After a car accident, my wife loses her memory. She throws herself into her first love's arms and frantically aborts our child.

When I confront her in despair, she looks at me with nothing but contempt.

"Why would I keep some child when I don't even know who the father is? You're really shameless, pulling this stunt just to avoid splitting the assets."

What she doesn't know is that I have made a deal with the system to bring her back to life.

By the time she remembers everything, she's already searching desperately for me all over the world. But I can never return.

After a wave of searing pain, my soul drifted out of my body. The doctor covered me with a white sheet and calmly announced the time of death.

"Scott Moore, male, suicide by jumping."

Not far away, my wife, Monique Holmes, was accepting Connor Grant's proposal, completely oblivious to the chaos unfolding nearby.

"Yes, I will!"

As Monique nodded shyly in agreement, the onlookers erupted with enthusiasm, praising them as a perfect match made in heaven.

But I was Monique's husband.

Bitterness welled up inside me. We weren't even divorced yet. Wasn't this cheating?

Someone noticed Monique wearing two rings and joked that Connor was so thoughtful he bought rings in pairs. Both their faces instantly stiffened.

Connor's gaze darkened, his tone dripping with jealousy and accusation as he said, "You're still thinking about him? Take it off. Now."

Monique frantically yanked off the ring and threw her arms around Connor.

"You're doubting me again? Scott and I never had any real feelings. God knows why I was stupid enough to marry him.

"I even aborted his child for you. Isn't that enough?"

I felt dazed. Monique had never spoken to me in such a gentle tone. But maybe she had once, before she lost her memory.

Monique's phone buzzed insistently, my number flashing on the screen. She frowned and, under Connor's watchful glare, turned it off.

The nurse sighed in defeat, climbed into the ambulance, and drove away.

Connor muttered a curse under his breath. "He couldn't even pick a better place to die. Just had to do it right here."

Monique leaned against Connor's shoulder, disgust flashing in her eyes as she joined in, saying, "If he wanted to die, he should've done it somewhere else. Clearly the guy deserved it."

They exchanged a smile.

I laughed bitterly at myself. Why did I marry such a heartless woman?

Watching them cling to each other, one of Connor's friends said enviously, "Monique, I can't believe you two reconnected after five years apart. Talk about fate!"

Monique's eyes sparkled with tenderness. "Connor never gave up on me. When I had my car accident, he was the one who rushed me to the hospital. How else do you repay someone who saves your life?"

Connor rubbed the back of his neck and quickly changed the subject.

My heart jolted.

Monique was still deceiving herself. She truly believed Connor was the one who saved her.

My soul was trapped at Monique's side. I had no choice but to follow her home. Just as she reached the door, someone blocked her path.

It was the director of the orphanage where I'd grown up, Pauline Kinsley. Her eyes were red and swollen, her face twisted as she stared at Monique like she was ready to tear her apart.

"Monique, do you know Scott jumped off a building?"

Monique paused mid-step and said dismissively, "Yeah".

Ms. Kinsley stepped forward and grabbed Monique by the collar, shouting furiously, "It was you! You drove your husband to his death! Why aren't you upset? You lost your memory, not your mind!"

Monique laughed coldly and shoved Ms. Kinsley hard to the ground.

"Ms. Kinsley, you've lost it just like Scott. I haven't even blamed you for tricking me into that marriage, and now you're calling me heartless?"

"Why would I ever marry some orphan? You people just wanted my money. I've finally come to my senses.

"Thank God I lost my memory and got rid of that baby early. At least now, you can't bleed me dry."

I stood there, stunned. This was what Monique had thought of me all along after losing her memory. No wonder every time I tried to explain, she just looked at me with contempt.

Ms. Kinsley shakily got to her feet and slowly held up a man's ring.

"Mon, I don't care what you think of me, but the dead can't come back. Go see Scott one last time. If you don't, you'll regret it when your memory returns."

Monique snatched the ring and examined it carefully, but her voice cut like a blade straight through the chest.

"You're really willing to go all out for money, aren't you? Regret? Scott's dead? He was always so dramatic about dying. If he had the guts, he should've done it right in front of me!"

Ms. Kinsley's hand trembled with rage as she struck Monique across the face, her lips quivering as she said, "How can you be this heartless? Scott gave up his chance to study abroad for you. He drank until he vomited blood just to pay off your gambling debts.

"What have you ever done for him? You cheated on him! You aborted his child and sent him the remains. Now, Scott's dead, and you won't even see him one last time. How cruel can you be?"

Monique tossed her hair back and lifted her chin with a cold laugh. "Who knows if you're making this all up? I don't remember any of it, so as far as I'm concerned, it never happened.

"Why would I give birth to a child when I don't even know who the father is? Scott must've taken advantage of me when I was vulnerable and tricked me into getting pregnant.

"Consider that slap payment enough. Tell Scott I'm marrying Connor now. He should stop clinging to me and just sign the divorce papers already. Enough with the dramatics."

I thought that once you died, your heart couldn't hurt anymore. But Monique's words cut straight through me, and I couldn't help but hate my former self for being willing to sacrifice everything for her.

I felt like a complete joke. I couldn't help but laugh bitterly at the sky. Monique was utterly ruthless.

Hearing those words, Ms. Kinsley swayed on her feet but forced herself to turn around and slowly straighten her back. "Fine. Monique, you're not Scott's wife anymore. You'd better pray you never get your memory back."

Watching Ms. Kinsley walk away, step by heavy step, endless sorrow washed over me. My choice had cost the elderly Ms. Kinsley the unbearable pain of outliving someone she'd raised.

I wanted to follow her, but I was pulled along as Monique walked into the house. On the dining table sat the candlelit dinner I'd prepared. The metallic scent of the steak still lingered in the air.

Monique's brow furrowed as she scrolled through her phone's call log. She hesitated, then dialed a number. No one answered.

She must have remembered that I'd called her right before I died.

The day I died, Monique had finally given in to my constant pestering and promised she'd come home for dinner. I cooked the meal and even put on the suit she had picked out for me, but she never came home.

As the time I'd agreed on with the system drew closer, I drained my phone battery and could only watch helplessly as the system chose how I would die. I didn't know if it was the system's twisted sense of humor, but it threw my body off the building closest to where Connor was proposing.

Monique had no idea she was supposed to die in that car accident. For her and the child in her womb, I'd made a deal with the system. Two lives, at the cost of my own immortality.

The irony was that Monique lost her memory and didn't even blink before aborting our four-month-old baby. When she threw that bloody mess at me, my heart shattered.

The doctor diagnosed me with severe depression, and Monique treated it like a joke to share with Connor. He then went out of his way to sharpen a knife and place it in front of me.

"Depressed people kill themselves, you know. Why don't you do it so we'll believe you?"

I knew Connor had always competed with me in secret over grades, Monique's affection, and everything. I just never expected he'd compete over who could be more ruthless too.

If he hadn't dumped all his debts on Monique, she would've never seen his true nature. But one bout of amnesia was all it took for her to throw herself back into Connor's arms without a second thought.

I was like a clown being toyed with, just another piece in their game.

I grew tired of this endless entanglement. I just wanted to give myself and Monique one last dignified goodbye.

But Monique's cruelty chilled me to the bone, and combined with the agony of hitting the ground, I couldn't help but hate them both. I wanted to see if their love was really as unshakeable as they claimed.

…

The next day, Connor brought Monique to a class reunion. Some of the people there were mutual friends of mine and Monique's.

They stared glumly at Monique laughing in Connor's arms before they lost it. "Monique, did you and Scott get divorced?"

At the sudden mention of my name, the private room fell silent.

Monique and Connor interlaced their fingers, and she answered carelessly, "We'll divorce eventually. Scott's just being petty and dragging it out, trying to squeeze more money out of me. Our marriage has been dead for ages."

Everyone exchanged glances, then burst out laughing as if they'd heard the most ridiculous joke.

One of my closer friends stifled his laughter and asked, "Monique, do you hear yourself right now? Scott's after your money?"

Others who knew the truth chimed in.

"Monique, have you forgotten how you were the one chasing after Scott back then?"

"Monique, you must be dreaming! Scott paid off your debts and supported you, and now you're accusing him of this?"

Under this barrage of accusations, Monique's expression grew increasingly ugly.

"Enough! I don't care how much Scott paid you all to slander me. I'm not buying it.

"You're calling me ungrateful, but without Connor, I wouldn't even be standing here today."

Connor squeezed Monique's hand tightly. The two of them looked like star-crossed lovers breaking through adversity.

Someone persisted, pressing further. "Monique, I heard you hit your head in that car accident and lost your memory. Do you remember when Connor left you? And how can you be so sure he's the one who saved you?"

Monique fell silent. I applauded this perceptive friend wholeheartedly.

I suspected Monique knew deep down who really saved her, but her desire to be with Connor had taken over, and she refused to admit it. To be clear, we both had been in that car accident together.

My external injuries hadn't been obvious. I'd just carried Monique to the hospital when I started vomiting blood and passed out, going straight into surgery.

By the time I'd mostly recovered, I found Connor feeding Monique some soup. I nearly choked on my rage right then and there.

The first person Monique saw when she woke up was Connor, so she decided he had to be her savior. She fought back against me with punches and kicks, pointing at my nose and cursing me for being shameless and reaching above my station.

It wasn't until I showed her our marriage certificate that Monique believed she was actually married. What I never expected was for her to secretly abort the baby just because Connor said he didn't want to be a stepfather.

Five years of marriage, and I'd tolerated all her willfulness. She kept photos of her and Connor locked in her drawer. I told myself everyone had a few unforgettable first loves.

Occasionally, when she heard news about Connor, she'd get drunk and throw tantrums. I'd swallow my hurt and help her wash up and get to bed.

She'd clearly been excited about the baby, too. She'd even knitted baby clothes herself and eagerly huddled next to me to discuss baby names. I never imagined that a car accident would take away Monique's conscience along with her memory.

I brought up divorce for the first time because of the baby, and she refused. The funny thing was that I thought she still had some attachment to our home. It turned out she just thought I was after our joint assets. What a joke.

Seeing the usually sharp-tongued Monique at a loss for words was rare. Connor started smoothing things over and calling for more drinks.

That look of infatuation returned to Monique's eyes. After several rounds of drinks, Connor drunkenly insisted Monique take him home.

Everyone knew what was about to happen, though some of the more judgmental classmates muttered about how shameless they were.

Under everyone's gaze, Monique stumbled out with Connor and got into the car. But to my surprise, she didn't even let him through the front door.