Crimson Yellowstone Chapter 1

After passing the civil service exam, before I had even done the medical check and started the job, my boyfriend insisted on taking me on a road trip through Yellowstone during the one-month break I had.

An adventure enthusiast, he drove our car right into a grizzly bear conservation area and told me I could feed the "cute little bears" with rice crackers.

But when we actually encountered one, my naturally cautious nature kept me from opening the window. The massive grizzly before us looked to be over six hundred pounds, with a ferocious face and sharp fangs—not at all the "cute little bear" my boyfriend had described.

Seeing my hesitation, he actually used the car's master controls to lower my window, allowing the grizzly to tear the skin from my face with a single swipe of its paw.

Disfigured, I lost my chance at the civil service position. My boyfriend, who was the runner-up, took my place.

In despair, I chose to hang myself in the new house he was preparing for our marriage. When I opened my eyes again, I was back, five minutes before we met the grizzly bear.

* * *

As we drove through the grizzly bear conservation area, a few bears appeared ahead, hunched over, eating something.

The edges of the leftover hide on the ground were curled—it looked like the hind leg of a pronghorn antelope. The blood on the ground had been licked clean, making the scene almost deceptively less gruesome.

Quinn pulled the car over, his voice electric with excitement. He reached into the back seat, grabbed a bag of rice crackers, and handed them to me.

“Here, you can open these and feed them. They’re so cute, don’t be scared! Look how fluffy they are. They look so soft to the touch.”

I stared at the grizzlies in the distance, tearing and fighting over the antelope leg, and couldn't connect them with the word "cute" in any way.

The car radio crackled intermittently with a news report about the local bear population.

“The Yellowstone grizzly is the apex predator of this region, known for its astonishing speed and power… and each year, these bears consume…”

Quinn quickly switched off the radio. I asked anxiously, “Consume what?”

He smiled innocently, patting my cheek to reassure me.

“Just a few pronghorns and rabbits, that’s all. Such cute animals can’t possibly eat people, right? You’re already a bit of a worrier, don't overthink things.”

I was still a little uneasy, but I took the rice crackers from him.

Outside the window, the grizzlies had savage faces and sharp fangs. Their massive paws were still caked with bits of flesh. From a distance, they looked fluffy, but up close, their fur stood up like steel needles.

One of the grizzlies was watching us warily, its eyes fixed directly on me, its blood-red tongue licking the blood from its lips.

Seeing my hesitation, my boyfriend, Quinn, reached over to roll down my window himself.

In my past life, to snatch a coveted civil service spot, Quinn had taken me to Yellowstone to be bear food. He had convinced me the grizzlies were gentle, rolled down my window, and let one tear the skin from my face, disfiguring me and disqualifying me from the position.

Afterward, he played the innocent victim, claiming I had been injured because I had underestimated wildlife, and it had nothing to do with him.

Not long after, he successfully took my place at the job, started dating again, and his family joyfully bought them a new house. Meanwhile, I was in a hospital, my face wrapped in bandages, crying every single day.

To spite Quinn and cause him financial ruin, in the depths of my depression, I chose to hang myself in his newly renovated house.

Relying on the memories of my past life, I quickly grabbed Quinn’s hand as he reached for the window controls. I forced a relaxed smile.

“You know, I’ve been thinking a lot, and I don’t think a government job is for me. I’d rather start my own e-commerce business, focusing on international markets.”