My husband, Ethan Stewart, hated me for six whole Christmases because of the death of his first love, Hailey Fields. I humbly tried to win back his heart, only to be met with his cold mockery: “Julia, if you really want to atone, then die.” Those words pierced my chest like a blade. But when flames engulfed the entire factory, he suddenly rushed in and pushed me away. He collapsed in my arms, blood quickly soaking my clothes, his breathing so faint it was barely noticeable. He said, “Julia, if there’s a next life, let’s not meet again.” Paul and Camila wept bitterly at the funeral, nearly fainting. They regretfully said, “If we hadn’t forced you to break up with her, if we hadn’t made you marry Julia, none of this would have happened.” “Julia, Ethan was held back by you time and again, and now he’s dead because of you. You should have been the one to die!” Amid endless blame and guilt, I eventually chose suicide, closing my eyes at his grave. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to six Christmases ago. This time, I was determined to stay away from Ethan, for everyone’s sake. ***** “Julia, you think forcing me to marry you with our families’ engagement is enough? I’m being coerced! I will never like you!” I froze for a moment, looking up to meet those familiar eyes. It was Ethan, alive. But the Ethan before me was completely different from the mature, reserved, and profound man in my memory. Now he was more like the twenty-one-year-old Ethan, raw and straightforward. I really had returned to six Christmases ago. Just as tears were about to fall, I quickly lowered my head and softly asked, “You love Hailey, and that’s why you don’t want to marry me, right?” This was a fact I’d long known, but bringing it up again still sent a sharp pain through my heart. Ethan sneered, “So what if I do? Will you break off our engagement?” Fighting back the bitterness in my heart, I nodded. “Yes.” My parents were war comrades with Ethan’s parents before they passed away. After their death, they entrusted me to his family. The engagement was arranged then, solely to provide me with security. However, Ethan’s parents always respected my wishes. If I asked, this marriage could indeed be canceled. Ethan was stunned for a moment, then frowned, “Julia, what do you think marriage is? I’ve already submitted the application to my commander, Ivan Powell. Now you want to cancel?” I opened my mouth, but before I could answer, he cut me off, “I have matters to attend to at the base. If you want to break the engagement, tell my parents and Ivan yourself.” With that, he turned and left, his retreating figure resolute and without a trace of attachment. Watching him walk away, the tears I’d been holding back finally streamed down my face. My heart felt like it was being squeezed tightly, making it almost impossible to breathe. Ethan and I grew up in the same neighborhood. Because our parents were close, he always looked after me. He even got hurt multiple times protecting me. I thought he might have feelings for me too, so I secretly told my parents I liked him. My parents also admired Ethan and proposed the engagement to his parents. Later, after my parents passed away, I moved in with his family to fulfill the engagement. Everything seemed to go smoothly. Until I met his first love and realized he never loved me at all. My feelings for him were nothing but shackles holding him back. In my previous life, after I died, my soul lingered at his grave for a long time. Until a passing witch guided me, allowing me to be reborn to fulfill my obsession. And my obsession was to let Ethan go, to give him a life without complications. After coming to this realization, I went to find Ivan first. After hearing me out, he looked troubled. “Julia, have you discussed this with Mr. Stewart? You’ve been together for so long, don’t give up on marriage over something small.” I gave a bitter smile. “Mr. Powell, you misunderstand. We were never dating. He loves someone else, and I don’t want to hold him back anymore.” Ivan seemed to recall Ethan’s first love and sighed deeply, returning the marriage application to me. I carefully folded the document and tucked it into my coat. Next, I went to the military base to find Ethan. After waiting for a long time, I finally saw him come out. When he spotted me, his brows furrowed slightly. “What are you doing here?” I rubbed my arms and handed him the voided marriage application. He reached out to open it with a puzzled look, but I quickly stopped him. “Don’t rush, you can look at it later. Let’s go home first.”
Ethan said, “You’re still being mysterious. I don’t even want to look at it.” Despite his words, he carefully tucked the report into his pocket. I sighed with relief. Just as I turned around, a heavy coat was draped over my shoulders. From above my head came his cold snort. “You’re all grown up now, and you still don’t know to wear more clothes when it’s cold?” I touched the coat, a smile involuntarily spreading across my face. He asked, “What are you smiling about?” I answered, “I’m happy.” I was happy that Ethan was still alive. At the same time, I felt somewhat emotional. He was always so kind, which made me repeatedly misinterpret his goodwill as love. He would ultimately become someone else’s support; I shouldn’t take advantage of his kindness anymore. With this thought, I promptly removed the coat and returned it to him. “Let’s go home. Your parents are waiting for us.” Ethan’s expression darkened. He grabbed the coat and strode forward. I followed closely behind him, instinctively heading toward the back seat when we reached the car. In the past, I was thoughtless, always wanting to be near him in the passenger seat. Now, I was simply finding my proper place. Ethan glanced at me but said nothing, only tightening his grip on the steering wheel. Throughout the journey, no one broke the silence. Only when the bustling sounds of people reached us through the window did I peek outside. I immediately spotted Emmanuel Sanctuary. My thoughts drifted away, suddenly remembering my previous life. Back then, not knowing Ethan liked Hailey, I had dragged him here. Everyone said that couples who prayed here together would stay together for all eternity. Ethan didn’t believe it. He said, “This is all superstition. I should report this illegal structure and have it demolished.” His cold words cut like a blade, piercing deep into my heart, leaving scars that remain to this day. I silently rolled up the window and huddled in the corner. However, the car suddenly slowed down. Then, Ethan opened the back door and unexpectedly said, “Didn’t you want to come here?” I stared at his outstretched hand in front of me, stunned for quite a while. That’s just how Ethan was. He always made me feel inexplicably warm when I least expected it. Before, when I was harassed by thugs, he stepped in despite being on probation, which delayed his military entry by three months. Another time, when I had a high fever, he insisted on taking me to the hospital even after being in a car accident himself. The wound still aches occasionally. During that factory fire, he lost his life protecting me. In our previous life, we weren’t meant to be together. Even if fate has changed somewhat this time, we still won’t end up together. Suppressing the bitterness in my heart, I took his hand and said, “Sure.” Just as I got out of the car, I saw someone rushing over, whispering something in Ethan’s ear. I vaguely heard something about “Hailey not feeling well.” Ethan’s brow immediately furrowed. I instinctively wanted to reach out and smooth it, but then I heard him say, “Hailey didn’t go for her hospital check-up today and now she’s having an episode. She urgently needs a ride. I’ll take her there first. Wait for me here.” I lowered my eyes and softly replied, “Okay.” Ethan frowned and asked, “Aren’t you angry?” The next second, he scoffed, “I guess not. After all, now that you have my mom backing you up, you don’t even need to speak up.” With that, he drove away, completely missing the hurt and desolation in my eyes. When I first learned about Ethan and Hailey’s relationship, I did lose my temper with him. Because I knew Hailey wasn’t as pure as she appeared on the surface. I had seen her entering entertainment venues with numerous men. Through the haze of smoke, her body pressed tightly against theirs. I was just angry that someone as good as Ethan would fall for her. But I also feared he would be hurt if he knew the truth, so I desperately tried to keep them apart. Ethan’s resentment toward me skyrocketed because of this, turning into hatred after Hailey’s death. Since his feelings for Hailey run so deep, I can only support him. I can’t let him die in front of me like he did in my previous life.
I didn’t continue waiting there but went to the Education Board first. Recently, the volunteer program has been in full swing, urgently needing many people to go to the countryside for the “Educational Support” project. The director at the Education Board was extremely pleased to see me come to sign up and asked when I could depart. I said, “In the next day or two.” The marriage application had been withdrawn. Now the only thing left was to explain everything to Ethan’s parents. Soon, I would leave this place and never interfere in anyone’s life again. After getting the registration form, I returned to the Stuart mansion. As soon as I entered, Paul and Camila heard the noise and enthusiastically pulled me into the living room. They asked me a few concerned questions, then noticed Ethan wasn’t with me and asked, “Why did you come back alone? Wasn’t Ethan with you? Where is he?” “You’re about to become his wife. If he dares to mistreat you, we’ll definitely teach him a lesson!” “He had something urgent come up at work, so he left first,” I forced a smile. After my parents passed away, Paul and Camila were the kindest people to me. If there’s anything I find hard to let go of now, it’s them. I said, “There’s something else I want to tell you…” Taking a deep breath, I gathered my courage and said everything at once: “I’m not going to marry Ethan. I’ve signed up for the Educational Support program and will be leaving in the next couple of days.” Camila was clearly shocked by my words and quickly said, “Why have you suddenly decided not to get married? Getting married doesn’t conflict with you joining the program! You two can get your marriage certificate, have the wedding, and then Ethan can visit you whenever he’s free.” Paul chimed in, “That’s right. You’re a young woman—having him by your side looking after you would give us peace of mind.” I shook my head, my voice calm but firm: “Ethan never loved me. If we really got married, we wouldn’t be happy in the future. Let’s just end it.” Camila slammed her hand on the table and angrily demanded, “Is Hailey causing trouble for you again? They’ve already broken up, and she still won’t give up? I’m going to teach her a lesson today!” In my previous life, they stood by me without hesitation like this. Until Ethan lost his life trying to save me, and everyone was plunged into deep regret. The fact is, this marriage was a mistake from the beginning. Without hesitation, I knelt on the ground, my voice choked but clear and strong: “This has nothing to do with anyone else. I just don’t want to marry Ethan anymore. “After my parents died, you’ve been like parents to me. “So I’m begging you to let me go, and let Ethan marry the person he truly loves.” After saying this, I kowtowed several times. Even though my forehead was bleeding, I showed no intention of lessening the force. Tears welled in Camila’s eyes as she quickly helped me up: “Julia, please get up! This is all Ethan’s fault.” Paul sighed deeply and comforted me: “We originally arranged this engagement for your benefit. If you don’t want it, then let’s forget about it. “But wherever you go in the future, you must take good care of yourself. This will always be your home.” He then stuffed a thick wad of cash into my pocket. Just as I was about to refuse, a cold male voice came from outside: “Julia, didn’t I tell you to wait for me there? “You came back ahead of me just to complain to my parents, huh? I really underestimated you!” Ethan strode over and yanked me aside. The pain from hitting my head hadn’t subsided yet, and my head was spinning so much I could barely stand. His gaze swept over the bright red mark on my forehead. He paused briefly before coldly changing the subject. “Hailey says you had someone block her from going to the hospital?” “Do you realize that if I had arrived any later, she might have died?” Hearing this, I froze. Before I could defend myself, Paul suddenly raised his hand and slapped Ethan hard across the face. “What nonsense are you talking about? How could Julia possibly do something like that?” he said. “So you went to see Hailey again! Don’t you know…” Seeing that Paul was about to reveal what had just happened to me, I quickly interrupted him. But Ethan, as if enraged, grabbed me and dragged me outside. “You’re coming with me to the hospital right now,” he said. Paul roared, “You bastard, let go of Julia!” But Ethan pretended not to hear and walked straight toward the hospital. I couldn’t keep up with his pace and nearly fell. The pressure on my wrist made me wince in pain. “Do you really think I did it?” Without looking back, Ethan coldly replied, “We’ll find out when we get to the hospital.” As soon as we entered the hospital, a doctor rushed into Hailey’s room, loudly asking who had type O blood. Without hesitation, I raised my hand. “I do.” Ethan stared at me, seemingly surprised. In my previous life, Hailey had died from blood loss because the hospital’s blood bank had run out. And now, the same situation was happening again. Ethan hesitated. “You…” I gently shook my head and brushed past him. “Consider it me repaying a debt.” He had helped me countless times before. Now, it was my turn to repay him. Ethan pressed his lips together, helplessly watching as the doctor led me to the blood collection room. During the blood draw, I could clearly feel the warm blood being drawn from my body bit by bit, with no end in sight. I weakly asked, “Doctor, are we almost done?” The only response was cold silence and the needle being pushed in harder. As my consciousness began to fade, I vaguely saw Ethan rushing toward me. His figure overlapped with images of him rescuing me time and again in the past, like a surreal dream. “Julia, are you okay?” he called out anxiously. I managed to give him a weak smile. “Ethan, I wish you happiness and peace in this life. From now on, I won’t appear in your life anymore.” With that, I completely lost consciousness. Much later, when I woke up, I found myself lying in a hospital bed, completely alone. I struggled to get out of bed. Just as I stepped into the hallway, I overheard some nurses chatting. “I heard Emmanuel Sanctuary burned down last night. Such a shame—I never even got to take my boyfriend there to pray.” I thought, “Emmanuel Sanctuary was burned down? What a pity, I never got to visit.” An indescribable emptiness welled up inside me, gradually engulfing my entire body like a rising tide. I sighed, and as I happened to look up, I saw Ethan sitting by Hailey’s bedside, carefully tucking in her blanket. Only with Hailey did he show such unreserved tenderness. I watched him silently, not even noticing the tears sliding down my cheeks. Ethan seemed to sense something and looked up. I quickly crouched down, avoiding his gaze. Since they were getting along so well now, it was time for me to leave. That evening, after leaving Hailey’s room, Ethan hurried to Julia’s hospital room. All day, he’d felt an inexplicable sense of loss, as if something essential was missing from deep within him and gradually slipping away. When he pushed open the door, Julia wasn’t there—only a nurse making the bed. “Where did she go?” he asked, his voice hoarse. Without looking up, the nurse replied, “Oh, you mean Ms. Walker? She checked out hours ago, said she was catching a train somewhere. She’s probably at the station by now.”
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