My mother gave us a choice.
Go with her to the Knight estate, where we could attend the same elite high school as the Knight heir but would have to stay in the country for college.
Or stay in our hometown, finish school here, and be sent to study abroad.
My sister, Maya, didn't hesitate.
Mom, I want to go with you. To the Knights.
A pleased smile spread across our mothers face before she turned to me.
"Your sister has chosen. As the older one, you should let her have her way. I'll send you abroad after you graduate. That way, I'll have fulfilled my duty to both of you."
Watching Maya cling to our mother's arm, her face glowing with anticipation, I knew.
She had been reborn, too.
Too bad for her. Gareth Knight would never fall for her.

1
"Elara, the Knights need me back, so your sister and I are leaving today. Take care of yourself."
After packing her bags, my mother left with Maya, just like that. A stark contrast to my first life, where shed stayed for ten excruciating days, trying to convince Maya to come with her.
In that life, when our mother laid out the two choices, Maya had also been quick to decide. But she had chosen to study abroad.
After my parents divorced, I was sent to live with my father. For ten years, my mother never visited, not once, but I thought of her every single day. It wasn't until my father passed away and the police brought me to her that I had a mother again.
So when Maya chose to go abroad, I was ecstatic. It meant I could finally be with my mother.
But my mother had wanted Maya. She spent those ten days relentlessly trying to change her mind, but Maya was convinced the grass was greener overseas and wouldnt budge.
So, I was the one who went with my mother to the Knight estate. And there, I met Gareth.
He was breathtakingly handsome, with a cool, aristocratic air and a brilliant mind. He was the prince charming of every girl in school.
I couldn't help but fall for him.
I knew we were worlds apart, so I buried my feelings deep inside.
Until the night of our high school graduation. After a party, Gareth, flushed with alcohol, cornered me in the basement.
Elara, he whispered, his voice intense. Come abroad with me.
I forced myself to look away. I cant afford it.
A slow smile spread across his face, lighting up the dim room.
Ill pay for you.
In that single moment, I realized the boy I had secretly loved for three years loved me back.
The happiness was overwhelming. I rushed to tell my mother the news, my heart soaring.
Her response was a sharp slap across my face.
Absolutely not. You gave up the right to go abroad when you chose to come here. The money Ive saved is for Mayas education.
I cupped my stinging cheek. But Gareth said I wouldnt have to pay. Hes covering my tuition.
She scoffed, her eyes raking over me with contempt. Have you no shame? Seducing him for his money? Have you forgotten your place? Hes a Knight. Youre the helps daughter. A boy like that might find you amusing for a while, but when he gets bored and dumps you, who do you think will have to clean up the mess? Forget about going abroad. If you disobey me, you will never call me mother again. And stay away from him. Dont ruin my job.
Starved of a mothers love my whole life, the threat of losing her again terrified me.
Numb with grief, I turned Gareth down.
But he was resolute. Distance doesnt matter, he told me solemnly. I can afford the plane tickets.
We started a long-distance relationship in college. He flew back to see me every month, and the sweetness of his love filled me with hope for our future.
When my mother found out, she went behind my back and asked Gareth to look after Maya, who was studying in the same country.
Gareth, unaware of our familys twisted dynamic, naively took on the role of a protective future brother-in-law.
Then, one day during my senior year, I received a text from Maya. It was a picture.
She was topless, her arms wrapped around Gareths neck as they lay in a hotel bed.
[Hes with me now, Elara. Stop bothering him.]
After three years together, I knew Gareth would never betray me. My first thought was that hed been set up.
Blinded by rage, I called Maya.
I never saw the truck.
As my soul drifted from my body, I heard my mothers voice, clear and cold.
Its good that shes dead. Now, hurry up and win over the young master. Youre going to be the next Mrs. Knight.
Mayas triumphant laugh echoed. You were right all along, Mom. Asking Gareth to look after me was a stroke of genius. It gave me the perfect chance to drug him and get that photo. I was just trying to make Elara give up, but her dying like this? Its a gift from heaven. Ill just wait for him to get over his little heartbreak, then Ill offer myself up.
I had always believed that even if my mother favored Maya, she still loved me as a daughter.
I was wrong. She felt nothing at my death.
My spirit, shattered, drifted to find Gareth.
I found him in the bathtub, clutching my photograph, gone. He had followed me into death.
Only then did I truly understand. Gareths love for me was stronger than life itself.
A wild, desperate power surged through me. I focused all of it on Maya as she descended the grand staircase. I tripped her.
I watched her body tumble, her life ending with a sickening crack at the bottom of the stairs.
Only then did my soul find peace.
And now, I was back. Back on the day my fate was decided.
But this time, Maya had chosen the Knight estate. She thought that by being close to Gareth, she could win his heart.
She was so wrong.
Gareth would never love her.
And I would make them both pay for what they did to us.

2
The moment my mother and Maya left, my aunt told me to move into the school dorms early, claiming they were renovating my room.
My mother worked as a live-in maid for the Knights, so Maya and I had been living with my aunt and uncle. My mother sent them money every month for our expenses.
In my first life, when I left with my mother, she increased the payments to ensure they took good care of Maya.
Clearly, this time, the payments had stopped.
I didnt argue. I packed my few belongings and left.
But before heading to school, I had another stop to make.
I went to the bank. My father had set up a small savings account for me, depositing a little money on every birthday. Only I knew about it.
I withdrew the cash and boarded a long-distance bus to a remote cemetery.
A fierce storm was raging. I huddled under a tree in my raincoat, waiting.