An earthquake struck suddenly and my mother-in-law and I were trapped together in a small underground space. She urged me to call my husband, who was a rescue team member, to come save us.

But I refused, choosing instead to find my own way out.

I remembered that in my past life, my husband had personally led a rescue for both of us, but only after leaving behind his cherished first love. She was alone, waiting for him to return, but in the end, she tragically took her own life, setting herself on fire.

He said nothing then, only burying her quietly afterward.

In the blink of an eye, my whole body was soaked in gasoline before he set on fire!

"Do you have any idea how much Bianca suffered? Now you'll understand what it feels like to burn alive!"

When I opened my eyes again, I was reborn, back to the day of the earthquake.

This time, I refused to ask for his help and he went to his precious first love just as he wanted.

When he finally returned to the scene of the earthquake, he was already out of his mind with regret and desperation.

***

After a deafening crash, the two-story family villa crumbled. My mother-in-law and I were immediately trapped in the basement, buried under a mass of rubble.

Thankfully, a floor slab fell at just the right angle, creating a small air pocket that kept us from being completely swallowed by the debris.

My mother-in-law was visibly shaken and terrified, looking at me in desperation. "Lily Anderson! Call Owen right now! We need to get out of here!"

Holding my phone, I noticed only one bar of battery left and at that moment, everything came rushing back and I realized that I had been reborn.

In my previous life, I used that last bit of battery to call my husband, Owen Miller, a member of the rescue team, but that decision cost him precious time with Bianca.

This time, I refused to make the same mistake.

I slipped my phone into my pocket, meeting my mother-in-law's anxious gaze with newfound resolve.

"Mom, my phone's battery is dead. Don't worry, I'll get us out!"

"I saw your phone still has a charge! Why won't you call my son, Owen? Do you want me to die?"

Before I could react, my mother-in-law rushed over desperately to snatch my phone away, trying to call her son.

Instinctively, I reached out and knocked it from her hand.

The phone clattered down through a gap in the floor. She stretched out her arms, straining to retrieve it, while I felt a wave of relief, breathing heavily.

My mother-in-law stared at me with hateful eyes and roared loudly.

Her gaze turned venomous and she shouted, "Lily, what's wrong with you? If you want to die, don't drag me down with you!"

"Did my son ever treat you so badly that you'd rather die than call him for help? Huh?!"

I knew that even if I explained the circumstances of my past life, my mother-in-law would never believe it. So, I squeezed her hand tightly and gave her a reason she might accept.

"Mom, listen. Owen is with the rescue team right now. If he's working, we can’t interrupt him! I've done self-rescue drills before. I can get us out safely!"

My mother-in-law pushed my hand away, her face hard and cold, but her demeanor softened slightly.

"If I die here today, I'll haunt you! And if my son dies trying to save me, he'll never forgive himself!"

Just then, a rumbling noise shook the ground and another section of the wall collapsed, sending fresh debris cascading into the room.

The floor that supported the small space we occupied began to sink even more. My mother-in-law and I were pressed tightly together, lying flat on the ground for stability.

Bracing my hands against the slowly sliding floor, I turned to her, speaking urgently.

"Mom! If we don’t get out now, we're really going to die!"

At that moment, panic finally flickered across my mother-in-law’s face.

“Find a way out already! What are you doing just lying there?"

With no tools, I was left to claw through the hard gravel by hand, feeling the sting as my fingers began to bleed.

My mother-in-law remained behind me, unmoving, which made me glance at her instinctively. I caught a glimpse of something unsettling in her cold, indifferent gaze.

There was a flicker of intent that made my heart drop. It hit me then. She did not want me to make it out alive.

In my past life, I had called Owen, urging him to come back to help us, but he sounded so reluctant.

He said he was on leave and promised to spend the day with his first love, Bianca Morgan, suggesting that I just call 911 instead.

But 911 was busy and with my battery dying, Owen reluctantly agreed to come.

When he led the team to dig us out, he reached my mother-in-law first. I had extended my hand toward her, expecting her to pull me up.

My mother-in-law first held my hand, but then, she had met my gaze with an icy glare, screaming as she deliberately let go. Luckily, I had grabbed onto a steel bar nearby, barely saving myself.

Afterward, when I confronted her, she denied any intention of harm.

However, the consequences were severe. Rescuing us had kept Owen from Bianca, who ultimately turned on the gas at home, ending her life in a tragic fire.

Owen went to the cemetery to bury Bianca in person and his mother-in-law looked calm.

Owen buried her himself, his expression vacant but calm. But then, as Bianca's ashes were lowered into the grave, he suddenly pulled out a container of gasoline, approaching me with a twisted grin.

Sensing something was terribly wrong, I backed away, staring at him in horror.

“What are you trying to do?”

“What do I want to do? I want you to feel the fire for yourself! Hahaha!”

Owen's demeanor twisted into something dark and unhinged. He seized the oil barrel, pouring gasoline over me with manic intensity.

“No! No! Somebody help!”

“Go ahead and scream! I picked this hour at dawn on purpose, so no one's around to hear you now!"

Gasoline soaked through every inch of my body as I scrambled to escape desperately, only to be knocked down by my mother-in-law, who coldly stretched out her leg, blocking my way.

Her glare was chilling as she spat, "You bitch! How dare you kill my beloved future daughter-in-law, Bianca? You deserve this fate!”

At this moment, I realized that my mother-in-law, who had always disapproved of me, had secretly wanted Bianca Morgan as her daughter-in-law all along.

But it was too late to resist. Owen pulled out a lighter, its flame igniting with a loud snap and, with a dark smile, he flung it straight at me, my body soaked in gasoline.

In an instant, I was consumed by flames, the blaze erupting around me with a fierce roar.

The fire hungrily devoured my clothes and hair, reaching my skin with blistering heat.

The agony was excruciating, as though my entire being were being torn apart. I collapsed to the ground before Bianca's tombstone. My screams were filled with despair and suffering.

Owen watched from a distance, his face twisted into a sinister grin.

“Do you have any idea how much Bianca suffered? Now you'll understand what it feels like to burn alive!”

"No, Owen, please! I swear, I never knew Bianca would take her own life. Please, help me! I don’t want to die!”

The flames clawed deeper into my skin and the unbearable heat seeped into my bones and organs.

I could feel myself slipping, my body being consumed bit by bit, the horror as painful as it was unimaginable.

“You don’t want to die? Bianca didn't want to die either. It was you who killed her!"

"Bianca must be so lonely since she died alone. So now, it's only fair that you join her in death!"

He watched without a hint of mercy as the flames devoured me inch by inch and then, with a ruthless shove, kicked me directly into Bianca's grave.

While I was still clinging to consciousness, Owen and my mother-in-law began to cover me with dirt, burying me alive in the grave.

The agony of my previous life haunted me vividly. Gritting my teeth, I glared up at my mother-in-law. In this life, I vowed I would not make the same mistakes again!

***

I halted my frantic digging, letting my bleeding hands fall still as I cast an icy gaze at my mother-in-law.

"My hand's bleeding, so I can't dig anymore. If you don’t help, we're both going to die here."

As if on cue, a thunderous crash echoed above us as the building shifted and collapsed further. My mother-in-law let out a terrified scream and dropped down beside me, starting to dig desperately.

I lost track of time as we clawed through the debris, our hands raw and dripping with blood, yet we could not see any hope.

Just as despair threatened to overtake me, I felt something sharp buried in the gravel. It was a pair of high heels I had thrown away in the basement long ago.

My mother-in-law and I dug relentlessly into the hard soil with sharp, high heels, pushing through exhaustion until, finally, a glimmer of light broke through.

My mother-in-law gasped, her face lighting up with relief and she began to shout frantically through the narrow opening.

“Help! Help! There are people alive in here!"

Hearing voices shouting and footsteps rushing from outside, a wave of relief washed over me. I was finally saved!

The rescuers worked fast, digging with their tools until a gap appeared, just large enough for one person to get out. Soon, a hand reached into the narrow opening.

"Hey! Grab my hand and come out, quick! The building above is about to collapse!"

Memories of my previous life surfaced, especially when I had selflessly let my mother-in-law go first, only for her to let me fall. This time, I would not let history repeat itself.

As my mother-in-law pushed me aside, reaching her hand forward just as before, I gritted my teeth and nudged her back.

Right after that, I grasped the rescuer's hand and focused all my strength on cooperating to pull myself up and out.

Just as my upper body emerged from the hole, a sharp pull from below dragged me back. My mother-in-law was clutching my ankle with a deathly grip.

Her voice was chilling, as if from the depths of hell.

"You think you can get rid of me? Not that easily!”

The rescuers immediately felt the pressure and shouted loudly into the cave.

Feeling the strain, the rescuers called urgently into the opening. "Ma'am, let go of her! We'll pull her up and come back for you immediately. Holding on like this puts both of your lives at risk!"

No matter what the rescuers said to us, my mother-in-law kept holding on, refusing to release her grip.

In the end, they had no choice but to call for more help. With three rescuers working together, they managed to pull us both out at the same time.

As I emerged from the hole, my ankle throbbed with pain, swollen from my mother-in-law’s tight, furious grasp. This showed how resentful she was toward me.

But on what grounds, though? In my previous life, I had lifted her up first, only for her to let me fall.

My clenched teeth and glare conveyed the bitterness I felt in my heart. Yet, even in this life, I had not kicked her down just like she had done to me. That mercy was my final grace.

Just as I prepared to pull myself up, another catastrophe struck and there was another loud bang.

And then, a deep rumble echoed as the half-collapsed wall of the second floor tilted dangerously, slamming down toward us!

A wave of despair washed over me. This time, it seemed I would not burn in flames but be crushed to death instead.

The last thing I heard was the frantic shouts around us as the wall crashed down with a thunderous roar.