Rubix woke up to a series of knock on the door. She jolted up and looked around, her hand instinctively going to her head and chest, the places she had been shot.
Nothing, no scar, no pain just nothing.
Her breathing grew uneven.
Slowly, she lifted her head.
Her eyes met the reflection in the mirror opposite the table.
And she froze. Rubix who could remain calm even when being tortured felt something close to panic. She subconsciously pinched herself to know if this was a dream.
"Hiss"
the pain shot through and her thigh immediately turned red. She looked at her reflection again and took a deep breath, what stared back at her was a devastatingly beautiful face, grey eyes, blonde hair, a beautiful face… and completely unfamiliar.
"What's going on…? Where am I? Who is this?" she murmured, fingers tracing the stranger's cheek.
A strange thought formed in her mind.
She had read enough novels to know what this looked like. Before she could process it fully, a sharp pain stabbed through her head.
She gasped and collapsed to the floor. Memories that didn't belong to her surged in, her head filled with unfamiliar images, then…
Knock, Knock
"Madeline, are you in there". A voice came through. Rubix stared blankly at the door opening as someone entered. It was a girl dressed in baggy clothes, a buzz cut with glasses covering half her face, someone Rubix recognised as the original owner's assistant.
Serena.
The moment she saw her on the floor, she panicked.
"Oh my God, Maddy! Why are you sitting on the floor? It's freezing!"
She helped her up and guided her to a chair.
Serena pulled out her phone.
"Okay, listen," she said quickly, scrolling. "I have to pick up your meds from the hospital, and then in ten minutes we have a meeting with PR about the scandal. They're working on damage control, so don't panic. We'll clear this up."
She looked up at Madeline and saw her staring with a somewhat creepy smile on her face, Serena coughed slightly "Erm… I better get going, do you need anything", Rubix shook her head, that smile still playing in her lips.
" No thank you".
"Okay then bye."
The door closed.
Silence filled the room.
Rubix leaned back in the chair, then she laughed.
Loud.
It echoed in the room.
A second later, the laughter turned into tears.
She covered her face.
"I lived…" she whispered.
She had really been given a second chance.
"Thank you…"
After a few minutes, she calmed herself.
Focus.
She closed her eyes and combed through Madeline's memories and discovered she was a D- list actor, a vase as she was always called. Someone with a pretty face but bad acting. She was someone who was always trending for the wrong reasons, once it was for her acting, another time she had confessed to her co-star only to be rejected publicly. This time tho, was more serious, she had been accused of having an affair with the director of a project she was currently working on.
Director Lee had cheated on his wife and caused her a miscarriage, the public had dug out a photo of him and a woman entering a hotel room, the woman had the same blonde hair as Madeline and so everyone assumed it was her. Director Lee in a bid to save himself and cover up his Mistress, came out to "confess" that he was seduced by Madeline and when he refused, he was drugged and blackmailed. That he had no choice and he had now lost his child because of her. Blah…blah and of course the public believed.
"Tch, how touching" Rubix whispered clearly amused.
She dug deeper, then she froze.
Madeline was married.
Her husband was Zachary Forrester, a tech billionaire who was arranged to marry her by her parents.
Zachary only agreed because his grandfather requested and threatened him with their health. He didn't love her and vice versa, they had signed an agreement to get divorced after two years. There were 9 months remaining on the agreement.
Rubix breathed a sigh of relief as marriage wasn't something she considered.
All she wanted was to take revenge on all who harmed her in her previous life, she was going to retrieve the drive, and find…her brain went blank immediately.
She grabbed her head as she tried to remember the face of her killers or the face of the people who she previously worked for that might have put a bounty on her but it was all blank.
"What is wrong with me?"
There was a drive, it got her killed.
But what was on it?
Where was it?
Who killed her?
Nothing.
"Calm down," she muttered. "There's a drive. You were hunted for it. Think."
She pressed her palm against the table.
"I worked for… who?"
Nothing.
She couldn't remember the organisation's name.
She couldn't remember faces.
She couldn't remember the one who shot her.
The only thing she remembered was dying.
Her breathing quickened.
"No. No, no…"
She stood abruptly. Taking her car keys and heading to the hospital.
In her panic, she forgot that celebraties were meant to cover up or disguise themselves.
______
Knock knock,
"Come in"
Rubix pushed the hospital office door open. A middle-aged woman in a white coat looked up.
"Hello. Have a seat. How can I help you?"
The doctor's expression was… strange, but she had no time to dwell on it.
"I had a fall a few days ago and my memory is fuzzy. There are some things I can't remember.
The doctor looked at her with a smile.
You'll need the neurology department for that. This is obstetrics."
Rubix blinked.
"…Obstetrics?"
"Yes. OBGYN."
Rubix looked at her, she had never been one who was good with directions. She been directed by the nurse downstairs and still ended up missing her way.
"Oh, thank you, sorry for your time"
"Hmm" the doctor replied picking up the landline to call someone.
Rubix pushed the door open and was immediately crowded. Everyone whipped out their phones to take pictures.
It's really her!"
"What is she doing here?"
"Is she pregnant?!"
Her chest tightened.
Then a question came, loud and clear:
"Madeline! Are you really pregnant with Director Lee's child?!"