Chapter 1
the tenth anniversary of my marriage to my childhood friend, Finn, he was killed in a car accident.
While going through his things, I stumbled upon a beautiful red velvet box in his study.
Inside was a diamond hairpin, placed with such care and reverence.
I recognized it immediately. In high school, my twin sister, Eloise, wore it all the time.
- I couldn’t tell if the ten years we spent together were genuine or just a facade, and soon after, I died due to a gas leak.
When I opened my eyes again, I found myself back in my second year of high school.
I lay in bed, feverish and weak, unable to move even a finger. The house was empty. My parents had taken Eloise on a trip abroad to celebrate her top-three ranking in exams, while I stayed home to study due to my poor results.
I struggled to reach for my phone on the bedside table, nearly collapsing from exhaustion.
It happened the same way in my previous life, but someone came to save me, stirring my lifeless heart and leading to ten years of deception.
Half-awake from the pounding headache, someone was carrying me. He anxiously called my name, and I leaned against his strong, lean back, feeling secure and surrounded by the scent of his laundry detergent.
Finn, our ten-year marriage was a sham, but why were you the only one to save me in my despair? A hot tear rolled down my cheek and onto his collar.
When I woke up, I was in the hospital. A nurse came by to remove my IV and smiled.
“Your classmate went to get you some food. You can wait here for a while.”
I looked at the bruised needle marks on my hand and shook my head.
“I want to go home. Could you please let him know, nurse?”
Dragging my recovering body home, I opened the door to find the house filled with laughter. My arrival silenced everything, leaving an eerie stillness.
Griffin frowned.
“It’s so late, why are you just getting back? You did poorly on this exam and still had the nerve to go out. Can’t you learn from your sister? I’d be thanking my lucky stars if you were half as considerate as she is.”
Tension filled the air, ready to ignite. Eloise silently retreated to her room with her gift bag.
Beatrix went to the master bedroom, came back with a metal hanger, and said coldly, “Kneel.”
Suppressing my exhaustion, I just wanted the farce to end quickly. I knelt obediently. The sound of the hanger slicing through the air was sharp, and it hit my back hard. I stifled my painful groan, cold sweat dripping from my forehead.
I didn’t know how long it took before Beatrix put the hanger away, saying coldly, “Go away.”
I gritted my teeth and stood up. As I did, my vision went dark, and I almost fell. Supporting myself against the wall, I walked step by step back to my room, hearing Beatrix’s voice behind me.
“I don’t know what you’re pretending for.”
I pretended not to hear, closed the door, and after a while, it opened again. Eloise tiptoed in with a small shopping bag. She grabbed my hand, checking the treated needle marks, her body trembling, her fingertips cold.
“Are you sick? Why didn’t you say anything?”
I pulled back my hand and said indifferently, “What’s the difference? Whether it’s for going out or talking back, I’d still be beaten.”
Holding her cold hand, I smiled, “I’m the one getting hit, not you. What are you afraid of?”
Eloise was silent for a moment, “Will they treat me like this one day?”
Surprised, I reassured her with a smile, “No, they love you so much.”
Eloise seemed to ponder something, shook her head, and handed me the shopping bag.
“Open it, I got you a gift from abroad. Do you like it?”
I didn’t need to look to know what it was. Inside was the diamond hairpin Finn had cherished for ten years. In the previous life, Eloise had given it to me too.
But it was like Cinderella wearing glass slippers before her transformation, a mismatch.
I wore it only once before returning it to Eloise. The sparkling diamond hairpin suited her, dressed beautifully and expensively every day, much more than it did plain and shabby me.
“It’s not for me.”
I refused Eloise without even opening the bag. She didn’t insist, after all, she liked the hairpin very much.
- Having not slept all night, I got up early. In this situation, it’s hard to sleep, unexpectedly returning to the nightmare of my youth.
“Eloise, hurry up, Finn is waiting downstairs.”
I slowly packed my books. Finn was our neighbor across the door. Except for high school, the three of us were always classmates from childhood.
In the past life, I thought it was a childhood friend’s fate. Now, knowing the truth, it seems the childhood sweetheart wasn’t me.
Eloise suddenly opened my door, clinging to my arm, acting coy. “Can you find an excuse to leave early after school?”
Looking at the shy girl before me, I understood. I was in the way. I nodded.
“From today, you don’t have to wait for me to go to and from school.”
“Great!” Eloise cheered, not finding anything wrong.
On the way to school, they walked side by side. I followed a few steps behind, watching them. The refined boy and the pretty girl seemed like a perfect match.
And I was just someone deeply insecure and sensitive, wishing to disappear from everyone’s view on the road.
I sneered inside, wondering how I believed Finn truly liked me in the past life.
Seeing Finn’s figure, thoughts of the ten-year deceitful marriage filled me with uncontainable resentment.
Up ahead, Finn suddenly stopped, turning back to meet my resentful gaze. His steps faltered, hesitated for a moment, and asked, “Sage, how are you feeling? Has your fever gone down? The nurse told me you left the hospital.”
I shook my head, saying nothing. Finn’s concern now overlapped with the past life’s deceit, leaving me unable to discern if he genuinely cared or had other motives.
Seeing my cold attitude, Finn didn’t push further, just slowed his pace to walk with me. But I distanced myself, walking even slower.
After tugging back and forth, Finn finally fell a few steps behind me. His eyes were cold, lingering on my neck.
Returning to class, the noisy room fell silent instantly. Some girls sneered at me again.
“The ugly duckling is here to escort the prince and princess to school.”
Ignoring their harsh words, I cleaned the trash from my desk and approached them.
“No matter how much you ridicule me, Finn won’t look at you.”
“And stop stuffing your trash in my desk. This isn’t a dump.”
The girl was stunned, not expecting the usually timid and quiet me to retort.
Realizing it, she was furious, smacking the trash bag from my hand. “What makes you think you can talk to me like that!”
Some boys who liked her glared at me, and others just watched, offering no help.
But it’s okay. I learned this truth long ago.
“If you’re upset, we can go to the teacher. I can tell them how you’ve been stuffing trash and mice in my desk since the start of school.”
My sudden toughness caught the girl off guard. She stammered, “Fine, you’ll pay for this.”
I knew she wouldn’t let it go, but I didn’t expect her to lock me in the bathroom.
“You dare mess with me? This bathroom has some mice. You deserve to stay with them.”
The squeaking echoed through the bathroom, and I saw a few rats, the length of an adult’s forearm, near the corner pipe, slick and shiny, their eyes darting at me.
“Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell the teacher?”
Saying that made me want to laugh. It sounded so much like a child’s tattletale.
A boy’s voice answered, “There are no cameras here. If we don’t admit it, who will believe you?”
Things were getting tricky. I promised Eloise I wouldn’t walk home with them tonight, and now this.
No one would come looking for me.
I sighed, finding a clean corner to crouch down.
In class, I was always quiet, my grades average, practically invisible. But Eloise was my sister, outspoken, direct, with low emotional intelligence, offending many people.
Compared to pretty, smart Eloise, I was the easy target for those she’d upset.
- Night deepened, the damp, stinking bathroom growing restless, rats occasionally brushing against my legs, making my skin crawl.
Suppressing my fear and frustration, I waited for the long night to pass.
“Sage? Are you in there?”
“Finn?”
Hearing my voice, Finn grew more urgent.
“Step away from the door!”
The bathroom door was violently kicked open, and Finn stood there, catching his breath, meeting my eyes.
The door had been locked, and Finn had pounded on it so hard his arm was bleeding, blood trickling down.
I had prepared myself to stay here all night, not expecting him to find me.
Why was it always him, appearing when I was desperate? Why him?
My heart was in turmoil, resentment replaced by an indescribable emotion, filling me, bringing tears to my eyes.
The lights in the school building were already off, and Finn stood shrouded in darkness, his emotions unreadable.
His voice was low.
The bathroom door was kicked open harshly, and the young man, out of breath, looked at me with his eyes lowered.
The door had been locked, and Finn hit it so hard that blood started to slowly drip down his arm.
I was ready to stay here all night, not expecting it would be him who found me. Why does he always show up when I’m in trouble? Why is it always him?
My heart was a whirlwind of emotions, with resentment replaced by an inexplicable feeling that made my eyes well up with tears.
The school building’s lights had long been turned off, and Finn was hidden in the darkness, his emotions unreadable.
His voice was low. “Weren’t we supposed to go to and from school together? I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.” I nodded, unsure of what to say.
Finn suddenly spoke up. “Sage, why don’t you want to go to and from school with me anymore? Do you really dislike me?”
I was taken aback.
In my past experiences, Finn and I didn’t interact much before graduating from college, and now things seem to be following that same path. How could there be any talk of dislike?
“Eloise said you really dislike me, and my parents always compare my grades to yours. I’m sorry.”
“I can help you with your studies. Can you stop disliking me then?”
Finn turned his head away, not daring to look at me, his fair earlobes turning red. I thought I was hearing things.
Seeing I didn’t respond, Finn spoke again.
“Let’s go to school together again tomorrow. I’ll wait for you.” With that, Finn disappeared, leaving me standing there in a daze.
When I finally stumbled back home, Griffin, who had been waiting for a long time, kicked me over. “It’s so late, where have you been?
What kind of girl comes home this late after school? If you were as self-respecting as your sister, I wouldn’t have to worry so much!” I lay in pain on the ground, unable to get up for a long time.
Beatrix sat on the sofa, holding a clothes hanger.
“You need a beating to remember. Look at you, what’s the difference between you and animals out there?”
She pulled Eloise, who was standing beside her, down to squat. Eloise’s body was stiff, but she obediently crouched down.
Beatrix patted her head with satisfaction.
“That’s how to be good. Don’t be like your sister and make me worry.” She lovingly caressed Eloise’s cheek, not seeing her instant pale face and slightly trembling hands.
Just when I thought I was out of options tonight, desperately trying to think of a way out. “Auntie.” Finn returned and, seeing me on the ground, quickly helped me up.
“Sage didn’t do well on this exam, so I tutored her longer than expected. I lost track of time. Auntie, don’t blame her.” Beatrix put the hanger behind her and smiled. “No problem, it’s late. Hurry home.”
Finn was sent away, and Beatrix, losing interest, tossed the hanger aside.
“Go back to your room.” I was a bit surprised. I didn’t expect a casual word from Finn would make Beatrix let me off.
I was also surprised Finn appeared when I was in danger. In the room, Eloise appeared at some point, looking at me with a somewhat resentful gaze. “You did it on purpose, didn’t you?”
I frowned, not knowing what Eloise was talking about.
“You promised me you wouldn’t go to and from school with Finn anymore, and then you turn around and play this trick.
Sage, are you playing games with me?” I didn’t expect Eloise to like Finn. I patiently explained. “It was an unexpected situation today.”
Eloise’s expression twisted a bit, and then she smiled. “You like Finn? Sage, do you think you deserve him?”
“Do you even look at yourself? You dare to compete with me?”
I was stunned. The sister who would cry when I was beaten, who always bought me nice things when we went out, actually thought I was someone who could be trampled on.
Thinking of Finn and my sister’s closeness, Eloise couldn’t bear it anymore.
Her sharp nails dug into her palms as she tore off the facade of sisterly harmony.
“I’m really fed up! You’re not better than me in any way.
Why do our parents always compare me to you?” Eloise fiercely wiped away her tears, her gaze fierce.
“When I was young, I didn’t understand why our parents always hit you. I felt sorry for you but didn’t dare to resist them, fearing they’d treat me the same way one day.”
“Later, I realized it. The one favored isn’t important, nor is the one ignored. What’s important is that the family needs a scapegoat.”
“Sage, do you know? Every time they treated you like that, I couldn’t sleep at night from fear, and my heart ached! I studied desperately, trying to improve myself to have more value in their eyes, so they’d continue choosing you as the scapegoat.”
Eloise covered her face in pain, her body trembling. “They love me because I have value. You love me hoping I’d speak for you.
Only Finn loves me because he would protect me with his life.” “When I was bullied as a child, he was the only one who, despite having no relation to me, would do anything to protect me.”
Eloise’s beautiful face was full of tears, her eyes red.
“I won’t let anyone take him away!” No one knew how scared she was inside. Every time Sage was beaten, the connection between the twins made her feel Sage’s pain.
She knew that if she lost her value, their parents would treat her like Sage.
Only Finn could offer her a moment of relief from the fear and suffocation. But why, why take Finn away, why leave her in complete darkness?
I’m unable to proceed with the translation as it appears there is no text provided. Could you please supply the Chinese text that needs translating? 4.
I recall what Eloise mentioned. There was a group of boys in our neighborhood who enjoyed picking on others.
Back then, Eloise was pretty but shy, making her an easy target for their antics. Whenever I tried to defend my sister, I’d end up getting bullied too.