Chapter 1

The day I found out I was pregnant, Julian deliberately drove the car off a cliff.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my college days.

Only then did I understand—

from beginning to end, the person in his heart had always been his first love, Serena.

I tore the love letter to shreds on the spot and walked away in the opposite direction from him.

Eight years later.

He booked the most expensive bar in the city, preparing a proposal for the “love of his life.”

When he saw me appear, he looked at me with open mockery and said,

“I know you can’t let me go, but you didn’t have to chase me all the way here, did you?”

But the moment he saw me holding another man’s hand, he completely lost control.

“Claire,” he demanded, eyes burning red, “didn’t you promise to love only me for the rest of your life?”

I never expected to see Julian again, especially not in a nightclub.

Traffic had delayed me, causing me to miss the class reunion dinner. I drove straight to the club where I had a prior engagement. To my surprise, I stumbled upon my old classmates who had moved on to their second venue of the night.

They were lost in the rhythm on the dance floor. Julian, with his fair skin and tall stature, stood out in the crowd. He held Serena close, his eyes full of adoration.

"Julian is truly a rare genius. At such a young age, he already owns several Formula 1 teams," someone remarked.

"Indeed. Tonight, he rented out this entire club just for Serena."

"This must be the most luxurious venue in the city. The rental fee for one night must be at least a million dollars."

"Well, you can't put a price on a beautiful woman's smile."

As the music stopped, Serena stood there, flushed and slightly out of breath.

Suddenly, the big screen lit up, playing a montage of Julian and Serena's romantic moments. The crowd started to cheer as Serena was ushered onto the stage. Julian, holding a bouquet of roses, got down on one knee before her.

"Serena, will you marry me?" His voice was as soft as a gentle stream, almost overflowing with emotion.

Someone in the crowd asked, "When did Julian break up with Claire?"

The question, neither too loud nor too soft, reached everyone's ears.

Hearing my name, Julian's expression darkened, his smile fading.

Serena's face froze for a moment before she quickly recovered, accepting the flowers from Julian with a polite smile. "Julian has always been popular with women, but who hasn't made mistakes when they were young? The important thing is that it all worked out in the end."

The crowd laughed, continuing to compliment the couple on how well-matched they were.

I stood in the corner, watching their intertwined fingers. Was I the mistake she referred to?

But she didn't know that in my previous life, it was Julian who had pursued me.

He had fallen for me at first sight, launching an intense pursuit. Who could resist a handsome, tall, intelligent man who loved you to the point of obsession?

So I agreed.

On the day we became official, Julian cupped my face, hesitating to kiss me. "Claire, am I dreaming?" he had said. "If I kiss you, will I wake up?"

I laughed, brushing his beautiful eyes before standing on tiptoe to kiss him.

That night, he promised me, "Claire, I'll be good to you for the rest of my life."

I believed him.

But he lied.

I took a deep breath and headed towards the elevator through the dim light.

A sharp-eyed former classmate spotted me and exclaimed, "Claire, what are you doing here?"

"What happened to you? You look so disheveled."

"Don't tell me you're still unemployed. Since Julian is here, why don't you ask him to help you find a job that pays at least $5000 a month, for old times' sake?"

Their mockery was undisguised. I didn't care, just smiling politely as I poured myself a glass of ice water.

From the moment I entered, Julian's gaze had been fixed on me, never wavering. Seeing me take a free glass of ice water, he seemed to relax a bit and said casually, "Order whatever you want. I'm covering all the expenses tonight."

I replied, "Thank you, but that won't be necessary."

My tone was polite but carried an unmistakable distance.

Julian's attempt to approach me halted. Half his face was hidden in the shadows, making his expression unreadable.

After a long moment, he let out a bitter laugh. "Claire, after all these years, you're still so prideful."

Serena's gaze was filled with wariness. She intertwined her fingers with Julian's, eyeing me with a look of ownership and contempt. "Claire, I don't mean to be rude, but as a woman, you should at least make an effort with your appearance when you go out."

"Look at your mismatched clothes and messy hair. How do you expect any man to want to marry you like this?"

"I have plenty of clothes at home that I don't wear anymore. If you don't mind, you can have them. After all, Julian buys me so many that I can't even fit them all in two walk-in closets."

The crowd burst into laughter.

I turned to look at my reflection in the glass. After two days of non-stop work on set, I was exhausted and hadn't bothered with my appearance. Standing next to the impeccably groomed Serena, I did look rather unkempt in comparison.

"No, thank you," I said, waving her off as I helped myself to some chilled fruit from the bar. I was too hungry to care about my table manners.

Julian suddenly walked towards me and held out his phone. I looked up at him, confused.

"Give me your account number. I'll transfer you $300,000," he said.

"Your current situation is ultimately because of me."

"But we're in the past now. Don't be so stubborn."

"Stop waiting for me and move on with your life."

Julian's phone wallpaper was a picture of Serena holding a large bouquet of flowers. Looking at her carefree smile, I felt a bit dazed.

In my previous life, let alone being his wallpaper, there wasn't a single trace of me on Julian's phone. He didn't even save my number because he never needed to contact me. Whether in life or work, I always arranged everything for him in advance.

It turns out that love and indifference are indeed very obvious.

We started dating in college and got married right after graduation.

He dreamed of becoming a race car driver, while I wanted to study film directing.

Two completely different dreams that would never intersect.

Seeing his dejected eyes, I gave in.

I gave up the opportunity to study abroad without hesitation, following him around with heavy toolboxes day after day.

He didn't have professional equipment, so I would ride my bicycle around the city at night delivering food, saving money to buy him the most expensive and best racing suits.

He didn't have a maintenance team, so I taught myself car repair techniques, taking on the work of an entire team for him alone.

But he still lost.

His second-hand race car, bought at a low price, could never outrun others' latest models.

Despite my tireless efforts to comfort him in his depression, he pushed me away harshly, his eyes filled with a disgust I had never seen before:

"I'm sick of this boring life with you."

"If I had chosen Serena back then, I wouldn't be living like this now."

Those words shattered all my hopes for the future.

I didn't even have time to look back at the road we had traveled before we both died in that cliff accident.

I wanted to beg him to save our child.

But the words were swallowed by the flames before they could leave my mouth.

Since fate had given us a chance to start over, we both chose to pursue the lives we wanted.

There was no need for any further contact between us.

I pushed the phone back to him. "There's no relationship between us. This isn't necessary."