Chapter 2

What was there to talk about? In my previous life, after Susan got fired from the hospital, Andrew divorced me, labeling me as a vicious woman.

After the divorce, he took a job at another hospital, on the condition that Susan could be hired as a doctor there.

As for me, I didn't get a dime out of the divorce settlement.

All this started because I went to the hospital for a headache, only to end up trapped in the MRI machine thanks to Susan.

It didn't take long before I found out I had brain cancer.

The moment I got the diagnosis, I went straight to Andrew's hospital and made an appointment with him.

He was the country's leading brain cancer specialist, and we used to be madly in love. No matter how much he hated me, I figured he wouldn't let me die.

The second he saw me, Andrew tore up my medical records right in front of my face. "Do you still have the nerve to come to me? Because of you, Susan almost lost her chance to be a doctor.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to become a doctor? Eight years of grinding, cramming for exams, and burning the midnight oil. Do you know how many tough nights she's been through?

"But you? All you did was get stuck in the MRI for six hours, and you kept making a fuss about it. You nearly cost Susan her entire career."

My head was pounding so badly. All I could do was sob and beg Andrew, "You've got it all wrong about me. I'm not here to cause trouble. I'm really sick, I swear."

When Andrew heard me, he shot me a sarcastic glare. "Well, look at that. Brain cancer? Good for you. That's karma for all your evil deeds."

Afterwards, to get revenge on me, he called the students he had brought one by one in front of me. He forbade every single one of them from treating me.

When I hit rock bottom, broke and unable to get treatment, all I could do was take a knife and keep stabbing my emaciated body.

I was desperate for one night of real sleep, so I swallowed handfuls of ibuprofen.

In those last agonizing moments, I couldn't take the pain anymore. I went back to Andrew one last time.

But by then, he was already holding Susan in his arms in the place where I'd poured my soul. They used the dishes I bought, drank from the wine glasses I carefully chose, and shared sweet dates and intimate kisses.

The final scene of my life was Andrew kneeling to propose to Susan.

As for me, my head was like being ripped apart by a power drill. I was unable to bear the agony any longer, so I ended my life by crashing into the doorstep of the home I had given everything to.

So, what if I have to spend six hours in an MRI this time around?

Six hours was nothing compared to my life.

*****

As soon as I walked out of the exam room, I rushed straight to the garage and headed home.

After I got home, I picked up the phone and called the hospital again to book another full-body checkup for myself.

As I hung up, Andrew suddenly came home out of nowhere. He was holding a bouquet of flowers and a cake.

"Hey, you must've been pretty shaken up today. I got you your favorite strawberry cake." He took off his suit jacket and started unwrapping the cake.

Seeing the gentle warmth in his eyes, I felt a bittersweet ache in my chest all over again.

In my previous life, Andrew had brought me flowers and cake, too, but only when he was begging me to stop holding Susan accountable.

Since Andrew had met Susan, he had never given me flowers or cake again.

He often forgot our wedding anniversary and my birthday.

So, in my previous life, when I realized he had feelings for Susan, I couldn't stop pushing back against her.

My chest hurt so much it felt like I could barely breathe, but after a moment, I forced myself to smile calmly. "Sorry, my stomach isn't feeling great, so I'll pass on the strawberry cake you got me.

"And the flowers, I don't like red roses, so maybe you should give them to Susan."

I meant it. Since I had a full-body checkup, I really needed to fast for 24 hours.

And flowers? They grossed me out.

Back in my previous life, when Andrew proposed to Susan, he packed the villa we used to share with these same red roses.

To my surprise, Andrew walked over, his brows furrowed in annoyance. "Are you seriously looking for trouble?

"I've been in surgery all day, so I'm exhausted, and now I have to come home and deal with your mood. Can you stop blowing things out of proportion and let it go for once?

"I already explained at the hospital. Susan's an intern. Mistakes happen. It's part of learning. But you walked out of the hospital with that attitude.

"Fine, I put up with it. I went out of my way to buy you flowers and cake to cheer you up, and you still give me attitude?"

I was so emotionally drained. But I kept my cool and looked Andrew in the eye. "Believe it or not, I'm not mad, I'm not causing drama, and I'm not giving you attitude.

"I spent six hours in the MRI, and I'm exhausted. All I want right now is to sleep."

After saying that, I didn't bother to look at Andrew again. I turned around, headed straight for my room, and locked the door behind me.

When I came out again, Andrew was gone. Instead, my WhatsApp was blowing up with messages.

That was Susan's thing. Whenever she was with Andrew, she'd spam me with photos of their life together.

It was like she was turning me into her own personal photo dump.