At the age of 25, Jackie Madden walked to Clara Gallegos's bedside with his first love and announced their relationship.

“After you leave, I want to marry her.”

Clara died at the age of 76.

Three months later, they had a grand wedding.

 When she opened her eyes again, she went back to three months before her heart attack.

This time she decided not to die in the same grave as him and never see him again in this life.

——

“Clara, it's already so late, why don't you get up and cook. Why are you getting lazier?”

After a dead silence, Clara suddenly woke up. Her heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand and was beating violently. Tears were streaming down her face and sweat was pouring down.

Jackie, who was standing beside the bed, was somewhat at a loss as to what to do.

“What's wrong with you? Why are you crying? It's time to cook.”

Everything around her remained the same and the scene became clear from the unreal. This was where she had lived since she was a child. 

Fresh flowers picked from the flower bed were placed on the dressing table and the occasional chirping of insects and birds outside the window seemed so real.

When the urging voice sounded again, Clara finally realized that she was reborn and returned to three months before her heart attack.

Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar face beside her, Clara was furious. “If you want to eat, make it yourself.”

Jackie was stunned for a moment, then shook his head helplessly as if in surprise. “Hey, why are you so angry?”

Looking at his leaving back, Clara finally could not hold back and cried with her face covered.

Three months ago, she had a heart attack. Jackie took Mara's hand and walked to her bedside to declare their love, “Clara, Mara said she wanted your blessing. I thought I should tell you that I want to marry her after you leave.”

Clara passed away without even taking a breath and his life ended at the age of 76.

Three months later, 83-year-old Jackie married 77-year-old Mara. 

With the sound of piano and violin, also the colorful decorations, the two white-haired old people dressed in wedding dresses got married surrounded by a crowd of people, which became a hot topic for a while.

“A reunion after half a century.”

“I finally married the person I loved when I was young.”

No one mentioned his first wife who had spent half her life serving him.

Even the children who opposed their marriage were driven out of the house by Jackie, severing their parent-child relationship. 

The poor youngest son became homeless and moved from one place to another. her daughter lived in poverty and worked two jobs to supplement the family income.

Jackie gave all his salary cards to Mara.

However, her daughter inherited the empire built by Clara and Jackie.

Clara participated in everything in the darkness. Despair and anger surged like a tide, almost drowning her. 

She gasped for breath, clenched her fists, her fingernails dug deeply into the flesh, she seemed not to feel the pain and she tried to break free from the fear of suffocation.

When she opened her eyes again, she was back to three months before the onset of the illness.

God gave her another chance, even if it was only three months, it was enough.

After sorting out her thoughts, Clara walked out of the door. The peonies and wild platycodon in the yard were particularly beautiful. 

The small yard that she had taken care of for several years in her previous life was elegant and unique. After Mara came in, she took away all her hard work just because she said she did not like it.

Not long after, Jackie came back from his walk with Mara standing beside him.

“Excuse me, Clara, Jack and I met him while taking a walk in South Park. He insisted on inviting me to visit his home.”

Mara smiled sweetly, her gray hair notwithstanding, she looked full of energy. They walked into the house as if no one was around, talking and laughing.

Clara lived in the north and Mara lived in the south. Their chance meeting was truly a coincidence.

In the previous life, Mara often came to visit the family, but Clara did not think much of it. Who would have thought that at the age of sixty, they were still thinking about such a romantic affair.

Clara said nothing, turned around and called out, "Carter."

A golden retriever with beautiful yellow hair rushing out of the house and barking wildly at the door.

Mara was so frightened that her face turned pale. She tightly grasped Jackie's sleeve and said aggrievedly, “Jack, Clara does not welcome me, right? I'm leaving now.”

Clara ignored them and continued to tend to her small garden, while Carter walked briskly beside her, gently wagging his tail.

Watching Mara leave, Jackie was a little puzzled, “You do this on purpose, don’t you? I met her while walking in the park and I invited her to my home.”

Clara did not say anything. 

Perhaps he sensed her displeasure. He sighed as if he had compromised, “Forget it. If you do not like it, I won't let her come to my house anymore.”

The next morning, Jackie went out for a walk as usual, but he did not return.

It was not until Clara served the last dish that he opened the courtyard door.

“You have not eaten yet? Do not wait for me, I'm not hungry.”

With just a glance, she saw the grease on the corners of his mouth that had not yet been wiped clean. It meant that he had eaten outside and it must have been with Mara. 

He would take a walk from home to South Park and have a meal and he would be home around this time.

This was because he knew that Clara did not like Mara, so he went out to meet her.

In the end, she ate her breakfast alone in silence.

However, Clara was grateful for the chance to wake up again. 

In the past, she only cared about her children and her husband, so that she never paid close attention to her own feelings. 

At that time, even a fried dough stick or a bowl of soy milk was made according to her preferences and seemed very precious. It was as if a pair of gentle hands calmed the waves in her heart bit by bit and she quietly enjoyed the peace of the moment.

Jackie was sitting on the sofa, staring at his phone. His fingers were moving flexibly and a smile was always on his lips. It was unclear who he was chatting with. 

It did not matter to her who he chatted with. It was not until the moment of life and death that she realized what was important. 

This time, she would make arrangements before the end of her life and never let her loved ones suffer or her enemies rejoice.

After dinner, Clara returned to her room, took out her computer that had not been used for a long time, logged into the official website of the Organ Donation Management Center and filled in the registration information for body donation.

After filling out the form, Clara went into the room and sorted out all the photos of her that had been there over the years, not leaving out a single one.

A brazier was set up in the yard and she sat beside it, throwing piles of photos into the fire.

She and Jackie were together for a lifetime and there were several thick bundles of photos, from their love in their youth, to their long-lasting love in middle age, to their family of three after they had children and to their dependence on each other in their old age. 

The number of photos was at least several hundred.

Memories replayed before her eyes like a movie scene. The photo of her in a white dress leaning on his shoulder was taken when they had just started dating. 

Her brows were relaxed, her eyes were clear and bright and her smile was gentle. He said that he liked Clara best in a white dress with a pigtail, which made her look pure and lively. For many years afterwards, Clara's favorite dress was always white.

It was not until a photo of a girl in a white dress was found in his yearbook that Clara questioned Jackie. Jackie hesitated and just said that it was just a neighbor's little girl.

Later, she fell ill. Jackie took Mara to her bedside. The familiar white dress and familiar outline were exactly the girl in the photo. Suddenly, she understood.

Mara came to her house countless times, but she did not notice until the moment they held hands and he announced that they were going to be together.

Clara sobbed but could not say anything and she never had the chance to say what she wanted to say later.

They officially announced that she had passed away.

The flames in the yard finally attracted Jackie's attention. He hurried over and tried to grab some unburned photos from the brazier, but his hand was severely burned. 

“What are you doing? These are all our memories.”

His eyes were full of regret.

“The photos have turned yellow. If I keep them, they will attract bugs. We'll take new ones later.”

Perhaps he felt that what Clara said made sense, so he stopped talking and just kept repeating, “What a pity, every photo has so many memories.”

The fire died out and the two returned to the living room. The only sound in the house was the sound of teacups hitting the table.

Jackie glanced at Clara silently as he said, “Clara, come with me to South Park tomorrow. It's really lively in the morning.”

“Go by yourself. I made breakfast and it's already seven or eight o'clock. You cannot always eat out.”

Jackie was slightly embarrassed after being seen through. Just as he was about to explain, the phone rang. It was Mara's voice on the other end.

“Jackie, my chest hurts a little, can you come over?”

The voice made him almost imagine how pitiful Mara was on the other side. 

He frowned, perhaps afraid that Clara would misunderstand him and hurriedly explained, “I'll be back soon. Her daughter is out of town and she cannot be left without someone to take care of her.”

It was unexpected that Jackie could still walk briskly at the age of nearly 70.

As he was not around, Clara simply packed some daily necessities and used her mobile phone to book a ticket for a free tour of Water Village. However, due to her old age, it was quite troublesome to join a group tour.

After dinner the next day, when she was about to leave, Jackie had not come back yet, but it did not matter. She had long stopped caring about him. 

She had lived half her life and died once before she realized that true love changes in the blink of an eye. 

That time since she had another chance, she must treat herself well in the remaining time.

When the plane landed, she received a message from Jackie, [Clara, where have you been? Why haven't you come back yet?]

In the evening, it buzzed again, [Are you running away from home because you are angry with me? Really? At your age?]

Clara directly set the message to not disturb. Since she came to the beautiful Water Village, she should enjoy this moment and stop thinking about trivial matters.

It was really nice there, with a suitable temperature, bluestone tiles and a light mist in the morning. 

It looked like an ink painting, with small bridges, flowing water, people's homes and an ancient road with a thin horse in the west wind.

She found a famous local dress shop and chose a dark green dress for herself. She also held an umbrella in her hand and wore high heels. 

Although she was already old, she still had a good figure. Plus, Clara was tall and fair, so she looked gentle and quiet as she walked in the town.

Clara took a very sentimental photo of herself. In the photo, her face was kind and peaceful. The fan in her hand was painted with elegant orchids. 

She posted it on her Instagram with the caption, [Even at the end of life, you must try your best to love yourself.]

When they were young, Jackie promised to take her around to travel after retirement. But after he really retired, he was obsessed with taking walks in South Park all day long. 

When she mentioned traveling around the country, he always smiled and said that he was too old and should not cause trouble.

So that time she wanted to fulfill her dream and enjoy it to the fullest.

On the second and third days, Jackie sent her messages every day. But she never responded.

On the fourth day, he posted a photo of a garden full of flowers. 

[Clara, the flowers in the garden are so bright and beautiful, just like you were when you were young. Come back, I need you and these flowers need you too.]