Cutting the Cord: Reborn as My Mom's High School Frenemy - Full Episode | Rebirth Revenge, Time Travel Drama & Family Secrets #ADB | Full Short Drama | English Sub 2026 [Full Movie] - video Dailymotion

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Cutting the Cord: Reborn as My Mom's High School Frenemy - Full Episode | Rebirth Revenge, Time Travel Drama & Family Secrets #ADB  Watch the full short drama with English subtitles. CEO, billionaire, revenge, betrayal — complete story in one video.  #shortdrama #ceodrama #drama #revenge #fullmovie #englishsub #reelshort #dramabox #miniseries #love #betrayal #drama2026

Transcript

00:00:001996, Texas.

00:00:02I suddenly jerk up from the sink, gasping for air.

00:00:05Water drips from my thick blonde hair.

00:00:06I stare at the mirror in shock.

00:00:08The face staring back at me is vibrant, beautiful, full of life.

00:00:11Vintage smoky eye makeup framing a chalky teenage face.

00:00:1318.

00:00:14You young, healthy, cancer-free.

00:00:16I've been thrown back into the dead-end Texas high school years my mom spent her entire life clawing her

00:00:22way out of.

00:00:22Suddenly, the bathroom door swings open.

00:00:25A familiar grapefruit perfume hits me instantly.

00:00:27It's Valerie, my 18-year-old mother.

00:00:30Her hair is pulled into a high-tony tail, high-waisted jeans hugging her hips, a white tamtop straight out

00:00:34of a 90s teen magazine.

00:00:36Come on, the pep lolly's about to start.

00:00:38She yanks me forward hard enough to make me stumble.

00:00:40But instead of following her, I freeze.

00:00:42Stare at the young face in front of me, untouched by wealth, untouched by surgery, untouched by the years that

00:00:47twisted her into a monster.

00:00:49Valerie, we're... friends?

00:00:51Uh, duh, we're best friends.

00:00:53Why are you being so weird today? Come on!

00:00:55She turns and keeps pulling me towards the door.

00:00:57Half a step behind her, I stare at her back.

00:00:59The confusion in my eyes vanishes instantly, replaced by something cold, something vicious.

00:01:04The school's public address system drones on from the loudspeakers overhead, buzzing with the daily lunch menu.

00:01:09Pizza slices, tater tots, and chocolate milk.

00:01:12Valerie pulls me through the crowded hallway, her hand warm and dry in mine.

00:01:16And then it hits me again.

00:01:18That sharp grapefruit perfume.

00:01:21The scent wraps around me so suddenly my breath catches.

00:01:24It was the smell I knew best as a child.

00:01:26Before I turned five, she used to hold me in her arms, humming old country songs and asking if I

00:01:32loved her.

00:01:32But after she ditched me to chase her high school sweetheart to the big city, that scent only ever showed

00:01:38up in my nightmares.

00:01:39Scarlet, you've been acting weird all day.

00:01:42Scarlet?

00:01:42God, even this body's name sucks.

00:01:45Carefully, I slip my hand out of hers.

00:01:47My eyes swamp across the hallway.

00:01:49The dented locker numbers, the faded football team pictures, the bulletin board plastered with fall semester 1996.

00:01:55Cheerleaders rush past us, ponytails flying, while some varsity asshole has a scrawny kid pinned against a logger, shaking him

00:02:02down for lunch money.

00:02:03This isn't a dream.

00:02:04I'm really back in the 90s.

00:02:06That's when a tall, lanky guy with glasses started walking toward us.

00:02:10Hector, my mother's first love.

00:02:12The man who ruined all our lives.

00:02:14Hey, this is my Scarlet.

00:02:15She just transferred it in.

00:02:16Scarlet, meet Hector.

00:02:17Straight A student, total teacher's pet, basically tutoring half the school.

00:02:21Hey, I'm Hector.

00:02:23Welcome to East Ridge.

00:02:24The second I hear his name, my stomach turns.

00:02:28I ignore his hand completely and scan the noisy hallway for the one person who should have been here.

00:02:34Where's my dad?

00:02:35Austin should be at this school, too.

00:02:37Wait!

00:02:38Austin's not in your class?

00:02:39Austin?

00:02:40There's no Austin in this entire school.

00:02:44Austin Walker!

00:02:45My dad!

00:02:46He's not- he's not here?!

00:02:49Your dad?

00:02:51Just as I'm scrambling for an excuse, a roar erupts from the end of the hallway and saves me.

00:02:56The pep rally's starting.

00:02:57You coming or what?

00:02:59Sunlight spills across her shoulders.

00:03:01For a second, she looks nothing like the woman who would one day watch me die without blinking.

00:03:05The gym is loud, humilded, packed wall to wall.

00:03:09Football players in red jerseys charge onto the court while cheerleaders shake palm balls under the flashing lights.

00:03:14The bleachers thunder with stomping feet and screaming students.

00:03:18This Friday, let's show East Ridge who really runs this town.

00:03:22The crowd explodes.

00:03:24She's radiant up there.

00:03:25Beside me, Hector adjusts his glasses, eyes fixed on her.

00:03:29She's gonna get out of this town someday.

00:03:31He says it like he already knows the future.

00:03:34I don't answer.

00:03:35I just stare at Valerie beneath the spotlight.

00:03:38After the rally, students pour out of the gym.

00:03:41The halls fill with slamming lockers and overlapping conversations again.

00:03:46People argue about Friday's game.

00:03:48Girls debate who's gonna win prom queen.

00:03:50Last period is study hall.

00:03:52Valerie sits one row ahead of me by the window.

00:03:55Her notes neat enough to look typed.

00:03:57As she flips a page, something slips out from between her books.

00:04:01A pale green application packet.

00:04:03Harvard University.

00:04:05My breathing catches.

00:04:06She actually got an application.

00:04:08But later in life, she always says Harvard was never an option for someone like her.

00:04:12So that was a lie too.

00:04:13Valerie, your future turns out cheap and pathetic anyway.

00:04:16So why are you out here pretend to be some gifted golden girl right now?

00:04:19It makes me sick.

00:04:20I rise from my seat.

00:04:21Then, with one sharp shove of my elbow, I knock over the black coffee on her desk.

00:04:26The dark liquid spills perfectly across the application packet,

00:04:29soaking through the giant Harvard crest until the ink begins to bleed.

00:04:33I stare at her coldly, waiting for her to snap.

00:04:36Waiting for the mask to fall off.

00:04:37Waiting to finally see the real Valerie underneath all that fake sweetness.

00:04:41But her reaction throws me completely off.

00:04:46Oh God, Scarlett, are you okay?

00:04:49She grabs a stack of napkins and immediately starts swiping coffee off my hand.

00:04:52There's real concern in her eyes.

00:04:53No anger.

00:04:54No blame.

00:04:55Not even irritation.

00:04:56It's wrong.

00:04:57She's too nice.

00:04:58So nice it scares me.

00:05:00Nice enough to make me wonder if the woman I remember was ever the real Valerie at all.

00:05:04Just then, the classroom door swings open.

00:05:07A Latino teacher steps inside and walks over to Valerie's desk.

00:05:11Hey Valerie, something came up with Scarlett's family.

00:05:14Kind of an emergency.

00:05:15Your parents called and asked if you could bring her home with you after school.

00:05:19An emergency?

00:05:20What the hell happened?

00:05:22By the time school lets out, the Texas sunset looks like the whole sky's on fire.

00:05:26Stadium lights flicker on one by one around the football field.

00:05:29The cheer squad is still practicing while snippets of 90s pop songs crack through the loudspears.

00:05:34Valerie walks a few steps ahead of me, her ponytail swaying softly behind her.

00:05:37She suddenly stops and turns to me gently.

00:05:39I heard about your parents.

00:05:41Scarlett, don't be scared, okay?

00:05:42You've still got me.

00:05:43We're best friends.

00:05:44Then she pulls me into a hug.

00:05:45I'm sorry for what happened.

00:05:47If you need a shoulder to cry on, I'll always be here.

00:05:49That faint grapefruit scent wraps around me again.

00:05:51And just like that, I break.

00:05:53In my last life, there were countless nights when I would have given anything for this exact embrace.

00:05:57As I sob into her shoulder, I deliberately smears and snot all over her pretty shirt.

00:06:01Petty revenge.

00:06:02Pathetic, tiny revenge.

00:06:04But her arms are warm exactly the way I remember from childhood.

00:06:08So how the hell did someone like this become the woman who wouldn't even save my life?

00:06:12A bicycle bell rings behind us.

00:06:14Hector catches up, pushing an old bike with a paper box of cupcakes sitting in the basket.

00:06:18He adjusts his glasses awkwardly.

00:06:20Sugar helps.

00:06:21A little, anyway.

00:06:22I watch the two of them walking side by side beneath the football field lights, and something bitter twists in

00:06:26my chest.

00:06:27What, Hector?

00:06:28You gonna pick her up like this every day?

00:06:30Keep her stuck in this town and make her your wife someday?

00:06:32Hector stops walking, but when he looks at me, his expression is completely open and sincere.

00:06:38Valerie's meant for bigger things than this place.

00:06:39She's too talented to spend her life shrinking herself for some guy.

00:06:44That'd be... wrong.

00:06:46I freeze, because I never imagined Hector would say something like that.

00:06:52I'm not getting stuck married with kids at 18.

00:06:55I want to see what's out there first.

00:06:57But you did have me at 18.

00:06:58You ended up trapped in a rotting trailer park full of violence and screaming and broken walls.

00:07:03Valerie, did your dreams betray you?

00:07:05The whole walk there, something about this timeline feels off in a way I can't explain.

00:07:11And then Valerie opens the front door.

00:07:14The smell of home-cooked food hits me instantly.

00:07:18So you're Scarlet, huh?

00:07:21Hi, Mr. Wyatt.

00:07:22Thanks for letting me stay over.

00:07:25He bursts out laughing and pulls me inside before I can even finish.

00:07:29The house is warm, spotless, lived in.

00:07:32There's a brand new pair of slippers waiting for me by the entryway,

00:07:35along with folded pajamas set out they've been expecting me for days.

00:07:38The living room walls are lined with plaques, commendations, and framed Federal Service Award.

00:07:42On the TV, a local news station is covering a major drug trafficking case near the Texas border.

00:07:46A photo flashes on screen of two fallen narcotics agents.

00:07:50Your parents were good people, kiddo.

00:07:52Best partners I ever had.

00:07:54Real heroes.

00:07:55And from now on, this house is yours, too.

00:07:57You hear me?

00:07:57That's when it finally hits me.

00:07:59The parents belonging to this body are already dead.

00:08:02Dinner is loud and warm and painfully alive.

00:08:05Grandpa keeps piling food onto plates.

00:08:07Grandma laughs at everything.

00:08:08A dog nudges against my legs beneath the table.

00:08:10The kitchen light glows so warmly it almost hurts to look at.

00:08:13And across from me sits Valerie, laughing freely while her parents dole on her like she's the center of their

00:08:17universe.

00:08:18My chest tightens so hard it feels unbearable.

00:08:21This is insane.

00:08:22Like some cruel cosmic joke.

00:08:24She grew up surrounded by this much love.

00:08:26So how the hell did she become someone who could watch me die without a single shred of kindness?

00:08:31Late that night, Valerie and I lay side by side in the dark.

00:08:35There's been this huge cartel case near the border lately.

00:08:38I keep having nightmares something's gonna happen to my parents.

00:08:42At 18, she looks so young.

00:08:44So fragile.

00:08:45Before sunrise, I wake to the sound of movement in the living room.

00:08:49Grandpa is sitting by the door, pulling on his police boots.

00:08:51I run out barefoot and grab onto his sleeve before he can leave.

00:08:54Mr. Wyatt, please be careful out there.

00:08:57He smiles and ruffles my hair.

00:08:58I will, kiddo.

00:08:59Promise I'll come home safe.

00:09:01Then he and Grandma disappear together into the pale border fog of early morning.

00:09:05And the dread in my chest only grows heavier.

00:09:10Valerie stumbles out of bed half asleep the next morning and stands in front of the mirror,

00:09:15completely lost, trying to fix her ponytail.

00:09:18God, she's hopeless.

00:09:19I walk over and quietly redo her hair for her.

00:09:22It's the first time in both my lives that I've ever been this close to her.

00:09:26Scarlett, how are you so good at this?

00:09:28And suddenly I remember how, when I was little, she always hacked my hair off into awful tomboy cuts.

00:09:33Maybe it wasn't coldness after all.

00:09:35Maybe 18-year-old Valerie just barely knew how to take care of herself.

00:09:38A bicycle bell rings outside the yard.

00:09:40Hector, right on schedule.

00:09:42He hands me an ice-cold soda, then stares at my face for a little too long.

00:09:47Scarlett, is it just me or are you starting to look more and more like Valerie?

00:09:51A chill shoots straight through me.

00:09:52Right before I died in my last life, I was barely recognizable, skin and bones from the cancer.

00:09:57But the last time I looked in a mirror, I realized something horrifying.

00:10:00I hadn't taken over someone else's body.

00:10:02I came back wearing my own 18-year-old face.

00:10:04Pretty girls always kind of look alike, right?

00:10:07Surrounded by all this warmth, I start wavering.

00:10:09It gets harder and harder to connect this version of Valenie to the woman from my last life.

00:10:14This girl is kind, bright, alive.

00:10:16I finally begin to understand why my dad, Austin, spent his whole life loving her even when she never truly

00:10:21loved him back.

00:10:22Part of me even starts thinking that when I finally meet him in this timeline,

00:10:25maybe I should tell him to fall for somebody else.

00:10:28But I never imagined that just as I started letting my guard down, hell was already opening its doors.

00:10:33School lets out early that day.

00:10:35Hector and I stop by a taco truck on the corner.

00:10:38Valerie says she's tired and asks us to grab her a baked potato before heading home ahead of us.

00:10:43We're almost at her house when an old pickup truck with no plates suddenly comes flying backward out of the

00:10:49driveway.

00:10:50Several tattooed men in masks jump into the bed of the truck.

00:10:54Then a scream tears through the air.

00:10:57It's Valerie.

00:11:01Hector and I sprint toward the house so fast my lungs feel like they're tearing apart.

00:11:06The front door hangs crooked on its hinges, creaking heavily as it swings loosely against the broken frame.

00:11:12The second we step inside, the smell hits me.

00:11:15Blood, sweat, whiskey.

00:11:16The living room looks like a battlefield.

00:11:17Furniture overturned.

00:11:19Glass shattered everywhere.

00:11:20Family photos ripped from the walls.

00:11:21Blood smeared across the wooden floorboards and long streaps like someone had been dragged.

00:11:25Grandpa and Grandma lie motionless on the ground.

00:11:27And in the middle of the room, Valerie, covered in blood, curled up on the floor.

00:11:32A tattooed man stands nearby, calmly fixing his belt like nothing happened.

00:11:38Hector roars and charges at him, only to get kicked hard across the room.

00:11:42The stranger turns toward me slowly.

00:11:44Then he grabs my collar and jerks me forward so violently my feet leave the ground.

00:11:49Hector!

00:11:50The stench of blood and cigarettes floods my nose so hard I nearly gag.

00:11:55Well, damn.

00:11:56If it isn't Officer Miller's kid.

00:11:58Lucky day for you, sweetheart.

00:12:00The boss already told us to pull out.

00:12:02Otherwise you'd have been a lot of fun too.

00:12:04He spits onto the floor beside me and turns to leave.

00:12:08Behind him, Valerie curls tighter into herself, desperately clutching the ripped fabric over her chest.

00:12:14A broken sound escapes her throat.

00:12:16Something inside me snaps.

00:12:18I throw myself forward and grab the man's pant leg with both hands.

00:12:21Moonlight spills through the shattered window, sliding across the side of his face.

00:12:25That jawline.

00:12:26That scar near his mouth.

00:12:27That voice.

00:12:28My entire body freezes.

00:12:30The world goes completely silent around me.

00:12:33Because he isn't some random cartel thug.

00:12:35He's Austin.

00:12:37My father.

00:12:41Hector scrambles to the wall and grabs the landline.

00:12:44But the phone cord has already been cut.

00:12:49You brought this on yourself, you little bitch!

00:12:52He lunges at me and starts ripping at my clothes, yanking violently at my collar.

00:12:57Trying to save me, Hector throws himself at Austin again, without a second thought.

00:13:01In the chaos, I catch a flash of murder in Austin's eyes.

00:13:05He suddenly pulls a hunting knife from the back of his waist hand.

00:13:08And in that instant, I completely lose it.

00:13:11Without thinking, I grab the blade with my bare hand.

00:13:14My dad?

00:13:15How could this be my dad?

00:13:17Tears crash into the growing pool of blood beneath me.

00:13:20The man I loved most growing up.

00:13:22The father who raised me in that trailer park with nothing.

00:13:25How could it be you?

00:13:26You're a rapist now.

00:13:27A murderer.

00:13:28I can't take it.

00:13:29I feel like I'm losing my mind.

00:13:31But the sharp pain slicing through my palm and Valier's desperate sobbing remind me this is real.

00:13:37I clamp down on the knife with everything I have and scream hysterically at Hector.

00:13:42Hector, run!

00:13:44Go get help!

00:13:45Go!

00:13:46Now!

00:13:46Blood streams down Hector's face as he staggers toward the door and bolts outside.

00:13:51And the second he's gone, Austin completely snaps.

00:13:55With a vicious twist of his wrist, he jerks the knife free and points the blade straight at my throat.

00:14:04But just then, my grandmother, who had been lying motionless in a pool of blood,

00:14:09somehow forces herself back up with the last bit of strength she has left.

00:14:14Austin turns, ready to stab her next.

00:14:18No!

00:14:19I slam into him with everything I have.

00:14:21The blade plunges straight into my stomach.

00:14:24Warmth explodes through my body.

00:14:26Then comes the pain.

00:14:27Endless, crushing pain.

00:14:29I press both hands against the wound, holding on to the knife with everything I've got so Austin can't pull

00:14:34it back out.

00:14:35You can't kill them.

00:14:38You can't.

00:14:40I'm crying, choking as blood pours from my mouth in heavy bursts.

00:14:44But Austin just twists the knife cruelly inside me.

00:14:48The agony sends me collapsing to my knees in the blood.

00:14:52That's when Grandma suddenly wraps both arms around Austin's neck from behind

00:14:55and drags him to the floor with every ounce of strength she has left.

00:14:59My grandfather, already covered in blood, grabs onto Austin's leg and refuses to let go.

00:15:04Realizing he's about to get caught, Austin curses violently, kicks himself free from them,

00:15:09and climbs out the window, disappearing into the darkness near the border.

00:15:12Scarlet!

00:15:14Scarlet, stay with me!

00:15:16Please don't close your eyes!

00:15:18Through my fading vision, I feel Valerie pulling me into her arms.

00:15:23My consciousness is already slipping away.

00:15:26Sobbing controllably, with tears and blood all over my face,

00:15:28I still try to take off my jacket and cover her with it.

00:15:31But I'm too weak.

00:15:32My arm barely lifts halfway before it drops limply into the blood.

00:15:35In the distance, sirens scream through the night.

00:15:38I hear Hector crying as he rushes back inside with the police.

00:15:41Then everything goes dark.

00:15:43Somewhere far away, voices echo around me as I'm lifted onto a stretcher.

00:15:48She's flatlining! Move! Get the defibrillator! Now!

00:15:53When I finally open my eyes again, all I see is the pale white ceiling of a hospital room.

00:15:57Sitting beside my bed is Hector.

00:15:58When he ran for help, Austin's men caught him and beat him half to death.

00:16:01The second he sees me awake, arrogant genius, completely falls apart.

00:16:04He wipes his eyes while gripping to entail so tenderly.

00:16:06You were the last one to wake up.

00:16:08Do you have any idea how close you came to dying?

00:16:11You scared the hell out of us!

00:16:12He's crying so hard, it's a complete mess.

00:16:14Tears, snot, everything.

00:16:15At one point, he even spits on my face while talking.

00:16:17I let out a weak laugh.

00:16:18The anesthesia still hasn't fully worn over.

00:16:20I can't really feel pain yet, just a heavy numbness all over my body.

00:16:22I look at him anxiously.

00:16:23Valerie's parents? And Valerie, are they okay?

00:16:27Her folks made it to the hospital just in time.

00:16:30If that knife had hit either of them, any worse?

00:16:33I struggle to sit up, desperate to see her, but before I can move, the hospital room door slowly opens.

00:16:38Valerie is standing there.

00:16:39Her eyes look hollow.

00:16:40And when she looks at me, there's something shattered in them I can't even begin to explain.

00:16:45I say her name softly.

00:16:46She nods faintly and walks over.

00:16:47Her cold fingers are on my shoulder.

00:16:49Does it hurt?

00:16:50I shake my head.

00:16:51Looking at her red-rimmed eyes, I force a small smile.

00:16:55Have you been crying?

00:16:57She doesn't answer.

00:16:58She just holds my hand tighter and gently squeezes my cheek like she's afraid I'll disappear.

00:17:01And suddenly, she lowers her head and tears drip onto the back of my hand.

00:17:05Thank you, Scarlet.

00:17:06If it weren't for you, I would have lost my parents.

00:17:10I look at the 18-year-old version of my mother standing in front of me, her fate already completely

00:17:14changed because of me.

00:17:16I sniff hard, holding back tears.

00:17:18I don't say a single word.

00:17:19I just let her tears soak into my skin before slowly lifting my free hand and placing it softly over

00:17:24the trembling hand resting on my shoulder.

00:17:28Valerie looks down at my hand covering hers, as if she understands the comfort in my eyes.

00:17:34She takes a deep breath.

00:17:37Tears still cling to her lashes, but for the first time in forever, her voice carries a little relief.

00:17:43I've got good news.

00:17:44The case is over.

00:17:45The cartel operation finally got busted.

00:17:48Every single person involved in the attack was caught near the border.

00:17:51My parents can finally rest for a while.

00:17:53The moment I hear Austin and the traffickers were all arrested, my entire mind goes blank.

00:17:58Relief crashes over me so hard I almost shoot upright in the hospital bed.

00:18:02Wait, seriously?

00:18:03They caught all of them?

00:18:05Yes, seriously.

00:18:06Now stop moving before you rip your stitches open.

00:18:09The denton-crushing weight that haunted me through both lifetimes finally disappears at that moment.

00:18:13Meanwhile, Hector, who has been sitting nearby this entire time, calmly peels a banana like nothing's happening.

00:18:19Doctor said you should eat this.

00:18:20You've already woken up a few times these past couple days.

00:18:22You've managed to pass gas, so now they're just waiting to see if you can finally have a bowel movement.

00:18:27Coming from someone usually this serious, it's so absurd I completely lose it.

00:18:31Unfortunately, the second I laugh, pain rips through the stitches in my abdomen.

00:18:34I immediately hiss in pain, clutching my stomach.

00:18:36Valerie starts laughing too, but after a few seconds, her laughter fades.

00:18:39Tears suddenly begin falling again without warning.

00:18:41She tries to cry quietly.

00:18:43She doesn't want either of us to notice.

00:18:45Hector's smile slowly disappears too.

00:18:47I wrap both arms tightly around this 18-year-old girl.

00:18:50At that moment, through my chest is no longer the hatred I carried in my previous life.

00:18:55Mom, if I had known my biologed father was the monster who destroyed your entire family,

00:19:00how could I ever have hated you?

00:19:01I would have only hated myself for ever being born, since fate gave me another chance.

00:19:07Then this time, I'll set you free.

00:19:11After surviving the nightmare, the little Texas town slowly comes back to life.

00:19:15Once I'm discharged from the hospital, my grandparents take me home.

00:19:18Grandpa proudly hands me a limited edition Barbie doll he brought back from New York.

00:19:21In my previous life, it was the only toy my mother had ever given me.

00:19:24But this time, somehow, it heals me first.

00:19:26Then Grandma completely hijacks what was supposed to be an emotional family dinner with giant sizzling Texas steaks,

00:19:31oversized cowboy hats and boots that look straight out of a Hollywood audition,

00:19:34and enough chaos to turn the whole night upside down.

00:19:37Even Hector, who normally acts way too composed for his age, finally laughs without holding back.

00:19:43But beneath the warm yellow glow of the dinner lights, the conversation eventually turns to goodbye.

00:19:48Hector's mother lifts her wine glass, eyes red and swollen,

00:19:51and quietly announces that they're moving back to Boston before Thanksgiving.

00:19:54She can't handle the danger near the border anymore.

00:19:56And in that moment, a misunderstanding from both my lifetimes finally unravels.

00:20:00In my previous life, Hector never left because he looked down on my mother's reputation.

00:20:05His mother had simply watched her son nearly die.

00:20:08Any parent would have wanted to run from this place after that.

00:20:10As an old country song crackles through the radio in the background,

00:20:14we start talking about the future.

00:20:16Valerie asks where I want to go to school someday.

00:20:18I look at her, the girl whose entire future was crushed fate in my previous life,

00:20:23and answer without hesitation, Harvard.

00:20:26Under the endless Texas night sky, with the Milky Way stretched above her like a dream,

00:20:29I finally understand the suffocating pain she carried in her previous life.

00:20:32I turn my head slightly and whisper so softly that only I can hear it.

00:20:35Mom, this time go live your life, chase your dreams, be yourself again.

00:20:38As for me, I'll stay behind in the darkness of this timeline.

00:20:41The day Hector leaves, the boy who has always been calm and restrained

00:20:44completely breaks down the moment he steps onto the bus.

00:20:47Clinging to the window, he cries so hard he can barely breathe.

00:20:50And then the bus slowly pulls away, kicking up clouds of Texas dust

00:20:53before disappearing at the end of the highway.

00:20:55Watching the bus vanish into the distance,

00:20:57I think life might finally return to normal.

00:21:00But fate still isn't done with me yet.

00:21:01Something happened to Valerie.

00:21:06After seeing Hector off, we head home through the bitter Texas winter wind.

00:21:09I cling tightly to Valerie's arm,

00:21:10trying my best to keep the mood light while talking excitedly about Christmas dinner plans.

00:21:13Mr. Wyatt's brisket has to be there.

00:21:14And Mr. Wyatt's smoked pulled pork too.

00:21:16No argument.

00:21:16This year, we are eating like royalty.

00:21:18I'm still rambling happily when Valerie's expression suddenly changes.

00:21:21Without warning, she jerks her arm out of my grasp.

00:21:23Like a frightened deer, she stumbles towards a trash can on the side of the road,

00:21:27bends over, and starts violently throwing up.

00:21:29She vomits so hard there's eventually nothing left except bitter dry humps.

00:21:33By the end, she can barely stay standing.

00:21:35She grips a freezing telephone pole for support,

00:21:38her whole body trembling violently,

00:21:40her face drained completely white.

00:21:42My mind goes blank.

00:21:43The smile freezes on my face.

00:21:45Watching her clutch her stomach and reek in pain,

00:21:49a terrifying cold realization crawls slowly up my spine like ice water.

00:21:55No symptoms.

00:21:58No.

00:21:59No way.

00:22:04You-you're pregnant?

00:22:08Valerie instinctively places a hand over her stomach.

00:22:11Her eyes are filled with the kind of panic and confusion

00:22:14no 18-year-old girl should ever have to carry.

00:22:17What happened that night may have been stopped halfway through,

00:22:20but some nightmares had already rerouted themselves deep in the dark.

00:22:25She looks at me helplessly,

00:22:27tears trembling in her eyes.

00:22:29I-I don't know, Scarlett.

00:22:32I thought maybe it was just stress lately.

00:22:35I haven't had much appetite,

00:22:37and I kept feeling nauseous.

00:22:39Come on.

00:22:40We're going to the clinic.

00:22:41Now.

00:22:42I don't even let her finish speaking.

00:22:44I grab her hand and practically drag her down the street

00:22:47toward the town's small community clinic.

00:22:51The doctor on duty is an elderly Cuban-American woman with silver hair,

00:22:55Dr. Ramirez.

00:22:56She isn't just the only general practitioner in town.

00:22:58She's also one of Grandma Wyatt's oldest friends,

00:23:01and her chalice alongside her years ago.

00:23:03The second Dr. Romero sees Valerie's face,

00:23:05and the sheer panic in my eyes,

00:23:07her sharp, battle-worned gaze immediately narrows.

00:23:10Wasting another second,

00:23:11she starts ushering every remaining patient out of the clinic.

00:23:15The entire room falls into suffocating silence.

00:23:20Tell me what's going on.

00:23:22My scalp precles with dread as I quickly explain Valerie's nausea and vomiting.

00:23:26The old doctor says nothing after hearing me out,

00:23:29but a deep, piercing sorrow flashes through her eyes.

00:23:32She quietly takes Valerie into the examination room in the back.

00:23:36The moment the door closes,

00:23:38all the strength drains out of me.

00:23:39I collapse into the cold metal chair outside the office,

00:23:42shoving both hands deep into my hair.

00:23:44More than anyone else, I know exactly where I came from.

00:23:47And because of that,

00:23:48a horrifying truth finally pieces itself together in my mind.

00:23:51In my previous life,

00:23:52Austin, the man who raised me after destroying Valerie's life,

00:23:54was actually released from prison early.

00:23:56After committing crimes like that,

00:23:58he still got out in less than 20 years.

00:23:59Back then, when the case went to court,

00:24:01Valerie must have stayed silent.

00:24:03Maybe to hide the shame of being pregnant as a teenager.

00:24:06Maybe to protect the Wyatt family's reputation.

00:24:08Whatever the reason,

00:24:09her silence helped set a monster free.

00:24:11The guilt of my own existence tears through me like a dull blade.

00:24:14This nightmare destroyed a brilliant girl

00:24:15who was supposed to go to Harvard.

00:24:17And the one thing it gave back to the world was a demon.

00:24:21Half an hour later,

00:24:22the exam room door slowly creaks open.

00:24:25Dr. Ramirez steps outside, looking exhausted.

00:24:27She gently pats my shoulder.

00:24:30Scarlet,

00:24:32go get Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt for me.

00:24:36The moment the truth comes out,

00:24:38the house,

00:24:39which had barely survived one nightmare already,

00:24:42falls into dead silence all over again.

00:24:53Grandpa sits heavily on the couch.

00:24:56This massive, hard-nosed cop

00:24:59who once stared down cartel gunfires

00:25:01now looks hollowed out,

00:25:02like a man aging 10 years in a single night.

00:25:08He buries his rough,

00:25:09caliphate hands over his face

00:25:11and says nothing.

00:25:14Meanwhile,

00:25:16Grandma holds 18-year-old Valerie

00:25:17tightly in her arms,

00:25:19sobbing so hard she can barely breathe.

00:25:22We're packing tonight.

00:25:25We'll go straight to Boston

00:25:26and stay with Hector and his mother.

00:25:30I won't let that monster's family

00:25:32lay a finger on you ever again.

00:25:36Valerie stays curled up

00:25:38in the corner of the bed

00:25:39the entire time,

00:25:40silent as a porcelain doll.

00:25:42She doesn't say a word.

00:25:44She just keeps staring at me

00:25:45with those shattered, empty eyes.

00:25:47But somewhere inside them

00:25:48is still this helpless instinct

00:25:50begging for someone to save her.

00:25:52The sight tears me apart inside.

00:25:55I lower my head immediately,

00:25:58too ashamed to even look

00:25:59my own mother in the eye.

00:26:00And then things somehow

00:26:03get even worse.

00:26:05Austin's trashy parents,

00:26:06the grandparents I had

00:26:07in my previous life,

00:26:09somehow hear about

00:26:10Valerie's pregnancy.

00:26:11Right after the attack,

00:26:12those two cowards

00:26:13vanished completely

00:26:14to avoid being dragged

00:26:15into the police investigation.

00:26:16But the second they hear

00:26:17Valerie is carrying

00:26:18Austin's child,

00:26:19they swoop in like

00:26:19vultures smelling blood.

00:26:21To them,

00:26:21this pregnancy is leverage,

00:26:23the perfect weapon

00:26:24to destroy the Wyatt family.

00:26:26We barely made it back home

00:26:27before the two of them

00:26:28show up outside the house

00:26:29with some sleazy lawyer

00:26:31they hired.

00:26:33The smell of cheap cigarettes

00:26:35and stale alcohol

00:26:36hits before they even

00:26:38step into the yard.

00:26:41My former grandfather,

00:26:43Silas Walker,

00:26:44doesn't show even

00:26:45a trace of shame.

00:26:47No guilt.

00:26:48No apology.

00:26:50Just this disgusting,

00:26:52smug arrogance.

00:26:56Standing in the yard,

00:26:57he bellows toward the house

00:26:59like he owns the place.

00:27:00Officer Wyatt,

00:27:01don't hide in there.

00:27:03My son Austin

00:27:04may be in prison,

00:27:05but he still has

00:27:06parental rights.

00:27:07That maybe is part

00:27:08of our family,

00:27:08and you're not taking

00:27:10our grandchild anywhere.

00:27:11The sleazy lawyer beside him

00:27:13adjusts his glasses

00:27:14and smirks coldly.

00:27:19If Miss Yight refuses

00:27:20to drop the charges,

00:27:21we're fully prepared

00:27:21to drag this

00:27:22to the family court

00:27:23for years.

00:27:24And trust me,

00:27:25once the media

00:27:25gets involved,

00:27:26everybody in Texas

00:27:27is going to know

00:27:28exactly what happened

00:27:29to your daughter.

00:27:33Then Mayabelle Walker,

00:27:34my former grandmother,

00:27:36blows out a stream

00:27:37of cigarette smoke

00:27:38and starts screeching

00:27:39in the house.

00:27:40You go testify

00:27:42in federal court,

00:27:43and we'll swear

00:27:44Valerie wanted it!

00:27:45We'll tell everyone

00:27:46you cops framed our son!

00:27:51We'll make damn sure

00:27:52every police department

00:27:54in Texas

00:27:54knows what kind of girl

00:27:56your daughter really is!

00:27:57You think those badges

00:27:59are going to survive this?

00:28:01We'll ruin your whole family!

00:28:07The police had kept

00:28:09the details of that night

00:28:10sealed tightly.

00:28:11Nobody in town

00:28:12knew what Valerie

00:28:13had actually suffered

00:28:14in the dark.

00:28:15But now,

00:28:15these two shameless monsters

00:28:17are ripping open

00:28:17her deepest traumata

00:28:18in public

00:28:19just to save

00:28:20their worthless son

00:28:20from federal prison.

00:28:22They stand outside

00:28:22with a damn megaphone,

00:28:24turning a survivor's

00:28:25private nightmare

00:28:26into some sick

00:28:27public spectacle

00:28:28about protecting

00:28:28the family bloodline.

00:28:30Before long,

00:28:30the whole town knows.

00:28:32But they don't actually

00:28:33want the baby.

00:28:34That's never been the point.

00:28:35What they want

00:28:36is pressure.

00:28:38They want to weaponize

00:28:39this conservative

00:28:40little town.

00:28:41The gossip,

00:28:42the judgment,

00:28:43the victim blaming

00:28:44until the Wyatts

00:28:45have nowhere left to run.

00:28:46And their terms

00:28:47are crystal clear.

00:28:48They want Valerie

00:28:49to change her testimony

00:28:50in federal court.

00:28:52They want her to claim

00:28:53Austin was just the driver

00:28:55and knew nothing

00:28:56about the attack.

00:28:57In exchange,

00:28:58the Walkers

00:28:58will stop harassing

00:28:59the family

00:29:00and leave them alone.

00:29:02Hearing the whispers

00:29:03rising outside the fence,

00:29:04seeing neighbors stare

00:29:06with that fake sympathy

00:29:07hiding disgust underneath.

00:29:11Everything suddenly

00:29:12clicks into place

00:29:13inside my head.

00:29:15Now I understand

00:29:16exactly how Austin

00:29:17got that early release

00:29:18in my previous life.

00:29:20There had been a deal.

00:29:22And Valerie had been

00:29:23crushed into accepting it.

00:29:24Looking at those

00:29:25two smug bastards

00:29:26standing outside our home

00:29:27acting righteous,

00:29:28every ounce of humiliation

00:29:29from my previous life

00:29:30and every drop of rage

00:29:31from this one

00:29:32finally explodes inside me.

00:29:34To hell with staying calm.

00:29:35I grab Grandpa's

00:29:36Louisville slugger

00:29:37from behind the front door

00:29:38and storm outside,

00:29:39gripping the bat

00:29:39so hard my knuckles

00:29:40go white.

00:29:41By then,

00:29:41all I can see is red.

00:29:58Right in front of everyone,

00:29:59I swing the bat.

00:30:00Crack, crack.

00:30:01The heavy end

00:30:02of the Louisville slugger

00:30:03smashes straight into Silas

00:30:04and Maybean's faces

00:30:05without a shred of hesitation.

00:30:07The sound of teeth breaking

00:30:08mixes with their screams

00:30:09as both of them

00:30:10stumble backward,

00:30:11clutching their bloody mouths

00:30:12before collapsing into the dirt.

00:30:13Your son is a convicted rapist!

00:30:16I point the bat

00:30:16directly at the two of them,

00:30:18shaking with rage.

00:30:19Where the hell

00:30:19was the talk about the law

00:30:21when your psycho son

00:30:22was pointing a gun

00:30:23at federal officers?

00:30:24And now you want to come here

00:30:25and black rail cops?

00:30:28Gripping the bat

00:30:29with both hands,

00:30:30I swing as hard as I can

00:30:31into the lawyer's sedan

00:30:32parked by the curb.

00:30:33The windshield explodes

00:30:34instantly into a spider web

00:30:35of shattered glass.

00:30:37Then I whip around

00:30:37towards the neighbors

00:30:38gathering outside the fence,

00:30:40all of them whispering

00:30:40and staring.

00:30:42What are you all looking at?

00:30:43Anybody else wants to stand here

00:30:45screaming at a victim

00:30:46with these two pieces of trash?

00:30:48I raise the broken bat,

00:30:49splintered wood

00:30:50jouting from the barrel.

00:30:51I swear to God,

00:30:52the next swing

00:30:53straight goes through your skull.

00:30:54Get the hell away

00:30:55from the Wyatt house!

00:30:57All of you!

00:30:57Move!

00:30:58The hot border wind

00:30:59tears through the street.

00:31:01One look at the shattered bat

00:31:02in my hands is enough.

00:31:03The neighbors pale instantly

00:31:04and start backing away in fear.

00:31:06And then suddenly,

00:31:08Silas runges at me

00:31:09with a rusty switchblade

00:31:10in his hand.

00:31:10Drop the charges

00:31:11or I'll kill

00:31:12every last one of you!

00:31:16The gunshot detonates

00:31:18through the street

00:31:18like thunder.

00:31:19The bullet slices

00:31:20past Silas's ear

00:31:21and blasts apart

00:31:22one of the wooden fence

00:31:23posts behind him.

00:31:24Everyone freezes.

00:31:25Grandpa Rick stands there

00:31:26gripping a cord

00:31:28the barrel pressed

00:31:29directly against

00:31:29Silas's forehead.

00:31:31His voice is low

00:31:32and deadly.

00:31:33Officer Miller's daughter

00:31:34took a knife

00:31:34from my family.

00:31:35You touch her again

00:31:36and see what happens.

00:31:38The ringing echo

00:31:39from the gunshot

00:31:40leaves everyone stunned.

00:31:42Silas drops

00:31:43the knife immediately.

00:31:44It clatters onto

00:31:45the dirt beside him

00:31:46as he collapses

00:31:47in terror.

00:31:50He's gonna kill us!

00:31:52The cops are trying

00:31:53to murder us!

00:31:54But before she can

00:31:55say another word,

00:31:55another figure comes

00:31:57flying down

00:31:57the porch steps.

00:31:58Grandma.

00:32:00She moves like lightning.

00:32:02Grabbing a fistful

00:32:03of Maybella's

00:32:03brittle yellow hair,

00:32:04she yanks her sideways

00:32:05so hard the old woman

00:32:06nearly falls.

00:32:07Slap!

00:32:09Grandma backhands her

00:32:10across the face

00:32:10hard enough to send

00:32:11her crashing into the dirt

00:32:12then plants a boot

00:32:14against her chest.

00:32:15Her eyes are pure steel.

00:32:17You think you can

00:32:18threaten my daughter's name?

00:32:19I'll go to prison

00:32:20smiling before I let

00:32:21your family destroy

00:32:22her life.

00:32:22Now get the hell

00:32:23off my property

00:32:24before I bury

00:32:25all of you out

00:32:26in the desert myself.

00:32:27Rick cocks the revolver

00:32:29once, never taking

00:32:30his eyes off Silas.

00:32:31You assaulted my family.

00:32:33As a police officer

00:32:34I have every right

00:32:35to arrest you right now.

00:32:36Next time,

00:32:37you won't walk away

00:32:38this lucky.

00:32:39Now get out.

00:32:40The sheer violence

00:32:41radiating off the two

00:32:42retired narcotics officers

00:32:44terrifies everyone

00:32:45into silence.

00:32:46The gossipy neighbors

00:32:47scatter immediately.

00:32:48Silas and Maybella

00:32:49scramble to their feet

00:32:50and flee down the road

00:32:52like stray dogs.

00:32:53But then suddenly,

00:32:54Grandpa Rick

00:32:55doubles over

00:32:56coughing violently.

00:32:57Fresh blood

00:32:58begins soaking

00:32:59through the white

00:32:59bandages

00:33:00wrapped around

00:33:00his torso.

00:33:06Grandpa stitches

00:33:07tear open again

00:33:08so Grandma

00:33:08rushes him back

00:33:09to the hospital.

00:33:10I stay behind

00:33:10to take care of Valerie.

00:33:11Standing outside

00:33:12her bedroom door

00:33:12I force myself

00:33:13to breathe through

00:33:13the panic crushing

00:33:14my chest.

00:33:15I wipe the tears

00:33:15and blood off my face

00:33:16over and over

00:33:16with my sleeve

00:33:17until my skin

00:33:17burns raw.

00:33:18I can't let Valerie

00:33:19see me falling apart.

00:33:20Right now,

00:33:20I have to be strong

00:33:21for her.

00:33:22I shove the bedroom

00:33:23door open

00:33:23and lock it tightly

00:33:24behind her

00:33:25shutting out

00:33:25the chaos outside.

00:33:26Then I walk

00:33:27straight towards

00:33:28her bed.

00:33:29The second I see

00:33:30her sitting there

00:33:31pale,

00:33:32hollow,

00:33:33motionless,

00:33:34something inside me

00:33:35finally breaks

00:33:36completely.

00:33:37Valerie,

00:33:39let's leave.

00:33:40We can start over

00:33:41somewhere else.

00:33:42New York,

00:33:43California,

00:33:44anywhere.

00:33:45Please,

00:33:46just pack a bag

00:33:47and come with me,

00:33:48okay?

00:33:48I almost sound

00:33:49desperate.

00:33:50I grab her shoulders

00:33:51gently,

00:33:52trying to pull strength

00:33:53from the girl

00:33:53who,

00:33:54in another lifetime,

00:33:55would become my mother

00:33:5619 years later.

00:33:58But Valerie never

00:33:59says a word.

00:34:00She just stays curled

00:34:01in the corner of the bed.

00:34:03The fading sunset

00:34:04filters through the blinds,

00:34:05strip by strip,

00:34:06dying slowly

00:34:07across her face.

00:34:08Then she finally

00:34:09lifts her head,

00:34:10and once again

00:34:11she looks at me

00:34:12with those same

00:34:13shattered eyes,

00:34:14empty,

00:34:15helpless,

00:34:15but still quietly

00:34:17begging someone

00:34:17to save me.

00:34:18Sight crushes my chest.

00:34:20For my entire

00:34:20previous life

00:34:21I thought I had

00:34:21been born unwanted,

00:34:22but now I finally

00:34:23understand the truth.

00:34:24My birth was never

00:34:25love.

00:34:25It was a chain,

00:34:27a weapon crafted

00:34:27by a monster

00:34:28to trap my mother

00:34:29and destroy her family

00:34:30forever.

00:34:30I have never hated

00:34:31myself more

00:34:32than I do right now.

00:34:35Valerie,

00:34:36listen to me.

00:34:38This baby...

00:34:39Before I can finish,

00:34:40Valerie suddenly

00:34:41covers my mouth

00:34:42with her hand.

00:34:44I look up at her

00:34:46and suddenly

00:34:47the dam inside me

00:34:49completely breaks.

00:34:51Tears pour down

00:34:52my face

00:34:52as I collapse

00:34:53to my knees

00:34:54beside the bed.

00:34:55I pull her hand

00:34:56away from my mouth

00:34:57and finally scream

00:34:58out the truth

00:34:59that destroyed me

00:35:00for an entire lifetime.

00:35:02This baby

00:35:03is a stain

00:35:04that monster

00:35:05left on your life.

00:35:07You'll hate it

00:35:08forever!

00:35:09Every time

00:35:10you look at it,

00:35:11you'll remember him!

00:35:13You'll wish

00:35:14it had never been born!

00:35:16My voice cracks

00:35:17apart completely.

00:35:19It's better

00:35:20to end this now

00:35:21than let that child

00:35:22grow up trapped

00:35:22in pain and misery!

00:35:25I can barely breathe

00:35:26through the sobbing.

00:35:28No one can calmly

00:35:29beg their own mother

00:35:30to erase them

00:35:30from existence.

00:35:31But at that exact moment,

00:35:33Valerie,

00:35:34who has been sitting

00:35:34there lifeless

00:35:35and hollow this whole,

00:35:36whole time,

00:35:37suddenly trembles violently.

00:35:39It's like something

00:35:40inside her

00:35:41finally snaps awake.

00:35:42She bolts upright

00:35:43from the bed

00:35:44and throws her arms

00:35:45around me

00:35:45without warning,

00:35:46crushing me

00:35:47against her chest.

00:35:48She holds me

00:35:49so tightly

00:35:49her fingers

00:35:50dig painfully

00:35:51into my back.

00:35:52Hot tears

00:35:53spill onto my neck,

00:35:54burning against my skin.

00:35:55And then she

00:35:56completely breaks down.

00:35:57I never wanted you dead.

00:36:00Nora!

00:36:02Her voice is raw

00:36:04and shattered from crying.

00:36:06Not once!

00:36:08Not for a single second

00:36:10did I ever wish

00:36:11you were dead!

00:36:15That single sentence

00:36:17crashes through the room

00:36:18with the weight

00:36:18of two lifetimes

00:36:19behind it.

00:36:20Every ounce of pain,

00:36:22resentment,

00:36:23anger,

00:36:24and loneliness

00:36:24I carried inside me

00:36:26shatters instantly

00:36:27into dust.

00:36:28Because she called me

00:36:30Nora.

00:36:31Not Scarlet.

00:36:32Nora.

00:36:33In this timeline,

00:36:34nobody knows that name.

00:36:36Nobody except my mother

00:36:38from my previous life.

00:36:39I freeze in her arms,

00:36:41my mind going

00:36:42completely blank.

00:36:43She isn't just

00:36:44the 18-year-old Valerie

00:36:46who knows nothing

00:36:47about the future.

00:36:48She remembers too.

00:36:49In this broken,

00:36:52twisted timeline,

00:36:53a near-mai find,

00:36:55my mother was reborn

00:36:56alongside me.

00:36:58I know.

00:37:00My entire body shakes

00:37:02as I cling to her shoulder,

00:37:03her shoulder

00:37:04like a lost child.

00:37:07I know I was never

00:37:09supposed to be born.

00:37:10You had every reason

00:37:12to hate me

00:37:13because of that monster.

00:37:15Valerie suddenly

00:37:16grabs my face

00:37:16with both hands

00:37:17and forces me

00:37:18to look at her

00:37:18through her tears.

00:37:20How could a mother

00:37:20ever hate her child?

00:37:22After two lifetimes,

00:37:24inside this old

00:37:25Texas house in 1996,

00:37:27she finally tears open

00:37:28the truth she buried

00:37:29for decades.

00:37:30And through uncontrollable

00:37:31sobbing,

00:37:32my mother finally tells me

00:37:33why she stood beside

00:37:34my hospital bed

00:37:35and watched me die

00:37:36in my previous life.

00:37:40The reason I couldn't

00:37:41donate bone marrow

00:37:42was because I had

00:37:44terminal cancer too.

00:37:46I wasn't eligible

00:37:47to donate.

00:37:48I wasn't abandoning

00:37:49you, Nora.

00:37:51How could I ever

00:37:52abandon my own daughter?

00:37:54Outside,

00:37:55the winter wind screams

00:37:57across the Texas

00:37:58borderlands.

00:37:59But inside this

00:38:00cold little room,

00:38:02a mother and daughter

00:38:03separated by two

00:38:04lifetimes

00:38:04finally find each other

00:38:06again in the ruins

00:38:08of everything they lost.

00:38:09Valerie clutches me

00:38:11so tightly,

00:38:11she's shaking.

00:38:12I never gave

00:38:13on you, Nora.

00:38:15I begged everyone

00:38:16I could for help.

00:38:17I borrowed money

00:38:18from anybody

00:38:18willing to listen

00:38:19because I wanted

00:38:20to save you.

00:38:21Every word tears

00:38:22out of her throat

00:38:23like it physically

00:38:23hurts to say it.

00:38:24Your bastard father

00:38:25wouldn't pay a single dime.

00:38:27The ICU bills

00:38:28kept piling up

00:38:29every single day.

00:38:30The hospital kept

00:38:30mailing notices

00:38:31until my bowel box

00:38:32was overflowing.

00:38:33In the end,

00:38:34I sold every apartment

00:38:35and every piece of property

00:38:36I owned in Boston

00:38:37just to barely cover

00:38:38your medical bills.

00:38:39Then her breathing

00:38:40completely falls apart.

00:38:41And Austin.

00:38:42That monster wanted

00:38:43to pull your ventilator

00:38:44out himself

00:38:45back at the trailer park.

00:38:46He lied to you.

00:38:47He actually convinced you

00:38:48that I was the one

00:38:49who abandoned you.

00:38:50She cries so hard

00:38:51she can barely breathe anymore.

00:38:52Decades of humiliation

00:38:53and buried motherhood

00:38:54finally exploding out

00:38:55all at once.

00:38:56Back then,

00:38:57I left with Hector's mother

00:38:58to work in the city

00:38:59because I needed money.

00:39:00I was trying to build

00:39:01enough of a life

00:39:01to come back

00:39:02and take you away

00:39:03from that rotting border town.

00:39:04But the second I left,

00:39:06Austin cut off

00:39:07every possible way

00:39:07for me to contact you.

00:39:09He guarded the trailer park

00:39:10with a gun

00:39:10and wouldn't even

00:39:11let me get near you.

00:39:12The only thing

00:39:14I could do...

00:39:16Her voice breaks

00:39:17completely.

00:39:19...was stand outside

00:39:20your school

00:39:21at the beginning

00:39:21of every semester

00:39:22and watch you

00:39:23from across the street.

00:39:28I bite down so hard

00:39:29on my little lip

00:39:30I taste blood.

00:39:32My vision is

00:39:33completely blurred

00:39:34by tears.

00:39:35And finally,

00:39:37I understand everything.

00:39:40Back then,

00:39:41she was only 18.

00:39:42A girl who had survived

00:39:44something horrific

00:39:44whose mind was already

00:39:46hanging by a thread.

00:39:47There was no way

00:39:48she could go back

00:39:48to that monster.

00:39:50For her,

00:39:51every step towards

00:39:52that trailer cramp

00:39:53was like walking back

00:39:54into hell itself.

00:39:55But fate has always

00:39:56been cruel.

00:39:57By the time mom

00:39:57finally saved enough money

00:39:59and came back

00:40:00to fight for custody of me,

00:40:01Austin had already sensed

00:40:03something was coming.

00:40:04He grabbed me

00:40:04in the middle of the night

00:40:05and disappeared.

00:40:06And in the 1990s,

00:40:07before cell phones,

00:40:09databases,

00:40:10and internet tracking

00:40:11connected the world,

00:40:12we vanished

00:40:13into countless

00:40:13forgotten trailer parks

00:40:15scattered across America.

00:40:17She never found us again.

00:40:19Valerie cups my face

00:40:21with trembling hands.

00:40:25When you turned 18,

00:40:27you finally tracked down

00:40:28my private number.

00:40:29Her voice cracks apart.

00:40:31But by then,

00:40:34I'd already been diagnosed

00:40:35with terminal cancer.

00:40:38I didn't have much time

00:40:40left, Nora.

00:40:43Her tears mixed with mine

00:40:45as they streamed down

00:40:46our faces together.

00:40:47My body was falling apart

00:40:48day by day.

00:40:49I didn't want to drag you

00:40:50into that.

00:40:51I couldn't bear the thought

00:40:52of you watching me die

00:40:53in a hospital bed

00:40:54or inheriting all my debt

00:40:56after I was gone.

00:40:58That's why I acted cold

00:40:59on the phone.

00:41:00That's why I pretended

00:41:01I didn't know you.

00:41:02Everything inside my head

00:41:03goes completely blank.

00:41:08The mother I spent

00:41:09my whole life hating

00:41:10never abandoned me.

00:41:11Not once.

00:41:13With a body and soul

00:41:14shattered by a monster,

00:41:15she still fought

00:41:16through the filth

00:41:17and hopelessness

00:41:18of the 1990s

00:41:19with everything she had left

00:41:20just to keep loving me.

00:41:22We cling to each other

00:41:23in that dark little room

00:41:24and cry until there

00:41:25are no tears left.

00:41:27Finally,

00:41:28I wipe my face hard

00:41:29and force myself

00:41:30to look straight

00:41:31into her eyes.

00:41:32Mom,

00:41:34if we've really both

00:41:35been given another chance,

00:41:37then don't let me

00:41:38become your chains

00:41:38all over again.

00:41:40We can still fix this.

00:41:41We'll go to the hospital.

00:41:43Without me,

00:41:43you can finally

00:41:44live your own life.

00:41:45Valerie instantly

00:41:46shakes her head

00:41:47in panic.

00:41:47Stop!

00:41:48Don't say that!

00:41:49I can't do it!

00:41:50Nora!

00:41:51You are part of me!

00:41:52I will never let you go!

00:41:55She covers her face,

00:41:56crying uncontrollably.

00:41:58And seeing the pain

00:41:59and determination

00:42:00in her eyes,

00:42:00I can't force her anymore.

00:42:02The sunset over

00:42:03the Texas border

00:42:04paints the entire sky

00:42:05blood red.

00:42:06Hot wind rolls

00:42:08through the yard

00:42:08carrying dust

00:42:09and dry heat

00:42:10that makes my chest

00:42:11tighten with unease.

00:42:12Grandpa fires up

00:42:13the smoker in the backyard

00:42:14using a stash of oak wood

00:42:16he's been saving

00:42:16for years.

00:42:17Before long,

00:42:18the air fills with the smell

00:42:19of smoked brisket and ribs.

00:42:20Grandma and I spend

00:42:21the entire afternoon

00:42:22preparing dinner,

00:42:23wanting to give Mom,

00:42:24the girl who suffered

00:42:24so much in this timeline,

00:42:26the happiest 18th birthday possible.

00:42:27But just as Grandma

00:42:28wipes her hands clean

00:42:29and starts heading inside

00:42:30to call Valerie at a dinner...

00:42:39Officer Wyatt,

00:42:40we've got a problem.

00:42:42Austin escaped

00:42:43during transport

00:42:43to federal prison.

00:42:44He killed two federal marshals

00:42:46and stole a shotgun.

00:42:47Dispatch intercepted

00:42:48a report 10 minutes ago.

00:42:50He's heading straight for town

00:42:51in a stolen pickup truck.

00:42:52The second I hear

00:42:53Austin's name,

00:42:54rage destinates

00:42:55inside my body.

00:42:56Every ounce of blood

00:42:57in my veins

00:42:57feels like it catches fire.

00:42:59He's coming here

00:43:00for revenge!

00:43:02He's coming here for revenge!

00:43:06That monster ruined

00:43:08my mother once already.

00:43:10Why the hell

00:43:10should he get another chance

00:43:12to destroy her life?

00:43:18While Grandpa and Grandma

00:43:20rush back inside

00:43:21and scotch

00:43:22to grab their

00:43:23Remingston shoe dunes,

00:43:24I move first.

00:43:31Without hesitation,

00:43:33I snatch up

00:43:33the heavy cleaver

00:43:34sitting beside

00:43:35the cutting board

00:43:36in the kitchen.

00:43:46I don't even look back

00:43:47at the house.

00:43:48Eyes burning red

00:43:49with hatred,

00:43:50I run straight

00:43:51into the blood-colored

00:43:52Texas dusk.

00:43:53Austin,

00:43:54even if this drags

00:43:55my soul straight

00:43:56into hell,

00:43:57this time,

00:43:58I'm going to kill

00:44:00you myself.

00:44:03Night falls fast

00:44:05near the border.

00:44:06Freezing wind

00:44:07filled with sand

00:44:08cuts across my face

00:44:09like blades.

00:44:12I crouch silently

00:44:13in the shadows

00:44:14near the edge

00:44:15of the neighborhood,

00:44:15my palms slick

00:44:16with sweat

00:44:17around the handle

00:44:18of the clemver.

00:44:20But no matter

00:44:21how long I wait,

00:44:23Austin never appears.

00:44:24Then around midnight,

00:44:26a horrible instinct

00:44:27suddenly clenches

00:44:28around my heart.

00:44:29Valerie should have

00:44:30returned from the clinic

00:44:31hours ago,

00:44:32but she still isn't home.

00:44:34Headlights suddenly

00:44:35tear through the darkness.

00:44:36Grandpa's old

00:44:37pickup truck

00:44:38skids to a stop

00:44:39beside me.

00:44:39Scarlet, get in!

00:44:46Grandma and Grandpa

00:44:47both look pale with fear,

00:44:49gripping loaded

00:44:50Remington shoot guns

00:44:51tightly in their hands.

00:44:52We immediately

00:44:53start tracking

00:44:54tire marks

00:44:55and crushed brush

00:44:55along the bide side.

00:44:59following every sign

00:45:00we can find.

00:45:01The search leads us

00:45:02all the way

00:45:03to the edge of town.

00:45:04Then the pickup engine

00:45:05dies.

00:45:06Silence.

00:45:06Nothing but cold

00:45:07desert wind

00:45:08and darkness.

00:45:09In front of us

00:45:10sits an abandoned

00:45:11trailer park

00:45:11that's been empty

00:45:12for years.

00:45:13We split up

00:45:13to search for Valerie.

00:45:14Let go of me!

00:45:15You're insane!

00:45:16Let me go!

00:45:19Let go of me!

00:45:20You're insane!

00:45:21Let me go!

00:45:27Let me go!

00:45:28For Grandpa

00:45:30So I run toward

00:45:32Valerie's screams

00:45:33alone

00:45:35but somewhere

00:45:36during those few

00:45:37desperate seconds

00:45:38hearing my mother

00:45:39crying inside

00:45:40that trailer

00:45:42something strange

00:45:44happens.

00:45:45The panic inside

00:45:47my head

00:45:47suddenly disappears.

00:45:48Something strange

00:45:49happens.

00:45:50The panic inside

00:45:51my head

00:45:52suddenly disappears

00:45:52completely.

00:45:54As I sprint

00:45:55through the freezing

00:45:55dark

00:45:56I grip the heavy

00:45:57meat clever

00:45:57hidden beneath

00:45:58my coat

00:45:58so tightly

00:45:59my hand aches.

00:46:00My palm

00:46:00is slipped

00:46:01with sweat

00:46:01but my eyes

00:46:02hold no fear

00:46:03anymore

00:46:04only calm

00:46:05and certainty.

00:46:07In that moment

00:46:08I finally understand

00:46:09why I came back

00:46:10to this world.

00:46:10I wasn't reborn

00:46:11to keep living

00:46:12as that monster's

00:46:13unwanted child.

00:46:14I crossed

00:46:15my mother free

00:46:16even if it

00:46:16cost the life

00:46:17I was never

00:46:18supposed to have

00:46:18in the first place.

00:46:20I stare

00:46:21at the battered

00:46:22trailer door

00:46:22glowing faintly

00:46:23under the moonlight

00:46:24and I never

00:46:25slow down

00:46:26for even

00:46:26a second.

00:46:27You sick

00:46:29bastard!

00:46:30Die!

00:46:34Without hesitation

00:46:35I slam my foot

00:46:37into the flimsy

00:46:37aluminum trailer

00:46:38door.

00:46:39Using the momentum

00:46:40I throw myself

00:46:42straight at Austin

00:46:43from behind.

00:46:44Under the pale

00:46:45moonlight

00:46:45I raise the heavy

00:46:46cleaver high

00:46:47over my head

00:46:48and bring it down

00:46:49with every ounce

00:46:50of hatred

00:46:50from both

00:46:51lifetimes

00:46:52behind it.

00:46:54Austin lets out

00:46:55an animalistic scream

00:46:56but I underestimated

00:46:58what kind of monster

00:46:59he really is.

00:47:02I'm gonna rip you apart!

00:47:04A man who survived

00:47:05years of cartel violence

00:47:07along the border

00:47:08doesn't go down

00:47:08easily.

00:47:10The pain

00:47:11only drives me

00:47:12insane.

00:47:13Before I can swing

00:47:14again

00:47:14agony shoots

00:47:15through my arm

00:47:16like the bone

00:47:16is about to snap.

00:47:18I'm gonna kill you!

00:47:21The cleaver

00:47:22is ripped out

00:47:22of my hands

00:47:23instantly.

00:47:24Clang!

00:47:25The weapon

00:47:26crashes to the floor

00:47:27as Austin slams me

00:47:28hard against the ground

00:47:29inside the trailer.

00:47:33Under the dim

00:47:34moonlight leaking

00:47:34through the broken

00:47:35trailer walls

00:47:36Austin finally

00:47:37sees my face

00:47:38clearly.

00:47:41You little

00:47:42bitch again.

00:47:44You just keep

00:47:45ruining everything!

00:47:47He roars

00:47:48hysterically

00:47:48and raises

00:47:49the clember

00:47:49over his head

00:47:50and then it

00:47:51comes down

00:47:51again

00:47:53and again.

00:47:55The blade

00:47:55flashes silver

00:47:56through the cramped

00:47:57trailer.

00:47:58Each strike

00:47:59tears violently

00:48:00into my stomach

00:48:00and chest

00:48:01without mercy.

00:48:07Warm blood

00:48:08immediately floods

00:48:08from my mouth

00:48:09soaking my clothes.

00:48:13and strangely

00:48:15I can't feel

00:48:16pain anymore.

00:48:20My mind

00:48:21is terrifyingly

00:48:22clear.

00:48:23Only one thought

00:48:24keeps screaming

00:48:24inside my head.

00:48:26Don't let him

00:48:26go.

00:48:27Don't let him

00:48:28get to Valerie.

00:48:29No!

00:48:30Please!

00:48:30Stop!

00:48:31Let her go!

00:48:34No!

00:48:37Please!

00:48:39Stop!

00:48:46And the second

00:48:47I see him

00:48:48turning toward

00:48:48my mother again

00:48:49something inside

00:48:51me snaps

00:48:51using every

00:48:52last ounce

00:48:53of strength

00:48:54from both

00:48:54my lives.

00:48:55I throw myself

00:48:56onto him

00:48:57from behind

00:48:57and lock

00:48:58my arms

00:48:59around his

00:48:59body

00:48:59like a

00:49:00steel trap.

00:49:10No matter

00:49:10how violently

00:49:11he punches

00:49:12me

00:49:13no matter

00:49:14how many

00:49:14times

00:49:15the blade

00:49:15carves

00:49:16into my

00:49:16flesh

00:49:17I grit

00:49:18my teeth

00:49:18so hard

00:49:19I taste

00:49:19blood

00:49:19and hold

00:49:20on anyway.

00:49:22Even as

00:49:22blood pours

00:49:23from my mouth

00:49:24I use

00:49:25my dying

00:49:25body weight

00:49:26to keep

00:49:26him pinned

00:49:27in place.

00:49:28You want

00:49:28to hurt

00:49:29her?

00:49:30Then you'll

00:49:31have to

00:49:31cut me

00:49:32into pieces

00:49:32first.

00:49:34Then you'll

00:49:35have to

00:49:35cut me

00:49:35into pieces

00:49:36first.

00:49:38A deafening

00:49:39shotgun blast

00:49:40erupts

00:49:40through the

00:49:40trailer.

00:49:43Blinding

00:49:44police

00:49:44spotlights

00:49:44flood the

00:49:45darkness

00:49:45as grandpa

00:49:46storms

00:49:46inside

00:49:47roaring.

00:49:48The blast

00:49:49tears

00:49:50straight

00:49:50through

00:49:50Austin's

00:49:51skull.

00:49:52The impact

00:49:52stops

00:49:53the monster

00:49:53cold.

00:49:54His body

00:49:55jerks

00:49:55violently

00:49:56before collapsing

00:49:56to the floor

00:49:57like dead

00:49:58weight.

00:49:58Scarlet!

00:50:00Finally

00:50:00the demon

00:50:01falls silent

00:50:02and with the

00:50:03last bit

00:50:03of life

00:50:03draining

00:50:04from my

00:50:04body

00:50:04I collapse

00:50:05into the

00:50:06blood

00:50:06beside him.

00:50:11Scarlet!

00:50:12Scarlet!

00:50:16Scarlet wake up!

00:50:19Please!

00:50:20Mom's begging

00:50:21you please

00:50:22wake up!

00:50:24My mother's

00:50:25screams tear

00:50:25through the

00:50:26freezing Texas

00:50:26night.

00:50:27Raw.

00:50:28Desperate.

00:50:29Sharp enough

00:50:30to rip the

00:50:30sky apart.

00:50:31I want to

00:50:32lift my

00:50:33hand.

00:50:34Wipe the

00:50:34blood off

00:50:35her face

00:50:35like I

00:50:36always do.

00:50:37Pull her

00:50:37into my

00:50:38arms one

00:50:38last time.

00:50:39But my

00:50:39arm feels

00:50:40filled with

00:50:40concrete.

00:50:41My body

00:50:41is getting

00:50:42colder by

00:50:42the second

00:50:43and the

00:50:43voices around

00:50:44me sound

00:50:44farther and

00:50:45farther away

00:50:45like they're

00:50:46trapped beneath

00:50:46deep water.

00:50:47the whole

00:50:47world is

00:50:48slowly

00:50:48drifting out

00:50:49of reach.

00:50:49I lie

00:50:50there

00:50:50helplessly

00:50:51in the

00:50:51cold moldy

00:50:51blood pooling

00:50:52across the

00:50:53floor of

00:50:53the abandoned

00:50:53trailer.

00:50:54I see

00:50:55grandpa and

00:50:55grandma rushing

00:50:56toward me.

00:50:58Grandpa's

00:50:58hands.

00:50:59The same

00:51:00steady hands

00:51:00that held a

00:51:01gun his

00:51:01entire life

00:51:02without trembling

00:51:03once.

00:51:04He presses

00:51:04so hard

00:51:05his knuckles

00:51:05turn white

00:51:06but the

00:51:07blood still

00:51:07keeps pouring

00:51:08through his

00:51:08fingers.

00:51:10Grandma

00:51:10collapses

00:51:11beside me

00:51:12covering her

00:51:13mouth as

00:51:13sobs wreck

00:51:14her body.

00:51:16The whole

00:51:17world is

00:51:18slowly

00:51:18drifting

00:51:19out of

00:51:19reach.

00:51:20I know

00:51:21then I'm

00:51:23never gonna

00:51:23wake up

00:51:23again.

00:51:27That monster

00:51:28who haunts

00:51:28both of my

00:51:29lives like a

00:51:30curse carved

00:51:31into my

00:51:31bones.

00:51:33Austin Walker

00:51:34is finally killed

00:51:35that night by

00:51:36grandpa's

00:51:36shotgun.

00:51:37The blast

00:51:38tears straight

00:51:39through his

00:51:39head.

00:51:40His blood,

00:51:41his violence,

00:51:42his evil.

00:51:43All of it

00:51:43splatter across

00:51:44the rusted

00:51:45trailer walls

00:51:45and sinks into

00:51:46the mud of the

00:51:47Texas borderlands.

00:51:48Justice comes

00:51:49late.

00:51:49The law never

00:51:50even gets the

00:51:50chance to put

00:51:51him on death

00:51:52row.

00:51:52Fate beats

00:51:53it to the

00:51:53punch.

00:51:54Brutal,

00:51:54bloody,

00:51:55and absolute.

00:51:56After two

00:51:57lifetimes of

00:51:57suffering,

00:51:58the debt is

00:51:59finally paid.

00:52:00But the

00:52:01devil's death

00:52:01doesn't bring

00:52:02life back to

00:52:02our family.

00:52:03A few days

00:52:04later,

00:52:04an unusual storm

00:52:05rolls across

00:52:05the border.

00:52:06Cold rain

00:52:07mixes with

00:52:07sand and dirt,

00:52:08turning the

00:52:08whole town

00:52:09gray,

00:52:09muddy,

00:52:10and bitterly

00:52:10cold as if

00:52:11the sky itself

00:52:11is mourning

00:52:12everything we've

00:52:13lost.

00:52:13The Wyatt

00:52:14house falls

00:52:14silent.

00:52:15The kitchen

00:52:15that once

00:52:15smells of

00:52:16barbecue and

00:52:16fresh coffee

00:52:17never lights

00:52:17up again.

00:52:19Valerie

00:52:19becomes a

00:52:20ghost.

00:52:20She barely

00:52:21speaks,

00:52:22barely moves,

00:52:23like someone

00:52:24winds her up

00:52:25once and then

00:52:25forgets to do

00:52:26it again.

00:52:27Late one

00:52:28night,

00:52:28after the

00:52:29rain finally

00:52:29stops,

00:52:30she stumbles

00:52:31into my room

00:52:32alone.

00:52:32Dust has

00:52:33already settled

00:52:33across everything

00:52:34I leave

00:52:34behind.

00:52:35With trembling

00:52:36hands,

00:52:37she folds

00:52:37my faded

00:52:37jeans,

00:52:38picks up

00:52:39my unfinished

00:52:39notebooks,

00:52:40smooths out

00:52:41the wrinkles

00:52:41in the blanket

00:52:42on my bed.

00:52:43And the moment

00:52:44her fingers

00:52:44touch those

00:52:45cold sheets,

00:52:46the ones that

00:52:46will never hold

00:52:47my warmth

00:52:47again,

00:52:48something inside

00:52:49her finally

00:52:49breaks.

00:52:50Tears hit the

00:52:51hardwood floor

00:52:51one after

00:52:52another,

00:52:53soft,

00:52:53heavy.

00:52:55Nora,

00:52:56can mom

00:52:57come find you

00:52:58in heaven?

00:53:01Valerie drops

00:53:02to her knees

00:53:03beside the

00:53:03bed.

00:53:04She buries

00:53:05her pale

00:53:05face deep

00:53:06into my

00:53:06old pillow,

00:53:07the one I

00:53:08never get

00:53:08around to

00:53:09washing.

00:53:10There's still

00:53:10the faint

00:53:11smell of

00:53:11cheap shampoo

00:53:12lingering in

00:53:13the fabric,

00:53:13the last trace

00:53:14of her daughter

00:53:15left in this

00:53:15world.

00:53:17She clutches

00:53:18the sheets so

00:53:18tightly her

00:53:19fingers cramp,

00:53:20crying like a

00:53:21child who loses

00:53:21everything in the

00:53:22middle of the

00:53:23desert.

00:53:25The news of

00:53:27the border

00:53:27shooting reaches

00:53:28Boston overnight.

00:53:29Hector and

00:53:30his mother

00:53:31immediately cancel

00:53:32everything and

00:53:34drive back to

00:53:34Texas.

00:53:36Neither of them

00:53:37asks questions.

00:53:39They simply

00:53:40stay beside my

00:53:40grandparents and

00:53:41help them hold

00:53:42themselves together

00:53:43long enough to

00:53:44bury me.

00:53:46The funeral is

00:53:47held in the

00:53:47little cemetery

00:53:48outside town.

00:53:50For once,

00:53:51there is no

00:53:52sandstorm.

00:53:54White roses

00:53:55cover my grave.

00:53:56Hector stands

00:53:57at the very

00:53:57back of the

00:53:58crowd.

00:53:59The boy who

00:54:00once looked so

00:54:01calm and

00:54:01untouchable now

00:54:03has eyes darkened

00:54:05with grief and

00:54:05rage.

00:54:06He stares at the

00:54:07photo on my

00:54:08headstone, my

00:54:0918-year-old smile

00:54:10frozen forever in

00:54:12time, and

00:54:12clenches his

00:54:13fists so hard

00:54:14his knuckles

00:54:15turn pale.

00:54:18After the

00:54:19funeral, the

00:54:20atmosphere inside

00:54:21the Wyatt house

00:54:22feels suffocating.

00:54:23Grandpa and

00:54:24Grandma sit

00:54:25silently at the

00:54:26dinner table,

00:54:27exhaustion and

00:54:28grief etched

00:54:29into every line

00:54:30on their faces.

00:54:31Hector sits

00:54:32alone on the

00:54:32old bench near

00:54:33the living room

00:54:33window, staring

00:54:34out at the

00:54:35empty Texas

00:54:35highway.

00:54:36He struggles

00:54:37with himself for

00:54:38a long time

00:54:38before finally

00:54:39standing and

00:54:40walking over to

00:54:40Valerie.

00:54:41He crouches down

00:54:42in front of her

00:54:43carefully, like

00:54:43he's afraid she

00:54:44might shitter if

00:54:45he moves too

00:54:45fast.

00:54:51Valerie, come

00:54:52with us, leave

00:54:53this place

00:54:53behind.

00:54:54We can start

00:54:55over somewhere

00:54:56else, okay?

00:54:58His voice is

00:54:59barely above a

00:55:00whisper.

00:55:00He doesn't even

00:55:01dare touch her.

00:55:02He just looks at

00:55:03her with quiet

00:55:04heartbreak in his

00:55:04eyes.

00:55:05Valerie doesn't

00:55:06answer.

00:55:07She sits there

00:55:08in the shadows,

00:55:09clutching my

00:55:09faded denim

00:55:10jacket against her

00:55:11chest like it's

00:55:12the last oxygen

00:55:13left in the

00:55:13world.

00:55:16That night,

00:55:17after everyone

00:55:17finally falls

00:55:18asleep from sheer

00:55:19exhaustion, the

00:55:20old house sinks

00:55:21into silence.

00:55:28And Valerie

00:55:29wanders back

00:55:30into my room

00:55:31again.

00:55:46She doesn't

00:55:47turn on the

00:55:47lights.

00:55:48In a room

00:55:49without me,

00:55:50even the

00:55:50light feels

00:55:51like a

00:55:51mockery.

00:55:57She kneels

00:55:58alone on the

00:55:58cold floor,

00:55:59organizing my

00:56:00belongings one

00:56:01piece at a

00:56:01time under the

00:56:02pale moonlight

00:56:03coming through

00:56:03the window.

00:56:12my textbooks

00:56:13full of

00:56:13notes.

00:56:17My

00:56:17erasers worn

00:56:18down to

00:56:19almost nothing.

00:56:20Then finally,

00:56:22my old

00:56:23backpack,

00:56:24the cheap

00:56:25one with

00:56:25frayed edges

00:56:26and fading

00:56:26fabric.

00:56:27She pulls

00:56:28it into her

00:56:29arms and

00:56:29buries her

00:56:30face against

00:56:30it,

00:56:31breathing in

00:56:32what little

00:56:32remains of

00:56:33my scent.

00:56:37Then her

00:56:38hand brushes

00:56:39against

00:56:39something

00:56:40hidden deep

00:56:40inside the

00:56:41torn inner

00:56:42lining.

00:56:51Paper.

00:56:52A folded

00:56:52envelope slips

00:56:53loose and

00:56:54falls softly

00:56:55into her

00:56:55lap.

00:56:55On the

00:56:56front is

00:56:56only one

00:56:57word.

00:56:59Those are

00:57:00the words I

00:57:00want to say

00:57:01across two

00:57:01lifetimes.

00:57:03The words I

00:57:04never manage

00:57:04to say

00:57:05out loud

00:57:05before I

00:57:06die.

00:57:14Valerie

00:57:15freezes.

00:57:16Her whole

00:57:16body stiffens

00:57:17as her

00:57:17trembling

00:57:18fingers slowly

00:57:19tear the

00:57:19envelope open.

00:57:21She's shaking

00:57:22so badly,

00:57:23her fingernail

00:57:24slices the

00:57:25edge of the

00:57:25paper and

00:57:26draws blood,

00:57:27but she

00:57:28doesn't even

00:57:28notice.

00:57:29then she

00:57:30sees the

00:57:31first line

00:57:32and the

00:57:33moment she

00:57:33reads the

00:57:34name buried

00:57:34deepest inside

00:57:35her heart,

00:57:40her breathing

00:57:41stops.

00:57:48mom.

00:57:50If you're

00:57:51reading this,

00:57:52I'm probably

00:57:53already gone.

00:58:00Don't cry

00:58:01for me.

00:58:03From the

00:58:04first day I

00:58:05came back to

00:58:06this timeline,

00:58:07I already

00:58:08make up my

00:58:09mind.

00:58:09I'm going

00:58:10to trade

00:58:11my life

00:58:12for your

00:58:12freedom.

00:58:15Under the

00:58:16moonlight,

00:58:17Valerie's

00:58:18eyes instantly

00:58:19turn red.

00:58:20She covers

00:58:21her mouth

00:58:21tightly to

00:58:23stop herself

00:58:23from sobbing

00:58:24out loud and

00:58:25keeps reading.

00:58:28during those

00:58:2928 filthy

00:58:30years in

00:58:30my first

00:58:31life,

00:58:33I hated

00:58:33you so

00:58:34much

00:58:34sometimes.

00:58:35Living in

00:58:36that moldy

00:58:36trailer park,

00:58:37I wonder

00:58:37every day

00:58:38why everyone

00:58:38else has a

00:58:39loving mom

00:58:39except me.

00:58:41Why you

00:58:42left me

00:58:42alone in

00:58:43hell.

00:58:43But in

00:58:43this life,

00:58:44I finally

00:58:44learned the

00:58:45truth.

00:58:46My mother

00:58:46loves me

00:58:47more than

00:58:47anyone ever

00:58:48could.

00:58:49You burn

00:58:50your whole

00:58:50life away

00:58:51trying to

00:58:51protect me.

00:58:52And honestly,

00:58:53mom,

00:58:54being loved by

00:58:55you like

00:58:55that is

00:58:55already

00:58:56enough.

00:58:56You're

00:58:57brilliant,

00:58:58beautiful.

00:59:00Grandpa and

00:59:01grandma love

00:59:02you so much.

00:59:03Hector's mom

00:59:04once says

00:59:04you're meant

00:59:05to soar

00:59:05high above

00:59:06the clouds,

00:59:07not rot

00:59:07away in

00:59:08border town

00:59:08dirt because

00:59:09some rapist

00:59:09destroys your

00:59:10life.

00:59:11Please let

00:59:12me go,

00:59:12mom.

00:59:13Don't give

00:59:13birth to

00:59:14me again.

00:59:14As long as

00:59:15the name

00:59:15Nora exists,

00:59:16Austin Walker's

00:59:17shadow will

00:59:18always haunt

00:59:18you.

00:59:19This time,

00:59:20don't look

00:59:20back.

00:59:20Promise me.

00:59:21Go somewhere

00:59:22cleaner,

00:59:23higher,

00:59:24better.

00:59:24Go live

00:59:25the life

00:59:25you're

00:59:25supposed to

00:59:26have.

00:59:26Be free.

00:59:28By the

00:59:29end of the

00:59:29letter,

00:59:29Valerie has

00:59:30completely

00:59:30collapsed onto

00:59:31the floor.

00:59:32She presses

00:59:33those pages

00:59:33against her

00:59:34chest like

00:59:34they're the

00:59:34last pieces

00:59:35of my

00:59:35heartbeat

00:59:36left in

00:59:36the world

00:59:37and cries

00:59:37so hard

00:59:38she can

00:59:38barely breathe.

00:59:39Curled up

00:59:40beside the

00:59:40bed in

00:59:41the darkness,

00:59:41she breaks

00:59:42apart completely.

00:59:44And in

00:59:44that winter

00:59:45night of

00:59:451996,

00:59:47in a world

00:59:48without her

00:59:48daughter.

00:59:50My mother

00:59:51lets out

00:59:51the most

00:59:51shattered,

00:59:52guilt-radened,

00:59:53heartbroken

00:59:54sobs of

00:59:54both our

00:59:55lifetimes.

00:59:59That night,

01:00:00the Texas

01:00:01winter wind

01:00:01howls so

01:00:02hard it

01:00:03nearly tears

01:00:03the old

01:00:04wooden house

01:00:04apart.

01:00:06Valerie

01:00:07clutches

01:00:07my letter

01:00:08against her

01:00:08chest and

01:00:10cries until

01:00:10her voice

01:00:11gives up.

01:00:14In that

01:00:15letter,

01:00:15I beg her

01:00:16to let me

01:00:16go,

01:00:17beg her

01:00:17not to

01:00:18look back,

01:00:19beg her

01:00:19to chase

01:00:20her dreams

01:00:20and finally

01:00:21become the

01:00:21free person

01:00:22she deserves

01:00:22to be.

01:00:24But staring

01:00:25into my

01:00:25empty room,

01:00:26something

01:00:27reignites

01:00:27in her

01:00:28hollow,

01:00:29lifeless

01:00:29eyes.

01:00:32A fire,

01:00:34a stubbornness

01:00:35stronger than

01:00:36grief itself.

01:00:38Valerie

01:00:39whispers

01:00:40hoskily into

01:00:41the darkness.

01:00:43You silly

01:00:44girl.

01:00:45How could a

01:00:46mother ever

01:00:47stop loving

01:00:47her child?

01:00:48She can't

01:00:49do what I

01:00:50ask.

01:00:52Because she

01:00:53had already

01:00:54told me once

01:00:55before.

01:00:56I will

01:00:57never let

01:00:57you go.

01:01:00You are

01:01:01part of my

01:01:02body,

01:01:03part of my

01:01:04life.

01:01:07A few

01:01:08days later,

01:01:09Hector and

01:01:09his mother

01:01:10help my

01:01:10exhausted

01:01:11grandparents

01:01:13finish arranging

01:01:14everything.

01:01:22Then,

01:01:23carrying unbearable

01:01:24grief with them,

01:01:26the entire family

01:01:27leaves Texas for

01:01:29Boston.

01:01:35the day the bus

01:01:36pulls away,

01:01:37kicking up

01:01:38yellow dust

01:01:39behind it.

01:01:42Valerie stands

01:01:43by the window

01:01:43and takes a deep

01:01:44breath of cold

01:01:45New England air.

01:01:49This time,

01:01:50she isn't running

01:01:51as a victim buried

01:01:52under shame.

01:01:54this time,

01:01:56she's a mother

01:01:57determined to

01:01:57rewrite fate

01:01:58itself and

01:01:59bring her daughter

01:02:00back into the

01:02:01world with every

01:02:02ounce of love

01:02:03she has.

01:02:06time moves quickly

01:02:07beneath Boston's

01:02:08blue skies.

01:02:11Valerie throws

01:02:12every ounce of

01:02:13grief and pain

01:02:14into study.

01:02:18Fueled by the

01:02:19determination of

01:02:20two lifetimes,

01:02:21she works through

01:02:22endless nights

01:02:23until she's

01:02:25accepted into

01:02:26Harvard with

01:02:27near-perfect

01:02:28scores.

01:02:30And Hector,

01:02:31the boy who

01:02:32once cries for

01:02:32me at that

01:02:33Texas bus station,

01:02:35finally achieved

01:02:36his own dream

01:02:37too,

01:02:39earning a place

01:02:40at one of the

01:02:41country's top

01:02:42medical schools.

01:02:45Textbooks become

01:02:46Valerie's shelter

01:02:47and the child

01:02:48growing inside her.

01:02:49The child once

01:02:51used by monsters

01:02:52as blackmail

01:02:52is finally being

01:02:54nurtured and

01:02:55warmth and

01:02:55love.

01:02:57The following

01:02:58autumn,

01:02:59beneath golden

01:03:00maple leaves

01:03:00and the bright

01:03:01lights of a

01:03:02Boston maternity

01:03:03room,

01:03:04a baby girl

01:03:05enters the

01:03:05world with a

01:03:06loud,

01:03:07healthy cry.

01:03:09Valerie lies

01:03:10exhausted against

01:03:10the hospital bed,

01:03:12tears blurring

01:03:12her vision as

01:03:13she smiles wider

01:03:14than she ever

01:03:14has before.

01:03:15With trembling

01:03:16arms, she holds

01:03:18the tiny newborn

01:03:19against her chest

01:03:20and kisses her

01:03:21forehead gently.

01:03:22Noma,

01:03:24welcome to

01:03:25the world,

01:03:25baby.

01:03:26This time,

01:03:27there's no

01:03:27moldy trailer

01:03:28park.

01:03:29No violence.

01:03:30No shadow

01:03:31left behind

01:03:32by monsters.

01:03:33Sunlight pours

01:03:33through the

01:03:34hospital windows

01:03:34onto a warm

01:03:35nursery crib.

01:03:36Grandpa and

01:03:37grandma show up

01:03:38crying and

01:03:38carrying brand new

01:03:39Barbie dolls.

01:03:41Hector adjusts

01:03:42his glasses and

01:03:43smiles softly

01:03:44beside him.

01:03:45And this version

01:03:46of Nora is

01:03:47finally born into

01:03:48love.

01:03:50After that,

01:03:52life slowly finds its

01:03:53way onto the

01:03:54right path.

01:03:55Without the

01:03:55suffering and

01:03:56burdens of the

01:03:57first timeline,

01:03:58Valerie and

01:03:58Hector both reach

01:03:59the futures they

01:04:00are always meant

01:04:01to have.

01:04:02Hector becomes

01:04:03one of the

01:04:04country's leading

01:04:04surgeons,

01:04:05saving countless

01:04:06lives.

01:04:07Valerie becomes a

01:04:09legendary attorney

01:04:10known across

01:04:11America,

01:04:12dedicating her

01:04:13career to

01:04:14protecting women

01:04:15and children

01:04:15through civil

01:04:16rights law.

01:04:17And the new

01:04:18Nora grows up

01:04:19in Harvard's

01:04:20golden autumn

01:04:21trees, surrounded

01:04:22by love instead

01:04:23of fear.

01:04:24She is bright,

01:04:25confident,

01:04:27happy.

01:04:30The cancer that

01:04:31once destroys my

01:04:32body never

01:04:34appears in hers.

01:04:39As little Nora

01:04:40grows up, she

01:04:42watches Valerie

01:04:42and Hector

01:04:43eventually fall

01:04:44in love and

01:04:44build a quiet,

01:04:45beautiful family

01:04:46together.

01:04:47Their life isn't

01:04:49glamorous, but the

01:04:50love they give her

01:04:51overflows far

01:04:52beyond what most

01:04:53families could ever

01:04:54offer.

01:04:55And somewhere

01:04:56inside the golden

01:04:57evening light, the

01:04:58version of me that

01:04:59crosses time itself,

01:05:01the wandering

01:05:02soul carried away

01:05:03by the wind, finally

01:05:05smiles.

01:05:06At the end of her

01:05:07autobiography, my

01:05:08mother writes one

01:05:09final dedication.

01:05:11Every achievement

01:05:12and honor in my

01:05:13life belongs to

01:05:14a girl named

01:05:15Laura.

01:05:15My daughter once

01:05:17tears open the

01:05:18darkness with her

01:05:18own light, and I

01:05:19spend the rest of

01:05:20mine bringing her

01:05:21back into the

01:05:22light.

01:05:22I lean quietly

01:05:24against my

01:05:24mother's knee in

01:05:25that final memory

01:05:26and whisper

01:05:27softly in my

01:05:28heart.

01:05:30Mom, this time

01:05:32you get

01:05:33everything right.

01:05:34And at last,

01:05:34those two wounded

01:05:35souls walk hand

01:05:36hand towards the

01:05:37endless stars waiting

01:05:38beyond the clouds.

Cutting the Cord: Reborn as My Mom's High School Frenemy - Full Episode | Rebirth Revenge, Time Travel Drama & Family Secrets #ADB | Full Short Drama | English Sub 2026 [Full Movie]

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