Chapter 1Loving You Got Me Killed Once Already

Everyone around us knows I'm in love with Ryland Wood.

But from his 21st birthday on, he despises me. It takes three years and my accidental death for him to finally be free of me.

When I open my eyes again, I find myself reborn, right back on the day of his 21st birthday.

This time, I choose to run.

Now, I refuse to be the lovesick fool, and I refuse to cling to him.

* * *

Thea's POV

"Ms. Reeves, we've arrived at the Woods'."

The car rolled to a gentle stop, and I was jolted awake by Barton Yates, our family driver.

"The Woods'? Barton, why did you bring me here?"

"Ms. Reeves, your mother just called. She said Mr. Wood got into a fight with his parents at his birthday party, and she wants you to go over and calm him down. So that's where we headed."

The moment I heard his explanation, everything clicked. I had been reborn on the day of Ryland Wood's 21st birthday.

Ryland and I had grown up together, and everyone knew I was in love with him. But starting from this very day, his 21st birthday, he had begun to hate me.

Thankfully, none of that had happened yet.

I pulled out my phone, scrolled through my contacts until I found the number for the girl Ryland actually liked, and sent her a text.

"Ryland got into a fight with his family. You should go check on him."

Once the message was sent, I let out a breath of relief and turned to Barton. "Let's head back, Barton. Take me home."

He looked at me in surprise. "Ms. Reeves, you're not worried about Mr. Wood?"

"I asked a good friend of his to go comfort him."

Barton didn't seem entirely convinced, but he started the car and drove us back toward the Reeves estate.

I sat in the back seat, staring out the window as memories from my past life came flooding back.

Dad and Ryland's father were close friends, and Ryland was a year older than me. We had grown up side by side, attending the same schools from kindergarten all the way through college. His parents traveled for work constantly, so he ended up eating dinner at our house more often than at his own.

In my past life, I had listened to my mother without question, hung up the phone, and rushed over to the Woods' in a panic. The moment I stepped through the door, I ran right into Ryland storming out of the house. His expression was cold, and he barely glanced at me before walking right past.

I was worried he would do something reckless going out that late in such a bad mood, so I followed him. After a lot of coaxing, I finally convinced him to come back to my place to cool off.

That night, I stayed up talking with him for hours, and we had a few drinks together. Maybe it was the alcohol, but at some point, we both passed out.

By the time we woke up the next day, it was already noon. When I walked out of the room, I found the living room packed with family and friends, including Ryland's parents. Just like that, the "fact" that Ryland and I had spent the night alone together was out in the open.

No matter how we tried to explain, both sets of parents just smiled at each other, as if the two of us being together was the most natural thing in the world.

What I hadn't expected was that the news spread through campus too. Ryland was already the most popular guy on campus, so once the news got out, the rumors about us spread like wildfire.

Ryland stopped seeing me entirely, while I scrambled to take down posts and explain myself to anyone who would listen.

"Thea, marry me."

Three days later, Ryland showed up at my doorstep in a suit, holding an enormous bouquet of roses. His expression was dead serious.

I was thrilled. I actually thought his serious face meant he was taking the proposal to heart, that he truly meant it. It was the first time I had ever seen him in a suit, and the first time he had ever given me roses.

Getting engaged to the man I loved made me feel like the luckiest woman in the world.

Everyone knew how I felt about him, and everyone wanted us to end up together. So when I said yes, it was exactly what everyone expected—the natural next step.

Then we got engaged.