I was diagnosed with cancer, and my son’s gold-digging girlfriend immediately took everything from my family. She had the audacity to claim it was all her “engagement fund” and told my son that even if I died in a ditch, I wasn’t worth a single penny of her money. Because of her, I missed the best time to seek treatment, and my condition worsened. With my life dwindling, I finally snapped and dragged her down with me in a fatal fall. But when I opened my eyes again, I was back to the first time I met her. And this time, I could hear her thoughts. It turned out she wasn’t the gold-digger after all. Content “Travis told me that Clara won’t even look at a bracelet worth less than five thousand dollars. But the one I bought was only eight hundred dollars, even though it took me a whole semester of work-study to save up for it. I already gave it to her days ago. I haven’t seen her wear it, so I guess she just thinks it’s cheap.” I blinked as Hazel’s hesitant voice drifted into my ears, cutting in and out. I opened my eyes to the familiar surroundings of my home and quickly realized I’d been reborn to the moment when my son, Travis, first introduced Hazel to me. In my last life, this so-called gold-digging princess had full control of his paychecks before they’d even married, demanding our family scrape together hundreds of thousands of dollars for her engagement fund because “that’s just how things were done in her family.” By the time I was diagnosed with cancer, we had nothing left to afford treatment. When I tried to talk with her about returning some of the “engagement fund” money to help cover my medical expenses, she refused and even told Travis, “All the family money belongs to me. Your mother’s old life isn’t worth saving, and even if she dies in the streets, she doesn’t deserve a single penny of my money.” Because she was so insistent on not helping, I missed the chance to treat my cancer early, and it progressed to a terminal stage. In the last of my days, as she came to “visit” me, I couldn’t hold back. I pulled her down with me in my final fall. But now, I was back here again, and in a haze, I could hear her voice saying something about a gold bracelet. What did she mean? I looked up, staring at the slightly anxious Hazel in front of me, and her thoughts echoed in my mind again. “Clara’s looking at me so seriously. Is she upset with me? I shouldn’t have listened to Travis about giving her the bracelet early instead of in person. I should’ve just asked my parents for more money to buy her a bigger one, then maybe she’d think I cared more about meeting her.” Her lips hadn’t moved at all—yet I kept hearing this voice. Was it her inner thoughts? When had she ever given me a gold bracelet? In my last life, from the moment we met, she made sure to show me who was in control. She demanded that fruit cost no less than $5 a pound, that our meals be on par with five-star dining, and even insisted on celebrity-endorsed slippers before she’d set foot in our home—and wanted a big cash gift upon leaving. She never paid a dime herself, and every gift she gave me came from the supermarket’s freebie bin. Still in shock, I noticed her glance over at Travis and excuse herself to the bathroom. The second she left, Travis grabbed my arm and whispered, “Mom, why are you just sitting there? Aren’t you going to give her a cash gift? Hazel doesn’t look happy.” “Besides, this fruit and food aren’t even what she asked for. Aren’t you just trying to give her a hard time?” I froze. He had said the same thing in my last life, and I’d thought Hazel was just too materialistic to be a good match for him. That impression only worsened my view of her. But if her thoughts earlier were genuine, it didn’t seem like she was trying to be that way at all.
I shot a few skeptical glances at Travis, beginning to question him too. Last time, he was so weak, all he could think about was his girlfriend. When I tried to press him to return the money, he’d stopped me every time, saying, “Don’t make things too tense—we’ll have to live together in the future.” He’d kept telling me he’d handle it himself. I waited for his solution, but it never came, and my illness only worsened. I couldn’t trust this ungrateful son again. My face darkened. “What do you mean by ‘giving her a hard time’? Just because I didn’t treat her like royalty, I’m ‘giving her a hard time’? I’ve prepared gifts and a cash envelope, yet she comes to me with a supermarket toothbrush. I guess she doesn’t think much of our family, either.” “Mark my words—even if you marry her, I’ll never accept it.” Travis looked shocked at my sudden outburst. He pulled me aside and whispered, “Mom, I already told you, Hazel doesn’t come from much and has had a hard life. We should be the ones spoiling her, not making her uncomfortable. Just try to get along with her, alright?” Just then, Hazel returned. She looked at our uneasy expressions, and her thoughts appeared again. “I was giving Travis the look to have him smooth things over with Clara. Why is she even more upset?” Watching her sit down uneasily, I grew more suspicious. Clearing my throat, I said, “Hazel, you’re still a student. I don’t need gifts from you. Just come by when you can—that’s enough for me.” Hazel’s face looked confused, but her thoughts filled in the blanks again: “What do you mean no gifts? Didn’t Travis give her the gold bracelet? Even if she doesn’t like it, it’s unfair to say I didn’t give her anything.” I glanced calmly at Travis and pulled a few toothbrushes from under the table, placing them on the coffee table. “Travis said you were so thoughtful you even brought me some freebie toothbrushes from the store.” Hazel’s face turned pale, and she immediately looked at Travis. “Since when did I give Clara toothbrushes? Where’s the gold bracelet? Didn’t you give it to her?”
Travis’s face went rigid, but he recovered quickly, grinning as he pulled the gold bracelet out of his bag. “I must’ve forgotten. Here, it’s more official if you give it to her yourself.” Hazel sighed in relief, immediately fastening the bracelet around my wrist while her thoughts continued, “Travis is so careless—how could he forget? Thank goodness Clara brought it up, or I would’ve looked terrible.” I frowned. Hazel was nothing like I remembered. Could it be that she really did try to give me the bracelet in the last life, but Travis never followed through? And because I didn’t feel it was appropriate to ask her about it directly, it turned into a misunderstanding? Why didn’t Travis ever give it to me? After securing the bracelet, Hazel lifted my hand and smiled brightly. “It looks so good on you, Clara. Really suits you.” I stared down at the bracelet, feeling a strange emotion. Because of our awful first meeting, we hardly saw each other after that, and I never knew she could be so sweet. Hazel glanced playfully at Travis. “When are you going to start paying attention to me? I bought that skincare set for Clara, and you said you’d give it to her. But not only did you forget—you used it yourself! You even forgot about something this important?” The skincare set—I remembered that clearly. A month ago, during a video call, I’d appeared on camera briefly with my usual cream in hand. Hazel noticed the brand and even chatted about it with me. The second the call ended, Travis told me she was upset, saying, “Hazel thinks at your age, you shouldn’t waste money on fancy brands. You should save it for your future grandkids and just stick to basic lotion.” I had been furious and told Travis she wasn’t suitable for him. But now, it seemed like I’d gotten things completely wrong. Travis gave me a sheepish glance and put his arm around Hazel, laughing, “I know, babe, I messed up. From now on, I’ll take care of everything you and Mom need.” My heart felt heavy. Had Hazel really been so innocent of everything I blamed her for? And if she hadn’t taken my family’s money, who had? I finished dinner, still plagued with questions. Travis dropped Hazel off at school, and I immediately scheduled a full exam at St. Vincent’s Medical Center. The doctor pointed at my scan and confirmed a small abnormality in my stomach. After a biopsy, it was confirmed to be an early stage of stomach cancer. Luckily, I’d caught it in time, and surgery could completely remove it. I left the hospital feeling relieved, grateful to have a second chance. When I returned home, Travis was slumped on the couch, head in his hands. The moment he saw me, he burst into tears. “Mom, Hazel says we need two hundred thousand for the engagement. What am I going to do?”
Travis wiped his tears. “Hazel says two hundred thousand is the bare minimum her family expects. If I can’t come up with it, she’ll leave me.” He grabbed my hand, eyes pleading. “Mom, I love her. I want to marry her. Please, help me. Once I make good money, I’ll take care of you—two hundred thousand is nothing compared to what I’ll give you back!” I looked at him coolly. “First, you’re going to explain that skincare set business with Hazel.” Travis’s eyes darted as he said, “I just thought you had enough already and wouldn’t need it right away. Besides, haven’t you always given me extra things? So, I figured I’d just use it myself.” “And when did you tell me she thought I should use cheaper products?” Travis rolled his eyes. “It’s just a little misunderstanding. Let it go, will you?” “Now back to Hazel. You bring her over for dinner again. If she passes my test, I’ll scrape together not just two hundred but three hundred thousand dollars for you.” Travis’s eyes lit up, but he looked at me cautiously. “Just don’t mention the money to her, okay? She’s already upset. I don’t want her calling things off.” I raised an eyebrow. “More likely, you don’t want me asking her questions.” The very next day, Travis brought Hazel over again. But this time, she seemed distracted, barely acknowledging my welcome.
While I was still trying to make sense of it all, I heard Hazel’s inner voice: “Travis said his mom’s always been a bit demanding, but I didn’t expect her to insist on a $200,000 dowry, even claiming I couldn’t marry into the family without it. Where am I supposed to get that kind of money? This feels more like a business transaction than a marriage! I thought Clara was always nice when we met, but behind my back, she’s doing things that make her look pretty low.” My heart sank. I had never mentioned a dowry—clearly, this was something Travis came up with on his own. Two hundred thousand from me, two hundred thousand from Hazel…what exactly was he trying to do? Thinking back to the conflicting stories Travis and Hazel had spun, my mind flashed with a realization. Could it be that, in my previous life, Hazel had never held on to that dowry at all? Was it my own son who had hoarded every penny? No wonder he had been so afraid of me confronting Hazel. I fought to keep my emotions in check and called Hazel over to sit with me, sending Travis to the kitchen to fetch the food. Once he was out of earshot, I pulled out my phone and, right in front of Hazel, transferred ten thousand dollars to Travis with a message: “Son, use this to buy Hazel a new outfit. A girl as lovely as Hazel should never have to hold back on dressing her best.” Hazel’s expression turned skeptical, like she thought I was just putting on a show. I didn’t bother explaining, pretending instead to head to the bathroom. When I came back, I noticed Hazel’s expression had changed; she was staring at Travis with a mix of confusion and suspicion. Her thoughts echoed, “Why did Travis say Clara hates my wardrobe and wants me to dress better? Clara didn’t say that. She even gave him ten thousand dollars to buy me something. What’s his game?” I interrupted her thoughts, saying, “Hazel, I asked you here today because I want to talk about the dowry.” Hazel looked stunned and locked eyes with me, finally beginning to understand something wasn’t right.
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