In my sophomore year, with some money from writing, I used my past life’s memory to start a small media company.
I signed a few new media influencers who hadn’t become famous yet in the last life and planned their operations step by step.
Soon, their accounts started to gain traction.
With that came numerous ads, and I was busy juggling my studies and managing the company. I even brought my parents to live with me and bought them a house.
My parents were overjoyed, bragging to their friends about their successful daughter while also scrolling through short videos, looking for suitable influencers for me to sign.
One day, after finishing an exam, I rushed out of school to attend a company meeting when suddenly someone hugged me tightly, refusing to let go.
“Wife, I finally found you!”
My gasp was swallowed by the familiarity of the voice. After forcefully pushing the person away, I realized it was Caspian.
Caspian wore an old leather jacket, with visible traces of cheap makeup on his face. His smile revealing yellow teeth was nauseating.
Yet Caspian, drenched in strong cologne, still wanted to hug me, but I managed to dodge in time.
“I know you were reborn too, wife, you don’t understand how hard it was without you by my side.”
Caspian rambled, and within a few sentences, I understood what happened.
With Aunt Vera’s tip–off, he found out I started a media company and followed the trail to my artists‘ accounts.
Having been reborn too, he quickly realized I had become a wealthy woman.
Compared to chasing dreams in New York, coming back to capture me was the real deal for him.
Caspian blocked my way, pretending to be deeply affectionate.
“Wife, even though we’ve been reborn, we can start over! Don’t you remember? We had two adorable kids, and how happy we were together as a family of six..”
I coldly watched Caspian’s performance and couldn’t help but roll my eyes.
“Look, buddy, please get your head straight. Did you forget why we were reborn in the first place?”
He, having also been given a second chance at life, quickly realized that I had become a prosperous woman.
Instead of pursuing his dreams in New York, he decided that finding his way back to me was what truly mattered.
Caspian blocked my path, feigning deep affection.
“My dear, even though we’ve been given another chance at life, we can start anew! Have you forgotten? We still have our two lovely children. In our past life, our family of six was so happy together…”
I watched Caspian’s performance with a cold stare, unable to stop myself from rolling my eyes.
“Get a hold of yourself, Caspian. Have you forgotten why we were given this second chance?”
Caspian’s expression shifted, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.
“I have no intention of repeating the mistakes of our past life. I’m just relieved that in this life, I’ve finally escaped you.”
I sighed, unable to mask the disdain in my eyes. “You always used me as an excuse to blame for your failed dreams, accusing me of tying you down with marriage. You’d even shamelessly shift all the blame onto me in front of the children.”
“Caspian, I want to ask you–this time, I didn’t stop you. How’s that dream of being a singer coming along? How’s that instant fame treating you? And why haven’t you moved your empress–like mother to New York yet? Oh, I almost forgot”
1:05 PM
<
I shook my head at Caspian. “This time, your mother is still sick and working to fund your dreams. I heard you sold your house to buy an electric guitar? Do you realize what you’re doing?”
Caspian’s face twisted with anger, his eyes flashing as he grabbed my arm.
“Celeste, who do you think you are? No matter what you do, you’re still the nagging wife who raised my kids for twenty years! You think being reborn lets you escape?”
Caspian gave me a malicious look and sneered.
“You’ve gained some fame. What if I tell people where your birthmarks are or how sensitive you are… You’ve been a little tramp since you were a kid. Do you think your company wouldn’t be affected?”
“If you dare, go ahead!” I yanked my arm free and looked at him with pure contempt.
“Reborn, and all you can do is slander a woman to get what you want, Caspian? Can’t you do something respectable?”
I called for the security guard at the entrance, telling them Caspian wasn’t a student at our school, and I hid behind them.
As Caspian said, as a couple, we knew exactly what to say to unsettle each other.
While Caspian was held by the guards, I took the opportunity to escape the chaos.
Back at the company, the first thing I did was call in an up–and–coming influencer, and we spent the afternoon discussing a project in my office.
A short video drama soon went viral online.
The main story was about a girl who, at the request of a neighborhood aunt, went to the train station at night to find her childhood sweetheart.
The girl’s parents, worried about her, got into a car accident while chasing after her.
The good neighbor, seizing the opportunity, chased away the girl’s other relatives and coaxed her into getting engaged to her son.
Then, they gradually took over the girl’s family property…
I turned my story with Caspian into a short drama. The format was quite novel at the time, and its mix of truth and fiction quickly resonated with online users.
“That guy is such a jerk! His wife works tirelessly, and all he does is dream about being a singer. Where’s a singer who just talks?”
“Even after being reborn, he fails to chase his dreams and clings to her. Shameless!”
“If I had a son like that, I’d rather strangle him! The guy’s parents aren’t good either, all doomed!”
The comments were fiery, and the small influencer responsible for filming became an overnight sensation. I arranged several advertisements for her, and she made a fortune.
Of course, Caspian wouldn’t let me go easily.
He spread nasty rumors about me online, making our relationship sound extremely suggestive. Some vile men believed him and joined in the insults.
Tdidn’t hold back and sent cease–and–desist letters to each of them.
After all, our lives had taken entirely different paths, and the idea of both of us being reborn was too unbelievable for anyone to truly buy into.
Caspian was soon arrested. His slander had been retweeted over 30,000 times, assisted by paid trolls he had hired, essentially digging his own grave.
Aunt Vera and Uncle Heath were frantic, trying to find our family’s contact information, but to no avail.
During this time, Caspian’s company in New York also filed a lawsuit against him.
<
Caspian had violated company policy by leaving without permission and engaging in unauthorized activities, among other allegations laid out by his company. I was surprised when I heard about it.
Looks like Caspian might not have made it big, but he sure picked up some big–time habits.
The main point is, there’s always something that’s the same.
Caspian tried to contact me, hoping I would get him a good lawyer out of past sentiments, promising to repay me once he was out.
Repay me? More like revenge.
I had him thrown out and sent a reply.
In your dreams!
I might not pursue revenge for past life events, but I won’t act as if nothing happened either.
I want to see Caspian’s life fall apart, watch his poor in–laws run around for him as they age–that’s the only way.
I put on my sunglasses and headed to the office.
The right life, the right path, my life, will only shine brighter and brighter!
Epilogue:
When Caspian was arrested, he was stunned, instinctively wanting to refute the police’s charges, but he didn’t know what to say.
In the end, he gritted his teeth and only emphasized that he and Celeste were a couple.
Yes, they were a couple.
His mom had always said this in their past life. They were a couple, and traditionally, the husband was the head. Celeste, an unwanted orphan, should feel lucky he took her in.
In the past, he’d thought Celeste was nice–obedient and shy, blushing at just a few words from him.
But when Beatrix Green appeared, everything changed. That bold and fiery red rose ignited all of Caspian’s teenage passion.
In comparison, Celeste seemed too bland.
After they got married, Caspian heard from high school friends that Beatrix went to college in New York and started dating a popular singer before graduating.
When their relationship was announced, it even crashed Twitter.
Those words made Caspian extremely jealous. If he had pursued his dreams, would he be the one with Beatrix now?
Because of this, he began to resent Celeste for holding him back, even blaming her for her parents‘ deaths and being forced to get engaged to
her.
So it was all Celeste’s fault.
If he hadn’t gotten engaged and married her, he might still have had a chance to chase his dreams.
Caspian deliberately tormented her for over twenty years. Watching Celeste’s temper worsen brought him joy, thinking it was her karma.
He even told their children that Celeste was just a bad mom who only got angry, unlike his good temperament.
Kids are impressionable, and after years of this, they believed him and sided against Celeste.
But Caspian never expected another chance at rebirth, nor did he expect life after rebirth to be so different from what he imagined.
He was tired, even starting to miss the days when Celeste took care of him. And he heard Celeste was wealthy now, perfect! If they got back
He was tired, even starting to miss the days when Celeste took care of him. And he heard Celeste was wealthy now, perfect! If they got back together, he wouldn’t have to live a hard life like before.
Caspian fantasized about using Celeste’s money to launch his career.
But that dream shattered when he got arrested, and he couldn’t believe his New York company wanted in on the action too.
Faced with huge compensation demands and prison time, Caspian was utterly panicked.
No, no, this isn’t how his life was supposed to be!–
Could he get another chance?
When Caspian had his dyed multicolored hair shaved off, he stared blankly at the mirror before him, finally closing his eyes with a tear rolling
down.
He regretted it. So, could he have another chance to start over?
“The End”
