Chapter 1Trading Fates: The Gilded Cage and the Sunlit Path

My sister and I were reborn.

It happened on the exact day our parents finalized their divorce.

This time, she sprinted straight toward our father, crying a river of tears. "Dad, take me with you!"

She shot me a look that failed to hide her smug triumph.

She wanted to trade lives with me?

She only saw me rising from the ashes like a phoenix, completely ignorant of the grueling strength it took for me to crawl out of that blazing inferno.

I smiled. I laughed at her wild delusions, and I smiled with the profound relief of a massive weight lifting off my shoulders.

* * *

I opened my eyes, my head spinning as I stood there.

I looked down at my worn-out white sneakers.

Wait a minute. Wasn't I just at Harper's wedding? Didn't she trick me into helping her with her dress, only to shove me off a fourth-floor balcony to my death?

I opened my hands, staring in disbelief at my perfectly intact body.

Was I... reborn?

Harper's sobbing voice echoed in the room: "Dad, take me with you!"

We really were back on the day of our parents' divorce.

I snapped out of my daze and looked up.

Harper shot me a look full of barely concealed triumph.

She wanted to trade lives with me?

Perfect. That was exactly what I wanted.

Harper had been driven mad with jealousy over my life in our previous timeline.

In that life, she went with Mom, and I went with Dad.

She was lazy, refused to study, ignored everyone's advice, and ended up eight months pregnant, having a cheap backyard wedding in a rural, run-down town.

I, on the other hand, attended her wedding on the arm of the aloof, wildly handsome billionaire, Rowan. Dressed in an elegant, custom gown, I stepped gracefully out of a luxury car.

When she pushed me over the railing, her eyes glowed with pure, venomous envy. "Go to hell! This is all your fault! You stole Dad! If you hadn't, I'd be the one standing there married to a billionaire!"

Because I was wearing heels and a long dress, I couldn't move fast enough. I could only grab onto her tightly, refusing to let go.

Amidst the screams of the guests, we plummeted off the balcony together.

She truly believed that as long as she chose our father, she would automatically become the main character of a beautiful, glamorous life.

No, she was dead wrong.

She only saw my glittering exterior. She had no idea how much blood and sweat I spent clawing my way out of that hellhole.

What I envied most in my past life was the freedom of an ordinary, mundane existence.

Thanks to her, in this life, I finally get to cherish it.

Harper's desperation to cut ties infuriated our mother.

Harper scoffed, "Why would I go with you? So I can end up as a high school dropout working minimum wage?"

Mom clutched her chest, struggling to breathe. "You... you ungrateful... get out!"

I stepped in front of Mom, my face cold as I glared at Harper. "Mom gave up everything for us, and this is how you speak to her? You're heartless!"

Harper had the nerve to laugh. "What does Mom matter? I'm going to have a brand-new mom soon. She's young, beautiful, and rich—a thousand times better than her!"

Perfect. That was exactly the reaction I needed.

I needed Mom to hear Harper's true thoughts so this toxic mother-daughter bond would shatter completely.

I wanted to leave Harper with zero escape routes.

Sure enough, Mom grabbed a decorative vase and hurled it at the wall near her. "Get out! From now on, Stella is my only daughter. I have nothing to do with you anymore."

Harper dodged easily, rolling her eyes. "Following you just means a life of manual labor. Have fun barking like a junkyard dog."

Smack! I lunged forward and slapped her hard across the face.

"You actually hit me?"

She covered her stinging cheek, her anger mixed with absolute shock.

Without a second word, before anyone could react—

Smack! A matching red handprint appeared on the other side of her face.

Damn, that hurt. My hand was completely numb.

When dealing with someone like Harper, physical action is the only language she understands. Wasting time talking is pointless.

In our past life, she pushed me off a building and killed me.

These two slaps were just a welcome gift for our new lives.

Infuriated, Harper screamed and lunged at me, trying to tear at my clothes.

Our dad, Marcus, quickly stepped between us, not forgetting to scold me. "Stella, I am so disappointed in you. How could you treat your sister like this?"

I shot back instantly, "Is what I did worse than what you did? You cheating piece of trash!"

His face drained of color. His lips moved, but for a long time, he couldn't form a single word.

Mom chimed in at the perfect moment: "Both of you, get out. The garbage collectors are coming soon."

Pfft. I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Mom was incredibly strong. Even at a time like this, she still had her sharp sense of humor.

Before leaving, Harper didn't forget to flaunt her victory. "I'm going to take back everything that belongs to me! Stella, just wait for your karma!"

I didn't care at all. Right back at you, sister. Just like in our past life, Marcus left with nothing. He left the tiny, outdated, two-bedroom apartment to Mom.

Since he had hooked a young, wealthy heiress, he naturally didn't care about this dump.

Harper, who in the past life threw massive tantrums refusing to let our dad remarry, was now offering her most devout blessings for his new union.

Little did she know, this was the beginning of her absolute nightmare.

That new woman had a twenty-year-old brother with severe violent tendencies, locked away in their basement.

But right now, Harper didn't know a thing.