Awake Again

Light flooded Olivia Harper’s senses.

Harsh. Blinding.

She gasped sharply, her body jerking upright as though dragged from a stormy sea. Her chest heaved, heart pounding violently, threatening to burst from her ribs. Air rushed into her lungs in uneven, desperate breaths, each one reminding her she was still here.

Still alive.

For a few seconds, she could only sit there, fingers gripping the sheets tightly as if reality itself might slip away if she let go.

Slowly, the room around her came into focus.

Familiar.

Her childhood bedroom.

Warm sunlight filtered through pale curtains that swayed gently in the breeze. Posters lined the walls just as she remembered. Her desk stood neatly by the window, untouched, everything perfectly in place.

Everything was exactly as it had been… two years ago.

Her fingers moved instinctively to her stomach.

Flat.

No pain.

No fear. No loss.

And yet the memory remained, sharp and merciless.

Nathan Blake’s cold indifference.

Her stepsisters’ cruelty hidden behind soft smiles.

Victoria Carter’s quiet, calculated manipulations.

The attack. The blood. The helplessness.

Her chest tightened painfully, the echo of it all still lingering beneath her skin.

She had returned.

Tears gathered in her eyes, but they didn’t fall. They burned instead, heavy with something stronger than fear.

Anger.

Determination.

Never again.

Olivia hugged herself tightly, grounding her trembling body. In her past life, she had been naive—too trusting, too obedient. She had believed Madeline and Lily Carter completely, convinced their kindness was real and their affection genuine.

She had followed every instruction.

Believed every lie.

She had even ruined her own happiness because she thought they truly cared about her.

She had been blind.

A faint, bitter smile touched her lips.

Not this time.

Her eyes hardened as she slowly swung her legs off the bed. The wooden floor beneath her feet felt cool and solid, anchoring her to the present. She stood carefully, letting the reality settle deep within her.

Everything felt sharper now. Clearer.

Like she had finally awakened.

“I won’t beg for love again,” she murmured quietly. “And I won’t trust blindly. Not him. Not them. Not anyone who wants to control me.”

A sudden knock on the door shattered the silence.

Her entire body went still.

Her pulse spiked instantly.

“Olivia? Are you awake?”

The voice came softly from outside—gentle, almost concerned.

Her stomach twisted.

Madeline.

In her past life, she would have opened the door immediately, smiling without hesitation, ready to listen, ready to believe.

Ready to be used.