Chapter 2

Chapter 2

My body trembled from the horrific memories, and Josie looked me up and down with disgust.

"It's just a little water. It hasn't even reached our knees and you're already shaking like a leaf?"

"I honestly have no idea what Dexter ever saw in a pathetic woman like you."

I didn't say a word, taking a deep breath to steady my racing pulse.

I had heard those words countless times before.

In everyone's eyes, Dexter and I were a mismatch.

Dexter was ruggedly handsome, and Josie was the campus queen back in their college days, while I was just an ordinary girl.

Yet after graduation, Josie dumped Dexter because his family was working-class, running off with a wealthy older businessman instead.

I had loved him in silence for years, and through an unexpected twist of fate, we ended up getting married.

A dull, familiar ache throbbed in my chest.

Perhaps the moment Dexter reconnected with Josie, he regretted marrying me.

They couldn't bear hiding their affair in the shadows anymore, which was why they were willing to die together.

A violent gust of wind whipped across the balcony, forcing me to lean back against the wall.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw neighbors being evacuated one by one on emergency rafts. A volunteer shouted through a loudspeaker.

"Don't panic if you haven't boarded yet! We're coming back for everyone!"

Just then, Dexter steered his raft toward our balcony. Seeing me standing there, his brow furrowed in irritation.

"Why are you home today?"

"I told you Josie is just staying over for a couple of days! We have a marriage certificate, so what the hell are you afraid of?"

"There's only one spot left on my raft and the water is rising fast. What do you expect me to do now?"

Dexter's gaze flicked back and forth between me and Josie, his eyes filled with agonizing reluctance.

It was the exact same scene all over again.

In my previous life, seeing that tender, heartbroken look he gave Josie shattered me, and I broke down screaming.

Maybe he was sick of my crying back then, which was why he tossed the rescue ring to me and chose to jump.

Now, watching the two of them exchange longing glances, I only felt deep revulsion.

When he hurled the life ring onto the balcony, I picked it up and shoved it directly into Josie's hands.

"Take it, Josie. Get on the boat and get out of here."

Josie's eyes widened in sheer shock.

"Are you serious? Don't you want me dead?"

Dexter yelled frantically from the raft.

"Hazel, if you have a problem, take it out on me! Don't you dare hurt Josie!"

Both of them stared at me with intense suspicion, as if I had just handed over a live grenade.

Wind whipped strands of wet hair across my face. I brushed them aside and looked calmly down at Dexter.

"This entire floor will be underwater in minutes. I just gave your precious first love the only ticket out of here. Shouldn't you be thanking me?"

"If I really wanted to hurt her, I would have shoved her off the ledge before you even arrived."

Dexter clamped his jaw shut, staring at me as if trying to read my mind, a flicker of confusion crossing his eyes.

A second later, Josie snapped out of her daze and eagerly pulled the life ring over her shoulders, her eyes welling with tears.

"It's all my fault for imposing on your home. But since Hazel is offering, pull me down, Dexter!"

"Hazel was lucky enough to be your wife, but I'm carrying a baby inside me. If something happens to her, I promise to raise my child to honor her memory, and we'll visit her grave together every year…"

Dexter snapped back to reality and carefully hauled on the safety line with shaking hands.

"You're right. Marrying me was the best thing that ever happened to her. Once this is over, we'll give her a proper burial."

Josie leapt into the surging water while holding the ring. Dexter pulled her to the side of the raft and hoisted her aboard.

Right before my eyes, he checked her over with frantic tenderness, wrapping her in a thermal life vest once he confirmed she was unharmed.

Without glancing back at me a single time, he gunned the motor and sped away.

The moment they vanished into the rain, the floodwaters surged upward, swallowing my ankles in seconds.

I looked down at the silver band gleaming on my left hand, slowly sliding it off my finger.

Under the gray sky, I finally noticed the tiny initials engraved on the inner curve of the ring: D & J.

No wonder he treated this cheap ring like a sacred relic, berating me furiously whenever I misplaced it.

"Do you have any idea how important this ring is? If you lose it, where the hell am I supposed to find an exact replacement!"

Back then, I had only taken it off because I cut my finger while carving a wooden keepsake for our anniversary.

I was so naive that I actually thought his anger stemmed from his deep love for our marriage.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

I never imagined that taking it off in this lifetime would expose such a pathetic secret.

This ring was their lovers' token all along.

Nausea rose in my throat. I tossed the ring into the churning water, letting the flood sweep it away along with seven years of wasted devotion.

Perhaps facing a second death brought absolute clarity. I suddenly remembered the spare room Dexter always kept padlocked.

Wading through the rising water, I kicked the locked door open with all my strength.

Inside, the room was a private shrine dedicated to his memories with Josie.

I had seen such setups in romantic movies and thought it was touching, but seeing it in my own husband's house made me sick to my stomach.

I walked forward and saw countless mementos of their youth: vintage watches, dried bouquets, and matching promise bracelets.

For seven long years, right under my nose, Dexter had preserved every trace of his past love inside our home.

The entire left wall was covered in framed photographs of them.

I pulled down one of the photos and saw a handwritten note on the back.

"Celebrating our one-year anniversary. I swear I will stay with Josie forever. If she dies, I will not live alone."

My eyes stung, and when I touched my cheek, I realized I was crying.

They had made a suicide pact long ago. No wonder he jumped into the water so decisively in our past life.

My heart shattered completely. Looking at the dark water filling the room, I took a deep breath and jumped straight into the flood.