At night...
As the clock struck twelve, The wall clock in the drawing room chimed with a melodious sound. The sound kept echoing in the silent house.
Vivienne sat on the cold floor of her room. She still wore the peach engagement gown, but it had lost the glamour it had just a few hours ago; some parts of the gown were torn. Some stones were scattered on the floor, here and there. The diamond necklace lay in a corner of the room, the well-styled hair was disheveled, and the makeup had been wiped away furiously, leaving stains all over her face. She looked distressed; her eyes were reddened. Her tears had stopped a long time ago, but she still sobbed.
Vivienne closed her eyes, and her mind traveled back to a few hours ago.
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Vivienne stood still in front of the large mirror of the washroom. She locked the room from inside so that no one could enter. She was curious.
All her dreams and all her happiness were shattered just minutes ago, but she didn't feel heartbroken the way she should be!
She should have been crying her heart out now, but the tears never came. Instead, she felt a deep void inside. As if, her heart was already prepared for something like this to come her way! But... How could it be?
She was lost in thought. Suddenly, she felt something was wrong. Some equations didn't match! And her biggest confusion was... Her dream.
Why did she start getting déjà vu in the very first place? First, the gown, then the engagement venue; it was like she had already seen them earlier, which was not possible.
Then! What was the actual deal?
Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind. A wild, stupid thought.
Could it be possible that... That she had already lived this part of her life before?
Could it be possible that the dream she had seen earlier this afternoon was not just a dream but her past life?
Could it be possible that somehow, she had traveled back in time?
Vivienne laughed at herself. 'What am I thinking! It's not a drama, it's my own real life. Things like that don't happen in reality.'
But she couldn't quite shake the thought. Because all the events in her dreams actually matched the events in reality, which was eerily suspicious!
Vivienne looked at herself through the mirror. Right now, she was being torn apart by her own thoughts! One part of her wanted to throw a tantrum, cry hard, and claim an answer from Damien. But the other part of her was calm; it directed her to calm down and go with the flow to see what would happen.
In the intense battle between her heart and brain, the brain finally won. Vivienne decided to calm down and see what would happen. She needed an answer; she needed to understand the reason behind her déjà vu.
She took a deep breath and calmed herself down. Taking out the compact and lipstick from her purse, she did a quick touch-up, then spritzed a couple of sprays of her favourite perfume. Finally, she left the room with a fake smile on her lips.
As she stepped into the hall again, she saw Damien standing a couple of meters away, greeting the guests with a glass full of red wine in his hands. But his eyes wandered to the main door from time to time. If it was earlier, Vivienne couldn't understand the reason, but now, she knew. He was waiting for Sarah to show up.
'He really has no sense of shame.' A look of disgust flickered in her eyes for seconds, but she hid it carefully. With the fake smile plastered on her lips, she walked towards him.
Damien was busy talking to the guests when suddenly he sensed someone come and stand behind him. He turned around, and his eyes fell on Vivienne.
For a second, he was stunned! Vivienne wore the peach gown he had sent earlier. It fitted her perfectly. With the make-up and the jewelry on,
'Damn! She looks hot.' He thought.
"Hi." Vivienne waved at him, nervously. Damien smiled at her, "Viv, you look beautiful."
Vivienne smiled, then lowered her head, only to hide her disgust from him. Earlier, she'd be on cloud nine by this complement alone, but today, she felt nothing. Now that she had calmed herself down, she racked her brain, trying to remember every detail of the engagement day.
"Hey, Damien, you two look adorable together." Someone complimented. It was Mr. Haller, the eldest member of the Haller family.
"Ah, thanks, Mr. Haller!" Damien chuckled.
Suddenly, her heart raced. If she was right, the next sentence of Mr. Haller would be:
"Well, my new farmhouse is just finished, why don't you two come visit one day!"
She was shocked, he had said the same thing that day! She remembered that all this was to please Damien and seal a new business deal between Haller and the Ashfords. And they indeed, signed a treaty afterwards.
'That... That's-'
She couldn't get much time to think; suddenly, a soft hum was heard near the door. Vivienne looked there and watched Sarah entering slowly inside the hall, wearing a gorgeous peach-colored dress, in a way, as if she was the spotlight of the day, the fiancee-to-be herself! And at that moment, another wave of realisation hit her.
Peach was Sarah's favourite colour.
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As she remembered the events of the evening, a wry smile appeared in her eyes. She remembered how Damien's eyes glowed at the sight of her, how she stole the spotlight in just a few minutes after entering the venue, and how they both danced in sync.
She remembered how every detail, except for the incident in that room, matched her dream exactly. And just now, when she confirmed that just as her expectations, both Sarah and Damien weren't home.
It was enough to confirm her suspicions.
YES! Even though it sounded foolish and utterly unbelievable; now she had no confusion in admitting that — she was indeed reborn.
She didn't know how it had happened, but somehow, she indeed traveled back in time, five years before the time of her death and just three months before her marriage with Damien Ashford.
Vivienne glanced at her ring finger, where a platinum ring with a small round shaped diamond glittered. She stood up and headed towards the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror, she took in her distressed look. Coming back from the engagement ceremony, Vivienne cried her heart out. She was now calm, having let out all the anger, and regret she had for her stupidity through tears.
"I was really stupid, but not anymore." She whispered to herself.
She received an incredible gift from fate beyond her wildest dreams — a second chance. Not everyone was as lucky as her, and she mustn't miss this opportunity to rewrite her destiny.
Vivienne took her time to gently remove the residue of her makeup, then discarded the engagement gown, just like trash. She had a cold shower, wiped herself, and then slipped into the nightgown; she stood in front of the dressing table.
After her bath, she looked like a rose blooming from a bud.
'Damien, in my past life, I really loved you with all my heart. But the truth is, not everyone is worthy of everything. Five years, Damien, five years! It's enough time to erase someone completely from your mind.'
'Your neglect and injustice towards me were pushing you away little by little, but the last incident put the final nail in the coffin!'
'Damien, Sarah, you've murdered me. Not only me but also my three-month-old baby in my belly. I didn't forget a single thing!'
Vivienne took a deep breath. Her eyes burned with anger. 'Now that I've got a second chance, you have to pay back. I'll avenge every wrong you've done to me. I won't let you off.'
Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she whispered. "Whatever you all gave me in my previous life, I will return it in this life with interest. I'll pay you back a hundred times; be ready, you all."