A Step Back

In my previous life, I shoved the police chief’s daughter out of the way with everything I had. A truck ran over me instead, crushing both my legs.

The police department awarded me a medal and I became a hero praised by the entire city.

However, when she woke up, she pointed at me and told her father that I tried to kill her.

My parents slapped me on the spot. “Why would you try to hurt her?!”

My younger brother stood behind them and said quietly, “Henry… I saw you that day. You really did push her…”

The driver who hit us claimed I had instructed him to run her down and said I was trying to stage an accident to murder her.

I was sentenced to fifteen years.

The day I entered prison, I was in a wheelchair.

My mother held my brother’s hand and glanced back at me. Her eyes were filled with disgust.

“How did we raise a monster like you?”

In prison, a gang leader arranged by the police chief gouged out my eyes and slashed the tendons in my hands. I died consumed by hatred.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at that same intersection.

A large truck was barreling straight toward the police chief’s daughter.

I slowly took a step back.

This time, I was not going to save anyone.

The blaring horn split the air, sharp enough to pierce my eardrums.

Right in front of me was that same, familiar truck.

It was speeding straight toward Evelyn.

In my previous life, I did not hesitate. I threw myself at her and traded my legs for her safety.

However, what I got in return was fifteen years behind bars and a torture experience straight out of hell.

This time, I slowly took a step back.

A deafening crash rang out.

Evelyn was sent flying. Her body slammed hard onto the pavement and blood pooled beneath her.

The crowd erupted into terrified screams.

Just then, a figure suddenly rushed forward, the very first to move.

However, he did not run toward Evelyn, who was lying in a pool of blood.

He ran straight at me.

It was my younger brother, Dylan.

He grabbed me by the collar. His eyes were bloodshot and his face twisted with rage as he roared, “Henry! Why didn’t you save her?! You were right there!”

His voice was hoarse and thick with anguish.

Camera flashes went off instantly. Phones and lenses aimed straight at us.

Bystanders surrounded us in a tight circle.

“Oh my goodness, is what his brother said true? He just stood there and did nothing?”

“That’s terrifying. He watched a girl get hit and didn’t help!”

“Exactly! He’s a grown man. How hard would it have been to shove her out of the way? He might not have even gotten hurt!”

“Look at him. He’s perfectly fine. And look at that girl. That’s inhuman.”

The accusations crashed over me like waves.

Dylan still had a fistful of my collar. As I listened to their words, I felt nothing but absurdity and a bitter urge to laugh.

A shove? No injury? They made it sound so easy.

I pried Dylan’s hand off me and shot him a cold glance, asking word by word, “Does my life not matter?”

The entire scene went silent for a second.

Then, Dylan stared at me in disbelief and suddenly raised his voice even louder.

“Henry! How can you say that? Your life matters, but doesn’t hers matter too?

“She’s a girl! You’re a grown man! At worst you’d get a scrape or two, but if she got hit, she’d die!

“For the sake of that tiny bit of risk to yourself, you were willing to watch her die? I was so wrong about you!”

Dylan seized the moment and faced the cameras. Tears fell freely.

“Henry’s not usually like this. He gets good grades. He’s kind. He’s our pride… I don’t know what happened to him today…”

Just then, a black sedan screeched to a halt by the roadside.

The door flew open. A middle-aged man in a police uniform rushed out.

It was the police chief, Richard Grant.

The moment he saw his daughter lying in blood, something in his eyes snapped, it was pure madness.

Dylan immediately let go of me and stumbled over to him.

He trembled as he pointed in my direction.

“Mr. Grant! Henry had the chance to save her! He was the closest! But he didn’t move. Not even a single step!”

Richard’s gaze locked onto me, thick with killing intent.

It was the exact same look he gave me the day I entered prison in my last life.

I curled my lip into a faint smile.

Yes, everything had returned.