Chapter 3

"Go to hell!" the killer roared.

The axe came down, blood splattering.

I stared him down, wanting to know why I had to die. "I've never done anything to you. Why are you killing me?"

"Haven't done anything, huh?" he sneered.

He raised the axe again. "Those stray cats never did anything to you, so why did you kill them? I'm delivering justice. People as cruel as you shouldn't be allowed to live!"

Stray cats? But didn't the comments say he was the one who hurt those kittens?

"Please, you've got it all wrong. It wasn't me. I didn't kill those kittens. I just gave them a proper burial..." I said.

With the last of my strength, I struggled to speak, but my voice was so weak that it was almost lost.

But that just made him even angrier. He swung the axe down with even more force. "Still denying, even now? You and your boyfriend both deserve to die!"

My vision started to blur, and I finally heard the distant wail of police sirens drawing closer.

But it was already too late.

The killer, panicking, was about to make a run for it when a sharp voice rang out from the doorway.

It was Edwin.

The comments: [Edwin showed up, too! Seriously, what are the cops even doing? Edwin got here faster than the police.]

[This is so heartbreaking. He was just a moment too late and had to watch Erica die right in front of him.]

He showed up.

Was I wrong about him?

'No, that was not it.

The elevator was out of order, so he'd have had to climb ten flights of stairs. And the stairwell door on this floor was locked tight. How did he manage to get here so quickly, even faster than the police?

Once again, I woke up.

The comments: [They were such a perfect match. It's heartbreaking that death tore them apart right before their wedding.]

[It's all that damn killer's fault, and the author who just had to kill off Erica. Let's all send the author some threats!]

[Edwin always blames himself for not getting there in time to save Erica. He spends the rest of his life drowning in guilt and even tries to take his own life a few times. It's just so tragic. I feel so bad for Edwin.]

Seriously, shouldn't I be the one everyone was feeling sorry for? I was the one who got murdered in cold blood here.

I was completely fed up. This was the third damn time already. Was I just stuck in some endless cycle of doomed deaths, no matter what I did?

I didn't kill those kittens.

What was up with the killer and Edwin anyway? Did I just end up as collateral damage because of his drama?

Why couldn't I ever get through to the police?

Was he really lying to me last time?

There were just too many questions swirling in my head.

Every time I got thrown back into this cycle, it had to mean there was a way out. I couldn't give up yet.

With that thought, I snatched up my phone and bolted for the balcony.

Every unit here had an open balcony, and the place next door was empty. The railing was pretty low.

Couldn't fight, couldn't run, couldn't hide. Only one option left: go for broke.

The killer was already banging on the door. Time was running out.

I clenched my fists and hauled myself up onto the edge of the balcony. The cold wind whipped around me, and the dizzying ten-story drop below made my head spin, but there was no time to hesitate.

I took a deep breath and leaped.

My ankle exploded with pain as I landed, but I didn't even stop to think about it. Ignoring the agony, I scrambled up and stumbled back inside, still trying to call the police.

The comments: [Damn, Erica's a total badass! Can she see the future or something?]

[Come on, guys, this is just a regular romance novel...]

[Seriously, what are you even hoping for? Erica's doomed—author's orders. No matter how tough she is, she can't escape her fate.]

Was I really doomed to die, no matter what I did?

I stared at my phone, and I was still getting nothing but a dead line. My heart sank.

Was it because the author had already decided I had to die, so the police would never answer?

No way, I was not just going to sit here and wait to die.

I had no choice. I had to call Edwin.

I still wasn't sure I could trust him, but since I couldn't get through to the cops, what else could I do?

According to how long it took the police to show up after he called the police last time, if I just hid out here, I could definitely get rescued.

I dialed Edwin's number.

But just a second later, that familiar ringtone started ringing close by.

It was the special ringtone Edwin had set just for me.

Was I just imagining it? No, the sound was way too real.

I whipped my head around, and in the pitch-black emptiness of the house, I saw a figure standing not far away.

That figure was way too familiar.

I grew up with Edwin. There was no way I could mistake him for anyone else.

What the hell was he doing here?

"Honey, I really underestimated you," Edwin said.

He stepped closer with a twisted smile on his face, one I'd never seen before.

Even after dying so many times, I'd never felt a chill that cut this deep into my bones.

While I was being killed in cold blood, my boyfriend was right next door, just a wall away.

It felt like he'd been spying on me all along, knowing every single detail about how I was going to die.

So last time, when I begged him for help, he was already here the whole time, just playing me for a fool.

But what really freaked me out was when the comments in front of me suddenly froze, not updating anymore.

Then they kept flickering, glitching out again and again.

And then, just like that, they disappeared.

All of them were gone, just like that.

I stood there in disbelief, unable to process what had just happened.