The Billionaire My Sister Wanted Is Mine Now

Serena's POV

I remember the exact moment my life ended.

The champagne in my hand tasted slightly bitter, but I ignored it.

After all, tonight was supposed to be the happiest night of my life.

The ballroom of the Vale Estate glittered with golden lights, crystal chandeliers reflecting across the polished marble floors. The laughter of guests filled the air, soft classical music drifting from the orchestra in the corner. Everyone important in the city was here tonight.

Because tonight, Adrian Kingsley had proposed to me.

Even now, as I stood on the balcony overlooking the endless skyline, the diamond ring on my finger sparkled under the lights. It was huge, easily the kind of ring people would gossip about for weeks.

"The future Mrs. Kingsley."

That's what they had all been calling me tonight.

The thought made me smile faintly.

Not because of the wealth or the title.

But because I had truly believed I was finally going to have a happy life.

I leaned lightly against the balcony railing, letting the cool night air brush against my face. My long chestnut hair moved gently in the wind as I stared at the city below.

Twenty-eight years.

That was how long I had lived.

Twenty-eight years of trying to be the perfect daughter.

The perfect sister.

The perfect fiancée.

And tonight was supposed to be the reward for all that effort.

Behind me, the doors to the ballroom opened.

I didn't have to turn around to know who it was.

"Sister."

The voice was soft and sweet.

I smiled before turning around.

"Lily."

My stepsister stood in the doorway, looking exactly the way everyone always described her-beautiful and delicate, like a porcelain doll that needed protection.

Her blonde hair fell perfectly over her shoulders, and her pale blue dress made her look even more fragile than usual. People always said Lily looked like an angel.

And for most of my life, I had believed it too.

She walked over to me slowly, her eyes immediately falling to the ring on my finger.

"Wow," she said quietly.

Her voice sounded almost breathless.

"So it finally happened."

I laughed softly.

"Yeah. I guess it did."

Lily reached out and gently took my hand, lifting it so she could examine the ring more closely. The diamond caught the light beautifully, scattering reflections across the balcony walls.

"You're so lucky," she murmured.

I shook my head.

"You'll find someone too."

For a moment, Lily didn't respond.

Then she let go of my hand and leaned against the railing beside me.

"Of course," she said.

"But it probably won't be someone like Adrian Kingsley."

There was something strange about the way she said his name.

Something sharp.

But before I could think too much about it, she smiled again-soft and innocent.

"Have you been drinking?" she asked.

I lifted the champagne glass in my hand.

"Just one."

"Well, that's not enough," Lily said lightly. "You just got engaged. You should celebrate properly."

She nodded toward the glass.

"You should finish it."

I hesitated for a moment.

The champagne did taste a little strange.

But that was probably just my imagination.

I raised the glass and finished the drink.

The bitterness was stronger this time.

I frowned slightly.

"That tastes weird," I said.

Lily didn't respond.

I turned to look at her.

And that was when I noticed the change in her expression.

The sweetness in her eyes had disappeared.

Her lips were curved in a small smile-but it wasn't the warm, gentle smile she always showed everyone else.

It was colder.

Sharper.

My chest suddenly felt tight.

"Lily...?"

A strange burning sensation spread through my stomach.

Within seconds, it climbed into my chest like fire.

My fingers loosened around the empty glass.

It slipped from my hand and shattered against the marble floor.

The sound echoed sharply in the quiet balcony.

My legs gave out.

I collapsed to my knees, clutching my chest as pain shot through my entire body.

"What...?"

My voice came out as a weak gasp.

Something was terribly wrong.

The burning sensation spread faster, crawling through my veins like poison.

My vision blurred.

I looked up at Lily, panic rising in my chest.

"Did you...?"

The words barely came out.

Lily crouched down in front of me.

And then she laughed softly.

It was the first time I had ever heard her laugh like that.

Calm.

Cruel.

"You finally noticed," she said.

My heart dropped.

"No..."

But the truth was already clear.

The bitter taste.

The burning pain.

My body slowly shutting down.

"You poisoned me," I whispered.

Lily tilted her head slightly, studying my face.

"I prefer to think of it as correcting an unfair situation."

My breathing became shallow.

Every breath felt harder than the last.

"Why...?" I managed to ask.

Lily sighed as if the answer should have been obvious.

"Because you had everything."

She began counting on her fingers.

"The inheritance from grandmother."

"Father's trust."

"The perfect reputation."

"And now..." her eyes flicked to the diamond ring still on my finger, "...Adrian Kingsley."

My hands trembled.

"But you... you're my sister."

Lily smiled again.

"That's exactly the problem."

She leaned closer to me, her voice dropping to a whisper.

"You were always better than me."

My vision darkened around the edges.

"I gave you everything," I said weakly.

"The university... the opportunities..."

"Yes," Lily said calmly.

"And that's why everyone believed I deserved more."

Her eyes gleamed with satisfaction.

"You made it very easy."

Footsteps suddenly echoed inside the ballroom.

Someone was approaching.

Lily stood up quickly.

Then, right in front of my fading vision, her expression changed.

The cruelty vanished.

Her face twisted into panic.

"Oh my God!" she cried loudly.

"Sister! What happened?!"

She knelt beside me again, grabbing my shoulders.

But this time it was only an act.

"Someone help!" she shouted toward the ballroom. "My sister collapsed!"

Voices filled the air as people rushed toward the balcony.

My hearing faded in and out.

The last thing I saw before darkness swallowed my vision was Lily's face.

Still pretending to cry.

Still pretending to care.

But I could see the truth in her eyes.

Victory.

And as the world slowly faded away, one thought filled my mind.

If I could live again...

If I could go back...

I would never sacrifice myself for her again.

Never.

Then everything went black.

Serena's POV

I woke up gasping for air.

My chest heaved violently as if I had just been dragged out of deep water. For a few seconds I couldn't move. My heart pounded so hard it felt like it might burst out of my ribs.

I was alive.

But that didn't make sense.

The last thing I remembered was collapsing on the balcony floor, poison burning through my body while Lily smiled down at me. I remembered the cold marble under my hands, the sound of footsteps rushing toward us, and the darkness swallowing my vision.

I had died.

I was certain of it.

So why was I breathing?

Slowly, I forced my eyes open.

The first thing I noticed was the ceiling.

It wasn't the elegant white ceiling of my penthouse bedroom in the city. This one was painted pale blue, with a faint crack running along one corner that I remembered far too well.

My breath caught.

No... that couldn't be right.

I pushed myself upright, my hands gripping the bedsheets tightly.

The room around me looked painfully familiar.

The wooden study desk beside the window.

The small bookshelf filled with old textbooks.

The faded floral curtains I had always hated but never bothered to replace.

My heart began beating faster.

I knew this room.

Not from recently.

From ten years ago.

"This... isn't possible," I whispered.

My voice sounded younger.

Softer.

My stomach twisted.

I quickly threw the blankets aside and stumbled out of bed, nearly tripping over my own feet as I rushed toward the mirror across the room.

For a moment, I was afraid to look.

But I forced myself to raise my head.

The girl staring back at me wasn't the twenty-eight-year-old woman who had died on that balcony.

She looked eighteen.

My hair was longer, my face softer, untouched by the stress and exhaustion that had marked my later years. My skin was smooth, my eyes clear.

I lifted a trembling hand and touched my face.

The reflection copied the movement perfectly.

My fingers felt warm skin.

Real skin.

Not a dream.

Not a hallucination.

My legs weakened and I grabbed the edge of the dresser for support.

"I... went back?" I whispered.

Memories flooded my mind all at once.

Lily's smile.

The poisoned champagne.

Her voice whispering that everything would become hers.

A sharp wave of anger surged through my chest.

I had trusted her.

Protected her.

Given up so much for her.

And she had killed me without hesitation.

My nails dug into my palms.

"If this is a dream..." I murmured.

Then I noticed something on the desk beside the bed.

A white envelope.

My heart skipped.

I walked toward it slowly, my stomach tightening with every step.

I already knew what it was.

I didn't even need to open it.

But I did anyway.

Inside was a letter with the official seal of Westbridge University.

My acceptance letter.

The same letter I had received ten years ago.

The same letter I had given away.

My hands began to shake.

"This is the day..."

I remembered it perfectly now.

The day I gave up my university admission so Lily could attend instead.

She had cried and begged, saying she didn't get accepted anywhere else. My father had asked me to sacrifice just this once for the family.

And I had agreed.

Because I believed being a good sister meant putting her first.

That single decision had changed everything.

Without that education, I had spent years depending on my family.

Years being manipulated.

Years becoming the perfect, obedient daughter they expected.

Until Lily decided she didn't need me anymore.

A sharp knock on the door suddenly broke the silence.

"Serena."

My father's voice came from the hallway.

My entire body stiffened.

Even after dying once, hearing that voice still made me tense.

"Are you awake?" he asked impatiently.

I swallowed.

"Yes."

"Good," he said. "Come downstairs. We need to discuss the transfer papers."

My heart dropped.

Transfer papers.

The document that would give my university admission to Lily.

The exact moment my future was stolen.

I stared at the acceptance letter in my hand.

In my previous life, I had happily signed those papers.

I thought I was doing the right thing.

But this time...

A slow, cold anger spread through my chest.

I folded the letter carefully and placed it back inside the envelope.

"Serena?" my father called again.

"I'm coming," I replied.

My voice sounded calm.

But inside, something had changed.

I opened the door and stepped into the hallway.

The house looked exactly the same as it had ten years ago.

Bright.

Elegant.

And completely suffocating.

I walked down the stairs slowly, memories flashing through my mind with every step.

When I reached the dining room, everyone was already there.

My father sat at the head of the table, his usual stern expression fixed in place.

Beside him was my stepmother, Margaret, dressed elegantly as always.

And sitting across from them...

Was Lily.

My chest tightened the moment I saw her.

She looked exactly the way I remembered.

Soft blonde hair.

Delicate features.

Wide blue eyes that made her look innocent and fragile.

The same girl who had knelt beside my dying body and smiled.

When Lily saw me enter, her face brightened.

"Sister!" she said softly.

The sound of her voice made my stomach churn.

In my past life, hearing her call me that had always made me happy.

Now it just made my skin crawl.

"Good," my father said when I sat down. "You're finally here."

He slid a folder across the table toward me.

Inside were the transfer papers.

"This will allow Lily to take your place at Westbridge University," he said matter-of-factly.

My stepmother nodded approvingly.

"Your sister needs this opportunity more than you do."

Lily lowered her head slightly, pretending to look guilty.

"Sister... are you sure you're okay with this?" she asked softly.

Her acting was flawless.

Anyone watching would think she truly felt bad about taking my place.

But I knew better now.

I opened the folder slowly.

The contract was exactly the same as I remembered.

All it needed was my signature.

Just one signature...

And my future would disappear again.

The room waited silently.

My father looked impatient.

My stepmother looked confident.

And Lily looked hopeful.

I closed the folder.

"I'm not signing it."

The words came out calmly.

But they hit the room like a thunderclap.

"What?" my father snapped.

I met his gaze without hesitation.

"I said I won't sign it."

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Lily's face turned pale.

"Sister...?" she whispered.

I looked directly at her.

And for the first time in my life, I allowed myself to feel the anger I had buried for years.

"You should earn your own future," I said quietly.

My father slammed his hand on the table.

"Serena! What nonsense are you talking about?!"

But I stood up.

My voice remained steady.

"I'm going to university."

My stepmother's expression twisted with anger.

"After everything this family has done for you?!"

I looked at all three of them.

And for the first time, I truly saw them clearly.

The people I had sacrificed everything for.

The people who had never once protected me.

"I'm done sacrificing," I said.

Then I turned and walked out of the dining room.

Behind me, chaos exploded.

But I didn't stop walking.

Because this time...

I wasn't going to give my life away again.

Serena's POV

The moment I closed my bedroom door behind me, the shouting from downstairs began.

My father's angry voice echoed through the house, followed by my stepmother's sharp, disapproving tone. Lily's soft crying soon joined them, perfectly timed and carefully dramatic.

I leaned against the door and closed my eyes.

Some things never changed.

Even ten years earlier, the pattern was exactly the same.

Lily cried.

My stepmother defended her.

My father demanded obedience.

And I was expected to surrender.

In my past life, I had always done exactly that.

But not anymore.

I walked toward the window and pulled the curtains open. Morning sunlight poured into the room, bright and warm, illuminating everything.

Everything looked the same.

But I wasn't the same person anymore.

My gaze drifted to the acceptance letter on my desk.

Westbridge University.

One of the best business schools in the country.

The same opportunity I had thrown away ten years ago without hesitation.

I picked up the letter again, running my fingers over the printed words.

"Congratulations, Serena Vale..."

In my previous life, this letter had meant nothing to me compared to Lily's happiness.

But now I knew better.

Education wasn't just about studying.

It was about independence.

Power.

The ability to stand on my own feet instead of depending on people who would betray me.

A slow determination settled inside my chest.

This time, I would go to Westbridge.

This time, I would build my own future.

Not the future my family wanted for me.

My future.

I sat down at my desk and opened my laptop.

If I had truly returned ten years into the past, then I possessed something incredibly valuable.

Knowledge.

Knowledge of everything that would happen over the next decade.

Stock market crashes.

Tech companies rising from nothing to billion-dollar empires.

Real estate booms.

Business mergers that would reshape entire industries.

And one name stood at the center of it all.

Adrian Kingsley.

I stared at the screen as his name appeared in a search result.

Even now, the sight of it made my heart beat faster.

In the present timeline, Adrian was only twenty-six.

He was already known as a brilliant businessman, but his company was still relatively young. Most people saw him as a rising star-someone with potential but not yet a legend.

But I knew the truth.

In ten years, Adrian Kingsley would become one of the most powerful billionaires in the world.

His tech empire would dominate global markets.

His net worth would exceed fifty billion dollars.

And I had once been engaged to him.

My fingers hovered above the keyboard.

Back then, our engagement had been arranged through family connections.

I never truly understood why Adrian agreed to it.

He had always been distant.

Polite, but cold.

I assumed he didn't particularly care about me.

After all, Lily had always been more charming, more likable, more... desirable.

Sometimes I even wondered if he would have preferred her instead.

A bitter smile touched my lips.

What a fool I had been.

I had spent years believing Lily deserved everything more than I did.

But Lily had never believed that.

She believed she deserved everything I had.

Including Adrian.

I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling thoughtfully.

If I wanted to survive this life...

If I wanted revenge...

Then I needed power.

And Adrian Kingsley would eventually become one of the most powerful men in the world.

The thought made my pulse quicken.

Not because of romance.

But because of strategy.

In the future, Adrian would control an empire.

If I aligned myself with him early...

The possibilities were endless.

A knock suddenly interrupted my thoughts.

"Sister?"

My entire body stiffened.

Lily.

Of course.

I slowly closed the laptop.

"Come in."

The door opened cautiously.

Lily stepped inside, her eyes slightly red as if she had been crying.

Anyone who didn't know her well would immediately feel sorry for her.

But I had seen the truth behind that innocent face.

She walked closer to me hesitantly.

"Sister... can we talk?"

I nodded calmly.

"Sure."

She sat on the edge of my bed, clasping her hands together nervously.

"I don't understand," she said softly.

Her voice trembled slightly.

"Why did you change your mind?"

I tilted my head.

"About what?"

"The university," she said quickly. "You promised it was mine."

Promised?

I almost laughed.

In my past life, maybe.

But not in this one.

"Did I?" I asked casually.

Lily blinked.

Her expression flickered with confusion.

"You always said you didn't care about school," she insisted. "You said you wanted to support the family instead."

That had been true.

Once.

Before I learned how little my sacrifice meant to them.

I stood up slowly and walked toward the window.

"You should study harder," I said calmly.

Lily stared at me.

"What?"

"If you want to attend Westbridge," I continued, "you should try getting accepted yourself."

Her face flushed.

"But I didn't get in!"

I turned back to look at her.

"Then apply somewhere else."

The shock on her face was almost amusing.

"Sister... you're being unfair," she whispered.

Unfair.

The word echoed in my mind.

Unfair was dying at twenty-eight because the person you trusted most poisoned you.

Unfair was sacrificing everything for people who never once protected you.

Unfair was living your entire life for someone else's happiness.

I walked closer to her.

Lily looked up at me nervously.

Our eyes met.

For a brief moment, I allowed the cold anger inside me to surface.

"Life isn't fair," I said quietly.

Her eyes widened slightly.

She had never seen me like this before.

In the past, I had always been gentle with her.

Always patient.

Always willing to give in.

But the girl she knew had died on that balcony.

"You'll have to get used to disappointment," I added.

Lily stood up abruptly.

"Sister, I don't know what's wrong with you today, but-"

"I'm going to Westbridge," I interrupted calmly.

Her mouth fell open.

"You're serious?"

"Yes."

"But Father will never allow it!"

I shrugged slightly.

"That's his problem."

The words seemed to hit her harder than anything else.

For the first time, Lily looked uncertain.

She stared at me for a long moment as if trying to figure out who I had become overnight.

Finally, she turned and walked toward the door.

But just before leaving, she stopped.

When she looked back at me, the sweetness had disappeared from her eyes.

Only for a second.

But I noticed.

Then she smiled again.

The innocent Lily everyone loved.

"I hope you don't regret this," she said softly.

The door closed behind her.

Silence filled the room.

I walked back to my desk and opened my laptop again.

On the screen, Adrian Kingsley's name stared back at me.

A slow smile spread across my face.

"No," I murmured.

"I definitely won't."

Because this time...

I knew exactly how the future would unfold.

And I intended to take full advantage of it.