Aria suddenly woke up, gasping. The warm sunlight streamed in via the windows, gently falling on her face in a way that seemed unfamiliar after death's frigidity.
She sat upright, her chest pounding rapidly as her hands rose to her chest. There was no piercing pain. No bitter taste. She breathed deeply, frightened, as she scanned her body, seeking any evidence of the poison which could have afflicted her.
None. She was perfectly healthy.
Everything around her was confusing. There wasn't the spotless white of a hospital, not even the dark void she imagined that happens after death. Around her was her teenage bedroom—the one in her family's large house, one she had left on her wedding day. Light purple walls, her artwork on them. Her mom's present, the antique vanity, received on her sixteenth birthday. And by the corner, a memory from a distant past hung there...
Her wedding dress.
It was the same wedding dress from three years before, constructed from pure white silk and gentle lace. It had been preserved for a young, innocent bride who was deeply in love. Aria's eyes widened, and her mind refused to understand what she had just come across.
"No, this isn't possible," she said, her voice breaking. And as she uttered it, she distinctly recalled her death. Marcus's icy gaze. Bella's radiant grin. The agony of the poison and betrayal was more than any dagger.
She quickly got up and hurried to the mirror in her closet. What was before her made her legs weak, so she sat down on the soft carpet.
She was twenty-two. She still looked exactly as she had on her wedding day three years before. Her cheeks were a little more rounded before she had experienced Marcus' subtle emotional abuse for 3 years. Her bright innocence still glowed in her amber eyes, untainted by any betrayal. Even her hair still hung in loose waves below her shoulders just as it had on her wedding day.
She grabbed her phone off the bedside table with trembling hands. When she saw what date it displayed, she just froze.
It was her wedding day. She was going to be walking down an aisle towards a groom who would end up murdering her.
"No, no, no," she replied, snatching yesterday's newspaper from her nightstand. Its articles mentioned things she had recalled from three years ago. Its society pages featured news regarding the Aria-Marcus wedding, dubbing it as the "union of the year."
She let the paper drop with trembling hands, her head reeling. In some miraculous way, she had been granted a second chance. And it was more than a chance—she had been returned to the beginning of all her troubles.
It was ironic. She could travel back to any moment in her history and steer clear of Marcus altogether. And yet there she stood on her wedding day with most of her friends in the process of preparing to watch what they believed would be the highlight of her life.
She understood everything more clearly this time. She recalled all manner of how Marcus had deceived her. She was aware of how he forged documents to embezzle money from her businesses. She was aware of how he held clandestine meetings with her business competitors. She was aware of how he would distance her from any person who could reveal details to her regarding how he truly was.
She just didn't know they would go as far as to kill her.
And Bella. Sweet, faithful Bella who had stood by her side for milestones in her life. Aria could finally see now what had lay hidden behind her best friend's words, how she had stood behind all the decisions that ended up bringing Aria pain. Bella had said after meeting Marcus for the first time that he was charming and that I would be foolish not to marry him.
She knew how Bella always diverted from the issue at hand whenever Aria expressed her concerns. Bella insisted on a swift engagement, then a speedy wedding. Bella volunteered to take up all the legal documents involved in merging their companies.
Aria clenched her hands into fists as she realized something. Back in her previous life, she would make rash decisions, have faith in people, and always one step behind her enemies. This time, however, she had her greatest asset: knowledge.
She knew how Marcus behaved, all the lies he would tell, all the attempts he would make at controlling her. She knew what proposals he would make her sign, what friends he would seek to turn against her. She even knew Adrian Blackwood, a business rival of Marcus, who always operated with the same competence that Marcus only feigned.
She was particularly mindful of an evil doctor, Harrison Vex, who would ultimately administer the poison that would kill her. Harrison Vex was a doctor who was skilled at making fatalities appear as if they occurred naturally. She could prevent him from killing any other person.
She was deep in thought when a person knocked at her bedroom door. Next, a cheerful voice greeted her, annoying her once more.
"Aria, get up, sweetie. We have a lot on our agenda before the wedding."
Bella. Right on time.
She looked at herself in the mirror one more time, observing the face that had once been very trusting. She stopped being that girl and transformed into a stronger and more purposeful version, understanding that in some situations, people needed to take justice for themselves.
She did not cancel the wedding. That would have been a straightforward thing. Marcus and Bella believed she would remain the same sweet girl who gave money and her heart without hesitation.
She would do what they wanted, but secretly plan against them. She would be a cheerful bride who would document evidence for all of their betrayals. She would express gratitude to them as her friends who were always there for her while she secretly documented every betrayal.
She would not be the victim this time.
"Come in, Bella," Aria said nicely, though her voice hid three years of resentment. "I am eager to see what today has in store for us."