Love's Reborn

April 19, 2025

Selena felt her chest burning, her feet were throbbing with pain. She couldn't run any longer. The darkness made it difficult to know exactly where she was going, but she was unable to stop, even if she wanted to. If she stopped, she would probably lose her life.

Even running like a madwoman, she could hear the footsteps behind her, as fast as her own, chasing her through the dark forest since she had left the Campbell mansion.

This night couldn't be more tragic; in fact, her life couldn't be more tragic. Her marriage was a failure, she had been kicked out of the house after a scheme, and now some crazy person was chasing her through the woods since she had left the mansion, desperate and scared.

She was already hoarse from screaming for help, but there was no one to assist her-at least that's what she believed. There had never been anyone to help her in her life; it was proving true again. Once more, she was alone to face her problems; no one would fight for her but herself.

A glimmer of hope reached her heart when Sel noticed that the trees were thinning and the path was becoming clearer. She could even see the light of the full moon illuminating the treetops and making her path a little clearer.

"I'm saved! That opening must be the road! Thank God, I'm saved!" Sel thought, and a smile shone on her face.

But that hopeful smile quickly faded when she reached the clearing. It was a beautiful open area with lush green grass and a lovely view of the full moon, but there she was, trapped. Contrary to what she imagined, there was no highway awaiting her, just a green field surrounded by trees and, ahead of her, a cliff overlooking the sea.

Realizing she had run to her death, she started crying again. From where she stood, she could hear the sea waves crashing against the rocks below and the strong wind howling everywhere. There was nowhere to go back to, as her pursuer was behind her, someone she didn't even know.

Desperate, Selena looked around, searching for an option but found nothing. There was no escape! She ran her hands through her short red hair, walking quickly to the edge of the cliff and looking down. There were many rocks and the open sea ahead. If she survived the fall, she would drown because she didn't know how to swim.

"Damn! Damn! Damn!" she shouted, tears filling her eyes, completely disoriented.

When she turned around, Selena saw a movement among the trees and, moments later, saw him emerge from the forest. Her voice caught in her throat, and her fear-filled tears turned into tears of hatred and resentment. Her face twisted into an expression of pure regret as she took another step back when she saw the gun pointed at her. As she moved, her foot reached the edge of the cliff, and she looked down, seeing once again the waves crashing against the rocks and the sea, furious and relentless, behind her.

"Why are you doing this to me? What did I do to you, huh?" she screamed again, her chest filled with anger. "I didn't do anything to deserve this!" Her voice was trembling, and she felt the tears invading her being once more.

Thick tears rolled down her cheeks, blurring her vision, but even that didn't stop her from seeing the victorious and cruel smile that appeared on her pursuer's lips as he cocked the gun. Then, moments later, he pulled the trigger, shooting Selena in the chest.

She felt a pain she had never felt before; it was physical pain, but it also hurt her soul and shattered her heart into pieces. The person she trusted most was the cause of her death. All the decisions she had made in her life led her to this point.

"Why?" was the last thing she said before her body fell backward, off the cliff.

As she fell, tears streamed down her face, and she felt life leaving her body, her soul being slowly carried away by death.

In the last seconds she had, she saw Anthony at the edge of the cliff, tearing off his shirt and jumping into the sea to save her. A small smile shone on her now-pale lips as she felt the water.

She had no strength left to move or speak, feeling her body slowly sinking into the water. As she closed her eyes, she secretly wished, as her last wish in life:

"I so wanted to change everything... I wanted so much to do things differently... I don't want to die like this! Likewise, I don't! If someone is listening to me, please give me a new chance!"

April 19, 2020

When the sun rose, Sel opened her eyes suddenly.

She was gasping, her chest was sore, her hair felt damp, and her body was limp, almost lethargic. For a moment, she didn't understand what was happening; she remembered the water, the pain from the shot, the forest, but when she looked around, she wasn't in any afterlife realm. Instead, she found only her room, her old room with posters of her favorite band on the walls, pink and delicate curtains at the large window, a wardrobe with a big mirror. Even her usual fluffy rug was perfectly the same.

She furrowed her brow and got up quickly, feeling dizzy as soon as her feet hit the floor. She ran to the mirror and couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her red hair was no longer short; on the contrary, it was long and had beautiful waves at the ends. She was wearing her heart-patterned pajamas, didn't have the tattoo she had secretly gotten on her right shoulder, and, most importantly, didn't have a ring on her finger. There was nothing left from the previous night; the only thing that clearly reminded her that this life wasn't a crazy dream was the small, pinkish, round mark from the shot on her chest, but she didn't remember who had tried to kill her.

For a moment, she didn't know what to do, touching her face, shocked by what she was seeing. But she didn't have time to think much more; her phone rang, and the ringtone filled the room, pulling her out of her trance. She ran back to the bed, grabbed her phone, unlocked the screen, and saw the date in the top corner of the device.

April 19, 2020.

It was the day she would start university.

But that wasn't the most important thing. Besides being the day she was supposed to start university, it was also the day her father would suffer the accident that would set off all the ruin in her life.

"Was my wish granted, then? Is this my new chance?" she thought, feeling her head ache from the shock and fear.

But there was no time to think. She needed to run.

It was time to start changing her life! She wouldn't waste her new chance, nor would she make the same mistakes from the past. Now was the time to build a new life and find out why someone tried to kill her!

"I don't have time for this kind of situation anymore!" Selena said, panting as she ran back to the wardrobe, flinging open the doors and grabbing the first piece of clothing she saw.

At that time, she still lived in Anthony Campbell's house, her father's boss. George Carinard was Anthony's chauffeur, and when he was hired, Anthony invited them to live in the small house behind the mansion, which was meant for the staff. At first, George did not want to accept, as he had always been a somewhat proud man since he was young. But since he was going through a difficult financial situation with his daughter and after some insistence from Anthony, he eventually gave in.

Thus, the Carinard family got a house, and Anthony got a full-time driver and friend, as George insisted he would be available to his boss whenever needed. George felt he owed this man a favor for giving him such a good job and a place to live, especially for his daughter.

This happened exactly two years ago, and that was Selena's first contact with the Campbell family, but she never imagined her ties with them would become so intense.

Still confused and unsure of what was happening, Sel left her room and ran towards the outside of her house, reaching the massive back of the mansion. It didn't take long for her to cross the garden and find the garage.

"There's no time to ask questions," she muttered, stopping in front of the box mounted on the wall where the vehicle keys were kept.

The redhead opened the box with all the strength her desperation had given her and pulled out the key to one of the motorcycles, not even bothering to look for a helmet or anything similar. She was already set on her decision.

Sel found the motorcycle a few meters ahead and got on it, turning the key in the ignition just as the butler, Thomas, arrived at the garage, practically running.

Charles had heard the loud noise from the motorcycle's engine, and since Mr. Anthony wasn't home, he ran to check, fearing someone had broken into the mansion.

"Sel? What are you doing? Sel!" he shouted as he saw her start the bike and peel out of the garage, barely avoiding crashing into the gate that opened just as she passed through.

Her hair flew in the wind, and she was so nervous, her heart racing so fast it made her chest burn and the air in her lungs seemed to escape along with the motorcycle's speed. She couldn't think of anything but saving her father; the consequences of stealing her boss's motorcycle didn't matter to her in this tense moment. She knew she had to prevent the accident!

This was her first chance, the first act that would change her fate, but it wasn't just her fate at stake, but her father's as well. George had always cared for her with so much love and affection; since her mother's death, her father had been her rock, and now she could prevent him from falling into a coma.

As she rode, Selena ran red lights and overtook cars in front of her. She heard some people shouting at her along the way, honking and complaining, but she didn't have time to care about that. She couldn't afford to pay attention to anything but her mission.

It took her only a few minutes to reach the company where her father, every morning, drove Anthony and picked up the company car, leaving the armored model in the parking lot. The moment she stopped the bike, she saw her father leaving the store with some packages in hand, completely unaware of the danger following him.

George was calm; he had dropped Anthony off at his office and the armored luxury car in the company's underground garage. Now, he just needed to pick up the regular car that stayed there overnight to start his day's work. He needed to pick up some orders for Anthony and also stop by the Campbell mansion to speak with his daughter.

Sel saw him open the car door and, at that moment, she ran towards her father's car, stopping between him and the door, panting and with her face red from running.

"Sel? What are you doing here?" George asked, confused. "Wait... Is that Mr. Anthony's motorcycle?"

"Listen to me, Dad, you can't get in this car!" Sel began, not knowing what excuse to use to convince him not to get in the car. "I... I had a terrible nightmare about you! My intuition tells me there's something wrong with the car, please believe me!" Her voice was tearful and trembling. She knew how stubborn her father was and feared he wouldn't believe her.

"Come on, Dad... Trust me!" she pleaded in her thoughts, feeling her whole body chill as George's sharp eyes stared at her.

George had always been a very skeptical man, but seeing his daughter so shaken and nervous, he sighed, placing the packages on the car hood and pulling Sel into his arms, hugging her warmly.

"Oh, daughter... You shouldn't have left the house for this, it's all right," he began, gently stroking her red hair and giving her a kiss on the forehead. "But if it will make you feel better, I'll call the mechanic that Mr. Campbell always takes his cars to come and take a look, what do you think?"

His thick eyebrows were furrowed, and his light eyes looked at her with concern. George didn't intend to question his daughter, not because he believed in intuition, but because he knew Sel's mother's death anniversary was approaching and how sensitive his daughter became during this time.

"Okay, call him, and you'll see I'm right!" Sel agreed, sighing in relief, confident that the car's brakes were bad.

Before returning to her former life, Roman had been the one to tell her about her father's accident, and at the time she believed the brakes just failed, that it was just a mechanical mishap. But now she suspected her father's death had something to do with her own death. She didn't know what was behind it all, but now she believed nothing was by chance.

She saw her father walk away and then breathed again, feeling calm as he picked up the phone and called the mechanic. While she watched him, for a moment she detached from the world, remembering the day she learned about the accident that would have happened at that exact moment if she hadn't arrived in time:

"I'm sorry, Selena, I didn't mean to bother you," Henry said, smiling sweetly at the young woman in front of him.

Since his second son hired George as a chauffeur, Henry quickly bonded with his daughter, seeing her as a kind and loving young woman with her family, which enchanted him. So he sought to befriend her and treated her like a daughter as well.

When he learned about the accident, he decided he would be the one to tell the poor girl, who was already motherless and would now have to bear the news that her father was in a coma in the ICU. He felt a similar pain; George had been driving for Anthony that day, and according to what the company reported, Anthony never arrived at work that day, so he was also in the car at the time of the accident.

"It's okay, Mr. Campbell, did something happen?" Sel felt that something was wrong.

Mr. Campbell always visited her occasionally, but his eyes were dark, and there was something there-sadness, fear-things Sel couldn't understand.

Mr. Campbell sighed, running a hand through his thinning hair. He was about 60 years old and had almost no hair, nor did he have a beard. His face was clean, with some noticeable wrinkles. Normally, Sel saw him as a kind grandfather, but she couldn't smile at that moment.

"An accident happened, Sel, your father, and Anthony were on their way to the company when they had a car accident," Mr. Campbell began, placing his right hand on the girl's shoulder. "Your father is in the ICU; the doctors induced a coma, his condition is serious... I'm so sorry, my dear."

At that moment, Selena felt the ground disappear beneath her feet; her entire world collapsed. She only had her father, and after her mother's death, since she was eight, it had been just the two of them. Her father always did everything he could to give her the best, even in the simplicity of their lives. After Anthony, Henry Campbell's grandson, hired him as a chauffeur, their lives had improved greatly, and Sel saw that her father no longer had to work so hard.

She couldn't believe that, just when things were getting better, this had happened.

What would she do now?

How would she live?

And most importantly, how would she pay her father's medical bills and give him the best possible treatment?

She had just started college that day, had no steady job, and didn't have the money to keep him hospitalized and to maintain the equipment that kept him alive! Despair began to overwhelm her more and more, and she started crying, not caring about Henry. But before she could say anything, she felt a second hand on her other shoulder, and when she looked up, she saw Roman, Henry's second grandson.

Unlike Anthony, Roman had eyes as black as night, dark hair, and fair skin. He was tall, had an elegant bearing, and his presence would make anyone's knees shake because of how imposing he was. But there, even with his eyes still a bit cold and distant, was a man showing his support.

"Don't worry, Sele," he said, calling her by a nickname no one had ever given her. "My father and I share your pain... We lost someone too. My brother hasn't been found, and we fear the worst... We'll support each other through this difficult time and help you with whatever you need."

That day, she believed she had met the best man of her life. Roman did everything, truly supported her, helped her, and was there with her and Henry, but Selena didn't know then what she knew now. At 19, she was just a girl with many dreams and a great sadness, but no longer. She might be 19 again, but she remembered well what she had gone through with the Campbells and would not fall for Roman's tricks once more, not in the way he wanted.

When her father approached again, she looked at him with a smile. Having the chance to see him standing and speaking with her again was the greatest blessing she could have; she would protect him as much as possible.

"The mechanic is coming. Let's go home, okay?" George said, looking at the motorcycle across the street and shaking his head. "You'll have to explain to him what happened."

Sel didn't say anything, just laughed and left with her father, crossing the street and getting on the motorcycle with him. Together, they stopped at her favorite café and had a good coffee because George wouldn't do anything while the car was in the shop. After that, they went back home.

When they parked in front of the Campbell mansion, George and Sel saw police cars and several reporters looking for someone to talk to. The crowd was growing more and more, and by slipping through the side gate, they reached the garden. Sel was confused; how long had it been since she left? It hadn't been more than two hours away from home. Inside the house, in the foyer, George stepped ahead and found old Henry sitting on the couch near the visitors' entrance.

Roman was beside him, comforting his father with a blank expression. She remembered everything that had happened in her life while they were married, remembered how Roman treated her, and the last night she saw him when he threw her out of the house. At that time, she didn't know, but marrying Roman was the beginning of her end.

"Mr. Henry, what happened?" Sel approached him with compassion and pity, as he was crying like a child. "What's going on?"

"They took him, Sel! They took my grandson," Henry said, his voice rough and sad. "He left the company to do something, and they took him on the way! We know because the kidnappers called the major newspapers! We don't know what they want, but Anthony is in their hands!"

Only then did Selena remember, George wasn't the only victim that day... Anthony also lost his life in that same accident. Anthony was her father's boss, a man about 28 years old, with dark skin that seemed to shine in the sun, light-brown eyes, and a muscular build that made any woman sigh, including Sel. They exchanged few words in their lives, but Anthony was always so kind that, secretly, she had a crush on him that lasted since her father introduced him as his boss.

At that moment, Sel felt a sharp pain in her head and her legs went weak. She placed her hand on her forehead and took a deep breath, then clearly remembered her death once more.

"But... I saw Anthony jump off the cliff to save me... Could it be, could he never have died in that accident? Anthony, please, be alive!"