My best friend, Chloe, always said, "Not meeting proves you guys are soulmates. It makes it more meaningful." So, for three years, she acted as our messenger, passing notes back and forth between us. Until the day we graduated high school. The school's star quarterback, the most popular guy in our class, confessed his love to her in front of everyone. Lines of text suddenly began floating in front of my eyes, like a live-stream chat.[Oh crap! The male lead got it wrong! He thinks the best friend is the one writing the letters!][He finally makes a move, and it’s the wrong girl! This is going to be so angsty!][Girl, go up there and clear it up! Tell him YOU'RE the one who wrote the letters!] In my past life, I did exactly what those floating comments said. I found the quarterback, Liam, and explained everything. The next day, we made our relationship "Facebook official." Chloe was humiliated. Walking home that day, completely devastated and distracted, she was hit by a car and killed. Liam blamed me for the rest of his life. He used every method imaginable to torture and humiliate me. That was when I realized—he had fallen in love with Chloe at first sight the very first time she delivered one of my letters. Given a second chance, I stood back. I watched from a distance as Chloe accepted his massive bouquet of flowers. Standing in the crowd, I joined the cheering, chanting with the rest of them, "Say yes! Say yes!" 01 On the walk back to our cars, Chloe clutched the vibrant bouquet of roses tight against her chest. Her eyes were incredibly bright, her cheeks flushed. Her lips parted slightly, like she wanted to say something, but in the end, she just grabbed my hand and squeezed it tightly. Her palm was sweaty, damp, and burning hot. "Maya..." Her voice trembled. The rest of her words caught in her throat. I squeezed her hand back and offered a gentle smile. "Congratulations, Chloe." Her eyes instantly welled up with tears. After that day, Liam’s pursuit was relentless. The newest iPhone, limited-edition designer bags, runway-fresh couture, and even an Amex black card with no limit. Gifts poured into Chloe's hands continuously. The guys dropping them off would always smile and say, "Liam said these are for his future girl. If you don't like 'em, just exchange 'em." Chloe would just stare at the mountain of insanely expensive, dazzling things. She ran her fingertip over the leather of a Birkin bag, then quickly pulled her hand back like she had been burned. "Why me?" She frowned, the joy in her eyes buried beneath a heavy layer of anxiety. "I’ve never even talked to Liam. We don't run in the same circles. This confession came out of nowhere. Do you think there’s been some kind of mistake?" Yeah. In my past life, I wondered the exact same thing: Why Chloe? So, guided by those floating comments, I had tracked Liam down privately. I told him I was the one who had been writing to him for three years. I told him Chloe was just the messenger. I even repeated the exact phrase I had written to him:"Not meeting proves we’re soulmates. It makes it more meaningful." He looked stunned. "It was you." I nodded, tears in my eyes. At the time, I was so desperate to clear up the misunderstanding that I completely missed the deep flash of regret in Liam's eyes. The next day, the whole school knew I was Liam's new girlfriend. Chloe became a laughingstock. A few days later, in a daze, she was hit by a car and died on her way home. From that day on, Liam hated me. He forced me to stay by his side just to mock and torment me, constantly demanding to know why I had to come forward and tell the truth."Why did you have to come find me?""Chloe died a horrific death because of you.""My biggest regret is listening to you that day and breaking Chloe's heart." I lowered my eyes, gently fixing a strand of hair that had fallen across Chloe's face in her excitement. "Maybe Liam saw you somewhere and just fell for you." Seeing that I not only didn't expose the truth but was actively comforting Chloe, the floating text in my vision started scrolling frantically:[Why is the female lead acting like this? Doesn't she want to be with the male lead?!][Nooo! My favorite ship can't end in tragedy!] Chloe looked up at me, clearly confused. "You're gorgeous, you have a great personality. It’s totally normal for someone to have a secret crush on you." I completely ignored the translucent, hovering words and smiled at her. "He's probably been noticing you for a long time and just used graduation as an excuse to finally shoot his shot." A deeper blush spread across Chloe's cheeks. Her fingers nervously twisted the hem of her shirt. "Stop it. I'm not that great." "Are you kidding?" I kept my tone light, injecting a bit of best-friend playfulness into it. "You are the prettiest, sweetest person I know. It would be weird if Liam didn't have a crush on you." She swatted my arm playfully, though there was no force behind it. She couldn't stop her lips from curving upward. The anxiety was quickly being swallowed up by an overwhelming, intoxicating mix of shyness and hope. 02 The next few weeks were a whirlwind. Liam's pursuit was aggressive and constant. One day it was VIP tickets to a sold-out concert, the next it was reservations at a Michelin-star restaurant. He even picked her up in his sports car for weekend road trips and movie dates. The rumors spread like wildfire. Everyone in our graduating class "knew" that Liam had harbored a secret crush on Chloe for years and finally got his girl. Half the girls in school were insanely jealous. And as I continued to do absolutely nothing about it, the strings of floating text in my vision eventually disappeared without a trace. One afternoon, Chloe's mom came over to my house. "Maya, I hope I'm not bothering you," she said, her voice soft, carrying a hint of nervous politeness. "I made some iced tea, figured it might help beat the heat." I thanked her and took the pitcher. She rubbed her hands together, her eyes scanning my face, clearly hesitant to speak. "Mrs. Miller, is there something you wanted to ask me?" She let out a sigh of relief. "Maya... is there a boy from your school pursuing Chloe lately?" I nodded. "Yes. He confessed to her in front of everyone on graduation day." A flash of worry crossed Mrs. Miller's face. "I see the things that boy sends over... they're so expensive. It makes me really uneasy. Do you know him well? What kind of person is he?" I was silent for a moment before shaking my head. "I don't know him personally, Mrs. Miller. But he's very well-known at school." "He comes from a wealthy family; his parents own a massive tech company. He's also a straight-A student, valedictorian actually. He's basically a lock for the Ivy League." Mrs. Miller's eyes lit up, but then immediately dimmed again. "He's so successful... does he have a lot of girlfriends? Could he actually be serious about Chloe?" Serious. Flashes of my past life crossed my mind. Even when he became a highly successful, wealthy CEO, Liam never lacked temptation, but he kept everyone at a freezing distance. He didn't even bother looking at other women. He saved all his obsession and loyalty exclusively for torturing me, all in "memory" of Chloe. "He hasn't dated anyone in the three years I've known of him," I said, my voice completely flat. "That's good. Focus is good," Mrs. Miller murmured, the worry finally melting away into a genuine smile. "As long as he's a decent boy and treats Chloe right, that's what matters." "I think Chloe really likes him too. She's always giggling at her phone these days." She looked like a massive weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She suddenly remembered something and asked, "Maya, how did your finals go? Have you decided on a college yet? You should go to the same city as Chloe, so you girls can look out for each other." I shook my head, my gaze shifting toward the open sky outside the window. "Mrs. Miller, I'm not staying in the States for college. I'm going to study in the UK." Mrs. Miller paused, surprised. "Going abroad is good. Broaden your horizons." 03 While Chloe was busy falling in love with Liam, I successfully secured my acceptance letter to a top-tier university in London. My future academic advisor sent me an email, mentioning that an older student of his was currently back in my hometown for the summer. He gave me the guy's contact info and suggested I reach out to him for some syllabus materials. After adding him on Instagram, I realized this "older student" looked much younger than I expected. His profile picture was candid. Under bright, clean sunlight, he was walking down a street holding a coffee cup. His tall, athletic build was incredibly striking. On the day we agreed to meet, I had just walked out of my neighborhood gates when I heard the unmistakable roar of a sports car engine. A sleek, silver Aston Martin pulled up to the curb right in front of me. The passenger door opened, and Chloe stepped out. Her cheeks were flushed pink, and her eyes were sparkling with happiness. Seeing me, her face lit up. "Maya! Where are you headed?" "Just grabbing coffee with a friend." I looked up, and my eyes unavoidably locked with Liam's. He was wearing a simple, casual outfit today, but his posture was straight, and he still possessed that devastatingly handsome, aloof, old-money aura I remembered. His eyes were bottomless. When he looked at me, there was absolutely zero warmth. Only a chilling, freezing indifference. In that single glance, I knew instantly—Liam had been reincarnated, too. I lowered my eyes, breaking eye contact. Chloe didn't notice a thing. Still smiling, she turned back to Liam. "Liam, this is my absolute best friend, Maya." Only then did Liam tear his gaze away from my face. He looked at Chloe, his tone perfectly, politely moderate. "Yeah. I know." It was an incredibly distant response. Chloe seemed to sense that his reaction was a bit too flat, and shot me a slightly apologetic look. After Chloe walked through the gates and disappeared. The polite, moderate curve of Liam's mouth vanished instantly. He didn't drive away immediately. Instead, he stepped out of the car and walked slowly toward me. He stopped three feet away, looking down at me from his superior height. His gaze carried actual physical weight, pressing down heavily on the top of my head. "Maya. Did you finally learn your lesson this time?" He spoke softly, but his voice carried a terrifying, icy calm. I dug my fingernails into my palms. The slight sting helped me maintain my composure, and I didn't say a word. "You figured out how to hide? You figured out how to keep your mouth shut?" He let out a low chuckle, completely devoid of warmth. I looked up, meeting his stare. The hatred and disgust swirling in his eyes were so intense they were practically overflowing. It was the exact same look he had every time he tortured me in our past life. "I have no idea what you're talking about." I heard my own voice, perfectly calm, even injecting a hint of appropriate confusion. "I have somewhere to be. Please excuse me." Liam stared at me, as if trying to calculate exactly how much of what I just said was true, and how much was a lie. After a long moment, he leaned in slightly. His voice dropped to a whisper only the two of us could hear. He enunciated every single syllable: "It's better if you don't understand. Just remember your place right now: Chloe's friend." "Stay the hell away from her. She's innocent. She cares about your 'sisterhood.' But I don't tolerate a single grain of sand in my eye." "If I find out you've tried to play any pathetic little games with her, or said anything you shouldn't have..." He paused. His tone became feather-light, yet lethally sharp. "I would have absolutely no problem letting you experience what happened in your last life all over again." He straightened up, instantly reverting back to his aloof, aristocratic persona. As if the terrifying, threatening whisper from a moment ago was nothing but a hallucination. Without sparing me another glance, he got back into his car. The sports car roared to life and sped away. I stood frozen on the sidewalk. It wasn't until the stinging in my palms brought me back to reality that I realized my hands and feet were ice cold. I slowly unclenched my fists, leaving deep, crescent-shaped indentations in my skin. 04 At the window seat of the coffee shop, Julian was already waiting. Hearing me approach, he stood up. His light-colored button-down shirt highlighted his tall, lean frame. His features were sharp and clear, his nose straight, and the corners of his mouth seemed to naturally rest in a gentle, warm curve. "Maya, right?" He smiled as he greeted me. His voice was steady, clear, and incredibly pleasant to listen to. I sat down across from him. "Hi, Julian." Julian slid a large manila folder across the table toward me. Inside was a thick stack of documents and a few heavy textbooks. "The professor asked me to bring these. It's best if you can skim through them before the semester starts. The old man's standards are pretty high." "Thank you." I took the folder. The texture of the paper under my fingertips felt incredibly grounding. "He's actually a great guy, just a little..." Julian paused, thinking for a second, his eyes crinkling into a smile. "He's a bit of a hoarder. He's obsessed with collecting weird, vintage coffee mugs. If you ever go to his office during office hours, make sure you compliment his mugs. He'll never fail you if you do." I froze for a second, then couldn't help but burst out laughing. It was hard to imagine the professor, known for his ruthless, meticulous academic papers, acting like that in private. "Noted. Thanks for the tip." With that icebreaker, the atmosphere relaxed significantly. We talked about academics, the professor, and the upcoming coursework. Julian was sharp and incredibly patient, breaking down complex concepts until they were easy to understand. Gradually, the conversation drifted to more casual topics. We talked about the red autumn leaves in London, and a tiny, hole-in-the-wall pub in Chinatown that served the best authentic food. Looking at him, I honestly shared my first impression. "Julian, you're not really what I expected." He raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "What did you expect me to be like?" I chose my words carefully. "Maybe a bit older. Wearing rimless glasses, never smiling. Like a strict, old-school gentleman straight out of a British period drama." Julian looked surprised for a second, then let out a low, genuine laugh, his shoulders shaking slightly. "I guess I need to pick an older profile picture." He finished laughing, the starlight still lingering in his eyes. "Sorry to disappoint you, Maya. I'm probably about ten published papers and at least five years of tenure away from being a 'gentleman.'" When we parted ways, Julian insisted on driving me home. His car pulled smoothly into my neighborhood. He got out and opened the passenger door for me. "Thank you for today. The materials and the survival guide were a lifesaver," I said, hugging the folder, genuinely grateful. He stood by the car, the evening breeze catching the loose hair on his forehead. "If you ever need anything, just let me know." "I will." After that day, we started texting much more frequently. At first, it was mostly about school. Asking for his opinion on a research paper, or clarifying a concept. Julian always provided insightful, thought-provoking answers. Eventually, fragments of our daily lives started slipping into the conversations. Bit by bit, even though we didn't see each other often in person, the constant exchange of messages and small, thoughtful gestures built a quiet, unspoken warmth and anticipation between us. 05 When Chloe came over to visit, I was in the middle of debating with Julian via text about why the squirrels in the UK were so incredibly fat. I was laughing so hard I was rolling around on my bed. Chloe pushed my bedroom door open right at that moment. Seeing me clutching my phone and dying of laughter, she paused. "What's so funny?" I immediately sat up. "Just talking to a guy from the university I'm going to. He's hilarious." I had been spending the day packing up my room, so there were a few donation boxes sitting on the floor. Seeing them, and the suitcases piled in the corner, Chloe asked, "Are you really leaving?" I nodded. "Everything's booked. My flight is next month." She sat down next to me and let out a soft sigh. I had heard through the grapevine that Chloe had been turning down Liam's dates for the past few days. I looked at her. "What's wrong, Chloe?" She frowned slightly. "I just... I don't think Liam actually likes me." "Why would you say that?" Chloe bit her lip. "When he takes me out, the places are amazing. The gifts are insanely expensive. It's just..."
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