Through the window of the hospital room door, Ethan saw everything.
In his memory, Sophia was the little girl who had followed him around since she was a teenager, always calling him "big brother Ethan." Then she'd gotten older and started blushing whenever he was near, refusing to call him "brother" anymore. He'd known then what was in her heart. She had loved him for ten years.
He had thought of her as a child, but slowly, over time, his own feelings had started to shift. Even her brother, Jake, had seen it. If it hadn't been for that night, for the disgusting, underhanded trick with the drugs, maybe he would have given them a chance.

But Chloe's death had poisoned everything, turning his confusion into a deep, abiding hatred for Sophia.
Coming back, he had been determined to cherish Chloe and push Sophia away. But Sophia had changed, too. She had completely shut off her feelings for him. And now, she was with another man.
Watching her kiss someone else with such tenderness, a bitter, acidic jealousy churned in his gut.
He clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white.
Had he really lost her for good this time?
…

The day I left the hospital, Daniel drove me home.
My brother invited him to stay for dinner, but Daniel just smiled, ruffling my hair.
"Not today. I'm busy planning a proposal. Once we're family, we'll have a lifetime of dinners together."
After that, not a day went by that he didn't send me a gift. A bracelet, a necklace, flowers.

He always knew how to make me smile.
Ethan and Chloe had moved out while I was in the hospital.
Even if they hadn't, my brother would have thrown their things into the street.
"An idiot like Ethan Miller is no friend of mine!" he'd declared. "Anyone who hurts my sister is my enemy!" Then he'd promptly blocked Ethan's number.
My relationship with Daniel was perfect.
He took me to meet his parents, who adored me on sight and immediately declared me their future daughter-in-law.
With our wedding date approaching, I counted the days, filled with a happy anticipation I had never known.
I thought I would never have to see Ethan again.
I was wrong.
One night, on my way home from a bit of shopping, he was there, blocking my path, reeking of alcohol.
He threw a stack of photos in my face. They were all of me and Daniel.
Daniel feeding me, carrying me out of the hospital, kissing me against a wall in broad daylight.
Ethan's face was a dark mask.
"Have you no shame, Sophia? All over some man in public?" he slurred.
"So that's why you stopped chasing me. You found a new target.
What is it? Is he younger? Richer? Is that why you're throwing yourself at him?"
His words were vile. I slapped him.
"Is that what you think of me? Daniel is my boyfriend. We're in love. And we're getting married soon. You have a fiancée. You should be happy. Why are you doing this?"
The light in Ethan's eyes dimmed, replaced by a profound sadness.
"Sophia, how can you be with someone else?" he whispered, his voice a raw plea.
"How can you marry him? Have you forgotten? Have you forgotten our daughter, Olivia?"
"In our last life, you drugged me, you trapped me, all just to marry me and have my child. You loved me so much. How could you just… switch to someone else?"
I froze. He remembered.