The One in My Heart

It wouldn't be accurate to say that An woke up; he was startled out of his sleep by loud noises. He thought he had died, dying on the night his boyfriend betrayed him. In this era, where same-s*x marriage is allowed, fidelity is considered a test of strength. An sat up on the bed and checked the calendar to see the date. He had gone back two years. The day his older brother ran away from their arranged marriage to be with his lifelong lover. His parents had wanted him to marry in his place, but An refused. He had love of his own and didn’t want to sacrifice it for an arranged marriage to a stranger. Even though his parents urged him, An stubbornly refused. What was the outcome? The outcome was that his boyfriend changed his mind, left him for a third party, and took all his assets, causing him to get into a car accident. “Thank goodness...” An murmured. It was really fortunate, the heavens were watching over him. An got out of bed, took care of his personal hygiene, and took a shower to refresh himself after what felt like a brush with death. When he realized he was still alive, and had even returned to this time, he couldn’t help but feel how lucky he truly was. "An, have you woken up yet?" His mother’s voice called from outside the door. An knew exactly why she was calling. "Yes, I’m up. Wait for me, I’ll be right out!" An replied, quickly dressing and leaving the room. He saw his mother standing outside, smiling gently, and suddenly felt a rush of emotions. Since he had followed the call of love, he had caused his parents so much pain. An opened his arms and tightly hugged his mother: "Mom... I... I had a nightmare..." He buried his face in his mother's chest, looking like a lost child who had just found his way home. The woman was stunned for a moment but then opened her arms to embrace her youngest child and comforted him by patting his back. "Don’t worry, I’m here. Did you have a nightmare, my dear?" His mother gently soothed him. "There’s nothing to be afraid of. I’ll chase the nightmare away for you!" This year, An turned 20, an age that should have been carefree, studying and working, not running away from home for love, abandoning his family for two years, and then being hurt to death. While An was lost in his mixed emotions between the present and the past life, a voice suddenly cleared its throat: "Instead of hugging each other like this, shouldn’t you two be thinking about what to do since the second son ran away from the marriage?" His father’s helpless voice broke the warm atmosphere between mother and son. The woman froze. Right, that was why she was looking for her youngest—because the second son had run away. Now, who would marry in his place? Looking at her youngest, whose eyes were still red from crying, she couldn’t bring herself to bring up the issue. "Do you need someone to marry off, Dad? If you want, I’ll marry in his place, as long as I can continue studying afterward!" Wiping her tear-filled eyes, An sniffed, speaking seriously. "You want to get married in his place?" The woman was surprised, her eyes wide. How could her beloved youngest want to marry off in place of her brother? "You... don’t think about this issue. Let your father discuss it with the other side. You’re still at an age for studying. Why are we talking about marriage?" She said, not wanting to burden her child with this. "I want to marry in my brother's place!" An urgently held his mother’s hand and said seriously, "It may sound unreasonable, but I really want to marry in his place!" "But aren’t you in a serious relationship right now?" The woman hesitated. She knew her child was in love and didn’t want to break up a relationship. Plus, this marriage was purely for convenience. If it fell apart, it wouldn’t be a big deal—just a bankruptcy and selling off the house. They could deal with it. An bit his lip, recalling everything his ex had done in the past. He quickly shook his head. "We broke up. He... he likes women. He was just with me for the fame!" Yes, they had been in a relationship, often playing games together, livestreaming, and successfully helping his ex's social platforms gain a lot of interaction. In the end, he had been taken advantage of without realizing it. "If you’ve said that, I’ll have your father arrange a meeting with the other family to talk things through. If they agree, the wedding will proceed. If they refuse..." The man rubbed his chin. An knew what his father was worried about and boldly spoke up, "It’ll be fine, Dad! They’ll agree!" From the previous life, the other family had actually suggested marrying him off in place of his brother, but he had refused. An silently hoped that this time, the butterfly effect wouldn’t happen and the other family would agree to the marriage. If they refused, his family would go bankrupt. An went downstairs for breakfast, starting a new day with his family. His mother was a gentle woman, his father strict but loving, and his older brother... talented yet infatuated. His brother had run away for love and for over two years, the family had no idea where he was. Now, the family’s business was struggling, and his brother’s disappearance only doubled the burden on his father. "Don’t blame your brother. He did it for love. Love isn’t wrong; it’s the people involved who make mistakes." In the end, the fault still lay with his brother. An finished his last bite of food and nodded to show that he understood. Today, he still had to go to school, so after finishing his conversation with his parents, he grabbed his bag, put on his coat, and ran out the door. He had acting practice today, and if he was late, he’d end up with a difficult scene to perform. He didn’t want to challenge himself right after waking up. At the university, he was in his third year of acting, a field his father didn’t approve of but still accepted. After all, it was his choice. His family was wealthy, with strong political and economic backing, but the company was in trouble, and his father was looking for a partner to help him recover from the failed project. "Early today, An?" A sharp voice pulled him out of his thoughts. The girl with jet-black hair and an adorable appearance was his best friend, Thy. An smiled, "Good morning! Shall we go to class together, Thy?" Thy was his best friend, the one who defended him even when he was betrayed. She nodded, and they entered the school together. Their university specialized in arts programs, with high-quality facilities. The film studio was on the third floor, so they walked up as part of their morning exercise. As they passed by the dance class, they couldn’t help but glance at the graceful dancers. Suddenly, a guy saw them and waved happily. "An! Thy! What are you two doing here?" He jumped down from the horizontal bar and ran to the door. "We have acting practice in the film studio," Thy replied with a smile. The guy blinked. "Can I come watch after practice?" An smiled and nodded, "You’re welcome to come, Kiều! We’re going to class now, we’re running late!" "Okay, okay, see you later!" Kiều waved goodbye. Entering the film studio, An drew the action scene for today’s practice. The instructor didn’t allow stunt doubles, as professional artists had to sacrifice for the art. An chose a scene that wasn’t too difficult and, drawing on his past experience, began his performance. In his previous life, right at this moment, he had tried to show off in front of someone he disliked and fell off a simulated building, breaking his leg. He had to recover, so the instructor had to introduce a new script to him, but they ended up dropping him. "Great! You’ve improved!" The instructor nodded in approval. An smiled widely, high-fiving his scene partner, who performed well too. They worked perfectly together. When it was Thy’s turn, she also passed smoothly. Coming from a family of artists, Thy had the art blood running deep. "Haha, we did great! Do you want to go grab something to eat after class?" Thy threw her arm around An’s shoulders, laughing and asking happily. An nodded, "Of course! How about Korean food?" "Let’s invite Kiều too!" An suggested excitedly. "Sure!" Thy agreed, and they planned to eat and then work on their fitness goals. The life of artists was about eating and hoping they didn’t gain weight. As they spoke, they spotted Kiều peeking from the door. The boy eagerly watched his two friends. An laughed and shook his head, "It’s already over. We just finished our scene a few minutes ago." Hearing that, Kiều frowned and looked disappointed, "What? That fast... I didn’t even get to watch..." An hurried over, patting Kiều’s back, "Don’t worry, next time we’ll invite you to watch!" The issue was they needed to not have overlapping schedules in order to watch each other’s performances. Kiều pouted but reluctantly nodded, and the three left the school. For Korean food, they went to a small restaurant, choosing an affordable place where they didn’t have to wait long for a table. They picked a three-person combo for a not-too-hot afternoon, but then An remembered something. He picked up his phone, turned it on—he had a bad habit of turning his phone off often. He saw a message from his older brother and spam messages from his ex. An quickly texted back to break up with his ex and then opened his brother's message. [Hey An, it's your brother, Ân. I know what I did was wrong, but I don’t regret what I did. Love, sometimes, makes people foolish and unable to break free. I’m willing to go crazy for love. Maybe the other family will understand us. Instead of an arranged marriage, we should be partners. I hope you stay and take care of Mom and Dad. Your brother, Thiên Ân.] An frowned slightly. Last year, after reading this message, he had blocked his brother. With a deep breath, he typed slowly: [Okay, take care of yourself. If you need to, come back home. Mom and Dad won’t scold you.] Just as he sent the message, a phone call came in. An furrowed his brows.