Twice Betrayed- Reborn in Flames - Chapter 1: Chapter 1

New Year's Eve should have been a night of celebration. Instead, it became the night Gerald's childhood friend, Joanne Clooney, ran me over with her car. The impact left me hemorrhaging badly, but with my rare blood condition, I couldn't call Gerald for help in time.
So I did the only thing I could—I used what little strength I had left to pull Alma Barren, a pregnant socialite, from the wreckage before quietly tending to my own wounds.
Why? Because in my past life, when Gerald arrived at the scene, he chose Joanne over me.
"Eleanor, do you think I'm an idiot?" His voice still echoed in my mind. "Faking a pregnancy to manipulate me? I'm an ER doctor—I know blood loss when I see it. Joanne's condition is critical. I've put up with your games for years, but don't push me."
In the end, my baby and I burned to death in the car while he walked away with her.
When I came to this time, Joanne's cold, hate-filled eyes locked onto me through the shattered windshield. "You really thought you deserved to carry Gerald's child?" she spat before slamming her foot on the gas. The collision hit me like a freight train.
Memories of flames licking at my skin flashed behind my eyelids. My hands flew to my stomach, panic and pain twisting inside me.
Gritting my teeth, I dragged myself out of the wreckage and, with every ounce of effort I had, freed Alma from where she was pinned beneath the seat.
She stared at her blood-soaked coat, her face ghostly pale. "Eleanor… please… save my baby…"
I bit down hard on my tongue, the sharp pain keeping me focused. "Don't worry, Miss Barren. I know some emergency procedures." I grabbed the first-aid kit from the car just as the wail of sirens cut through the air.
Of course, Gerald was the first one out of the ambulance. Just like before, Joanne must have called him ahead of time.
Seeing his face again sent a fresh wave of nausea through me. The memory of him walking away while I burned alive made my stomach clench. The winter wind sliced through me, turning every ache into agony.
"Mr. Riverton! Eleanor's here!" Gerald's trainee rushed toward me with a stretcher.
Gerald's expression darkened. "Joanne was right—it is you."
Same as last time, he took one look at the scene and assumed I'd caused the crash. And just like before, he used every medical supply on Joanne, leaving me to bleed out.
This time, I didn't beg him to listen. Instead, I took Alma's phone and called her emergency contact while continuing first aid on both of us.
The Barrens had a private medical team on standby ever since Alma got pregnant. I just had to hold on for ten more minutes.
But every movement sent fresh pain ripping through me. Blood seeped through my clothes, staining the snow beneath me.
Gerald's trainee paled. "Mr. Riverton, your wife—she's pregnant, and the bleeding—it's not stopping!"
The other paramedics—ones who'd worked with Gerald longer—just rolled their eyes. "Eleanor, this act of yours is getting old. Even the rookie's buying it now. Let's go. She's just wasting resources for attention—third time this week. Does she think the hospital revolves around her?"
I'd expected the cruelty from Gerald, but hearing it from his colleagues still stung.
Then Alma's weak voice cut through the noise. "Gerald… she's pregnant… help her…"
Tears welled in my eyes. Even facing the loss of her own child, she was begging him to save mine.