Chapter 2: Another Skin

Was that… a dream?” I whispered to no one.

But how? Did someone rescue me from the fire?

I lifted my arm. Smooth. No burns. I looked at my hands, unscathed. My skin was paler than I remembered. My nails, trimmed short and neatly manicured, weren’t mine. I frowned.

“I shouldn’t look like this,” I murmured, pushing the blanket off and sitting up slowly.

There was no pain. No bandages. No scars.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I needed answers.

Stumbling toward the polished metal sink across the room, I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror above it.

I froze.

The woman staring back at me wasn’t… me.

Her eyes were a shade lighter. Her hair was straighter, darker. Her face… more delicate, like it had never tasted hardship. I leaned closer, touching the glass.

“What the hell…”

Did I… undergo plastic surgery? But why wasn’t I covered in bandages?

Shaking, I pulled up the flimsy hospital gown and turned to check my left thigh.

There it was.

That small, oval birthmark. The exact shape. The exact spot. The same mark I’d had all my life.

I stumbled back and grabbed the edge of the sink for support.

This didn’t make sense.

A sharp pain exploded in my head.

I gasped, clutching my temples as a blinding migraine crashed into me. Memories flashed like I was seeing a movie.

The fire.

Adrian’s face, smirking as the flames devoured my world.Selling my inheritance. Working three jobs. Donating my kidney. The betrayal.

And then, images I didn’t recognize.

Running down a city street at night with heavy downpour. Blinding headlights, screeching tires.

Panic. A crash. Blood. And darkness.

Two lives; mine and another, colliding in my head like thunder.

My breaths came out ragged.

“I… I died,” I whispered. “And now I…”

I looked again at the stranger in the mirror. But now, she wasn’t a stranger.

I remembered her name, Rachel Zane. Her pain. Her loneliness. A girl with no family, no one to miss her. A car accident had left her in a coma.

I was in her skin now.

“I’ve been reborn,” I said, barely believing the words. “My prayers… were answered.”

The door creaked open, and a tall man in dark blue scrubs stepped inside, a clipboard in one hand and a newspaper in the other. Slightly messy dark hair. Stubble. A tired face that looked like it hadn’t slept in days. His eyes widened when he saw me upright.

“You’re awake,” he said, stunned.

I blinked.

Then, I slowly waved

“Hi.”

I knew that voice. That face.

“You,” I whispered.

He was the one who hit the girl… me, I mean. The accident. The man from the memories. The man who’d brought me to the hospital.

He didn’t recognize me, of course. Why would he? I wasn’t me.

“How do you feel?” he asked gently, stepping closer. “Do you know where you are?”

I offered a small, calm smile. “A hospital, I guess?”

He smiled back, visibly relieved. “That’s right. You were in a coma. It’s… been over a year.”

I feigned confusion. “I… don’t remember much. Just… flashes.”

“That’s okay. Memory takes time. What’s the last thing you remember?”

“Bright lights. A car… I think I was hit.”

His shoulders dropped, the guilt flooding back into his eyes.

“I’m so sorry,” he said quietly. “I was the one driving that night. I wasn’t speeding, but it was raining and… you ran out. I… I didn’t see you until it was too late.” He stammered.

“You brought me here?”

“I did. I stayed on as your doctor. I couldn’t just walk away after what happened.”

I kept my smile soft. “Thank you… for not leaving me.”

He looked away, visibly ashamed. “I should’ve been more careful.”

“You saved me,” I said gently, voice slow as I got used to this new tone. “That counts for something.”

He nodded, eyes glossy. “I’m Dr. Sebastian Wolfe, by the way. You can call me Sebastian if you prefer.”

“Nice to meet you, Sebastian.”

A small silence stretched between us before I asked, “So… no one came for me? All this while?”

He hesitated, then shook his head. “There were no records. No ID. No family. I checked everything.”

Just as I suspected.

“So… what now?”

“Well, we run some tests. Make sure your organs are okay. Check your brain activity. It’s honestly a miracle you woke up at all.”

Miracle indeed.

“I’ll let the nurses know you’re up. I’ll be back soon.”

Then he glanced down at the newspaper he was holding, still folded in his hand and was about stepping out

My eyes followed.

“Can I see that?” I said, gesturing towards to the newspaper

He walked back and handed it to me, too shy to look up at my face.

Walking back to the bed, my eyes caught the headline, I froze

Front-page headline read:

“Woman dies in Tragic House Fire.”

A bitter chill ran down my spine.

I flipped through the paper, hands trembling. My photo wasn’t there, but I knew who they were talking about.

Me.

They all thought I was gone.

He believed I’d died.

Perfect.

I felt my rage building again, I had already started plotting ways of getting back at my husband

“Are you alright?” I heard Sebastian, jolting me back to reality.

“Yea..Yes yes, I’m fine”.

“Just got lost in thought for a second” I smiled.

He looked at me, surprised. “You seem to be taking this all in very well.”

“I guess I’m just... grateful,” I said.

“Life gave me another shot.” I continued, coldly.

And I was going to use it.

Every. Single. Second.

“Very well, then. I’d be back.” He said.

I nodded.

As soon as the door closed behind him, I let the smile fade.

Adrian thought I was dead.

He thought he’d won.

But I was here. Alive. In a body he’d never recognize.

And I had a plan.

He killed me once.

Now, I’d return the favor.

Starting with taking everything he loved; slowly, cruelly, and methodically.

He wanted a ghost?

He was about to get haunted.