That night, my brother was burning up after taking the traditional medicine. His scorching breath brushed my ear, making it flush red.

Gripping my waist tightly, he leaned in, his teeth grazing the side of my neck.

"Help me..." he pleaded, voice hoarse with desperation.

My fingers trembled as I began unbuttoning my blouse—but just as I looked up, I met a pair of tear-filled eyes standing outside the door.

It was her. His precious first love.

Three days later, a woman in a wedding dress was fished out of the river.

There was still an unborn child in her womb—what should have been my brother’s first child.

On the night of his wedding, he loosened his tie and sneered at me coldly. "Are you satisfied now?"

After that night, for thirty years, I held the title of Mrs. Anderson on paper only.

We shared a bed, but he always slept with his back turned to me—never once touching me, not even his fingertips.

I lived like a widow for thirty years until I died.

As I lay on my deathbed, his fingers brushed across my face, but his voice was colder than ice. "Our debt is paid."

"In the next life, don’t ever let me meet you again."

When I took my final breath and closed my eyes... I woke up again.

Back to that night.

This time, I clutched my blouse tightly to my chest.

Before he could lose control, I shoved her—his first love—into the room instead.

——

"Darlene... help me..."

Benjamin’s ragged breathing brushed my ear, thick with desire. His burning hand clutched my waist, pressing me tightly against the door.

“Darlene...” His voice trembled, his teeth gently biting my earlobe.

In our past lives, this was where I degraded myself.

Benjamin was adopted by my parents.

From childhood, he adored and protected me like no one else.

Seeing him suffering like that... I lost my mind and started unbuttoning my shirt.

And that’s when I met Laica’s tearful gaze outside the door.

Three days later, she died—wearing her wedding dress, carrying his unborn child.

From then on, Benjamin hated me with every fiber of his being.

This time, I shoved him away. He stumbled back, stunned.

“Brother, I’ll get you some water.”

When I opened the door, Laica was right there.

In my past life, I was such a fool. I thought she was some gentle, innocent white lotus.

But if she were really that innocent, how could she show up at just the right moment?

"Perfect timing," I said coldly.

“What do you mean?” A flicker of panic flashed through her eyes.

I didn’t bother playing nice. I grabbed her arm and shoved her into the room.

"Your beloved first love is here. You two enjoy yourselves."

Bang! I slammed the door shut.

But the very next second—it flew open with a loud crash.

Benjamin hadn’t touched her. Instead, he spun around and punched the wall mirror, shattering it instantly.

Shards of glass tore across his arm, blood gushing out.

He had to hurt himself—just to stay sane.

With eyes red with fury, he stared at me like he wanted to devour me alive.

This wasn’t the same Benjamin from a moment ago.

"Darlene, you’re vicious!" he roared.

"She’s pregnant with my child!"

"Did you shove her in there just to kill my son?!"

How... how did he know?

In my past life, he didn’t know at this point!

Thunder roared in my mind, and an absurd, terrifying thought struck me—

Did he... come back too?

“Darlene!” Benjamin growled, teeth clenched. “Why didn’t I realize before how cruel you really are?!”

He stood towering in front of me, eyes filled with contempt. “A month from now, I’m marrying Laica.”

“From now on, you better recognize your place.”

“What place?” I looked up at him.

“You’re my sister.”

“We may not be related by blood—but you called me ‘Brother’.”

“So for the rest of your life, you’ll never be anything but my little sister.”

Benjamin paused, a flicker of something complex flashing in his eyes.

“Don’t ever drug me again,” he said quietly.

I suddenly laughed.

So that’s what he believed all along—that I was the one who drugged him that night.

No wonder he hated me for thirty years in our past life.

From beginning to end, he saw me as a ruthless woman who’d stop at nothing to possess him.

“Alright,” I said calmly. “I wish you both happiness.”

A trace of surprise flickered in Benjamin’s eyes. He clearly hadn’t expected me to agree so easily.

But what he didn’t know was—Mom and Dad had left me a way out.

Brother, if you truly go through with marrying someone else... You’ll be left with nothing.

The ones who loved me most were always our parents.

So, I would wait quietly—until their wedding.

To atone, Benjamin ordered me to personally take care of Laica’s daily needs.

He called it “repentance.”

“Darlene, from today on, you’ll cook for Laica, wash her clothes, and care for everything she needs.”

He stood in the living room, looking down at me like a judge delivering a sentence.

“You’ll keep doing it until your venomous heart is scrubbed clean.”

I didn’t resist, and just simply nodded. “Alright.”

My obedience seemed to catch him off guard. But his surprise quickly gave way to cold indifference.

Laica sat on the sofa, gently caressing her still-flat belly. She gave me a soft smile.

“Darlene, I’ll be troubling you from now on.”

So it begins, I thought.

She claimed to be suffering from morning sickness—and insisted that I stand beside her, holding the basin while she dry-heaved.

The stench was overpowering. Acidic vomit splashed on my hands, burning my skin.

She leaned weakly against the couch, a strange light glimmering in her eyes.

“Oh no... sorry for dirtying you, Darlene.”

Unfazed, I wiped my hand without expression.

When she claimed her feet were swollen, I massaged them without complaint.

Each session lasted over an hour, until my fingers went numb.

I endured it all.

But she seemed disappointed by my composure.

She didn’t just make things difficult when Benjamin wasn’t home—she upped the act when he was around.

One day, I handed her a bowl of herbal medicine for the baby.

However, she suddenly fell.

No—she pretended to fall.

The scalding tonic splashed across my hands, instantly raising angry blisters.

The pain was excruciating. My grip loosened, and the porcelain bowl crashed to the floor, shattering.

“Laica!”

Benjamin rushed over like a madman, scooping her into his arms as if she had been shot.

She had only twisted her ankle. But his gaze burned with fury as he turned on me.

“You just can’t stand her, can you?! She walks a little carefully and you still manage to hurt her?!”

I stared at my red, blistered hands—raw and stinging.

He didn’t even spare me a glance.

“Benj...” Laica clung to him weakly. “Don’t blame Darlene. It was my own carelessness.”

“Stop defending her!” Benjamin’s voice was laced with venom. “She did it on purpose!”

My hands throbbed in agony, but I remained calm, feeling numb inside.

I had already known this would be the outcome.

“She must be cursed,” Laica said suddenly, her gaze falling on the ruby pendant around my neck. “I’ve heard it’s bad luck to see red when you’re pregnant.”

Benjamin looked at me coldly and spat, “Take that necklace off.”

That necklace... he gave it to me on my 16th birthday.

It used to be the most precious thing I owned.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, he stepped forward and grabbed it.

The delicate silver chain dug into my neck, searing my skin.

With a snap, the chain broke.

Without even glancing at it, he tossed the ruby pendant into the crackling fireplace beside us.

The flames devoured the ruby pendant in an instant.

So this was the truth—everything I once treasured meant nothing to him.

To Benjamin, it was no different from garbage.

What a cruel irony.

“We’re going to the bridal boutique later. You’re coming too,” Benjamin said coldly from the staircase, one arm wrapped around Laica.

On the way there, Laica suddenly clutched her belly and whimpered, “I’m hungry.”

“I really want noodles from that old shop in the west district. I’ve heard it’s amazing.” She clung to Benjamin’s arm sweetly. “But we still have the dress fitting...”

He immediately understood her unspoken request and turned to me. “You go get it.”

Laica smiled. “Make sure it’s hot and fresh out of the pot, okay? Thanks, Darlene.”

I frowned, glancing out the car window at the pouring rain.

On seeing my hesitation, Benjamin’s gaze turned frosty. “What, you can’t even do something this simple?”

I shook my head silently.

Without another word, he shoved me out of the car.

It was almost impossible to hail a cab in the storm. I stood in the downpour for half an hour before I finally got a ride.

By the time I arrived at the noodle shop, I was soaked to the bone.

“I’m really sorry,” the shop assistant said. “We just sold out. It'll take about an hour to prepare a new batch.”

I waited.

I didn’t want another pointless argument over something so trivial.

An hour later, I walked back into the storm, carrying the steaming hot noodles.

The rain had only gotten heavier. Even though I shielded the container with my coat, water still seeped in.

I was freezing—my lips had turned purple, and I couldn’t stop shivering.

When I finally stumbled into the bridal boutique, drenched and disheveled, Benjamin and Laica were waiting in the lounge.

He frowned the moment he saw me.

“What took you so long?”

“It’s raining. The roads were jammed,” I replied, my voice trembling as I handed the container to Laica.

She “accidentally” bumped my hand. The box slipped from my grasp.

Boiling soup splashed across the wedding gown beside her—the one she had just tried on and declared her favorite.

“Ah!” Laica screamed. “My dress!”

The pristine white lace was instantly ruined, stained with greasy broth.

“Darlene!”

Benjamin exploded. He kicked the container violently, sending the remaining soup flying—all over my legs.

The scalding liquid soaked through my wet clothes, burning my skin. I gasped in pain.

“You did it on purpose!” he roared, pointing at me, his eyes blazing with fury.

“You just can’t stand to see us happy!”

“I didn’t—”

“Still trying to lie?!”

His words sliced through me like blades.

“Kneel!”

“...What?” I asked in disbelief.

“Kneel! And don’t get up until Laica forgives you!”

All around us, the boutique fell silent. The other customers had stopped what they were doing, whispering behind their hands.

“What’s going on?”

“She looks so pitiful...”

I stood there, soaking wet, every eye in the store landed on me.

In my past life, I would have been mortified with shame.

But now—I just felt tired.

Utterly, deeply tired.

Slowly, I sank to my knees.

The cold marble floor sent a jolt of numbness through my legs.

“Benj...” Laica murmured gently, “Forget it. I’m sure Darlene didn’t mean to.”

“No,” Benjamin said icily. “She needs to understand what she did wrong.”

I knelt in silence, staring at the shattered remains of the container on the ground.

Outside, the rain kept falling.

Just like that rainy night years ago, when I had a high fever—and Benjamin sat by my bedside the entire night, refusing to leave.