Chapter 2: Death, Regret, and Rewind

Only when I dozed off in the car today, the world spinning, did I realize I was living the kind of story where the heroine dies.

I'd had a secret crush on Ryan for six years. I thought that after marriage and pregnancy, happiness would finally be mine.

But what came next was just over a decade of disappointment.

I was hospitalized for severe morning sickness, suffered a dangerous hemorrhage during childbirth, and was left with serious injuries that forced me to quit my university job and stay home full-time.

From then on, as his wife, I was just another prop in his life.

All I could do was support his career, help him maintain the image of a perfect family man, and manage his daily life. I had no other purpose.

Year after year.

I watched him become more and more successful, more and more resentful of me, and eventually, I saw him fall for someone else.

When Ryan held a celebration for his company's IPO, he wrapped his arm around the woman he loved, raising a toast with her to everyone there.

It was as if they were the couple who'd spent all those years together.

When he saw me in the corner of the banquet hall, the smile on his lips froze, his eyes full of shock and annoyance.

"Autumn, you actually showed up like this?"

Flustered, I tucked a stray hair behind my ear. The silver bracelet that used to fit perfectly slipped down to my elbow.

That night, I was hit and killed by a truck.

It was my fortieth birthday. No gifts, no blessings—only death.

That kind of death really hurt.

Every bone in my body shattered and ground against torn flesh, creaking with every movement.

My abdomen ruptured, blood gushed out, pain so intense it made me numb and tremble.

Blood with the taste of rust filled my throat, choking me until I suffocated.

Ryan, always so aloof, went mad.

He clung to my body through the white shroud, holding me tight.

His voice broke as he screamed in my ear: "She's not dead! She's just sleeping!"

Someone said, "Mr. Miller, Ms. Autumn has already passed."

"Please cooperate with us so we can cremate her and let her rest in peace."

"No one is allowed to touch Autumn!"

He hugged me even tighter, my shattered bones grinding together, making a faint, grating sound.

The white cloth over my face grew damp with his warm tears.

"Autumn, please, open your eyes. Please?"

All these years, Ryan had always been distant, detached.

I'd never seen him so gentle, so heartbroken, so afraid.

He gave a soft laugh. "I should've told you the truth. That dress you wore at the banquet looked really good on you."

Even though he always said my clothes were frumpy and I was too skinny.

Suddenly, a deep, mournful cry burst from his throat. "Autumn, you left me behind. What am I supposed to do?"

"I'll go with you, okay?"

In an instant, the shroud was splattered with bright red blood.

Someone screamed, "Ah! Call an ambulance! Hurry! Mr. Miller slit his wrists!"