Miley's POV

Pain washed over me, leaving my face as pale as a sheet.

In my previous life, Jennifer died in a car accident on a stormy night. She was gone on the spot. Julian never got to see her one last time.

He never forgave me for that—not even in death.

But in this life, I had already stepped aside.

So why… why was it still ending like this?

Just when I was struggling to find a way to fulfill his final wish, fate handed me the opportunity on a silver platter.

I made up my mind to trade my life for hers. I would save Jennifer and give Julian the happiness he deserved.

"Take my kidney. Use it to save her."

Julian's grip on my wrist tightened even more.

"You think I won't do it?" he snapped. "Miley, if you hadn't constantly used this engagement to provoke her, would she have crashed into that highway guardrail? This is what you owe her!"

He grabbed my arm and dragged me through the hospital corridors straight into the ICU.

Jennifer lay on the bed, barely clinging to life. Her body was covered in tubes, her skin ghostly pale, her chest rising and falling ever so faintly.

The attending physician approached with a grim look and a medical report in hand. "Mr. Asher, the patient's kidneys are severely crushed and in acute failure. She needs a transplant immediately. The matching results are in. Miss Ford is a perfect donor."

He looked at me with a trace of sorrow in his eyes. "Donating a kidney is a permanent sacrifice, and Miss Ford's health is already fragile. Frankly… I'm afraid she might not survive the surgery."

"No!" Julian's expression changed instantly. He spoke without thinking. "A transplant would cost her half her life. With her weak body, she won't make it. There has to be another way!"

The doctor shook his head, clearly conflicted. "I'm sorry, Mr. Asher. There is no other way. Without immediate surgery, I doubt Miss Nichols will survive the night. Donating will severely weaken Miss Ford, but it won't kill her. Miss Nichols, however… she will die."

Julian turned to look at Jennifer lying in the bed, his heart aching, torn by the choice before him.

But I already knew—he would never let Jennifer die.

So I made the choice for him.

I looked at the doctor and forced a pale smile. "I'll do it. Please prepare for surgery."

Only then did Julian finally look at me, his eyes filled with complicated emotion. Jaw clenched, he turned to the doctor.

"Do it. Prepare the surgery."

Before leaving, he tossed one last cold sentence over his shoulder, "Miley, I owe you one."

They wheeled me into the operating room.

The needle pierced my skin. As the anesthesia kicked in, a wave of drowsiness overtook me, and my mind began to blur.

Memories surged like a tide.

I was eight when my father brought his mistress and my stepsister into the house. I was driven into the attic and nearly starved to death. They called me a cursed child, a bastard who killed her own mother.

It was Julian who came and took me away. He told me, "Don't be scared. From now on, I'll protect you."

And he meant it.

Even in my past life, when flames devoured everything, he still shielded me with his own body until the very end.

That's why I loved him, why I was willing to give up everything for him.

But I also knew… his kindness toward me came from duty, not love.

The one he truly loved had always been my stepsister, Jennifer.

When I woke again, I was lying in a private recovery room under intensive care. Pain pulsed from the incision site, sharp and twisting. My limbs were weak, and no one was around.

I turned my head toward the window. Sunlight poured in, warm and brilliant.

It was time for me to go.

Miley's POV

Not long after, the door to the hospital room swung open. Julian stepped inside, holding a thermal container in his hands.

Inside was seafood porridge—my favorite when I was a child.

I hadn't expected him to remember.

There was a rare softness about him I had never seen before.

"Does the wound still hurt?" he asked gently. "Do you want me to call the doctor again? Jennifer's out of danger now. It's all thanks to you."

"It doesn't hurt anymore. There's no need," I replied.

He lowered his voice, almost like a plea. "Miley, whatever happens between us, please… don't drag Jennifer into it again. Okay?"

A dull ache rippled through my chest. Of course. The one Julian truly wanted to protect had only ever been Jennifer.

"Yeah. There won't be a next time."

Hearing that, he reached out and gently tucked in the corners of my blanket.

"We missed the meteor shower last night," he said. "Once you're feeling better, let's take a trip back to Caraera City. Didn't you always say you wanted to see where your mother grew up?"

I knew he was only trying to repay me for saving the woman he loved.

But what I wanted to tell him was: I did it willingly. I wanted to save Jennifer and fulfill their love.

I smiled faintly.

"You don't need to make it up to me. I wanted to save her. That was my choice."

He paused.

"Then… how about Switzerland next week? Once you've recovered, we'll go."

I didn't respond, but the offer lingered inside me like a secret desire I couldn't let go.

His hand, the one injured while saving me, trembled as he held the bowl of porridge.

My heart ached as I asked, "You ended up like this because of me. Do you regret it?"

Julian's voice was steady. "There's nothing to regret. I would've done it for anyone."

"But back then, when I had that blood disorder… you searched everywhere for a specialist, begged every doctor for medication. You nearly missed your most important bar exam. Would you have done all that… for anyone else?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation.

So it was true.

In his heart, I was never anyone special. The one who mattered had always been Jennifer.

"Julian," I looked at him, trying to smile. "Thank you. For saving me, again and again. I never had a real family growing up. I wanted to be loved so badly that I used everything I had just to make you marry me. My clinging must've made you miserable, didn't it?"

'But from now on… you won't have to anymore. You won't have to carry the weight of responsibility. You won't be tied to me. We won't hurt each other again. And you won't die at thirty because of me. This time, you'll live well. And you'll be happy,' I thought silently.

His Adam's apple bobbed like he wanted to say something, but just then, a nurse burst in.

"Mr. Asher! Miss Nichols is awake. She's very emotional, she keeps crying and asking for you. Please come quickly!"

Julian immediately stood, smiling. Without even glancing back at me, he turned and left.

"I'll be back soon."

"Julian," I called out to him. My gaze lingered on him like a final prayer. "I'm sorry… and I hope you'll live a happy life."

'Goodbye… the man I love most in this world,' I said silently.

He nodded and walked out, his steps light with joy.

My flight was at three in the afternoon. Everything had been prepared long ago.

Right then, the attending doctor came in to do his rounds. I smiled at him gratefully.

"I'll take my medication on time. Thank you. Also, could you let Mr. Asher know—I left early to study in the UK. He doesn't need to look for me."

By the time Julian returned from calming Jennifer down and rushed back to the hospital room, I was gone.

All that remained was a cold bowl of seafood porridge on the bedside table.

He grabbed the nearest nurse, voice frantic. "Where is she? Where's Miley? Her body hasn't fully recovered. Where could she possibly go?!"

Before the nurse could answer, his assistant burst in, face pale.

"Sir… something happened. Miss Ford… she got rear-ended on the way to the airport. Because of the recent surgery, she suffered acute internal bleeding. And just now… in the ambulance… her heart stopped."