Chapter 3

"No, my adoptive parents treated me well."

Aurora shook her head instinctively.

Even though they later grew to resent her because of Cecilia's return and manipulation, the care and kindness they showed her in the early years were real.

In this life, she had left the Rivera family early, before any conflicts arose between them.

In Quincy and Imogen's eyes, she hadn't done anything wrong.

As far as she was concerned, being back with her birth parents was better than anything else.

Marigold asked curiously, "Who are your adoptive parents?"

Aurora answered honestly. "The Rivera family in Harmony City."

Marigold looked thoughtful and was just about to say something when Wayne, who had been scrolling on his phone nearby, suddenly changed expression.

"Is it the Rivera family that just found their biological daughter?"

Aurora nodded, then asked with some curiosity, "Do you know them?"

"No, but there's a story about the Rivera family's real and fake heiress that just hit the trending list."

Wayne showed Aurora and the others the news he had just seen.

A row of bold headlines blazed across the trending page.

"Fake Heiress maliciously smears True Heiress out of jealousy and vanity."

"Fake Heiress shows her true colors — blood really does tell."

"Cecilia truly deserves to be a Rivera."

The headlines were deliberately bolded in red, as if making sure no one could miss the point. The content inside was entirely about how Aurora had hurt Cecilia out of jealousy.

The funniest part was that the related posts were all about how Cecilia was beautiful and kind-hearted — how even before being reunited with her family, she had lived in poverty but still rescued stray animals.

The posts had only been up for ten minutes and already had a million views. It was obviously a cheap tactic to build one person up by tearing another down.

Aurora's expression turned cold.

She had already left the Rivera family, and her life going forward would have nothing to do with them. She never expected Cecilia would still use this to stir up attention for herself.

Marigold was immediately furious at the posts.

"What is wrong with these media outlets? Did the Rivera family put them up to this?"

Caspian glanced at Aurora.

"Aurora, these posts are clearly being pushed by someone behind the scenes. If the Rivera family is giving you trouble, just say the word — your brother and I will back you up."

Aurora handed the phone back to Wayne and spoke sincerely.

"They really were good to me. And this probably has nothing to do with them. Whatever else happened, they raised me for all those years."

At that, Marigold let out a quiet sigh.

"When I was in labor, an earthquake hit the hospital. Everything fell into chaos, and someone took you in the confusion. By the time we went back to look, you were gone."

Marigold reached out and gently touched Aurora's cheek.

"Since you say so, we'll take your word for it and trust that the Rivera family had nothing to do with this. We'll have someone send them a few gifts later — a small thank-you for raising you all these years."

"Okay." Aurora nodded firmly.

Wayne had already arranged for someone to get the posts taken down. He turned to look at Aurora.

"I heard you're preparing for a violin performance — an entrance audition?"

Aurora nodded.

"There's a teacher I really admire. She only takes students once every three years. I just need to pass her entrance exam."

Caspian looked at her seriously.

"Focus on your preparation. We all believe you'll make it. The family wasn't all here today — your brothers are each busy with their own things. Once they're all back, we'll introduce you properly."

"Okay."

Aurora answered obediently.

Caspian and Marigold exchanged a glance; both of them moved.

Their daughter hadn't grown up with them, but she had been raised well.

In the weeks that followed, Aurora threw herself entirely into preparing for the entrance exam. Being back with her birth parents made her feel more at ease and free than she had in a long time.

Except for the occasional messages from Cecilia.

"Aurora, are you really not coming back to the Rivera family? Staying in that out-of-the-way place is such a waste of your talent."

"Mom and Dad miss you so much. Just come home."

Aurora set Cecilia's number to silent and pretended she never saw the messages.

Caspian and Marigold had set up a music room just for her.

Aurora took this audition more seriously than anything. She still remembered how it had gone in her past life. By all rights, her skill should have been more than enough to pass.

But on the day of the exam, the original piece she had spent so long preparing was suddenly performed by Cecilia before she even had the chance. Aurora had rushed forward to confront her, but Cecilia produced her own draft sheets as evidence and turned it around, accusing Aurora of making false claims.

The incident blew up. Not only did the judges lose all faith in her, but the scandal spread throughout the entire music world. It was later picked up by the media, and the backlash spiraled out of control. She spent the rest of that life branded as a thief and a schemer, and her dream of a music career was destroyed completely.

The Aurora of that life never understood how it had happened. It wasn't until just before she died that Cecilia told her about the time loop.

She obviously couldn't use the same piece as last time. So she would write something better — and reclaim the path that should have always been hers.

Other than eating and sleeping, Aurora spent almost every waking hour in the music room. Day after day, the soft, clear sound of a violin drifted down from the second floor.

And at that moment, downstairs, a strikingly handsome man was sitting in the living room. He leaned back casually against the sofa, an air of quiet elegance surrounding him without any effort, listening carefully to the music from above.

Marcus Sterling looked at Wayne with a thoughtful expression.

"The one playing upstairs — that's your sister they just found?"

"What do you think? Pretty good, right?" Wayne smiled.

He and Marcus had been close friends for years. The Sterling family's business and the Cooper family's were well-matched in scale.

"The playing is impressive, I'll give her that."

Marcus said honestly. And now he found himself curious about what the musician looked like.

He thought it, so he did it.

He followed the stairs up to the second floor and tracked the sound to the music room.

The door wasn't fully closed — just left slightly ajar.

A girl with delicate features sat focused over her sheet music, adjusting the strings of her violin. A light breeze drifted in through the half-open window, lifting a strand of her hair.

Something flashed through Marcus's eyes — a quiet, unmistakable sense of wonder.