Reborn from the Capo's Fire

A hazy dream pulled me back into the past.

Marshall confessed his feelings to me right after freshman year started.

I had never planned on a relationship so early, but when the person standing before me was him, I couldn't refuse. And just like that, we were a couple.

Before long, the whispers reached me.

"The one Marshall really likes is Paige. They say he's only with Rosa to make her jealous."

"Paige isn't into him. She's worried the guy she actually likes will get the wrong idea, so Marshall just grabbed the first girl he saw."

"Otherwise, how could a bookworm like Rosa ever catch the eye of an heir to a powerful family?"

I confronted him. He denied it, and I chose to believe him.

After we got together, Marshall was good to me. Very good.

From freshman to junior year, while our classmates burned through relationships, we were inseparable, living in a honeymoon bubble.

Even the people who had gossiped about us changed their tune. They said they envied me, that maybe Marshall truly did love me after all.

I thought so too—until our senior year, when Paige returned from rehab.

"Paige is sick."

"Paige is having a bad day."

"Paige can't write her songs."

"Paige..."

The perfect boyfriend who had once been so attentive began to abandon me, again and again, for another woman.

The name "Paige" became a shard of glass in my heart.

Like a thief in the night, I scrolled through Marshall's social media.

On my birthday, he was with Paige, buying her new recording equipment.

On our engagement anniversary, he was at Paige's house, cooking for her.

And so many other moments… too many to count. Each discovery was a fresh, twisting stab of pain.

...

A tidal wave of pain crashed over me. When I opened my eyes, I was in the family's private clinic.

Bianca was by my side. When she saw me wake up, her expression was a chaotic mix of relief, awkwardness, and crushing guilt.

"Rosa… you're awake. Thank God. Marshall said you were just faking it, trying to get attention. I… I misunderstood."

"I was terrified when that explosion threw you. Luckily, you were rescued. But your father... Rosa, I'm so sorry. My deepest condolences."

I couldn't respond. The pain was a living thing.

I tilted my head back, gasping, feeling myself dragged back to my past life—to the cracking of my own bones, the tightening of the silk scarf… The agony was so intense it stole my breath, my ability to scream.

The color drained from Bianca's face. "Doctor!" she screamed, fumbling for the call button.

A doctor rushed in with a stack of test results, his brow furrowed. "The patient has a severe infection from smoke inhalation and burns. She needs surgery immediately. Has her husband been notified?"

"He's on his way, on his way!"

Bianca frantically called Marshall. In her panic, she hit the speakerphone button.

Marshall's furious voice filled the room. "Bianca, what did Rosa promise you? You're helping her with this act now, too? I thought you were my most trusted lieutenant!"

"Use your fucking brain before you speak!" Bianca snapped back. "Do you have any idea how bad this attack was? That studio of yours was a death trap! Your father-in-law, Mr. Ricci, is dead!"

From the other end of the line, we heard Paige mumble something about a nightmare, about needing comfort.

Marshall's voice instantly softened. "Paige is having another nightmare. I have to go. Stop bothering me with this nonsense!"

I had always known how much he cared for Paige. But hearing it then, a chill settled deep in my bones, a cold that fire could never touch.

This was the man I had loved with my entire being for over a decade...

Suddenly, the heart monitor flatlined with a piercing shriek, and doctors swarmed my bed.

"She's in cardiac arrest! Stress-induced. Get the crash cart, now!"