"You'll pay for that, Ava!"

In a fit of rage, Benedict shoved me hard.

My head slammed against the doorframe, a sharp, blinding pain shooting through my skull.

Through a dizzying haze, I heard him screaming.

"You've gone too far, Ava!"

"You're not fit to touch a single hair on her head! Sienna is a thousand times kinder than you'll ever be!"

"Being in the same room as you is suffocating. The very sight of you makes me sick!"

I gritted my teeth against the pain and cut him off.

"I'll move out. Don't worry."

That shut him up. He stood there, stunned for a moment, before letting out a cold snort.

"You'd better mean it."

He shot me a final, venomous glare, then swept Sienna into his arms and left without a backward glance.

I touched the back of my head. My fingers came away sticky with blood.

I remembered how, when he first learned of our engagement, he had said my perfume was intoxicating, that our business alliance could grow into real love.

Later, he said he wanted to smell that scent forever and asked me to move in.

I had agreed.

The same man who once held me, whispering promises, was now spitting poison, all for another woman.

I was bleeding on the floor, yet he carried her away without a second glance.

But it didn't matter anymore.

Once Benedict's parents returned to New York, I would have both families witness me break our engagement.

I struggled to my feet and called an Uber.

At a private hospital, the doctor diagnosed me with a mild concussion and a sprained wrist from breaking my fall.

I sighed. In my past life, an injury like this would have healed on its own in no time.

But now—perhaps because my soul hadn't fully acclimated to this body—my accelerated healing was unstable, flickering on and off like a faulty lamp.

There was no telling how long this would take to mend.

With nowhere else to go and not wanting to worry my parents, I checked into the hospital alone.

As I walked out of the examination room, a wave of dizziness sent me stumbling.

A pair of strong arms caught me.

"Careful."

The voice was deep and magnetic. I looked up.

It was Lucas.

"Thank you, Lucas."

I gently extracted myself from his embrace.

He hesitated, his hands hovering awkwardly in the air before he withdrew them.

A flicker of disappointment crossed his eyes.

I didn't dare meet his gaze and hurried away.

He had saved me in my past life. In this one, I would make sure he never got on that fatal flight.

But his feelings for me... I didn't know how to respond to them. Not yet.

I stayed in the hospital for three days.

After being discharged, I went back to retrieve my things and moved into a new apartment that afternoon.

The apartment I’d found on short notice was a surprisingly peaceful sanctuary—affordable, central, and bathed in afternoon light.

I was enjoying a rare moment of peace when, on the fourth day, Benedict called.

He sounded drunk.

"Where are you?"

"The Sterling Club on Park Avenue. Come over."

He’d interrupted a crucial round of a mobile game I was playing. I was not pleased.

"What do you want?"

There was silence. The background noise vanished.

I frowned, about to hang up, when he spoke again.

"Ava, where the hell have you been?"

I started a new round, my eyes glued to the screen. "You said being in the same space as me was suffocating. So I moved out."

"Don't worry. I'm not coming back."

His breathing grew heavy. Then, a cold laugh.

"When did you become so obedient, Ava?"

"Weren't you the one who used to cling to me like you couldn't live without me?"

"Since you're being so compliant—how about you just leave the city? Get out of my life. Stop getting between me and Sienna. Can you do that?"

I was completely focused on my game, my eyes locked on the screen.

It took a moment for his words to register.

His mocking voice cut through my concentration.

"What, nothing to say?"

"You think I don't see through your little tricks?"

"You think I can't tell you're still obsessed with me?"

"Get on your knees and apologize to Sienna, and I might let you come crawling back."

"Okay, as you wish," I said calmly.

Before he could respond, I hung up.