Chapter 4

With the cash in my hand, I walked out of the compound without so much as a glance back.

Behind me, the crash of a glass hitting the floor echoed through the hallway.

What's he so angry about anyway?

Seriously, the whole fake marriage thing was his idea in the first place.

After traveling back, I refused to let my life slip away in the Miller family ever again.

I was going to save the man who, in my previous life, was the only one to show me warmth after I died.

In my previous life, Edward insisted on divorcing me before I died.

I knew he didn't want me to be part of the Miller family, not even in death.

So even after I was gone, he wanted to keep the place next to him in the family tomb for the woman he truly loved.

After I died, he refused to let me be buried in the Miller family's tomb, and according to my hometown's traditions, I couldn't be buried in my own family's either. I nearly became a wandering soul, left to rest in an unmarked grave.

It was Victor, the man I once gave a few breads to, who called me his wife and spent his own money to buy me a burial plot.

Thinking back to my previous life, when he personally carved "Victor's Wife" onto my tombstone, I felt my heart ached with a mix of gratitude and sorrow.

Right now, Victor was still locked up in prison, accused of shady business deals.

I greased some palms and dropped Caroline and Baylor's names, and by the afternoon, Victor was released.

"Victor," I shouted.

My yell totally caught Victor off guard.

Luckily, he recognized me.

Everyone locked up with him said he was lucky. If I hadn't come today, Victor would be sent off to do hard work tomorrow.

On the way back, Victor gave me a playful smirk. "I thought you had already forgotten who I was."

I blushed, totally at a loss for words.

After all, at this point, Victor and I barely knew each other. He hadn't done anything for me yet, let alone buy me a burial plot.

Seeing me blush and stay quiet, Victor realized he might've pushed the joke too far and quickly apologized, "Susan, thank you. From now on, you're my best friend. If anyone tries to mess with you, just call me. I'll go through hell and back for you."

I looked up at him. "Really? Then can you pretend to be my boyfriend for a while?"

I rented a little courtyard house for Victor, three streets away from Edward's place.

In my previous life, I was like a fool, keeping my end of the deal, doing Edward's laundry, and making his meals every single day.

Inside the compound, we acted like the perfect newlyweds, pretending everything was just fine.

This time, I wasn't going to keep up the happy facade for Edward and Charlotte anymore.

Edward took all the meat, eggs, and milk the military handed out and went out of his way to bring them to Charlotte, fussing over her and making sure she was well taken care of.

As for me, I grabbed the flour and oil from my own job and made Victor a big bowl of his favorite noodles.

Edward would grab his paycheck, then take Charlotte out shopping, catch a movie, or treat her to a nice meal.

Me? I'd take my own paycheck and drag Victor off to the scrap yard.

Victor came from a family of pawnbrokers, so he had a killer eye for spotting treasure. He could dig up all sorts of gems from piles of trash.

At first, Edward was actually pretty pleased. Since I never cared where he went or whom he hung out with.

Even after we got married, he could still stick close to Charlotte, just like nothing had changed.

But it didn't take long before Edward pulled me aside for a talk.

"Susan, we can't keep living like this," Edward said, his voice serious. "Don't you feel that this place isn't even a real home?"

I stayed silent.

Edward would never understand that, in my previous life, this place really felt like home to me.

Edward always made it sound nice. He promised his salary to me, but all his affection went straight to Charlotte.

But in reality, I only got his paycheck that very first month. After that, I never saw another dime.

His salary ended up as movie tickets, fancy face creams, pretty dresses, and the newest candies and treats for Charlotte.

I was the only one, like an idiot, scrimping and saving every cent of my paycheck to buy new furniture, bedding, curtains, and dishes, all by myself, turning that cold, lifeless dorm into a warm, cozy home.

I stashed away every meat, sugar, and egg my job handed out, saving them for later.

When Edward finally came home on leave, I'd use those to make all his favorite dishes.

Edward kept telling me to stop dreaming, but he sure didn't mind soaking up all the effort I put into this family, acting like he totally deserved it.

Sadly, that foolish Susan from my previous life had long gone.

This time around, I didn't care if this place ever felt like a real home.

I was not bothered whether Edward felt cold or hungry when he came back.

I hauled all the supplies I got from work straight over to Victor's.

Every night, I'd have dinner at Victor's before heading home.

Edward just figured I'd always be home, and that there'd always be a hot meal on the table for him whenever he came back on leave.

But what greeted him instead was a cold, locked door.

When he stepped inside, the place was eerily quiet, like nobody had lived there in ages.

The thermos was bone dry, and the fireplace looked like it hadn't seen any action in forever.

Edward thought I'd moved out of the compound, so he rushed next door to ask the neighbors.

But the neighbor just waved him off and said, "Your wife? She's over at her brother's place. She said you're never home, and it's pointless to cook for just herself, so she's been making dinner there and only comes back after she's eaten."

Edward sat there, stewing in his own frustration, waiting all the way until eight o'clock at night before he finally saw me perched on the back of a bike.

Victor was pedaling, dropping me off at home.