The Love He Killed

My Harvard acceptance letter felt like a golden ticket, a one-way out of this dead-end town. That Friday night, after the football game, all I wanted was to help my dad close his auto shop. But then I heard a muffled sob. It was Jessica Miller, the head cheerleader, trapped by star quarterback Bryce Vanderbilt. My dad taught me: "You see something wrong, you make it right." So, I intervened. That act of courage cost me everything. Jessica pointed me out to the police: "He' s the one who attacked me." My scholarship was rescinded for "moral turpitude." My name was dragged through the mud. The stress killed my father, the only man who believed me. Months later, at a gas station, I confronted Jessica and Bryce. He shoved me into traffic. And then, nothing. I woke up expecting hell, but instead, I was back in the high school parking lot. The Friday night lights buzzed. The Harvard letter was in my pocket. And then I heard it again: Jessica's muffled cry. The trauma of my first life crashed over me. Last time, I sacrificed everything for a lie. This time, I knew what to do. I turned around, put my hands in my pockets, and walked away. My father was alive right now. And my only job was to keep him that way. This time, justice would look very different.

The sky exploded with Fourth of July fireworks, painting red and gold, but all I tasted was sulfur and betrayal. My hand instinctively went to the fresh, tender scar on my side, a chilling reminder of what they' d stolen. My family, the people who were supposed to love me, held me down for a doctor to take my kidney for my 'perfect' adoptive sister, Savannah. Chase, my boyfriend and duet partner, celebrated with Savannah, his secret lover, after calling me his "hero." It was all a meticulously planned conspiracy: nurture my career, use my body, then discard me. I, Ava Monroe, country music sensation, was nothing but a spare part, an orphan adopted for good PR, now reduced to a literal organ donor. With nothing left-no family, no love, no reason-I stood on a cold bridge, the canyon a black mouth waiting to swallow my despair. A kind stranger, Liam, tried to pull me back, speaking of bad breakups, oblivious to the monstrous truth. They didn' t just break my heart; they cut me open and took a piece of me, leaving me utterly shattered. As the finality of my decision set in, a gut-wrenching twist of fate occurred: Liam, the only person who cared, jumped with me to save my life. But instead of darkness, I awoke, healthy and whole, in my dressing room, one month earlier, before the betrayal. I wasn't just given a second chance to save myself; I was given a chance to save him, the hero who sacrificed everything for me. My mission became crystal clear: First, I would live. Second, I would make them pay. And third, I would find Liam Sullivan and keep him safe, no matter what it took.

The air in the luxury hotel suite hung heavy with the scent of expensive flowers and my fiancée Chloe's perfume. This was supposed to be our moment, my pre-wedding feature for Vanity Fair, the culmination of everything I' d worked for. It was finally my turn. But then Dylan, my foster brother, strutted in, wearing the bespoke Tom Ford suit tailored for me. He wore it with a smirk, hijacking the shoot, claiming he was the Harrison heir. The magazine editor, sharp-eyed and sharper-tongued, dismissed me as merely "Leo, his foster brother... a bit lost." Her assistant openly snickered. Chloe, my fiancée, immediately rushed to Dylan's side, fawning over him, straightening my suit on him. The whole crew stared, whispering, seeing me as some ungrateful charity case having a public meltdown. It was sickeningly familiar, a cruel echo from a past life where their whispers of my incompetence and blatant betrayal drove me to the brink. In that life, this would have shattered me, sent me spiraling into despair. Their lies, their manipulations, the sheer injustice of it all… it broke me then. But this time, their sneers stirred no tears, only a chilling, razor-sharp clarity. I wasn't the broken boy they remembered. I walked straight up to Dylan, grabbed his stolen suit, and slammed him against the wall. The smugness vanished from his face, replaced by raw fear. This wasn't the Leo they knew. No breakdown. No tears. Only calculation. I pulled out my phone, typed a message to Uncle Harrison: "Problem at the St. Regis." The game had finally changed.

I was a new dad, celebrating my son's one-month birthday at my wealthy in-laws' stunning Napa estate. Life felt perfect, despite my manipulative father-in-law's constant urging to drink. I woke up with a pounding headache to a nightmare: my baby boy was gone. In his crib, lay a baby girl, a complete stranger. My wife, Chloe, and her parents gaslit me, denying my son ever existed. They accused me of being drunk, of rejecting my own child. The world blurred as I was framed for the infant girl's murder. My entire digital life was rewritten, my son's existence erased. Labeled a monster, I was swiftly condemned and executed. The horror was unimaginable, the confusion absolute as I died. But then, I jolted awake, back on that same couch, the party still faintly audible. It was happening again-the terrifying loop of my son's disappearance and my impending doom. Was I insane, or was this a meticulously crafted, cruel conspiracy? This time, the confusion vanished; a cold certainty set in. I wouldn't just be a victim; I would be ready. I would expose their twisted game, reclaim my son, and end this nightmare once and for all.

I, Ethan, had one rule: make it on my own merits, no family help, despite my parents being Silicon Valley legends. For three years, I poured my soul into "Project Prometheus," a project meant to launch my career to new heights, all while planning a future with my fiancée, Chloe. Then, a single LinkedIn notification shattered my world: Chloe's smirking intern, Leo, was taking credit for my project, my invaluable work. When I confronted Chloe, she looked at me with tired annoyance, not guilt, casually dismissing it as "just a title" for Leo's career, before brazenly asking me to endorse his fake "contribution." My furious refusal only made things worse; suddenly, I was the subject of office whispers and Marcus, my director, inexplicably sided with Chloe, burying my name on the project and putting me on a death-sentence Performance Improvement Plan. Chloe publicly smeared me as "non-collaborative," then privately texted: "You lost." How could the woman I planned to marry so casually steal my life's work, mock my integrity, and try to make me an accomplice in my own professional execution? The unfairness was a physical weight, suffocating me, watching them twist the truth while my irrefutable evidence was ignored. My integrity was utterly worthless against her malicious lies. Backed into a corner, my reputation destroyed and career hanging by a thread, I finally made the call I swore I never would: "Mom, Dad," I choked out, "I tried to handle this myself, but I can't anymore. I need your help."

For five years, I, Ethan Hayes, a tech billionaire, adored Chloe, showering her with every luxury, believing my love would finally win her over. Then, a frantic call put me in the Cedars-Sinai ER, facing consent forms for emergency surgery after Chloe's ex, Ryder, joyrode my gift G-Wagen while drunk, critically injuring two. My phone buzzed; Chloe, on her way to Aspen, brushed off my urgency, snapping, "I handled it. I sent the money. Just stay out of it." My blood ran cold when the doctor emerged from the OR with grim news: her parents, on their way to the anniversary dinner I arranged, were dead. Chloe only cared her Centurion Card was declined days later, furious I'd "ruined her trip." She strolled home, demanding to know who died, then dismissed the truth from my housekeeper as "my dramatic attempts for attention." In that sterile hospital hallway, my love for Chloe died; not faded, but extinguished, leaving a cold, clear emptiness, like I was replaced by a stranger. The reality hit me: she paid a fixer to cover up her own parents' murder, and Ryder's old letters, hidden in a shoebox, revealed a years-long scheme to bleed me dry, confirming I was just their "ATM." I knew then I wasn't just losing; I was fighting back, ready to use my wealth, not as a source of affection, but as a shield and a sword. It was never a competition for her love; it was a conspiracy, and the fraud would end now, starting with cutting off every financial tie and bringing the full weight of justice down on them both.

As a simple assistant, messaging the CEO in the dead of night to request shares of adult films was a bold move. Bethany, unsurprisingly, didn't receive any films. However, the CEO responded that, while he had no films to share, he could offer a live demonstration. After a night filled with passion, Bethany was certain she'd lose her job. But instead, her boss proposed, "Marry me. Please consider it." "Mr. Bates, you're kidding me, right?"

Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."

“You need a bride, I need a groom. Why don’t we get married?” Both abandoned at the altar, Elyse decided to tie the knot with the disabled stranger from the venue next door. Pitying his state, she vowed to spoil him once they were married. Little did she know that he was actually a powerful tycoon. Jayden thought Elyse only married him for his money, and planned to divorce her when she was no longer of use to him. But after becoming her husband, he was faced with a new dilemma. “She keeps asking for a divorce, but I don’t want that! What should I do?”

After five years of marriage, my husband is always absent on my birthday. No gifts, no blessings. He said, "I've given you the money, buy whatever you want." But he started preparing for Fiona's birthday half a month in advance. He said, "She's different, she only has me." As the sole survivor of a unexpected fire, he has been heartbroken for over a decade. Watching Fiona in Moments holding a cake and kissing his face. I slowly commented. 【Just this useless person, I'm giving him to you.】

I was four months pregnant, a photographer excited for our future, attending a sophisticated baby brunch. Then I saw him, my husband Michael, with another woman, and a newborn introduced as "his son." My world shattered as a torrent of betrayal washed over me, magnified by Michael's dismissive claim I was "just being emotional." His mistress, Serena, taunted me, revealing Michael had discussed my pregnancy complications with her, then slapped me, causing a terrifying cramp. Michael sided with her, publicly shaming me, demanding I leave "their" party, as a society blog already paraded them as a "picture-perfect family." He fully expected me to return, to accept his double life, telling his friends I was "dramatic" but would "always come back." The audacity, the calculated cruelty of his deception, and Serena's chilling malice, fueled a cold, hard rage I barely recognized. How could I have been so blind, so trusting of the man who gaslighted me for months while building a second family? But on the plush carpet of that lawyer's office, as he turned his back on me, a new, unbreakable resolve solidified. They thought I was broken, disposable, easily manipulated – a "reasonable" wife who would accept a sham separation. They had no idea my calm acceptance was not surrender; it was strategy, a quiet promise to dismantle everything he held dear. I would not be handled; I would not understand; I would end this, and make sure their perfect family charade crumbled into dust.

After two years of marriage, Kristian dropped a bombshell. "She's back. Let's get divorced. Name your price." Freya didn't argue. She just smiled and made her demands. "I want your most expensive supercar." "Okay." "The villa on the outskirts." "Sure." "And half of the billions we made together." Kristian froze. "Come again?" He thought she was ordinary—but Freya was the genius behind their fortune. And now that she'd gone, he'd do anything to win her back.