She Was Born Again, So She Stopped Begging For Their Love Chapter 05

She Was Born Again, So She Stopped Begging For Their Love Chapter 05

Michael stood there, watching her disappear around the corner A strange emptiness settled in his

chest.

He always felt like when Grace looked at him, there was nothing in her eyes.

Nodislike. No coldness. Just… nothing.

Like he was no different from a wall or a tree.

He almost envied that wall and that tree. At least they didn’t get that “who are you?” look from her

When Grace got home, the living room was warm and cozy again.

Chloe was on the couch. Linda was brushing her hair. Richard sat across from them, reading the newspaper, occasionally glancing up with a small smile.

Over two years, Chloe had fully settled into this family.

She was good. Obedient. Sweet. She knew when to act cute, when to be quiet, when to say “you worked hard, Mom,” and when to pour Dad tea.

She was like a finely tuned instrument. Every note perfectly placed to hit the Bennetts’ hearts.

And Grace?

Grace was an out-of-tune key. Press it, and nothing pleasant came out. Better not to press at all. “Grace, you’re home?” Linda actually greeted her first. Rare. “How did you do on your midterms?”

Grace paused mid-shoe-change.

This was the first time in two years Linda had asked about her grades.

She knew exactly why. Chloe had bombed her midterms this time. Dropped from top fifty to one hundred twentieth.

Linda wasn’t asking because she cared. She was asking because she needed to make sure that Grace hadn’t done too much better. So she could feel okay about it.

“Fine.”

“What does ‘fine’ mean in ranking?”

“First.”

The living room went quiet-

Linda’s hand paused on Die brush for half a second. Then she kept going like pollang happenel

Richard lifted his newspaper a little higher, hiding his face,

Chloe looked down, bit her lip, and said nothing.

Grace watched the scene unfold. A faint smile tugged at her lips.

She knew exactly how this family worked. Your success wasn’t something to be proud of. It was a

threat.

The better you did, the more uneasy they got.

Because deep down, they knew they’d treated you unfairly. So they were afraid of you. Afraid you’d

get strong enough to not need them anymore. Afraid you’d turn around and ask them why

So they’d rather you be average.

They’d rather you stay quietly in that north-facing room. Not make too much noise. Not get in

anyone’s way.

But Grace refused.

She would get stronger. So strong they couldn’t ignore her. So strong that every time they did

ignore her, it would look ridiculous. So strong that on the day she left, the whole house would

shake.

And then she would never look back.

That night, Grace was doing homework in her room as usual.

At ten thirty, someone knocked.

She opened the door. Chloe stood there, holding a cup of warm milk.

“Grace,” Chloe said softly, her voice careful and gentle. “You’re still awake. I heated up some milk

for you.”

Grace looked at her. Said nothing.

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altare sinkdenly remembereid something from her past Hfe.

She was twenty-five, Chloe was twenty-seven. Boll with jobs.

At a family gathering, Chloe said in front of everyone, “I’m so grateful to Mom and Dad Tagumieni For them, Tdon’t know what I would have become. The greatest blessing of my life is being a

Bennett.”

Everyone laughed and teared up. Linda even got emotional.

Only Grace sat in the corner, quietly counting cereal in her bowl.

No one thought there was anything wrong with that statement.

No one remembered that the Bennetts’ biological daughter was sitting right there, listening to

another girl thank her parents for giving her the greatest blessing of her life.

Grace took the milk. “Thank you.” Then she closed the door.

She didn’t drink it. She poured it down the sink.

Not because she thought Chloe would do anything to it. But because she didn’t want to accept

anything from anyone in this house anymore.

Every sip of milk. Every meal. Every piece of clothing. Every penny. It was all debt.

She didn’t want to owe anyone anything in this life.

Chloe stood outside the door, staring at it for a long time.

Her expression was complicated.

If anyone bad seen it, they might have called it the hurt of being rejected.

Chloe knew this family was unfair to Grace.

She’d known from the beginning.

she knew that everythime she was getting should ham, belge itu namengeste Pasji migrantRSË food, every extra hup, was taken from Leder

But she coulby’t help ir

She had no parents. No home. No place to go.

The Bennetts were her only lifeline. She bad to hold on. Tight.

Feople were selfish.

Chloe was no exception.

So she pretended not to know. Pretended not to see the coldness in Grace’s eyes, Pretended not to

notice the missing bowl and chopsticks at the table. Pretended not to hear the impatience in Linda’s

voice when she talked about Grace,

She curled up in the warmth this family gave her, pretending it wasn’t stolen.

Yet every late night, when she passed that north-facing room on the first floor and saw light seeping through the crack in the door, her heart still ached.

That light stayed on too late.

No one ever knocked on that door. No one ever said, “Grace, time to go to bed.”

Chloe didn’t either.

She just walked past. Went back to her warm, south-facing room with its soft carpet. Closed the door. Shut out that sliver of light.

Then she could sleep peacefully.

In the second semester of unili grade, Lirace unade a vlen hảon that turpí bavila bedpořil.

She applied to the best high school In the city. But if was a fuil hoarding se book fonky vesa dugnaði

per month

“You’re going to live on campus?” Linda’s face showed surprise, not reluctance “Only man days

home a month?”

“Yes,”

Grace handed her the registration form to sign.

Linda picked up her pen, hesitated. “Does your dad know?”

“I don’t know. Just sign it.”

She didn’t ask why Grace wanted to live on campus. Didn’t ask about tuition, the school

environment, or if anyone would take care of her.

She just signed and pushed the form back. “Don’t cause your dad trouble.”

Grace put the form away and left.

In her past life, she went to the local high school near home because Linda said, “Chloe isn’t

healthy and needs someone to look after her. You should stay nearby so you can get home easily.”

She agreed. Rode her bike to school every day. Rain or shine.

Chloe was sent to the same top-tier boarding school she went in this life. Lived on campus. Only

came home on weekends.

This time, she wouldn’t change her path for anyone.

On high school entrance exam day, Grace did exceptionally well.

When results came out, she was third in the entire city.

Good enough to get into any high school she wanted. Including the one rumored to have a thirty

percent acceptance rate to Ivy Leagues.

Richard heard the news while he was on the phone with aduusimmat jenter Vilela það Five stran report undrent af him. He glanced at n and cand impothe plotis, “My daughter Lander i rjavi Jul whole city” A flicker of pride in hits voice.

un

It lasted only for the rest of the call

After hellung up, he put the report on the coffee table and said to trace, “rant bad. Kerjit up

Grace said. “Okay.

No bug. No celebration. No “Daddy is proud of you.”

In her past life, she would have been happy for days over such faint, almost nonexistent approval.

Not anymore.

She didn’t rank third in the city to win Richard’s approval. She did it for herself.

Chloe, on the other hand, scored twenty points lower than her usual tests, didn’t get into the boarding school Grace applied to and went to a second-tier school instead.

Linda was heartbroken. She cooked Chloe’s favorite meals for three days straight, trying to comfort

her. “Chloe, don’t be sad. That school is good too. Mom knows teachers there. I’ll ask them to look after you.”

Grace was eating dinner when she heard those words. Her chopsticks paused.

In her past life, she did okay on the entrance exams-not great, not terrible. Went to the local high

school.

Linda never cooked her a comforting meal. Never said, “That school is good too.”

She just said, “You’re not picky anyway.”

Grace swallowed her rice and kept eating.

Over the summer, Grace made a big move. She pooled together all the bonuses and New Year’s

money she’d saved over two years-twelve thousand dollars-and invested it in a stock she knew from her past life would go up.

‘She didn’t start investing until she was thirty in her past life. And she spent a lot of money before she got to learn the ropes.

Now, it was like she had a crystal ball, She knew which stocks would rise, which would fall, which

companies would become plant, try the next dërgoh

she didn’t invest much. She didn’t have much money. But that twelve thimnand wool9lna mas nearly seven hundred thousand in thuer years.

Seven hundred thousand dollars. Enough for college tuition Enough for living expenses. Erionghite leave this family.

Money made money. The snowball would keep rolling.

She didn’t need a lot. Just enough to live like a human being.

When Grandma heard she was going to board, she took the bus from the edge of town-over an hour ride-just to see her.

Grandma was old. Much older than Grace remembered from her past life.

Her hair was completely white. Her back was hunched. But she was still spirited, her voice still foud.

She carried a big bag full of Grace’s favorites-brisket in a thermos, chocolate cake wrapped in oil

paper, a jar of homemade pickles.

“Sweetie, take care of yourself at the campus. Don’t study so hard you forget to eat.”

Grandma pulled things out one by one, chattering. “You’ve always been skinny. If you don’t get

enough to eat at school, come home. Grandma will cook for you.”

Grace stood there, looking at her grandmother’s white hair and wrinkled hands. Her throat

tightened. She almost lost it.

Her grandma was the same in her past life. Always showing up with bags of food. But back then,

Grace didn’t dare accept because Linda wouldn’t like it.

Linda thought Grandma’s food was “low class.” There shouldn’t be pickles on the Bennett family

table.

Grace was too young then. Too concerned about what her mother thought. She always refused.

“Grandma, it’s okay. We have everything at home.”

Eventually, Grandma stopped coming.

Not because she didn’t want to. Because she was afraid. Afraid her gifts would embarrass her granddaughter.

Flis tune, Gi are wouldn’t let her grandmother suffer that apar

Ga

She took the bay and hugged her tight. “Gitandma, your briskets are the host Pyehrend pay them for so long. ”

Grandma paused, then smiled. Her eyes crinkled. “As long as you like them, Gomdina wall nouke more next time.”

Grace ate every last slice of brisket. Even used a bun to wipe up the sauce.

Grandma sat beside her, watching her eat, her wrinkles smoothing out like a flower warmed by the

sun.

After the meal, Grandma took Grace’s hand and got quiet for a moment.

Then she said something that almost broke Grace.

“Sweetie, you’ve changed so much these past two years.”

Grace’s heart jumped. “Changed how?”

“I can’t quite say,” Grandma said after a moment. “You’re just not as timid as you used to be. When you were little, you were always so careful, like you were afraid of bothering anyone. Now you walk like you own the place.”

Grace was quiet for a few seconds. Then she smiled.

A real smile. Not the one she practiced in the mirror.

“Grandma, I’m not scared anymore.” She said. “I’m not scared of anything.”

Because she had nothing left.

No expectations of love. No longing for affection. No weaknesses to make her walk on eggshells.

Once you stop caring, you have nothing to fear.

When Grandma left, Grace walked her to the bus stop.

The bus came. Before getting on, Grandma turned and looked at her. There was something complicated in her cloudy old eyes.

“Sweetie,” Grandma said. “If something gets too hard, it will break.”

citare stood on the platform, watching the bus drive away. Its taillapfos press kimally any da

until they were two red dots in the night

Too hard, and it breaks.

She knew

She had already broken once in her past life.

But when something hard breaks, at least it leaves sharp edges. Edges that can cut anyone who tries to come close again.

When something soft breaks, there’s nothing left. Not even a shape.

Grace took her grandmother’s words to heart. But she didn’t change her direction of life.

High school was more stressful than middle school, but Grace found it easier.

Living in the dorm got her completely away from that house. No more reading Linda’s moods. No more pretending to be invisible at dinner. No more lying awake at night listening to laughter from

the next room.

The dorm had six girls. The other five were all first-timers-homesick, crying, fussing.

Only Grace quietly made her bed, hung her mosquito net, neatly put her things in the closet, and sat down to read.

“Grace, don’t you miss home?”

Jenna Taylor, in the bottom bunk, asked with tears in her eyes.

Grace turned a page. “No.”

“Why? Does your family treat you badly?”

Jenna blurted it out, then immediately regretted it, “Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.’

“It’s okay.” Grace’s voice was flat. “You’re right. It’s not good,”

The dorm went quiet.

The other girls all glanced at Grace. But she had already lowered her head back to her book, like they were discussing something that had nothing to do with her.

tenna opened her mouth, wanted to say sinttething, but didn’t know whattoeray Finally, hejt whispered, “If you ever need to talk, I’m here.”

Gace hummed in acknowledgment Didn’t look up

No one knew what “not good” meant. No one could imagine what a fifteen year old girl hart

already been through

Second semester of freshman year, Grace got a text from Chloe.

“Grace, are you coming home this weekend? Mom made your favorite dishes.”

Grace looked at the text and smiled.

What were her favorite dishes?

Linda never knew what she liked.

In her past life, she loved fish. Linda said it was too much trouble. Rarely made it.

She loved spicy food. Linda said Chloe’s stomach was sensitive and couldn’t eat spicy. So the food at

home was always bland.

She learned to be bland too. To make do. To shrink her own wants down to nothing, so they wouldn’t bother anyone.

She typed back two words: “Not coming.”

Chloe replied quickly. “What about next week? It’s your birthday next week. Dad said he wants to

have a party for you.”

Grace stared at the message for a long time.

In her past life, not a single one of her birthdays was ever remembered.

Every year, she bought herself a small cake, ate it alone in her room, and said “happy birthday” to herself.

She thought that was just how it was. She’d gotten used to it.

But now Chloe was saying Dad wanted to throw her a party.

She suddenly found it all ridiculous.