The day my husband, Paul Garcia, brought his adopted sister back from abroad, he gave her our master bedroom.

"Romina just lost her husband. She's really upset, and I want her to be comfortable," he explained.

I nodded agreeably. "Sure."

The next day was my birthday, and Romina asked Paul to watch the sunset with her, saying it would help her cope with her grief.

Paul looked at me and said, "She really needs me by her side right now. I'll celebrate your birthday with you later."

I continued to smile and nod. "Of course."

After ten years of marriage, I was ready to let go of a love that no longer served me, especially since I had been given a second chance at life.

In my previous life, wanting him to stay with me on my birthday had led to Romina being upset, culminating in an accident where she fell into a lake and ended up in the hospital.

Paul held me underwater in our bathtub until I drowned, blaming me for the incident.

In this life, when he handed me divorce papers and said, "I'm just marrying Romina to help her change her nationality back. Once that’s done, we’ll get remarried," I didn’t hesitate to sign my name.

When he found me again, I was comfortably seated on the lap of his rival, Layne Ortiz, a bright smile on my face.

---

Paul arrived home late that night. Uncharacteristically, he didn’t go to the master bedroom to see Romina first but came directly to the guest room to find me.

I had already showered and was getting ready for sleep. He gently pulled me from the covers and handed me a box.

"Della, I remember how much you wanted this diamond necklace, so I bought it for you today."

As I looked at the sparkling necklace in my hands, I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly inside. This wasn’t the necklace I had my eyes on. The one I admired was the one Romina wore around her neck earlier this afternoon.

Romina had come back excitedly, eager to show off her new necklace. "Isn’t it pretty? My brother got it for me. But don’t get jealous; I traded in points for a gift, and he’ll give it to you later."

When Paul saw me holding the necklace without saying anything, he frowned.

"What’s wrong? Isn't this the one you liked? I rarely give you gifts, and now that I finally do, you don’t seem happy."

I sighed and let out a small laugh. "So, you do know how seldom you give me gifts."

He paused, his expression shifting to impatience as he began taking off his suit.

"I give you plenty of spending money every month. You can buy what you like. Why bother with gifts from me?"

"If you don’t want it, just throw it away."

In a calm tone, I said, "Alright." With that, I tossed the necklace into the trash can, box and all.

His face turned red with anger, and he kicked the trash can over. "What’s this supposed to mean? Have I spoiled you too much over the years?"

I kept a gentle smile on my face and watched him throw his tantrum, saying nothing.

As expected, it wasn’t long before he calmed down. He pulled out some papers from his briefcase and handed them to me, his tone more accommodating.

"This is a divorce agreement. Don’t misunderstand. You know Romina has foreign nationality because she married someone from abroad. She wants to switch back, and I’m marrying her to help."

"Once everything is settled, I’ll divorce her and remarry you."

I knew there had to be a reason behind his sudden niceness. In my last life, the suffocating nightmare of being held underwater still haunted me.

Divorce was exactly what I wanted. I couldn't wait to disappear from his life as soon as possible.

As I picked up a pen to sign my name, he unexpectedly grabbed my hand to stop me.

"Aren’t you going to check it over? I left the section on property division blank for you. You can fill it in however you like."

I quickly flipped to that page and wrote “leave with nothing” in the blank space.

He looked at me, incredulous. "You really want nothing?"

Having been with him for so long, I understood his intentions. He felt guilty and wanted to use money to compensate me, thinking it would allow him to turn me down guilt-free if I ever asked to remarry him.

But I truly wanted nothing from him. When I fell for him, he had nothing. Now that I'm leaving, I don't want to take anything with me. I wanted nothing to do with him anymore, just for him to disappear from my world entirely.

I smiled and said, "You said it’s just a fake divorce. I trust you."

His expression faltered, guilt flooding his eyes.

I nodded in satisfaction. After all these years, he deserved to feel guilty. If it could last a lifetime, all the better.

The following day, Paul Garcia arrived home early, carrying a large box in his arms.

"Della, there's a dinner party tonight, and they want me to attend with my wife. Would you come with me?"

I took the box from him and opened it to find a stunning Victorian-style dress inside, topped off by a diamond necklace that was more impressive than Romina's.

"Alright, I'll try it on."

For years, he always expected me to accompany him to such gatherings, but the dresses and jewelry had always been my own. This was the first time he had bought a gown for me.

I figured it wouldn't fit well; after all, he hadn't been close to me in years and had no idea whether I had gained or lost weight.

As soon as I stepped into the room, Romina barged in after me. She shoved me aside and rudely grabbed the Victorian dress from the box, tearing at it aggressively.

"Della Ortiz, you don't deserve such a beautiful dress! If it weren't for you, all this would be mine!"

After ripping the dress, she pulled the diamond necklace until it broke into several pieces, then tossed it at my face. She even hurt her finger in the process, breaking the skin with the force of her actions.

I wasn't angry because as soon as she pulled out the dress, I realized it wasn't even my size. I used to have a bit of baby fat, but I've gotten much slimmer in recent years.

Since it wasn't suitable for me anyway, I didn't care that it got ruined.

Calmly, I gathered the fragments from the floor and put them back into the box, addressing her without bothering to look up.

"Romina, you were the one who was so eager to get married abroad back then, so why pin the blame on me?"

That's when a knock sounded on the door, followed by Paul's voice urging us from outside.

Suddenly, Romina burst into tears, throwing herself into Paul's arms and showing him her bleeding finger.

"Brother, I just wanted to admire that beautiful dress, but she accused me of making everything dirty and then ripped the dress and necklace. I tried to stop her, but I got injured."

Paul's eyes fell on the shredded gown in my hands, and anger flared across his face. He strode over to me and slapped me hard.

"Della Ortiz! You've gone too far! I've told you before, the divorce is just a temporary measure—why must you bully Romina?"

I clutched my burning cheek, tears welling up. This was the second time he hit me because of Romina.

Having lived my life over again, I still couldn’t escape Romina's torment.

Unable to hold back, I retaliated verbally: "Paul Garcia, do I really seem like the type to do something like this? We've been married for ten years—don’t you know me by now?"

"And be honest with yourself—was the divorce really just a temporary measure?"

It seemed I struck a nerve; his expression faltered, and he stared at me, unable to offer any explanation.

He then took Romina's hand. "I don't have time for your nonsense. Romina will accompany me tonight; you stay home and think things over. If you don't know how, look online for how to be a proper sister-in-law!"

With that, he left with Romina without a backward glance.

Facing the chaos around me, I wiped away my tears with resolve and started packing my things quietly. In this new chapter of my life, I wouldn't let anyone threaten my existence any longer.

Paul Garcia and I were high school classmates, and I secretly liked him for four years. In our sophomore year of college, we got engaged after I nearly lost my life saving him from drowning. In my previous life, I knew he truly had feelings for Romina Martin, yet she remained indifferent to him.

I thought that after marriage, he'd eventually realize which kind of woman deserved his love, given his smarts. But I was wrong—devastatingly wrong—and that mistake cost me dearly in my past life.

That evening, Collins Stone, a wealthy woman who was close to me, gave me a call.

"Della, who exactly is this Romina? She's such a schemer, don't you think?"

"She started spreading rumors as soon as she arrived, saying you and Paul were already divorced. She even claimed you purposely pushed Paul into the river to force him into marrying you."

"A bunch of media outlets picked it up today. Check it out; it's trending everywhere."

I replied calmly, "I've seen it already. Let it be."

"Della, don't let it get to you. We've already given her a piece of our minds. You should have seen it—after each of us just said one thing, she burst into tears, and Paul looked like he was ready to tear us apart. They're truly disgusting."

I couldn't help but laugh, "Thanks, sis. Please thank the other ladies for me too. It's true, I have divorced Paul."

"What? Oh my, did you really let her snatch him away? No way, I need to talk to my husband about reconsidering any business with Paul."

In the past, I worked hard to enter those elite circles for Paul's company. That kind of circle isn’t something Romina can just stroll into. Enduring a few insults today was already giving them face.

Not long after I hung up, Paul and Romina returned.

I stepped out of the bedroom, intending to inform them of my decision to move out.

But before I could speak, Paul kicked me hard in the stomach.

"Did you do it on purpose? Did you ask those women to insult Romina deliberately? You're shameless!"

He put all his strength into that kick, leaving me curled up on the floor, drenched in cold sweat from the pain.

Romina's eyes were red and swollen from crying. She threw herself into Paul's arms again.

"I'm sorry, brother. Sister-in-law can't stand me. Maybe I should just leave."

"The one who should leave is her! Della Ortiz, I found out tonight that you deliberately pushed me into the river!"

"I never imagined you'd be so ruthless! Get out! I don't want to see you again!"

I bit through the pain in my abdomen and struggled to meet his gaze.

"Paul Garcia, you are truly foolish. Do you honestly think if I had pushed you into the river on purpose, I would risk my own life to save you? You saw those critical condition notices time and again—who fakes it with their life on the line?"

"Someone did push you that day, but just like you, I was also pushed in!"

With that, I went upstairs and quickly moved my few belongings to the mansion's entrance.