5-He's her advantage

The taillights of the car dashed off as the roar of its engine died away.

Maya was stunned.

In the two of her lives, this was the second time she had a fight with Jason, and it ended up with Jason leaving her on the street.

Well, it could have been worse? He could have run her over.

This time, Maya didn’t feel bad for too long for Jason. Actually, Jason gave her exactly what she wanted – distance from him! She could take this chance to calm down from her own death and reborn without facing her murderer.

Maya was glad she tested her theory, and glad to see Jason clearer this lifetime so early.

till wearing her wedding dress, Maya had only a thin coat on the outside. The only good thing was the flat shoes she changed into before leaving the wedding hall. The flat shoes allowed her to stand firmly and walk smoothly, but they also caused the skirt to completely drag on the ground. She had to hold the skirt up with both her hands to keep from tripping over it. However, that left her with no hand to help when the wind smashed the skirt in her legs, and sometimes her face.

She looked wretched, but she didn’t feel so. She felt great. She felt…relieved. The wind on the summer’s tail was cool, refreshing both her tired legs and her tired soul.

Pity the wind can’t refresh her headache and stomach ache, and Maya accepted her defeat fast before she turned into the first hotel she found on the side of the road. Nothing was more helpful right now than a full night sleep in peace.

And it did help.

Maya woke up with warm sunlight peeking through the gauze curtain and teasing her cheeks. It was already high noon. Though Maya wasn’t planning on any confrontation today, she got it anyway–

A phone call rushed in the moment she turned on her phone after she revived it with a borrowed charger. After a moment of hesitation, Maya put it through.

“Mom,” Maya kept a steady tone.

“What’s with you and Jason?” Being a gossip, Maya’s mom had a high-pitched voice.

Maya sighed reluctantly: “Nothing. I wasn’t feeling well, so I just got a room for some rest.”

“He has been looking everywhere for you!” Mom did not believe her. Maya’s mom has the heightened sense of a hound when it comes to domestic problems.

Maya knew mom’s method well even without the memory of her last life – care for your family, marriages consist of compromises, etc.

“It was nothing, for real. Just some disagreements on our schedule, so I stayed out to avoid a fight. I just didn’t notice that my phone died.” Maya took a deep breath and managed a light tone.

"Okay." Mom accepted the explanation, but did not give up preaching, "Now that the phone is turned on, you will call him back first. If you are not feeling well, you know have to take care of yourself, but also know that your family's emotions are also your responsibility now. The same is true for your schedules. Compromising is the key to a happy family. You chose to get married, then you will live your life from the perspective of your new family. The essence of family is that you have to endure and pay for many things."

Listening to mom’s nagging, Maya’s let her thought wander to where mom’s theory led her. Maya listened to countless naggings just like this one, all about accpeting your family and protecting your family and knowing that you are bounded to your family once you make that one, big decision, and then your family’s success is your success. So you have to enduce, to understand, to accept, to compromise, to care. No matter how bitter it taste like, you maintain a bright smile in front of “people”...for the honor of your family.

This was mom’s theory, and she lived up to it.

But maybe it was because dad was the one who made mom’s theory usable when he didn’t give that much for mom to endure, to compromise…or to hide?

What did dad say last time? Maya suddenly sat up straight – dad had a serious talk with her before the wedding, saying that Jason might not be the best choice for a family. But back then Maya was drowning in love, and of course ignored the dad talk thinking all father must have a hard time letting their little girl go.

“I got it, mom,” Maya cut in the short break between mom’s nagging, her patience bleeding, “let me hang up so I can call Jason, okay?”

She did get rid of mom’s nagging, except Maya didn’t want to call Jason. But then Jason’s phone call came in.

This time Maya definitely didn’t want to pick up. The call stopped before Maya could finish her struggle, but then a second round started. Sighed powerlessly, Maya put it through. After all, she was married to Jason now, and she couldn’t hide forever even though she didn’t know how to face him right now.

“Have you thought about what we talked about yesterday?” The first words out of Jason shocked Maya. After a huge argument and him leaving her on the street, the first thing he asked about was her resignment?

With a cold tone Maya answered: “I wasn’t feeling well yesteady, and I just got up.”

Meaning, she hadn’t had time for it.

"Then when are you going to think about it? When are you going to get better?"

Maya couldn't see Jason's expression, but judging from his tone, he was not satisfied with her answer. Yesterday she saw clearly the irascibility and selfishness in Jason's nature. He hopes to control her life so that she would remain his accessory, and once she made it clear that she won’t cooperate, he will show his other face – the grumpy one. Probably the one he was wearing now.

She closed her eyes and asked him suspiciously, "Why do I have to consider resigning?"

"Because it's good for us! You can't handle those things in the workplace. Concentrate on helping me from home, and it will be easy for both of us. Isn't this good?" Jason's tone softened a little, probably for persuading her.

"But are you so sure that I can't handle it?"

"Maya, it's been a year since you joined the company, and you haven't improved your relationship with your partner yet." Jason spoke a little softer, sounding as if he had exhausted his patience with her and was disappointed, "You know how your partner sees you? Your personality is really not suitable for the workplace. "

Maya never knew this was how Jason sees her.

Maya's grades have always been straight As in school, being the competitive winner she was. She never thought that the husband she had been with for seven years would look down on her like this.

Was his judgement objective? Or was it excuses he found to get her home? Or he just simply want to depreciate her? The Maya from last life might believe that Jason said these things out of care, but…could she still trust the words out of this selfish, arrogant man?

"I want to give it a try." Maya announced her decision calmly but firmly, "I’m sure I can handle it if I put my mind to it."

"Fine!" Jason's voice immediately turned sour, gritting his teeth irritately, "Then you go and try! Don't expect me to help you, try it yourself! Let me know after you see this more clear!"

He cut off the call.

Maya looked at the blacked out screen and felt that she didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

Despite the stupidity of Jason's horrible nature and how little their “love” mattered to him, this cold war he offered was actually the best opportunity Maya could have asked for.

With a wry smile, she lay on her back on the bed for a while, looking at the wedding dress she was still wearing, stood up and took it off, threw it on the ground, and decided to take a shower first.

In the last four years of marriage, how much she cherished this dress! Until the day of her death, it was still wrapped in a dust bag and hung in the deepest part of the cloakroom. Every important moment, Maya would take it out to look at it and recall the time of the wedding. Now, she just thought it too tight around the waist and the lace is prickly, so it's more comfortable to take it off.

In the dense water vapor, she sorted out her thoughts for the second time.

First of all, on the first day of rebirth, she confirmed that Jason did have fundamental problems, and her father's evaluation back then was correct.

But now, she was tied to Jason, and she had to find a suitable reason for a divorce. Otherwise, it will be difficult to even just get her mom on board.

Second, God gave her this second chance, for what? Just to live it all over again? Or maybe to stop what Jason might do? To avoid a bad outcome? Or something unexpected?

In any case, at least she can't live in a daze again. She needs to know what she overlooked and what she missed last time, which resulted in being cheated and killed alone in the end. She's going to make Jason pay for what he's done!

Last time……

Last time there was Madeline. Her innocent little daughter is the only bright color in recalling those four years now. What happened to her? Did anyone take care of her? Did she grow up smoothly?

If life was to be changed this time, she would not have been born…

Thinking of this, Maya felt melancholy. How much she wanted to see Madeline again, how she wanted to see her grow into a big girl healthy and healthy! But this time... Forget it, it's good not to be born, at least not to have a mother who died early, and a father like that.

She raised her head, let the hot water hit her forehead, and then dripped down her eye sockets, nose bridge, chin, neck, back... all the way, as if taking away all those messy thoughts and overly sentimental weakness up.

Bless you, Madeline, and may your soul have a better life.

The failed marriage, her career, love…all were problems last time.

The jerk she married last life, deserves the divorce coming his way! The work that she loved, she won’t give it up! The love…

Forget about love... Thinking of this word, Maya feels a little powerless. Jason's "love" for her brought her death; her "love" for Jason made her lose herself. Maybe it wasn't just Jason's fault. Perhaps, she has never understood what love is.

All she knew was that she was no longer the Maya who would put love, and “husband” as her one and only priority.

If it was difficult to slove the problems of marriage and work, then it would take a god’s power to solve the problem of love. Espeically when she had to pretend to be the Maya from four years ago in this process. Could she really do it?

Maya had no idea at all.

She tapped her head, a little confused.

Her only advantage is her memory of her previous life. But other than failures in her previous life, what else did she have?

Last life...

There was Damian!

Suddenly, seeing Damian's face at the wedding came to her mind.

Damian said he would give Jason another chance, but Maya didn’t know what happened in the end. However, at least Damian had gathered all of Jason's criminal evidence in his previous life. Damian saw through Jason! Does this mean he knew what Jason was up to?

Perhaps, Damian was Maya's real advantage!

By interacting with him, she could also learn about Jason, and even find a way to investigate Jason!

Not only that, Damian can also help out with her work! Even some advice from a successful lawyer would be very helpful for Maya now, especially when she had left her career for four years.

Right, this is it. Damian just maybe her turning point!

Maya's eyes light up.