Chapter 2: The Weight of the Past

The walls of the hospital room feel like they are closing in on her. Her breath comes in short, uneven gasps as she grips the blanket over her lap. The steady beeping of the monitor beside her is the only thing grounding her to reality, but even that feels distant.

She is alive.

She is pregnant.

And she is back in the past.

Her mind screams at her to wake up, to escape this impossible nightmare, but no matter how many times she blinks, the scene before her doesn’t change. The nurse watches her carefully, concern flickering in her eyes.

“You should rest,” the nurse says softly. “It’s not good to stress yourself out in your condition.”

Rest? How is she supposed to rest when everything she has suffered, everything she has lost, is suddenly undone?

Her fingers tremble as she touches her stomach again, feeling the undeniable proof of her second chance. Her baby, the one she had once ignored, the one she had failed, is still inside her—safe, untouched by the cold indifference she had once shown.

A lump forms in her throat. She doesn’t deserve this chance. She has done nothing to earn it. And yet, fate has given it to her.

“Can I… get some water?” she finally asks, her voice barely above a whisper.

The nurse nods and steps away, giving her a brief moment of solitude. As soon as the door clicks shut, she exhales shakily and buries her face in her hands.

What is she supposed to do now?

Her past life flashes before her eyes—her obsession, her jealousy, her blind pursuit of a love that was never hers. She had let her bitterness consume her, hurting everyone around her, including the innocent child who had only ever needed a mother’s love.

Tears spill onto her cheeks, but this time, they are not of anger or frustration. They are of regret.

She doesn’t want to be that woman again.

She won’t be.

A soft knock on the door startles her, and she quickly wipes her tears as the nurse returns, placing a glass of water on the bedside table. “You should drink this,” she says gently.

She nods, picking up the glass with slightly unsteady hands. The cool water soothes her throat, but it does nothing to calm the storm raging inside her.

One thing is clear—she has been given a second chance, and this time, she will not waste it.