Second Chance: Her First Love Over Me Chapter 2

I watched the frantic activity around me, but not a single person came to check on my condition.

After what felt like an eternity, a young nurse finally called out, “Dr. Reed, Mr. Vance’s blood pressure and heart rate are dropping fast! You need to come look!”

Evelyn came over, pried my eyelids open, shone a penlight in my eyes, and took my blood pressure before giving me a rough shove.

“Hey, Leo, that’s enough. I can handle your tantrums on a normal day, but look at where we are. Julian is in emergency surgery. If we’re a minute too late, he could lose his leg. I’ll let the fact that you were stalking and threatening him slide this one time, considering you’re injured.”

My mind went blank. In our three years together, forget having the time or energy to stalk someone—I was the one being monitored, even when I went to the bathroom.

I closed my eyes, refusing to engage. She pinched my right thigh, hard. “Alright, stop playing dead. Get your IV drip and go home. Don’t cause any more trouble.”

My leg was truly numb. But no one believed me.

Evelyn then led a procession of medical staff, wheeling Julian towards the ICU, leaving only the young nurse to watch over me.

“Head nurse, it’s bad! Mr. Vance’s BP is down to 60 over 40!”

“Damn it, it’s crush syndrome! He’s going into shock! Get the crash cart, push one of epi, and call for backup in OR two!”

They finally realized the gravity of the situation and started scrambling to save me.

Staring up at the shadowless lamp above, I felt a strange, sharp sense of being alive.

It was only in this second life that I began to truly understand my relationship with Evelyn.

Three years ago, when my younger brother needed a massive sum for his uremia treatment, it was Mr. Reed, Evelyn’s grandfather, who provided the funds. Though my brother passed away in the end, I was eternally grateful to the Reed family. Even when the condition for their generosity was that I marry into their family, I agreed.

When I met Evelyn, we hit it off. She was obsessed with medicine, so her grandfather poured all his energy into me, making me the acting CEO of the Reed Corporation.

This all changed six months ago when Julian returned from abroad. Evelyn grew distant, often staying out all night.

Julian was her first love. Though his family was poor, he had refused to marry into hers. Mr. Reed, admiring his pride, had given him money to study overseas instead.

Everyone whispered that the golden couple was finally reunited, a spark ready to ignite a wildfire. They said I’d been wearing a green hat for a while.

I didn’t believe it at first. Evelyn even introduced us, and Julian and I got along great, adding each other on social media and lamenting we hadn’t met sooner.

But soon after, Julian began to provoke me relentlessly through private messages.

When Evelyn claimed she was on duty, Julian would send me a video of them at an amusement park, kissing each other.

When Evelyn said she wasn't feeling well and was on an IV drip, Julian would send a photo of her asleep beside him, her head resting on his shoulder, a blissful smile on her face.

And every time, before I could confront her, she would wrap her arms around me, her tone affectionately chiding.

“Leo, are you made of wood? Can’t you tell when someone isn’t feeling well?”

“Leo, you don’t love me at all. I’m exhausted from my shift, and you’re here accusing me, questioning me.”

But she didn't know that when she worked late, I would wait with a late-night snack to drive her home. When she was sick, I would stay up all night by her side.

She was an untouchable goddess, and I was the dirt beneath her feet.

I loved her. If she said it, I believed it.

Julian grew bolder, even coming to my office to flaunt his position and humiliate me. When I told Evelyn, she would just dismiss it, saying I was being petty for a grown man.

She insisted it was all in the past, that they were just old friends catching up, that nothing was happening. She’d accuse me of thinking so little of her, her eyes welling with tears.

After Julian jumped, she didn’t cry, didn’t grieve. She just told me to focus on the wedding.

I helped her pick her favorite dress, try on the most beautiful makeup, only for her to butcher me like a fish on our wedding night.

I realize now that when you truly hate someone, you can be perfectly calm, without a single ripple on the surface.

Unfortunately, I was too lost in the joy of my own survival to see it. By the time the fire started, I realized it was all just a beautiful, empty illusion.

Under the influence of the anesthetic, I drifted into a deep sleep, and the world around me slowly faded to black.