Chapter 19
When Zachary opened his eyes again, he felt disoriented. Hadn’t he been in a car accident? Why wasn’t he waking up in a hospital?
A dormitory?
“Zachary, how could you fall asleep? Weren’t you supposed to come back to the dorm to ask us for help with your proposal to Jasmine tomorrow? We’re all busy, and you’re the one sleeping so soundly?”
The voices of his college roommates echoed in his ears. Zachary looked
around in disbelief.
The room was filled with balloons and flowers, and a proposal ring sat on
the table…
Had he returned to the eve of his proposal?
Staring at his phone, which showed the time as 5:00 PM on June 3, 2015, Zachary was bewildered.
As if suddenly remembering something, he grabbed his phone and sprinted toward the campus gate, calling Jasmine while hailing a taxi.
At this time, it was still possible. Jasmine, wait for me.
“Driver, to Park Slope in Brooklyn, please hurry, I’m in a rush.‘
Only after getting into the taxi did Zachary begin to recall everything that had happened since he woke up.
Today was the eve of his proposal to Jasmine. In his previous life, Jasmine had wanted to surprise him by going home to get her state ID, but was
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raped by Anthony, who had come home early.
Around six o’clock, as long as he got there in time, he could saye Jasmine. Everything would be different from the last time.
Watching the time tick by on his phone, Zachary grew increasingly anxious. Finally, at 5:50, he arrived near Jasmine’s house.
Seeing the street blocked by all kinds of vendors, the taxi couldn’t move at all. Zachary couldn’t wait, paid the fare–20 dollars–and dashed toward Jasmine’s house.
At this hour, there weren’t many people at home nearby.
“Help…”
Arriving at Jasmine’s house at six o’clock, Zachary heard cries for help from inside. Panicked, he kicked the door while dialing 911.
“Jas…”
“Hello, someone at 38 Park Slope, Brooklyn is forcing a woman against her will… Please come quickly.”
After saying that, he began kicking the old door with all his strength. The door couldn’t withstand Zachary’s kicks and started to crack. He kept kicking until he finally broke it open.
He rushed to Jasmine’s bedroom and saw a scene that made his blood boil.
A drunken old man was pinning Jasmine down, tearing her clothes, and forcing his filthy hands onto her body…
Zachary threw the old man off Jasmine and, like a furious lion, began beating Jasmine’s stepfather with reckless abandon
Each punch was an outlet for the tragedy that had happened between
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them in the previous life.
다
After being rescued, Jasmine was still in shock. She had only wanted to come home to get her state ID so she could get a marriage license with Zachary after his proposal tomorrow.
But after returning, she experienced all this, and the excessive fright caused bright red blood to flow from her body.
When she came to her senses and realized something was wrong, she looked helplessly at Zachary, who was still beating the man, and cried out his name.
“Zach, I’m scared, I…”
She didn’t know what to say, only kept crying and calling his name. Jasmine’s cries brought Zachary back to his senses. He let go of the scumbag, took two steps to Jasmine, and held her tightly in his arms.
The person in his arms reached out and hugged Zachary back, and his restless heart finally calmed down.
“It’s okay, it’s okay, the ambulance and police will be here soon…”
Only at this moment, trembling all over, did he feel a sense of reality. He knew he had returned to the past, saved Jasmine, and changed their fate.
When Tricia returned home and saw Anthony lying injured on the floor, she screamed and cursed Jasmine, calling her a jinx who brought disaster to the family.
‘Jasmine, you jinx, you little slut, what did you do to your stepfather?…”
Zachary covered Jasmine’s ears, not wanting her to hear the vile words from her biological mother.
When the police and ambulance arrived, they saw a middle–aged woman
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relentlessly hurling insults at a young girl who had nearly been assaulted.
Even though the girl was her own daughter, the officers couldn’t understand how a mother could be so malicious toward her child.
Two police officers accompanied Jasmine to the hospital to take her statement.
The other officers took Anthony straight to the police station, while Tricia tried to stop them.
A police officer asked, Are you trying to obstruct official business? Do you want to come in too? Frightened, Tricia froze and didn’t dare make another move.
Lateefa Khanam is a spirited writer who finds freedom in horse riding. She cherishes her mare and the newborn foal, calling them her little happy family.
