The day I submitted our marriage application, Carolina Parker, Hugo Cruz's childhood friend, tragically ended her life by jumping into a river. This event set off a chain of actions that led Hugo to accept a transfer to the southern states, where he stayed for four decades, never returning home. During those years, I stayed with his parents, raising his younger sister on my own.

Yet, my loyalty was met with coldness and blame from his entire family:

"If it weren't for you insisting on marrying Hugo, Carolina wouldn't have died, and Hugo wouldn't have left for forty years."

"You think you're the victim? You're the one who drove Carolina to her death, and now Hugo can't come back to us. I hope you meet a miserable end!"

They seemed to forget that it was Carolina who had rejected Hugo for his family's poverty and left him first. Later, it was Hugo who proposed to me.

That curse didn't affect me; instead, it seemed to catch up with Hugo. During an assignment, he was brutally murdered by criminals, and all that was returned was a blood-stained letter:

"Emberlynn Lawrence, let's not meet in the next life."

On the day of his funeral, Hugo's family coldly drove me out. With nowhere else to go, I found myself standing on the tracks that night, intending to end it all. But when I opened my eyes again, I was back at the day we submitted the marriage application. This time, I was determined not to let the tragedy repeat.

"Hugo," his voice brought me back to the present, "Carolina's not feeling well. I need to check on her. Can we postpone our marriage application?"

I looked up at the handsome man standing before me. At twenty-four, Hugo was tall, with chiseled features and sharp angles—a figure I once adored. But now, all I wanted was to keep my distance.

Seeing my silence, he continued, "Carolina's like a little sister to me. Her parents aren't around, and as her brother..."

I cut him off: "It's fine, go ahead. The marriage application can wait. Carolina's health is more important."

Hugo looked at me, puzzled, suspicion etched on his face: "Why are you acting so weird today? You're not planning anything, are you?"

"I'm telling you, if you have any complaints, take them up with me. Carolina is innocent."

His words twisted my heart, but I remained calm on the outside. "If Carolina is your sister, then she's mine too. I just hope we can all get along."

His scrutinizing gaze didn’t waver. I urged him, "What are you waiting for? Go!"

Hugo's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, and without another word, he turned and left. Only then did I unclench my hands.

In my past life, I had insisted that Hugo submit the marriage application before seeing Carolina, which drove her to despair. Hugo had hated me for it, staying away for forty years. His family blamed me, tormenting me daily. But this time, I ripped up the marriage application Hugo had left on the table. I had no intention of forcing something that wasn't meant to be.

Hugo didn't return until near nightfall, bringing Carolina with him. As soon as he saw me, he instructed, "The doctor says Carolina has a mild stomachache and needs a light diet for a few days. Could you make her some chicken noodle soup?"

Carolina feigned reluctance and said to Hugo, "Hugo, it's not right to ask Emberlynn to make soup for me. Maybe I should do it myself."

Hugo gently pulled her back, comforting her, "You're unwell. You don't need to work. It's just a bowl of soup; it won't kill her."

Then, he frowned at me, "Didn’t you say this morning that you'd treat Carolina like a sister? Why are you reluctant to make soup now?"

I showed him a cut on my finger, "I accidentally cut myself this afternoon. I can't get it wet for a few days. Why don't I get her some soup from the cafe?"

Before Hugo could respond, Carolina's sarcastic voice interrupted, "Emberlynn, are you trying to avoid helping Hugo by injuring yourself intentionally?"

"And really, such a small cut will heal before you get a chance to show Hugo."

She pouted at Hugo, "Hugo, I feel like Emberlynn doesn't welcome me. Maybe I should just leave."

Hugo comforted her softly, then turned to me with furrowed brows: "Emberlynn, we are about to get married. Can't you stop being so petty and just make some soup?"

I said nothing more and silently went to the kitchen. When I returned with the soup, I found only Carolina in the living room.

As I placed the bowl before her, she whispered, "Emberlynn, you'll never be better than me."

Then she overturned the bowl onto her hand.

Her cries brought Hugo rushing in, witnessing her tearful accusation:

"Emberlynn, I get that you don't want me with Hugo, but why hurt me over it?"

Hugo saw the red burn on Carolina's hand. Concern filled his eyes, overwhelming him. Without giving me a chance to explain, he roughly pushed me aside. "Emberlynn, I thought you were just a bit jealous, but this is malicious. Carolina is ill, and you harmed her on purpose!"

I tried to defend myself, "It wasn't me. I didn't do it."

But Hugo's expression darkened further, "If it wasn't you, then who? Carolina hurting herself? I'm disappointed you can't own up to your mistakes."

Seeing him protect Carolina so fiercely, I knew any explanation would be futile. With a wry smile, I turned and retreated to my room.

Soon, I heard the front door slam shut. I opened a drawer at my desk, taking out two photos from a metal box. One was a family portrait with the Cruz family; the other was a picture of Hugo and me.

My parents had died saving Hugo's father. Out of gratitude, his parents took me in. These photos, taken during my first year with the Cruz family, had been treasures to me.

But now, I saw them as reminders of misplaced affection. I set fire to them, discarding the ashes in the toilet. Then, I calmly prepared for bed.

Later that night, the faint sound of footsteps drew me from my sleep. Startled, I sat up abruptly, my heart racing, until I recognized Hugo standing by the bed. His voice held a hint of apology, "I shouldn't have been harsh earlier. I'm sorry."

"But Carolina's health is delicate. If you have grievances, speak to me directly. Don't trouble her."

I remained silent, lying back and closing my eyes, feigning sleep.

Frustration darkened Hugo's face. "Why are you so jealous? Just because we didn't submit the marriage application today? Stop burdening an ill person."

"I've apologized. Stop stonewalling me. If you keep this up, maybe we shouldn't get married."

Ignoring him, I pulled the blanket tight, signaling the conversation was over. Hugo, frustrated by my indifference, slammed the door as he left.

I wasn't jealous; I simply wanted nothing to do with them anymore. And as Hugo wished, I saw no point in marrying him.

The next morning, I was awakened by a cat's meow. I'm allergic to cats, which is why I never allowed one inside. So where did this sound come from?

As soon as I was dressed, I opened the door, only for a black shape to dart at me. Startled, I reflexively kicked it away. A plaintive cat's cry and Carolina's melodramatic voice followed.

"Whiskers, are you hurt anywhere?"

"Emberlynn, you may dislike me, but why take it out on Whiskers?"

Ignoring Carolina, I turned to Hugo, who was standing beside her. "Hugo, why is there a cat here? You know I'm allergic."

He hesitated before answering, "Carolina's staying here for a few days while she recovers. Whiskers is her pet. It can't stay alone."

"But I'll make sure it doesn't go into your room."

I just felt it was all rather absurd. "You're making sure it won't come into my room? What about the rest of the house? Are you trying to harm me, Hugo?"

"And you're about to get promoted. Having an unrelated woman stay here... aren't you worried about what people will say?"

He sharply retorted, "Emberlynn, not everyone thinks like you."

"Carolina is like a sister. Who would dare say otherwise? And you're here too; we're not alone."

"I'll ensure Whiskers stays away, as much as possible."

But Carolina chimed in, her face a picture of innocence, "Emberlynn is allergic? But I saw you playing with a stray cat in the yard just days ago."

"Are you just trying to chase me off?"

Lies flowed effortlessly from her. With Hugo's doubtful gaze on me, I felt worn out.

Because there was a dog in the living room, I spent the entire day holed up in my room, listening to Hugo and Carolina's laughter outside. I was eager to move out as soon as possible. However, Nicolas informed me that my job assignment hadn’t been finalized yet, and renting a place would require a reference letter. Right now, I had no choice but to stay put.

Suddenly, there was a knock at my door, and when I opened it, Hugo stood there with a food container.

"You haven't eaten all day. I brought you some food from the kitchen. You should eat while it's hot," he said.

"It's got pot roast beef. Carolina even said it tastes great."

Wasn’t Carolina supposed to be dealing with stomach issues and eating only bland foods lately? How was she having beef now? I didn't bother to challenge him on it, just glanced at the container and replied flatly, "Thanks, but I'm not hungry."

With that, I started to close the door.

Hugo seemed unable to accept my indifference and shouted angrily, "Emberlynn, do you realize how lucky you are? Things can’t go on like this forever! You’re only hurting yourself!"

I didn't want to hear more and shut the door firmly.

Early the next morning, I was startled awake by loud knocking. Carolina was outside my door, crying and yelling.

"Emmy, even if you don’t like me and Muffin, you can't just sneak out at night and get rid of him!"

"Muffin was Hugo’s gift for my eighteenth birthday. I've had him for two years now. You’re really too cruel!"

My mind went blank for a moment, and I couldn't immediately respond to Carolina’s accusation. But my silence seemed like guilt to Hugo. He angrily pointed at me and shouted, "Emberlynn, you’ve hurt Carolina before, and now you’ve gotten rid of her pet too. How can you be so heartless?"

"Carolina has been doing her best to make amends with you. She even tried keeping Muffin in her room so you wouldn’t have to see him."

"You need to go find Muffin now. If you don’t, don’t bother coming back!"

I rubbed my temples in exhaustion. "I’m allergic to dog hair—how could I sneak out in the middle of the night to get rid of him?"

Carolina looked tearfully at Hugo. "If you simply open the door, Muffin would naturally run outside!"

"Hugo, I found the front door open this morning. Someone clearly let Muffin out on purpose."

"And no one dislikes Muffin more than Emmy!"

I couldn’t help but retort, "If I really opened the door, why wouldn’t I have closed it properly afterward?"

Carolina continued to plead, "Maybe Emmy knew it was wrong and got flustered, forgetting to shut the door."

I wanted to say more, but Hugo cut me off in a sharp tone, "Enough! Stop trying to dodge responsibility! If you mess up, you have to face the consequences."

"Now go and find Muffin. As long as Muffin is safe, I'll let this go."

With that, he pushed me out the house.

Looking at the closed door, I felt empty inside. I understood why Carolina went to such lengths to frame me. She wanted to push me away from Hugo to take my place. Hugo was climbing the ranks quickly and might soon become a leader. If she could marry him, she'd be the envy of everyone as his wife.

But there was no need for all this—I wouldn't marry Hugo even if my only alternative was living on the streets.

I had no intention of actually looking for Muffin. Carolina could have hidden him away; no matter how hard I searched, I wouldn’t find him. Yet, fate seemed to mock me.

Just as I left the housing complex, I stumbled upon Muffin’s body in the shrubs by the road. It was covered in blood, clearly killed with a knife, cruelly, cut by cut. I had barely registered the shock when Carolina's wailing rose behind me.

"Muffin! Muffin!"

"Emberlynn, if you hate me, fine, but how could you be so heartless and kill Muffin?"

"Hugo, Muffin died a horrible death!"

She wailed before fainting into Hugo's arms. Hugo gathered her up, and as he passed me, his eyes were filled with pure loathing and fury.