually buy it. Honestly, I don’t really need a car right now anyway. When I start working, you can buy me one then.” She said it shyly, as if embarrassed.

Ryan’s voice turned warm and patient, dripping with affection. “That’s right. No one’s closer than us. Baby, once you graduate, we’ll get married.”

“Mhm,” Elena murmured, feigning bashfulness. Then she added, “But Ryan, my dad said I should chip in part of the cost myself. He knows I still had about 50,000 dollars in my account, and he wants to check my balance tomorrow. But after last year’s trip and everything we spent, I’m down to zero. What do we do?”

Ryan went silent for a long time. Finally, he muttered, “Your dad’s really something, buying his daughter a car but making her pay half? That’s just plain cheap.”

Elena spoke in a timid voice, almost like a child who had done something wrong. “My dad said he’s worried I’ll spend all my money on you and if I really don’t have any left, he won’t help me anymore.”

This time Ryan stayed quiet for a long while.

Living off other people had always been his way, but when it came to turning things around, he really didn’t want to let go.

So Elena quickly softened her tone. “Ryan, your family hadn’t wired you any money, had they? Maybe we should forget it. We can buy a car later. Besides, neither of us has even graduated yet, so it’s not like we need one right away.”

“No way!” Ryan blurted, then forced his voice into a calmer tone. “Fifty thousand dollars is a lot. I can’t pull that together all at once. Elena, can’t you get a personal loan or something? Maybe borrow a little. I’ll figure out the rest.”

“My limit’s too low. And come on—do you really think my dad will only check my bank account balance? If I borrow through some app, he’s definitely going to look into it!”

Ryan cursed Marcus in his head for not giving his daughter any privacy, but out loud he didn’t dare say a word.

After weighing it over and over, he finally ground his teeth and agreed. “Fine. I’ll figure out something to lend you the money. Once your parents leave…”

Elena jumped right in, sweet and certain. “Of course, Ryan. You know me. I’ll give it right back.”

Well, that was true. In more than a year of dating, Elena had always been generous with money and never picky. Her family really was better off than his.

Still, Ryan felt sour inside. He reminded her again and again that the money was only a loan and she had to pay him back.

He even thought about making her write up an IOU, but eventually, he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Elena was plain-looking, but she wasn’t stupid. If he pushed her too hard, she might back out of the Audi deal altogether.

When she hung up the phone, Elena almost gagged at her performance. She hated how fake she had just sounded.

In her last life, after the Floodfall disaster, she had been trapped in Aetheria.

Her parents had worried for her and sent her 50,000 dollars, begging her to stock up on food and enough supplies to last at least three months.

She had spent every cent, filling her apartment with food—instant noodles, vegetables, canned goods, and dry rations.

Elena had been living on the 19th floor of a two-bedroom apartment, much more convenient than her old dorm.

So when Ryan and Lila asked to stay with her, she agreed without a second thought.

But when the waters didn’t recede and the world was hit with a massive megatsunami, even the government couldn’t provide aid anymore.

Supplies started to run out.

That’s when Ryan showed his true colors. Calculating, manipulative—he slowly changed.

He secretly hooked up with Lila. Together they ate her food, drank her drinks, and found ways to control her every move, gaslighting her and breaking her down piece by piece.

When it came down to the three of them and someone had to go, Ryan looked straight at Elena. “Elena, you’re strong and smart. And… well, you’re not exactly pretty. If you go out looking for supplies, you’ll be safe. Lila is lovely; it’ll be dangerous for her out there.”

Lila chimed in, her tone soft and pitiful.

“Yeah, Elena, I’m too pretty. If I go outside, I might be in danger. Besides, you’re the tough one. I’m just fragile. I couldn’t possibly survive out there.”

Back then, Elena was still foolish. She thought maybe she really hadn’t done enough, so she worked harder and tried to treat them even better.

When the supplies grew too thin to support all three, her boyfriend and her best friend both hinted that she should be the one to leave. So Elena swallowed her pride, and every day she risked her life in the storm. She paddled down flooded streets on a little raft she had made from empty plastic bottles, searching for food.

Half a year later, one day she came home early—only to catch them in bed together.

Her heart boiled with anger and grief, but before she could even speak, they turned on her. Ryan and Lila scolded her instead, accusing her of being jealous, not sweet enough, too demanding, and too much of a spoiled little princess to please.

But she had woken up. Her hands shook, but she still shouted at them to get out. She never wanted to see either of them again.

Ryan’s mask dropped in an instant. He slapped her hard across the face, so hard her ears rang and her nose bled.

Then he and Lila shoved her into the smallest bedroom, tied her up there, and locked the door.

Soon after, Ryan brought in a pack of his rough buddies—men he’d met on the streets, guys whose homes had been washed away, drifters with nowhere else to go.

They filled the living room, ate the food she had stockpiled, and bragged about starting a crew together.

“This will be our base,” they said. “We’ll build our power. No more being pushed around. Food for everyone. Women to share.”

Elena’s blood ran cold when she heard Ryan offer her up to them.

She didn’t hesitate. She rubbed her wrists raw until the rope snapped, shoved the bedroom door shut from the inside, smashed the window, and climbed out.

Rain lashed her face, mixing with blood as she gripped the balcony rails and scaled her way down, level by level, from the 19th floor.

She nearly died on that climb, but she made it out—escaping the place that had become a living hell.

There was one other senior from her department, Zara Wilkinson, who lived in the same complex with her boyfriend. They had once gone scavenging together.

By then, more than six months had passed since the world had fallen apart. Elena had no place left to go, and she had long since lost contact with her family. Out of desperation, she tried knocking on Zara’s door.

Thankfully, Zara was a kind soul. When she heard Elena’s story, she was furious on her behalf and welcomed her in without a second thought.

Zara’s boyfriend, Will Keller, clearly wasn’t thrilled about it, but he didn’t argue.

For a while, Elena stayed with them in their rented apartment.

But survival only grew harder. Food became scarce, every scavenging trip was riskier, and hunger gnawed at them constantly.

In the end, Will showed his true colors. He secretly struck a deal with Ryan’s group, planning to hand Elena and Zara over in exchange for supplies.

When they discovered the betrayal, Elena and Zara fought with everything they had. In the struggle, they killed Will and managed t

o escape.

But their fight for survival was far from over. The two of them headed north, clinging to hope, but Zara didn’t survive the journey.