Chapter 2

The moment I got home, I headed straight for my room.

Then I called up the hospital and snagged a slot with a top doctor for a full check-up tomorrow.

No matter if it was my previous life or this one, I just wanted to stay alive.

But just as I hung up, Curtis barged into my room. "What was that back in the car? Cecilia, can you stop giving me attitude for no reason?"

Ever since Jessica started working as Curtis's secretary, he had never missed a chance to pick on me, no matter what I did.

It was his sudden attitude shift, plus Jessica always stirring things up, that pushed me over the edge in my marriage. I totally lost it and did all kinds of wild, reckless things.

I fought to keep my cool, ignoring the tight ache in my chest as I turned to face him. "Curtis, whether you believe me or not, I'm not mad, I'm not causing drama, and I'm definitely not giving you attitude.

"I really don't care about that lipstick."

Without another glance at him, I turned and headed straight for the bathroom, locking the door behind me.

When I finally came out, Curtis was gone, but my phone was already blowing up with nonstop messages.

That was just Jessica's thing. Whenever she was with Curtis, she'd spam me with endless pictures of the two of them together.

She treated me like her own private cloud storage.

In my previous life, this stuff used to drive me crazy. Sometimes I'd end up bawling my eyes out, and other times I'd just lose it and pick a fight with Curtis.

But now, as I scrolled through the photos Jessica had sent, I didn't feel the usual surge of anger or jealousy. Instead, I shot back with some honest advice. [You're holding your phone at the wrong angle.

[Curtis's side profile is way more photogenic. Next time, lift your phone a little higher.]

[And seriously, there's too much space in your pics. Crop it so you and Curtis look more like a couple.]

As soon as I hit send, Jessica shot back. [Did someone hack your account or something?]

I sent her a smiley and replied, [Nope, just wanted to let you know that Curtis is officially your problem now.]

With that, I blocked Jessica on WhatsApp.

This whole three-way arrangement actually suited me just fine now.

I would keep the Mrs. Bennett status and the credit card Curtis handed over.

As for Curtis, if Jessica wanted both the man and his body, she could have them.

I was no longer the old me in my previous life, all naive and stupid, thinking I only wanted Curtis's love.

After dealing with Jessica, I lay down on my bed and closed my eyes, feeling calm.

But that night, even though I'd been given a second chance at life, I still couldn't sleep well.

Just like when I had cancer in my previous life, I kept dreaming about all the memories I shared with Curtis.

When we were kids, Curtis was always quiet and kept to himself. His mom, a renowned teacher, would constantly punish him.

Most nights, I'd already be asleep by midnight, but he would still be up, hunched over his homework with those big, thick glasses on, while his mom stood over him with a stick.

Every time he made a mistake, she'd smack him hard on the back.

Back then, I lived right across from him, and every time I saw his mom beating him late at night, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

So, whenever I got some candy, I'd sneak it into his backpack before class, then grin and tell him, "Curtis, if your back hurts, just eat one."

The first time I gave Curtis the candy, his face flushed bright red. I was already a hundred yards away before he finally managed to mumble, all awkward and shy, "I... I don't eat candy."

I just waved it off with a smile. "Curtis, you should speak up more. Your voice is really nice."

After that, it just turned into our little ritual. Curtis, who used to be a total loner, started waiting for me every morning, and he got used to me slipping candy into his backpack.

And just like that, in that narrow alley outside our building, Curtis and I ended up walking side by side through so many years together.

Then, when we turned 18, Curtis, who got admission into a prestigious university, nervously pushed up his glasses and handed me a note with info on a college.

"I looked into this school. It's just a ten-minute walk from mine. You are not smart enough for my university, but you could get into this one," he said.

I saw how nervous he was and kept quiet about how my parents had stayed up all night after seeing my SAT results, insisting that they could afford for me go to a better school.

So, I secretly applied to the school Curtis had suggested. Even though I got a double scolding from both my mom and dad, I never regretted it.

After that, Curtis and I both ended up in the same city for college.

Once he got away from his mom, it was like his whole life leveled up.

He ditched those thick glasses for contacts, let his hair grow out into soft curls, and even his style totally changed. He traded in his old plaid shirts for crisp white ones.

Those black sneakers he always wore were swapped out for white canvas shoes.