In my past life, my wedding car suddenly burst into flames. My fiancé, Ethan Thorne, to save his delicate adopted sister, Serena, who suffered from claustrophobia, cruelly locked me inside the burning vehicle. He carried a pregnant Serena out of the inferno, telling me through the car window, "Serena is pregnant and can't stand the smoke. You're strong; just hold on a little longer." I burned alive inside that car, listening to the crackle of my own flesh, watching their figures disappear, entwined. I died consumed by hatred. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day of our cruise engagement party. Serena had once again fallen into the water, and when she was rescued, her baby bump was clearly visible. This time, facing the pressure from the entire Thorne family and Ethan's desperate pleas on his knees, I let out a cold laugh and shattered the entire event. I opened my eyes. The salty sea breeze hit my face. The deck was brightly lit, and the champagne tower glittered, reflecting the harsh lights. I looked down at my dry, couture gown, my fingertips digging sharply into my palms. It hurt. Not the agonizing pain of being consumed by fire, but a vivid, stinging pain. I was back. Back at the cruise engagement party for the Thorne-Davies alliance. "Splash--" A loud splash interrupted my thoughts. Followed by a terrified scream: "Serena fell overboard!" I looked up, unsurprised to see my 'devoted' fiancé, Ethan Thorne. Without even stopping to take off his jacket, he plunged into the icy seawater. His movements were so frantic, as if a second's delay would cost him his life. The surrounding socialites and guests instantly gathered, gasps and whispers erupting. "Mr. Thorne is way too concerned about his adopted sister, isn't he?" "Well, they did grow up together at the orphanage. And I heard Serena's always been frail." "But it's his engagement party! Leaving his actual fiancée high and dry, what's that about?" I stood my ground, my eyes cold, watching Ethan cradle a drenched Serena as if she were a priceless treasure, bringing her back onto the deck. Serena was wearing a thin white dress, which now clung to her body, soaked through by the seawater. Because of this, her normally flat stomach now had an undeniable curve. Ethan tore off his suit jacket, wrapping it tightly around her, his voice trembling. "Serena, don't be scared. I'm here." Serena leaned into his embrace, her face ghost-white, her eyelashes fluttering. One hand instinctively moved to cover her stomach, then she turned her head and retched violently. The gesture was too obvious. The whispers around us instantly died down, and everyone's gazes became subtly weighted with meaning. Eleanor, Ethan's mother, pushed through the crowd, her face a thundercloud. "What are you waiting for?! Get Serena to the lower-deck lounge! Don't let the media get a shot of this!" On my family's side, my father, Richard Davies, also frowned. He turned to his assistant. "Go. Make sure no media cameras on this cruise get *anything*." I looked at the puddle on the deck, a slow smile spreading across my lips. Still the same old act. It was like this in my past life too. No matter how scandalous the situation, their first reaction was always to cover it up, then push me out to clean up their mess. "Dr. Davies." I pushed through the crowd, my voice clear and cold, cutting through the sudden silence on the deck. "If someone isn't feeling well, don't bother dragging them downstairs. Let's examine them right here."
The ship's Dr. Davies blinked, instinctively looking at Eleanor. Eleanor's face tightened. She lowered her voice, a sharp warning in her tone. "Scarlett, it's your big day. Don't make a scene." I met her gaze without flinching. "Precisely *because* it's my engagement party, we need to get to the bottom of this. Serena is the Thorne family's adopted daughter, and her status is... unique. Falling into the water and retching at an event like this? Shouldn't there be a public explanation? What if she has something contagious? Who's going to explain that to all these VIPs if they get sick?" Ethan held Serena, his brows furrowed deeply. "Scarlett, can't you see she's already suffering? Why are you pushing her?" I stared at him, my eyes devoid of warmth. "Am I pushing *her*, or are *you* hiding something?" The words hung in the air, and a deathly silence fell over the deck. Dr. Davies knelt to examine Serena. Serena's eyelashes fluttered violently, her fingers digging into Ethan's shirt. I saw it clearly: she'd been awake the whole time, just pretending to be unconscious. After a moment, Dr. Davies removed her hand from Serena's wrist, her face ghost-white. Eleanor immediately reached out. "What's wrong? Is she just cold?" Sweat beaded on Dr. Davies's forehead. She swallowed hard before speaking. "From her pulse and her current state... Serena... she appears to be pregnant." Pregnant. The word exploded like thunder on the deck. I heard gasps all around me. "Pregnant? Serena doesn't even have a boyfriend! Where would she get a baby?" "Look how nervous Ethan is... Could it be...?" The whispers surged like a tide, impossible to suppress. Eleanor panicked, her voice sharp. "That's ridiculous! It's windy, Dr. Davies, you must be mistaken! Get her out of here!" "Hold on." I took a step forward, my high heels clicking crisply on the wooden deck. "Mrs. Thorne, if Serena is pregnant, we need to know who the father is, right now. If someone coerced her, or if there's any hidden relationship, we'll call the police. This ship hasn't docked. No one's getting off." At the mention of calling the police, Serena finally dropped her act. She abruptly opened her eyes, her gaze bloodshot, tears streaming down her face. Her voice hoarse, she pleaded, "Scarlett, please don't call the police... It's my fault, all my fault..." I looked down at her. "Who's the father? You tell us." She bit her lower lip, stubbornly avoiding the main point, just burying herself deeper into Ethan's arms, crying her eyes out, a picture of distress. "Ethan... please don't say anything... please..." *Ethan*. Such an intimate address. I suddenly felt incredibly sick. I pointed at Ethan. "She's your *adopted* sister, yet she's carrying a child with no known father. You're defending her, telling her not to be scared. Ethan, what are *you* so afraid of?"
Ethan's Adam's apple bobbed. He looked at me, then down at Serena, trembling in his arms. The next second, he did something that stunned everyone present. In front of all the elites, the media, and our business partners, he dropped to his knees before me. "Scarlett." He looked up, his eyes full of pleading. "Serena has always had a hard life, and her health is poor. That night, I had too much to drink... I let you down." "BOOM," went the room. Everyone erupted. Phone flashbulbs erupted, flashing wildly. Even with Richard Davies's people trying to stop them, there was no way to contain the spread of this earth-shattering scandal. "The baby is mine." Ethan clenched his jaw, admitting it. "But I love you, Scarlett. I'm begging you, for the sake of this child." I looked at his pathetic figure, kneeling on the ground, and felt nothing but utter absurdity. He was kneeling *to me*, but every single word was for Serena. Serena sobbed, shaking her head, struggling to kneel as well. "No, it's not Ethan's fault... it was just that once, I didn't mean to..." Eleanor's eyes flickered. She immediately adopted a solemn, almost empathetic expression, her words coming out in a rush, a plan forming. "Scarlett, this has become a mess, but the baby is innocent. You can raise it. You'll still be Ethan's wife, his *only* wife. No one will ever take your place!" I slowly turned to Eleanor. "I'll raise it?" "Yes!" Eleanor seized onto it like a lifeline. "Serena won't compete with you; she just needs a safe place to stay. After you two marry, Ethan will be a good husband to you, and the Thorne family will take care of all the gossip." Several Thorne relatives nearby also chimed in, offering their advice. "What old-money family *doesn't* have a little scandal? Men will be men; sometimes they just... play around." "If you want to be the lady of the Thorne family, you have to think about the bigger picture." "Ethan publicly knelt for you. Do you really want to destroy Serena?" I listened to their nauseating remarks and suddenly laughed. My laughter, in the cold air, sounded unusually sharp. They weren't feeling sorry for *me*. They simply thought that since the scandal was out, I should just quietly take over. To hide Serena's shame, to secure an heir for the Thorne family, to let Ethan keep up his 'devoted boyfriend' act. And even later, I'd have to raise this secret baby for them, pretending nothing had ever happened. In my past life, I actually believed their lies.
In my past life, for the sake of the Thorne-Davies alliance, I swallowed my anger. I thought if I just conceded, Ethan would settle down. After we married, he was indeed attentive and sweet to me. He'd freak out if I even frowned. Until that deliberately caused car accident. My wedding car caught fire, the door jammed shut. I was pinned under the twisted seat, my face covered in blood, reaching out to him. "Ethan, save me..." But he turned and smashed the window on the other side, pulling out Serena, who only had a minor scrape. The fire grew, the thick smoke choking me. I pounded desperately on the car window, staring at him in despair. He stood in the safe zone, watching me struggle in the flames, his eyes devoid of any former warmth. "Scarlett, Serena is pregnant and suffers from claustrophobia; she can't stand the smoke. You're strong; just hold on. The fire department will be here any minute." He just stood there, holding Serena, watching as the flames consumed the entire car. Before I died, through the inferno, I saw Serena, nestled against his shoulder, flash me a triumphant, chilling smirk. It turned out, all his kindness to me was just to keep the Davies family on their side, to make me willingly become Serena's human shield. Snapping out of my memories, I looked at Ethan, still kneeling, my eyes utterly cold. "You expect me to accept your secret baby with your adopted sister? You expect me to walk into your family as the city's laughingstock?" I took a step forward, looking down at him. "Ethan Thorne, who do you think you are, to expect me to cover up your mess?" Ethan's face changed instantly. "Scarlett! I'm on my knees, begging you! What more do you want?!" "What do I want?" I turned, snatched the microphone from the nearby emcee, and cranked the volume to max. "Everyone here today is a witness!" My voice echoed through the cruise ship's broadcast, across the entire sea. "The Thorne family knew full well that Ethan Thorne and his adopted sister, Serena, were secretly carrying on an affair and getting pregnant, yet they still went through with the alliance with the Davies family! When the truth came out, their first reaction wasn't to admit fault, but to force me to swallow this insult, to force me to raise his secret baby!" "In their eyes, my only purpose, Scarlett Davies, was to cover up for this disgusting pair!"
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