Rebirth: Love me Again

Chapter 199 The Beginning of the End

|| A/N ||

I was considering creating a separate book for the other female leads, but since their stories are shorter and more like snippets, I've decided to incorporate them into this one instead. Hope that's alright with everyone!

Thank you all for your amazing support!

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[IRAYA]

I made my way to the salon, the weight of my decision heavy but liberating. It was time to shed the remnants of Jason's influence, starting with my hair.

I instructed the stylist to return it to its natural shade, the soft chestnut brown I had once loved. As the dark dye was stripped away, it felt like layers of his control were being peeled back, strand by strand.

When I walked out, my reflection no longer bore the shadow of who Jason wanted me to be. It was the first step back to reclaiming myself.

Afterward, I went shopping for clothes that resonated with who I truly was—practical, comfortable, and elegant in their simplicity. Not the short skirts and flashy dresses he insisted I wear—outfits that made me feel like a walking fashion faux pas.

When I first arrived in this foreign country, I had high hopes. I believed I could fit in effortlessly, that my warmth and openness would be met with the same love and acceptance I had back home. But life had a cruel way of showing me otherwise.

Jason had seemed like the perfect remedy for my homesickness, a charming anchor in unfamiliar waters. I let him mold parts of me, naively thinking it was compromise when, in reality, it was control. My wardrobe—once filled with long sleeves, slacks, and business-casual attire—had been whittled away piece by piece.

"It's too plain," he would say. Or, "You'd look hotter in something shorter."

One by one, my favorite pieces disappeared, thrown out or conveniently "lost." At first, I didn't notice where they went. Then Kylie started showing up wearing them, flaunting the limited-edition, custom-tailored pieces I had worked hard to acquire.

I knew they were mine. They were unmistakable—some even bore my initials, subtly stitched into the fabric. Jason must have given them to her.

He let out an exaggerated sigh, as if I were the one inconveniencing him. "Fine. Then what car are you driving? Can you pick me up? Kylie and I are at the mall. We just finished lunch."

The audacity of him mentioning Kylie so casually, it made my stomach churn. My knuckles whitened as I gripped the wheel, but I forced my voice to remain steady. "Oh? I thought you were at home? You said that you wanted to eat lunch made by your mother?"

There was a pause, just long enough to catch him scrambling for a lie. "Well . . . plans changed. I just ran into Kylie here, and we decided to grab lunch."

Ran into her? As if I didn't know better.

"Kylie has her own car, doesn't she? She can drive herself," I said flatly.

Jason groaned in frustration. "We came here in my car, but now you've gone and said to my father that you would drive. How are we supposed to get back to school?!"

I bit the inside of my cheek, my patience hanging by a thread. Was he always this shameless? His car? He had the gall to claim ownership over something he hadn't paid a cent for. That car was mine—a custom Rolls-Royce I had generously allowed Mr. Benson to drive for me to school.

But everyone thought that it was Jason and I was that ordinary girl he dated out of pity, who constantly ride with him.

"Jason," I said, my voice sharp and final, "I'm driving the McLaren today. It's a two-seater, so there's no room for Kylie. You'll have to figure something else."

"What?! How am I supposed to—"

"Take a cab," I cut him off, my tone icy. "Or better yet, have Kylie figure it out. She's 'rich,' isn't she?"

Before he could respond, I ended the call and tossed my phone onto the passenger seat. My heart pounded in my chest, not from sadness or regret, but from the simmering rage that fueled me.

This was just the beginning. Jason and Kylie thought they could deceive me, take advantage of my generosity, and walk away unscathed. They had no idea who they were dealing with.

I adjusted my sunglasses, a small smirk tugging at my lips as I pressed the accelerator. Let them stew. Let them wonder. The reckoning had only just begun.

They wanted to be together? That could be arrange.