After Dad cheated and divorced Mom, I did not choose Mom, who walked away with nothing. Instead, I chose Dad, who clearly favored his illegitimate son, Oliver Brooks.
It was only because after their divorce, Mom's obsession with reconciliation romance novels got me killed twice.
In my first life, Mom was so desperate for Dad's respect that she willingly gave up everything in the divorce just to take me with her. In the end, my heart condition flared up, and without money for treatment, I died in agony on that hospital bed.
In my second life, I went against Mom's wishes and asked Dad for the surgery money upfront. However, Mom was hell-bent on pushing Dad onto a so-called redemption path, forced me to go bungee jumping the day before my surgery.
Dad tried to stop me from jumping, but he was speeding and ended up in a fatal car crash. Mom blamed everything on me. With pure hatred in her eyes, she shoved me off that cliff.
"Useless piece of trash! Not only can't you help me win your father back, but you got him killed too. You might as well die with him!"
That moment made everything crystal clear: Mom never actually loved me. She just saw me as a tool to get Dad back.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day Mom demanded a divorce from Dad, for the third time.
"Connor Lawson, since Erin is back from overseas, I'll give you what you've always wanted! Let's get divorced! We can go to the courthouse tomorrow!"
Just like in my previous life, my mom did not give my dad any chance to explain. She boldly slammed the divorce papers in front of him.
She had threatened divorce countless times because of his first love, Erin Brooks. Every single time, he would apologize and give in. However, this time, emotionally and physically exhausted, my dad did not back down. Instead, he picked the pen up and decisively signed his name.
He said, "Audrey Greene, as you wish."
When she heard his words, my mom was furious. Even so, she stubbornly declared, "I don't care about the Lawson family's wealth! As long as you give me Sienna, I'll walk away with nothing!"
My dad frowned, then turned his eyes toward me. "Sienna, your mom and I are getting divorced. Who do you want to live with?"
Suddenly being called out by my name, I saw the hopeful looks in both my parents' eyes and realized I had been reborn again.
During my first life, when my parents got divorced, my mom had brainwashed me to prove she was the person who loved me most in this world.
She would say, "Sienna, if you pick your dad, he'll remarry. Once there's a stepmother, he'll become a stranger. You'll end up bullied by that awful woman! Only I love you the most! As long as you stay with me, he'll eventually beg me to come back!"
To help them reconcile, I chose my mom without hesitation. However, she was completely poisoned by those win-him-back romance novels. Determined to play the role of the strong heroine my dad would regret losing, she insisted on walking away with nothing.
Without money or a job, she dragged me through days where we never knew where our next meal would come from. When my heart condition finally flared up and I was lying on that hospital bed in agony, I begged her to ask my dad for money for the surgery.
Yet, she lashed out at me instead, furious. "We're divorced! We may be poor, but we still have pride! How did I give birth to such a useless child? You want me to sell my dignity and self-respect for some money?"
In the end, I died in excruciating pain on that hospital bed. Pathetically, even in death, I believed every word my mom had said.
So, in my second life, I still chose my mom. Nonetheless, I was more careful this time. I secretly asked my dad ahead of time for the money for my surgery and our living expenses.
My mom cursed and criticized me for being greedy, but she still pocketed the bank card my dad had given us.
What I did not expect was that the day before my heart transplant surgery, she suddenly learned that my dad was attending a parent-teacher conference for Erin's son, Oliver Brooks. Consumed with jealousy, she started brainwashing me again.
"Sienna, whether your dad and I can get back together depends entirely on your performance this time!"
I chose to believe her once more.
Later, she dragged me to a bungee jumping platform and sent the photos to my dad.
[Connor, you know Sienna has a heart condition, right? She's about to bungee jump because of you! Are you going to stop her? If you don't get here in an hour, she'll jump!]
The moment my dad got the message, he sped over. Sadly, he crashed on the way, and he ended up dying in the flames along with Erin and Oliver.
My mom pinned all of it on me. She unbuckled my safety harness and shoved me toward the abyss with pure hatred in her eyes.
She hissed, saying, "If it weren't for you, Connor wouldn't have died. Useless trash! Not only did you fail to help me win him back, but you killed him. You might as well die too!"
Looking at her twisted, vicious face, I finally understood that she never had any motherly love for me. I was nothing but a tool she used to get her husband back.
Even if she did love me, those two lifetimes of horrible deaths were enough to repay whatever debt I owed her for giving birth to me and raising me.
So, in this lifetime, I looked at my dad and held his hand firmly. "Dad, I want to live with you."
My dad held my hand and said, "Sienna, I'll definitely give you the best life possible."
My mom stared at me in complete disbelief at my sudden betrayal. Before the divorce, we had supposedly agreed that, whether my dad wanted the divorce or not, I would choose her unconditionally.
However, she did not know that I had been reborn.
The closeness between my dad and me must have stabbed her right in the heart. She pointed at me and started screaming, "Sienna Lawson, what kind of lies did your dad and that woman feed you? I birthed you, so how dare you choose him over me?"
She hissed, saying, "Do you have any idea what I've sacrificed all these years to raise you? I was willing to leave with nothing just so that woman and her son wouldn't bully you! How could you be so heartless?!"
I stared coldly into her eyes, completely unmoved. I had heard this kind of emotional blackmail countless times before.
Every time she needed me to lie to trick my dad into coming home, she would say those exact words. After lying so many times, my dad eventually stopped falling for it. Then, she would force me to hurt myself just to get his attention.
Even now, remembering those days of being manipulated, I could not help but shiver.
When my mom saw my lack of reaction, she turned her rage on my dad. "Once he remarries, he'll surely become a stranger to you! I can guarantee that I won't marry anyone else, so no one will ever dare to hurt Sienna. Can you promise her the same?"
Just as my dad was about to speak, I rolled up my sleeves, sobbed, and said, "Dad, I just want to live with you! Please don't abandon me! Every time you're not home, Mom forces me to cut myself with a knife! If I stay with Mom, I'll die!"
When my dad saw the scars all over my arm, his eyes instantly turned bloodshot. He pulled me into his arms and glared at my mom with fury.
He growled, "Audrey, even wild animals won't harm their own young! How could you be so cruel? And to your own daughter? You wanted a divorce, right? Then get out now!"
In my mom's so-called win-him-back plan, step one was to leave the marriage and take me with her. Then, step two was to use my scars to guilt my dad into marrying her again.
However, I had exposed everything at once, and she finally panicked.
"Sienna, you ungrateful brat! I should've never given birth to you! I'll pack my things and leave the Lawson residence right now. You two better not regret this!"
She stormed upstairs and, an hour later, came down dragging two suitcases.
As she headed for the door, I grabbed one of her diamond-studded designer suitcases and asked, "Mom, didn't you say you'll leave with nothing? Why are you taking Dad's million-dollar suitcase?"
The suitcase fell open, revealing various expensive purses and jewelry inside. I pressed further and said, "Mom, don't tell me you've lost your pride? You say you want to walk away like a strong, independent woman, but now you can't even let go of the luxury bags and jewelry Dad has given you."
My mom gritted her teeth and let go of both suitcases, looking at me with disdain. "Who cares about these worthless trinkets anyway?! When that homewrecker brings her son to bully you, don't come crying to me!"
Watching her dramatic exit, I knew she was already fantasizing about some dramatic redemption scene where my dad and I would eventually beg her to come back.
However, her dream was destined to be shattered.
After my mom left, my dad applied some cream to my arms. His eyes were red with tears, filled with guilt. "Sienna, it's all my fault for being too busy with work and neglecting you."
Looking at him like this, I felt sad too. In my previous life, my mom had brainwashed me into thinking he was a cheating scumbag who favored Oliver over me. However, it was not until I saw how my dad died on that highway trying to save me that I realized he was the one who truly loved me most in this world.
Just as I was about to comfort him, his phone suddenly rang. He glanced at it and hung up with an uncomfortable expression on his face.
Then, it started ringing again. I caught a glimpse of the caller ID and saw that it was Erin.
I immediately spoke up. "Dad, that's Ms. Brooks calling, right? It must be something urgent. You should answer it!"
He looked surprised at my words. Whenever anything involved Erin, I had always reacted with the same extreme disgust and anger as my mom.
However, that was because I had always believed she was the homewrecker who caused my parents' divorce. The truth was, in their three-way story, my mom was actually the despicable homewrecker everyone would hate.
Erin and my dad were childhood sweethearts who had already reached the point of discussing marriage. Meanwhile, my mom had been secretly in love with my dad for years and was willing to drug him just to marry into the Lawson family.
My grandparents, considering the business relationship between the two families and the fact that my mom was pregnant with me, forced my dad to marry her.
Erin was so heartbroken that she left the country immediately. It was only when she returned recently that my dad discovered she had been pregnant before they split up.
Even then, whenever he kept in touch with her, it was only because of the child. He had never once betrayed my mom.
Yet, my mom, obsessed with those toxic win-him-back romance stories, convinced herself that Erin had come back to steal her husband. Thus, she struck first and planned all of this.
In the end, I watched Erin and my half-brother, Oliver, die on the way to see me. I finally understood they never intended to take my dad away from us.
They even lost their lives because of it.
So, I continued to encourage my dad. "Dad, I can tell right from wrong. Just answer it."
When the call connected, Erin's anxious voice came through. "Connor! Oliver collapsed from anemia again. He needs your blood right now."
Both Oliver and I inherited our dad's rare blood type. If it were not so hard to find compatible donors, I think Erin probably would never have planned to return to the country.
Since I insisted, my dad brought me along to the hospital. After Oliver was out of danger, Erin breathed a sigh of relief.
When she saw me, she gently patted the top of my head and said, "Sienna, thank you for coming with Connor. I promise you that I will never interfere in your parents' relationship."
I replied, "Ms. Brooks, my parents are already divorced..."
Before I could finish my sentence, a figure rushed up to me. Then, a stinging slap landed hard across my cheek.
I looked up to see my mom's murderous expression. "Well, well! I was wondering why you'd betray me so suddenly. It looks like you've already been bought by that vixen! You couldn't wait to tell her about the divorce, could you? What? Are you hoping she'll take my place as your mother?
"Just like those ungrateful daughters in those romance novels, you'll never deserve a mother's love!"