My husband forced me to a mental hospital to be tortured.

I didn’t know why and no matter how I pleaded and questioned, he never showed any mercy.

On the day I was about to die, he gently stroked my hair.

"Lily Lynn, did you know?

That day… was supposed to be our anniversary—mine and hers."

I knew immediately who he was taking about—Campus Belle—the girl went suicide because of someone exposed her sexual photos and videos.

It was not my fault,but he had been blaming me all along.

When I opened my eyes again,

I was traveling back on the day I was cornered.

***

"Lily, come with me!"

Even though Ethan's brow was furrowed, his voice was still gentle.

But I trembled in fear

—not because of the danger behind us, but because of him.

During the days I was tortured into madness,

he would always hold me and kiss my hair,

whisper cruel words in a gentle tone.

"Lily, you should repent."

"Lily, everything happening now is atonement for your sins."

"Lily, don't die, okay?

The ones who live are the ones who suffer the most."

I was so scared I almost cried, and my heart pounded as if trying to escape my chest.

Ethan thought I was scared of the thugs chasing us from behind.

He gripped my wrist tightly, "Don't be afraid. I'm here."

A female voice came from behind us, so broken it seemed to dissolve into the night wind.

"Ethan, are you leaving me?"

It was Claire Davis.

The Campus Belle of Central High School.

The source of my suffering.

But Ethan didn't answer her. Instead, he looked at me, "Come with me, okay?"

I looked at his hypocritical smile, exactly the same as in my last life.

Between me and Claire.

He always chose me.

I knew more than twenty thugs were on their way—coming to get their boss's woman back.

This was the only chance to escape.

I wanted to turn back.

But Ethan wouldn't let me. He reached up and pulled my hoodie over my head.

He paused deliberately.

Then he dragged me deeper into the alley.

Sure enough, I heard their rough voices.

"Damn it, Ethan's over there!"

"Get that fucking couple for me!"

Through the whistling wind, I looked at his fingers gripping mine so tightly.

How ridiculous.

Living a second time, I noticed the details.

Why did he pull the hoodie over my head?

Because even though Claire and I have similar builds, our hair color is different.

During Claire's rebellious phase, she dyed her long hair red.

Why did he pause deliberately?

Because he needed to make sure the thugs saw him and came after him, not anyone else.

And not Claire, who was running in the opposite direction!

I laughed until tears streamed down my face.

Ethan thought I was scared.

Even though the situation was so urgent,

he still tried to comfort me, "Lily, don't be scared. You'll be okay."

How could I be okay?

I've already died once.

Because of you.

Just like in my last life,

we were cornered at the same alley entrance.

A thug roughly pulled down my hood.

"Fuck!

It's not Claire!"

"Where did that bitch Claire go?

!"

Someone punched Ethan to the ground and furiously kicked him in the stomach.

Ethan struggled to get up.

But there were too many of them, and he couldn't get up.

The leader of the thugs was Julian Cross.

He was the local kingpin.

And he was the one Claire had pissed off.

He lifted his foot and stomped Ethan's face hard into the mud.

"I've only played with women in my life and never been played by one. Claire is the first."

"Since she likes you so much, tell me, if I cripple you, will she still like you, huh?"

Julian slowly squatted down, flicking his cigarette with his index finger.

Ash and a small spark fell on Ethan's face.

He pointed at me, "Is this your chick?"

Ethan's eyelids twitched violently.

"No."

"Just because you say so?

Look, I'll give you two choices."

He held up two index fingers, "First, I fuck her, and we're even. Second, you tell me where Claire is, and you don't have to worry about the rest.

Which one do you choose?"

A choice between two.

Claire or me?

In my memory，

Ethan always chose me.

We were together from kindergarten to high school.

We studied together, took extracurricular classes together, and traveled together.

We lived across the hall from each other, like childhood sweethearts in a fairy tale, the perfect match for a school-to-altar romance.

But even the perfect match faces challenges.

After all, whose life is ever completely smooth?

The test was a person named Claire.

She was like a stone breaking the calm surface of the water, shattering its tension.

When I first heard her name, I wasn't overly wary.

Because when Ethan talked about her, his handsome features were always scrunched up, the impatience in his voice a stark contrast to his usual gentleness.

"Claire is so annoying. I haven't been able to practice the piano properly these days."

"Every time there's a competition, she skips class to watch. I'm so fed up. Now I'm being punished with cleaning duty."

"She keeps stuffing love letters in my hands, and I just throw them in the trash."

He looked so proud when he said this, as if he were seeking praise.

Too many people had a crush on Ethan.

I didn't pay much attention.

Later, after Ethan rejected her multiple times, Claire stopped pestering him.

She would get on the back of Julian's motorcycle after school.

Classmates saw her kissing passionately with Julian at the pool hall.

The teachers at school wouldn't even give her a second glance.

Classmates secretly laughed at her for being promiscuous.

Until one quiz.

The math teacher skipped her and handed the paper to Ethan.

Ethan suddenly spoke up, "Teacher, why aren't you giving one to Claire?"

The teacher frowned, "She won't write anything even if I give it to her. She hands in blank papers every time."

Hearing this, Ethan handed her his own test paper. "Will you write on it this time?"

Claire smiled.

She gave him a flirty wink, "Course I can. Since you gave it to me"

Ethan nodded and took another test paper.

I watched this scene unfold and said nothing.

After school, he came to explain on his own, "I just feel like, we're all classmates, it's not right to isolate someone like that."

Even though we were childhood sweethearts and had a great bond, we never made our relationship official early on.

So, as a friend, what could I say?

I said, "I trust you."

Later, Claire seemed to get back on track.

She even came to this gathering with friends.

Before I died,

Ethan finally told me.

That day, he had originally planned to announce their relationship in front of their friends.

That day, they started dating.

But that day, I ruined everything.

They beat Ethan's legs with clubs and kicked him in the chest.

The thugs were eyeing me menacingly.

He must have been in pain.

But he bit his lip hard, only letting out a few stifled groans.

Someone was already unbuckling his belt in front of me, letting out a few vile laughs.

Even so, Ethan didn't choose anyone.

Silence was a choice.

He chose to endure the pain, just so Claire wouldn't be found.

Even if he got hurt, even if I got hurt.

Julian looked at me. "Kiddo, you gonna tell me where Claire is?"

My clothes had been torn open, revealing the gentle curve of my breasts. The thugs around us grew even more eager, their eyes glinting with greed.

He viciously struck Ethan's leg with a club.

I frowned.

Julian asked, "Ain't you feelin' bad for your little boyfriend?"

"Now I break one of his legs… heard he plays the piano, too."

He took out a dagger.

"How about I chop off his hand?"

In my last life, I couldn't handle any of this.

I just studied and went to cram school, all to get into a top university.

All of this was more than I could bear.

Ethan was a genius, recently discovered by a talent scout, and was about to make a name for himself in a piano competition.

So the moment the dagger pierced his wrist,

I screamed through my tears.

I gave up Claire's location.

I knew which way she ran.

Ethan closed his eyes in pain, crying as he struggled, "Lily, couldn't you have held on just a little longer?"

He was right. If I had just held on for three more minutes, I would have heard the police sirens.

The next day.

Explicit photos and videos of Claire were all over the internet.

Everyone at school said the Campus Belle had become a joke.

Later, she jumped.

Falling into the void like a beautiful butterfly, losing her life.

The blood seemed to be her accusation.

I couldn't stop shaking.

That day, Ethan held me in his arms.

I cried and said, "I'm sorry."

He said, "Lily, it's not your fault."

Now.

I looked at Ethan.

I said softly, "Ethan, are you sure you don't want me to tell them?"

I looked at his long, elegant hands, with a knife now hovering above them.

"Your hand will be broken. What will you do if you can't play the piano anymore?"

Ethan's eyes were bloodshot; he was also weighing his options.

But a young man's courage is so precious.

After just a second, he told me with certainty.

"Don't say it."

He murmured, "Lily, don't say it."

I smiled.

The next second, Julian viciously stabbed the knife into his palm.

Blood oozed from the wound, turning that once-perfect hand ugly.

Three minutes felt like an eternity.

I looked at the old residential building not far away.

A light was always on.

Someone tore my clothes, and I don't know how many dirty hands were about to grope me.

I struggled with all my might.

Just as I was about to run out of strength.

A long leg viciously kicked the thug who was on top of me.

He grabbed my hand and ran.

Someone chased after us.

But I also ran with him with all my strength.

It was obvious he was familiar with the area.

Weaving through twists and turns, we lost the people behind us.

He hid with me in a dark stairwell.

I didn't dare to gasp for air until the police sirens wailed.

The person took off his mask.

His name was Kyle Harding.

I knew him, but not well. We were in the same room for the unit test.

Kyle let go of my hand, panting, "Sorry, I didn't wanna stir up trouble. With them outnumbering us like that, I could only save you… because you wasn't hurt."

I knew.

He was the one who called the cops.

But everything tonight almost broke me.

Before I could say thank you,

everything went black, and I passed out.