"It must be a coincidence", I mutter slightly louder than a whisper.
My eyes wander through every single glance, encounter, event, situation that hit me since the second I woke up when I should have instead been dead.
The voices, people, places all swirl in my head, hitting me with the subtlety of breeze and the impact of a tornado, destroying everything I've held on to, every logic, every practical little thing.
My knees buckle, and I lean against the wall, back facing the brick barrier for support. Even that isn't enough to save me from what's to come....
My mind wanders back to this morning.
Me, waking up with a slight feverish body
Me, waking up to the grandeur of a house, that looked too real to be a farce.
Aiden, a teenage guy with yellow gold eyes, and amber brown hair, similar to the ones that my reflection mirrored.
Lily, a young woman with petal-pink hair, big blue ocean eyes and the innocence of a classic cinderella story heroine.
Them...calling me Genny.....
Thier names, their demeanour, all of it, the way they look, the way they act, the way Aiden threw snarky sarcastic comments at me, the way Lily treated me as though I was her best friend who could never wrong anything.
The way Lily was going to drop Aiden in her pink little scooty....if I hadn't intervened.
No. It smacked right like a punch to the gut. A shiver runs through my spine, making me completely lose my balance and plop on to the hard floor disgracefully. I clutch my head in both my hands, shaking it viciously.
Fuck. Everything, every single detail matched the novels, these people, no, they're characters, no, I don't even know what they are at this point....
Everything matched the novel, the names, their personality and even the way they looked. Even the freaking plot and its sickening sequence.
It was fucking as clear as day. Lily, the sweet heroine, Aiden, one of the many side characters. The first chapter introduced them along with.....
Genevieve Laurent, the classic rich best friend of the heroine, Lily Hart. The selfish bitch, another side character to add drama to the plot and life to the heroine.
I gulped.
Also has a little sweet brother, Aiden Laurent. She grew up with Lily and Aiden, but of course grew distant and selfish due to her little insecurities.
I gulped again.
The one....destined to die mid-novel as nothing more than a plot device.
Their voices from this morning echoed in my skull, mocking my stupid little fate and fickle little luck.
"Oh my god Genny, thank god you're fine, I came back as soon as I heard of your fever", Lily squeals
.....
"Lowest?, oh please, you were always treated like shit by this brat--", Aiden comments
...
Genny, freaking Genny.
Genevieve Laurent.
Me. My reflection. My new identity. My new name.
Me.
A crowd eventually gathers around the accident spot. Some speaking in hush whispers, shocked by the sudden occurrence and others, in weary soft snippets that I somehow manage to catch even from a distance.
"The woman was drunk, she was practically tempting fate"
"Thank the gods that at least the child was speared"
"Yeah, true, I can't even imagine tomorrow's headline...'A drunk woman driving like a manic almost killed a girl, two streets away from Everest High'"
.....
Even this faceless crowd is in sync with that shitty novel. Oh gods what have I got myself into?....
A realisation struck me, as things fell into new perspective.
Fuck.
Everest High.
No, it wasn't just a normal high school, it was actually a very important setting in the novel world.
This isn't a coincidence anymore, this is a freaking anomaly. I'm not stupid, I can't and won't dismiss this just to indulge my useless delusions. Get a grip.
Everest High is the place where the hero and heroine met for the first time...
Lily and Lucien....
They meet when Lily drops Aiden, when Lily accidentally punctures Lucien's tire.
Fuck.
The same luxury car's tire that belonged to that ....
Smug little bastard
Lucien fucking Ashford.
Except Lily obviously didn't know how to fix tires, so she 'promises to pay him later' and ends up owing him a favour which well turns into a corny ass romance....fuck that.
At least no favours for me.
Lucky me, I guess...
"Miss Tire Puncture-", a heavy voice chokes out
I gag. I turn around.
Luck is a fickle bitch
And there he is, tall and broad wearing the exact same suit I left him with, though slightly drenched. It's almost funny how everything about him is mere perfection. His wavy dark hair now damp and sticking to his temple, looking every bit the devil he is. Even the water that trickles down his lashes does so as if he were someone divine.
Guess that's how an MMC is supposed to look after all
Divine and devilish. The cold CEO who is enticement incarnate. Lucien Ashford.
"What are you doing here?", I snap
"Well, what can I say, didn't want the lady who so valiantly fixed my tire to end up roadkill", he shrugs, "So, naturally when I heard there was an accident nearby, I had to check it out".
I huff, "And you care because?"
He straightens up, flicking out invisible water from his sleeve, "I don't. Just didn't want to waste my time giving witness statements when you died. ", the ghost of a smirk on his lips, "You can thank me later"
Smug little bastard
"Oh how noble", I bite back.
His eyes flick toward the gruesome scene beside us, "How did that happen, Miss T-"
"Don't."
A sly smile reclaims his lips, his gaze snaps back to mine, "Well somebody ran off before telling me her name", he drawls
Huh. Maybe that's because I didn't know my own name Idiot.
No matter how confused I am as to how and why I ended up here, I'll still have to play along to god's little treacherous game. Or rather the author's, I guess.
"Genevieve. Genevieve Laurent", I say smoothly.
"Genevieve", he swirls my name on his tongue as if it tastes like something sweet.
He smirks and offers a hand forward, "Well nice to officially know your name, I am— "
"Lucian Ashford", I say without a second thought, a second breath
Confusion flicks his face, "Wait, how do you....?"
Oops