Chapter 2

Cole handed Cecelia another glass bottle, raising an eyebrow with self-satisfied swagger.

"Cecelia, give an inch and they'll take a mile. You gotta hit 'em hard so they'll never dare mess with you again."

"Here, take it. Crack that liar's skull open."

What the hell? This delinquent was inciting her to commit assault! My sweet, gentle future wife was not going to be dragged into the gutter by him!

Cecelia hesitated, picking up the bottle. A flicker of manic desperation gleamed in her eyes. The second she raised it high, I lunged forward and shielded the girl. The heavy bottle slammed violently across my back.

Damn, my future wife sure packed a punch. That hurt like hell.

The madness drained from Cecelia's eyes. Panic took over, and she apologized frantically, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! Did I hurt you?"

A booming voice cut through the air: "Who's causing a riot in the cafeteria?! Don't let me catch you!"

Before the vice principal could march over, Cole had already slipped out the side door without a sound.

I pointed at Cole's fleeing back. "Cecelia, don't listen to him. Violence solves nothing. He starts a brawl and bolts at the first sign of trouble. Stay away from cowards who can't take responsibility."

The vice principal stomped over, spitting as he barked, "Cecelia Vance! Are you the one starting fights here?!"

Her family's tragedy had made her timid and defensive. Just as she was about to hang her head and take the blame, I stepped in front of her, keeping my tone calm and steady.

"Sir, look at her. Cecelia is tiny and quiet. How could she possibly start a brawl?"

"The one fighting was a punk named Cole. He smashed a bottle over someone's head until they bled, then took off running that way. You should hurry after him and teach him a real lesson."

After checking on the injured student, the vice principal spotted the flashy punk down the hall and bolted after him.

"Show's over, everyone. Move along," I announced to the crowd.

As the onlookers dispersed, Cecelia hesitated, biting her lip. "Who... who are you?"

I'm your future husband. The sucker of a husband you abandoned. When I saw her lifeless body in that tub, part of me had resented her. I resented that I never had a real place in her heart, that she could throw her life away so easily for a boy dead for a decade.

Yet seeing her here right now, all I wanted was to rewrite her ending. Whether her future included me or not, I just wanted her to be happy.

I smiled and answered softly, "Hi, Cecelia. I'm Julian Hayes. It's really good to see you again."

"Julian, thank you for stepping in just now. But... why did you rat out Cole?"

Great. She called him 'Cole' with that soft, defensive tone. My chest tightened.

"He hurt someone. He needs to face the music. What about you? Why are you protecting him?"

Cecelia fell quiet for a second. "Probably because... he's the only person in this whole school who doesn't treat me like dirt."

I gestured to her clothes. "Cecelia, your jacket has grease stains all over it. Take it off."

She slipped off the soiled jacket, and I immediately draped my clean varsity jacket over her shoulders.

"There. Now he's not the only one."

"And for the record, nobody gets to treat you like dirt. You're the brightest girl here."

In my original timeline, I went to an elite private prep school in the city. In this reality, I was living with my grandfather in this small town, sitting in the exact same grade as Cecelia.

Her grades were at the very top, yet she was pushed into the furthest corner of the classroom, her desk isolated. Nobody wanted to sit next to her.

I picked up my desk, dragged it across the room, and pushed it right against hers.

"Hey, desk mate. Let's look out for each other."