Chapter 2

Her missed grand wedding finally gave her a moment in the spotlight in my previous life.

All the shopping mall screens across the city broadcast the wedding live.

The entire internet envied her, this Cinderella who'd soared from rags to riches.

Only I knew, this magnificent wedding was just the start of her tragedy.

One month later, I was buried in my books at the library when my phone started blowing up with messages from Chloe.

I ignored them all, silencing my phone and shoving it into my bag.

She barged right into the library, dressed to the nines, but her anger was undeniable.

She marched to my table and slammed her phone down.

"Ava, why aren't you answering my calls?!"

I kept my grip on my pen, slowly raising my head.

"It's a critical time for my exams; I wasn't paying attention to my phone."

Chloe suddenly sniffled dramatically, plopping down beside me and digging her nails into my arm.

"Ava, Damien's been ignoring me lately. When I get upset, he just throws money at me."

"What do I want all that money for? I want his love!"

"And what's worse, yesterday his collar smelled like some strange perfume!"

"It must be some blind hussy trying to get to him! You have to come with me to his company to catch her! We'll teach her a lesson!"

"I really don't have time. Maybe you should find someone else."

"Ava! You're not going to help me? Are you even my best friend anymore?!"

She snatched my book and threw it into the trash can.

My eyes widened as I yanked my arm away.

"What are you doing?"

She just shrugged. "Who cares about some book? Grad school won't make you rich."

Of course not. She hadn't studied since meeting Damien. She'd forgotten all our late nights, the bond we built over shared stress.

Before I could answer, she was pulling me out of the library.

We waited for half an hour before Damien emerged from his company, accompanied by a man in a suit.

It was Julian Miller, his lover from my last life. As they walked side by side, the man's hand casually rested on Damien's shoulder.

Damien didn't pull away; instead, he smiled.

Chloe was about to charge forward. I instinctively reached out to stop her, but then pulled my hand back.

I was actually curious to see her reaction when she saw how intimate they were.

Unfortunately, Damien was sharp-eyed. He spotted us before Julian could make a more intimate move.

He walked over to us, naturally put his arm around Chloe's waist, and spoke softly.

"Chloe, what are you two doing here? This is Mr. Miller, my business partner. We just finished a project and were about to grab a bite."

He turned to Julian and smiled.

"This is my wife, Chloe, and her best friend, Ava."

Julian's lips curved into a smile, full of unspoken meaning.

"Ms. Hayes, you've arrived at just the right time."

As Julian removed his hand from Damien's shoulder, I clearly saw a matching pinky ring on his ring finger - identical to Damien's.

But Chloe, utterly drunk on Damien's renewed affection, missed it completely.

Instead, she tugged my arm, whispering excitedly.

"See? Damien was busy with work. That perfume is Mr. Miller's. I was just being paranoid."

"And you! You didn't even try to talk me down. You almost made me ruin a good thing!"

I wanted to shake her. God, I wanted to slap some sense into her.