Rebirth Into My Second Chance

Descending from the upstairs VIP room, I caught sight of Claude scanning the crowd, presumably for me. I quickened my pace, hoping to avoid any chance of him realizing I'd been in a more exclusive area of the venue.

In my mind, Max was becoming an enigma, or rather, I'd suddenly convinced myself he must be one of those elusive Hilton heirs - sans any concrete proof to back up my theory.

"Claudy," I called out softly.

He turned, his eyes locking onto mine with an urgency that froze me in place. Why was this Claude, in this lifetime, so desperately seeking me out?

In my past life, he couldn't have cared less about my existence, even ignoring me when I was kidnapped. His world revolved solely around his Kate. "Where've you been?" he reached out to me, and I bit my lip before asking, "Claudy, if one day Kate and I were both kidnapped, who would you save?" His brows furrowed. "Don't talk nonsense."

"And what if, one day, I just disappeared? Would you look for me?"

"Yes," he said with such conviction it made my question feel utterly redundant, especially knowing that in my past life, he wouldn't have bothered. "Whose jacket is that?"

He noticed I was wearing Max's jacket, and his earlier concern quickly turned to displeasure, almost as if he was eager to get it off me.

"It's my teacher's. I accidentally got your jacket wet when I went to the restroom, and I ran into my teacher."

I stepped back, unwilling to let him take the jacket from me.

"Teacher?" He scanned the surroundings. He knew all of my school instructors, including my advisor, keeping tabs on them like chess pieces on his board. "Which teacher?"

I tilted my head, replying, "You didn't allow me to pursue my research, so the school assigned me to intern at the Century Wellness Hospital. Max. You don't know him?" His frown deepened further.

"I don't know him. Keep the jacket if you like. The auction is about to start."

He walked ahead, and as I watched

his retreating back, I pondered. I had Max a few times;

belongs to en.kiki

he not recognize the

I wanted to tell him, "You've seen him."

But the words died on my lips.

If Max truly was his uncle, he

pet

wouldn't go by that name; otherwise,

Claude would have reacted

differently to it. Yet, he had indeed met Max.

Though my doubts grew, the sight of Kate momentarily distracted me from pursuing them further.

In this life, my goal was to disgrace Kate and uncover the mastermind behind her.

"Claire, where have you been? Look the first item is a ruby hairpin from an overseas collector. It's beautiful. If you like it, I'll buy it for your wedding funds."

I smirked, whispering inaudibly to Kate, "What if I wanted to marry Claudy?"

Her shock was fleeting, but the malice in her eyes vanished as quickly as it appeared.

"Claire, if you really like him..."

"Kate, I won't compete with you for Claudy. Don't be upset, okay? I just like the hairpin, not because I want to marry Claudy."

I made sure to speak loudly enough for Claude to overhear. From his angle, he saw Kate looming over me, a picture of dominance. "Kate." he warned her.

Kate, visibly upset, attempted to defend herself.

But Claude, raising his bidding paddle, interjected, "Like this one? I'll get it for you."

"Claude, Claire is just acting," Kate rushed to expose me.

I pursed my lips, saying nothing, and feigned a wounded look.