Reborn: The Male Lead Returns​

I was just about to pull out my black card to sponsor Sean Miller’s tuition. But the shy, unassuming boy before me suddenly became cold and aloof. A stream of comments scrolled frantically across my vision. 【The male lead has been reborn. He’s back at the very beginning.】 【In this life, he can finally be with his childhood sweetheart and fix last life’s regrets.】 【If it weren’t for the villainess and her dirty money getting between them, the main couple never would have missed out on a lifetime together.】 I looked up and met Sean’s suddenly icy gaze. His eyes only reddened when he turned to look at his childhood sweetheart. Well, this is interesting. The male lead has been reborn. Back to being eighteen, dirt-poor, with nothing to his name. 1 Standing this close to Sean, I could feel the distinct shift in his aura. It was an air of sophistication, the kind that only comes from being steeped in money for a long, long time. It was something you’d never find on a broke kid. He glanced at the black card in my hand with disgust, his voice flat and distant. "I told you, I’ll figure out my own tuition. I don’t need you to insult my dignity with your money." With that, he walked straight past me and pulled Molly Peters, who was glaring at me with open hostility, into his arms. He held her with the kind of force you use on a long-lost treasure finally recovered. "Molly," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "After everything, I finally know. You’re the one I love most in this life." A wave of murmurs rippled through the onlookers. The comments scrolling before my eyes became even more dense. 【OMG! The ML is so brave! The first thing he does after being reborn is confess to the female lead!】 【Right? No beating around the bush!】 【The evil villainess must be stunned. In the last life, the ML reluctantly took her black card for tuition and agreed to be with her. Now that he’s reborn, all her money is useless!】 2 I rubbed my eyes and stared at the floating text, piecing together the facts. I was the "villainess" they were talking about. The wicked rich girl who used money to force the male lead into a relationship. And Sean, the boy in front of me, had been reborn. In our previous life, I had fallen for him at first sight when we started university. When I found out he couldn't afford tuition, I offered him my black card, covering all his expenses for four years on the condition that he would be my boyfriend. After a long, agonizing struggle, Sean had accepted the card, and my terms, with a sense of deep humiliation. He buried his years of pining for his childhood sweetheart, Molly, deep in his heart. He believed I was the one who tore his true love apart, and he resented my spoiled, arrogant personality. He was sensitive and insecure, feeling like he had no dignity in our relationship. But he had also grown accustomed to the lifestyle my money provided and couldn't bear to lose me, his cash cow. Two years after graduation, news came that Molly was getting married. Years of suppressed love erupted, and Sean, in a frantic state, drove off to crash her wedding. On the way, he was distracted and collided with a truck, dying on impact. Now, reborn, the first thing he did was declare the love he never could before, hoping to soothe the regrets of his past life. I frowned. What the comments said did sound like my personality. But if he took so much of my money, and I even used my connections to help him start a company after graduation… what was wrong with him being a little more subservient to me? A little more obedient? Wasn't that expected? Or did he really think he could have his cake and eat it too, and eventually swallow my family’s entire fortune? I let out a cold laugh and decisively tossed the black card to a random guy walking by. "Sean, who said I was going to sponsor you?" I announced, my voice clear and sharp. "The one I want to give it to is him." I turned to the stunned guy. "Hey handsome, want to be my boyfriend?" 3 【Wait, what’s happening? Did I miss something? Why did she give the black card to someone else?】 【Dude, even if you take the card, it’s useless. The villainess only has eyes for the male lead. She’d never look at anyone else in this life.】 【It’s just a tactic. Playing hard to get. Pfft, the ML won’t fall for it.】 Sean froze. Freshly reborn, his eyes held a flicker of disbelief and confusion. It seemed he hadn't realized that this life’s script was already deviating from the last. But with his true love right in front of him, and the shock of death and the joy of rebirth still overwhelming his mind, he didn't dwell on it. I enthusiastically invited the handsome stranger to dinner. The semester had just started, so I didn't recognize many faces. As for Sean, I'd only heard whispers from other students that he still hadn't scraped together his tuition money. That's why I'd kindly offered the card, intending to ask if he'd be my boyfriend. His chiseled face was exactly my type, enough to make my hormones get the better of me. Perhaps, in the last life, I truly did love Sean. But in this one, that love was snuffed out before it even had a chance to bloom. I had money. Endless amounts of it. I was the sole heiress to the Sterling fortune. A princess who had never been wronged in her life. Why would I waste my time on a lost cause? A relationship is a relationship, no matter who it's with. And the handsome guy holding my black card now? He was totally my type, too. I chose the most expensive restaurant near campus. I frowned as I flipped through the menu, then tossed it to the waiter. "Bring us one of everything on your signature menu." The waiter scurried away, beaming. Just then, the restaurant doors swung open, drawing everyone's attention. I glanced over. It was the reborn male lead, with his beloved childhood sweetheart on his arm. 4 The Sean of the previous life had been well-nurtured by money. From his dining etiquette to his posture, he was flawless—the very picture of a wealthy young master. He kept glancing my way, the contempt and irritation in his eyes impossible to hide. He seemed convinced that I was only here to hit on him, that I was some kind of stalker he couldn't shake. He was even more certain that my dining with another man was a pathetic attempt to make him jealous. Sean sat up straight, casually ordering seven or eight signature dishes from the menu. Then he turned to Molly with a look of deep affection. "Molly, the food here is just so-so. Please bear with it for now. When I have time, I'll take you to taste the finest imported seafood. And then we'll go to the luxury boutiques and get you all the latest season's clothes." Molly looked like she’d been hit in the face by a winning lottery ticket, nearly fainting from sheer luck. She shot me a smug glance and raised her voice. "Sean, darling, since this is the first day of our relationship, I have a gift I’ve been preparing for a long time." Her face was aglow with pride. The comments said that Molly and Sean were childhood sweethearts, and they were just waiting until they got into the same university to confess their feelings. When I'd pulled out my black card, Molly had apparently been so angry she could have ground her teeth to dust. The way she looked at me now, you’d think I was the other woman. But when Sean agreed to be my boyfriend in the last life, he never mentioned Molly, did he? Molly mysteriously produced a simple, plain box. Sean’s face lit up with excitement. The comments were screaming. 【OMG, the main couple is so sweet in their first meeting after rebirth! Things are moving so fast!】 【I can’t even keep up with them!】 【What do you think is in the box? I remember in the last life, what Iris gave the ML was a famous watch worth over a million!】 【The female lead might not be as rich as the villainess now, but her gift must be full of heart.】 The box rested in her palm, feeling weightless. Sean opened it with great anticipation. Inside lay a small jar filled with handmade paper stars. Molly blinked. "Sean, darling, I folded these over the summer, just waiting for us to get into the same university so I could give them to you when I confessed. Every single strip of paper has 'I love you' written on it. Do you like it?" 5 The previously bustling comment section went silent. If I didn't know Sean had been reborn, I might have thought he’d be touched by this gift. For an eighteen-year-old Sean, a jar of paper stars might have been a precious, heartfelt gesture. Tender and beautiful. But beneath his youthful exterior was the soul of a twenty-four-year-old man. A man who was used to gourmet food, who had seen countless luxury watches and cars, who took high-end gifts for granted. Just a few hours ago, the Sean who died in a car crash was driving a Maybach from my garage. The soft leather of the steering wheel and the rough-hewn wood of this cheap box were worlds apart. I smiled and took a watch box from my purse. I'd bought it on a whim while passing a luxury watch store earlier. Since this Eason Croft was now my boyfriend, I couldn't be stingy. I pushed the exquisite watch box towards him. "Boyfriend, it's our first day together, too. This is my gift to you. See if you like it." 【Wait, wasn't that the watch she gave the ML in the last life? Why is she giving it to someone else?】 【She’s definitely still playing hard to get, trying to get the ML’s attention. Trust me, she won’t last long.】 【Yep, the villainess is totally flustered. She's lost her game plan.】 The watch gleamed under the lights. Eason, still reeling from the shock of the black card, was hit with another stunner. His hand trembled as he reached for the watch, but Sean’s roar stopped him. "Don't touch it!" he yelled. "That's clearly my—" He swallowed the rest of his words. I knew what he wanted to say. That watch is his. According to the comments, in his past life, he wore that watch for six years and adored it. Every night before bed, he would take it off, carefully polish it, and place it back in its box. But this life was different. He now had the company of his beloved childhood sweetheart. Surely, he had no interest in such vulgar, material things anymore. Molly’s face darkened, and she rolled her eyes at me. "So what if you're rich? You reek of disgusting money. A heartless watch like that can't compare to my stars, which are full of love. Right, Sean darling?" Sean snapped back to reality and forced a smile. "Molly's right." He gathered himself, about to serve his beloved some food, when his phone rang. It was a cheap burner phone with a terrible speaker. From a short distance away, I could clearly hear the cold female voice on the other end. "Mr. Miller, it's time to pay your mother's hospital bills." 6 The color drained from Sean’s face. The comment section erupted in a panic. 【I almost forgot! The ML’s mother is seriously ill in the hospital, waiting for life-saving money!】 【I remember in the last life, the villainess just threw a million at the hospital, and the surgery went smoothly.】 【Oh god, no. The main couple just started their sweet romance. Is the villainess going to use his sick mom to blackmail him into being with her again?】 【Why is the villainess so persistent? She's like a ghost!】 【Oh no, the villainess is looking at him. She must think this is her chance to make a move.】 I remembered hearing some students mention before I'd pulled out my card that Sean's mother had been battling cancer for years, and his family had exhausted all their savings and was deep in debt. I quickly turned back to Eason. "No one in your family is sick, right?" "No, no, not at all…" Sean, his face ashen, stood up to leave for the hospital but was stopped by the waiter. "Sir, you haven't paid the bill." A wave of snickers went through the restaurant. In his past life, backed by my family's wealth, he could walk into any high-end restaurant and be greeted by a fawning owner who would insist he not worry about the bill. His rebirth was too recent. He hadn't broken his old habits. The waiter had already printed the bill. One thousand two hundred and eighty dollars. A sum that wouldn't have even paid for half a bottle of wine in his previous life. Sean instinctively reached for his pocket, searching for the black card. He found nothing. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Right. He was eighteen again. Younger, yes, but also poorer. Right now, he was penniless. Forget one thousand two hundred and eighty dollars; he didn't even have the eighty. The waiter maintained his professional smile. Sean gritted his teeth and turned to Molly, his voice strained. "Molly, can you cover this for now? I'll pay you back." 7 Molly immediately grew wary. "Sean, my monthly allowance is only fifteen hundred dollars. This one meal is twelve hundred. What am I supposed to live on for the rest of the month?" "Don't worry, I have ways to make money." "What ways? Besides, you said it was your treat. Why am I the one paying?" Molly grumbled, unwilling to pay. The young couple, who had confessed their love less than an hour ago, was now facing the first hurdle in their romance. I took out my card at the perfect moment and called out, "Waiter." Sean turned his head away in disgust, as if I was about to latch onto him and refuse to let go. Reborn, he wanted nothing to do with a spoiled princess like me. The humiliation of me throwing money at him in his past life was still fresh in his mind. His voice was laced with deep revulsion. "Iris, how many times do I have to tell you? Can you just stay away from me? I hate you clinging to me, and I hate you getting between me and Molly. Neither I nor my mother need your filthy money!" I was genuinely surprised by his audacity. Even according to the bullet comments, where I was deeply in love with him, in this life, we hadn't gotten together. The bullet comments had appeared just as I pulled out the card, before I could even ask him to be my boyfriend. He was the one who preemptively declared his love for Molly. Before that, we'd had no interaction whatsoever. He was the one who despised his past life. And yet, he was the one who couldn't seem to let it go. I let out a cold laugh. "I was just calling the waiter to pay my own bill." "Mr. Miller," I said, my voice dripping with mock concern. "Are you suffering from some sort of delusion? Why are you so convinced I'm chasing you?" 8 Sean’s face went white. He was only now realizing that in this life, we were essentially strangers. The six years of entanglement from his past had yet to happen. The realization made him stagger back a step. The comments grew anxious. 【What’s going on? Why isn’t the villainess paying for Sean’s mom’s treatment?】 【Yeah, his mom has cancer. If she doesn't pay, how is he going to get that astronomical sum of money?】 【His mom was the only person who comforted him during those six years of humiliating life.】 Reading those comments, my face darkened. They called the six years I supported him a "humiliating life." An unbearable memory for him. In my past life, after I paid for his mother’s treatment, her private advice to him was: "Sean, honey, you can't let a woman walk all over you. Listen to Mom, you have to control the money. Make her live by your rules! My son is so outstanding, a university student, girls would line up to be with you. The Sterlings only have one daughter. Sooner or later, their money will be ours, right?" And Sean had nodded obediently through it all, enduring his "humiliation." Too bad for them, the Sterling family's vast fortune wasn't something an outsider like him could ever touch. All he ever got was the pocket change that fell through my fingers. If he was obedient, I'd give him a little. If he wasn't, he got nothing. A girl from my background wasn't stupid enough to just hand over her family's wealth. Sean coveted everything my family had, but it was always out of his reach. Eason couldn't hold back any longer. "Mr. Miller, aren't you the one who's been bothering Iris? She hasn't even spoken to you, yet you keep acting like you're some kind of victim. It's ridiculous." Sean's face clouded over, his tone impatient. "You, Croft. You're just some country bumpkin. Who do you think you are, talking to me like that? Do you have any idea who I am?" 9 His voice was low and deep, like a domineering CEO, infused with a touch of money-bred arrogance. In his past life, after his company took off, countless people had flattered him, calling him Mr. Miller. All that praise had gone to his head. But Sean hadn't noticed. The clothes he was wearing right now were shabbier than Eason's. I raised an eyebrow and clapped my hands. "Mr. Miller is right." Eason looked at me, hurt. I looked Eason up and down. His clothes were ordinary and cheap. Dressed like that, didn't he look just like a country bumpkin? I frowned and waved a hand, unleashing my inner princess. "These rags are so shabby, I wouldn't even wear them as a gift. Eason, you're coming with me to the mall right now, and you're not leaving until you've bought at least a hundred thousand dollars worth of clothes!" 10 Walking out of the mall with several shopping bags, Eason was still in a state of shock. He couldn’t seem to process what had just happened. I lazily flicked my hair over my shoulder. My boyfriend, naturally, had to wear the best. Everything I gave Sean in the last life, I wouldn't give him a single cent of in this one. The bullet comments were still chattering about Sean’s situation. He was currently being tormented by his lack of money. Tuition, living expenses, his mother’s medical bills. If Molly was his only regret in the last life, then in this one, after fixing that single regret, he had created twenty new ones. On the way back to the university, I enjoyed reading the comments. 【ML, don't go to her! You’ll be entangled with her for years again! I want to see your sweet romance with the FL!】 【The poor ML. He's going to be forced back to the villainess's side.】 【Who can stand the villainess's spoiled attitude?】 【Ugh, does being reborn not even help you escape the evil villainess’s control?】 Scrolling down, I saw it. As expected, standing in front of my dorm was the solitary, proud figure of Sean. He looked like he’d been waiting for a long time. When he saw me, he first gave a desolate smile, then seemed to resign himself to his fate. "Iris, I lose. I can't escape you after all." "Fine," he said, as if making a great sacrifice. "As long as you give me the black card and promise to tone down your princess attitude, I'm willing to be your boyfriend." 11 He spoke with an air of utter defeat, as if he’d made a monumental decision and a huge concession. His face was a mask of humiliation and shame. His dignity was really something. To think it was worth as much as my unlimited black card. I smirked. I'd never seen someone beg for scraps so arrogantly. I couldn't help but remind him, "Mr. Miller, have we met?" Sean scoffed. "Iris, no one knows you better than I do. Did you think this little game of playing hard to get would make me look at you twice? Alright, enough. Just give me the black card. My mom is in the hospital waiting." He was so certain. So sure that I would give in to him. In our past life, we were together for six years. If it wasn't for love, I probably wouldn't have lasted that long. He had seen me crazy in love. He had seen my grand, public displays of affection. As the one being pursued, he had always been fearless. His mother's hospital bills couldn't wait any longer. A pile of problems was waiting for him to solve with money. Eason decisively stepped in front of me, shattering Sean's arrogance. "When did Iris ever say she wanted you to be her boyfriend?" 12 That last sentence hit Sean like a bolt of lightning. He stood frozen for a long moment, then suddenly remembered something. The first thing he had done upon being reborn was confess to Molly. As for me, I really hadn't said a word about him being my boyfriend. The entanglements of our past life had yet to occur in this one. But Sean quickly shook his head with a self-deprecating laugh. The six years of their past relationship were too deeply ingrained in his memory. Event after event, he simply couldn't believe that I hadn't loved him. He sighed, his voice heavy with an exhaustion he couldn't hide. "Alright, Iris, I admit my confessing to Molly made you unhappy. But my mother's situation can't wait. Give me the card, and I'll let the past go." Seeing Sean's dejected surrender, the comments grew frantic. 【The ML was finally reborn! Why is he getting entangled with the villainess again?】 【And so begins the six years of humiliating life.】 【But without the villainess, the ML is just a poor student. He wouldn't even have startup capital for a business. How would he get money?】 I looked at Sean. My words were a reply to him, and to the comments. "If you don't have money, figure it out yourself. If you're not willing to sell a kidney, you've still got other assets, haven't you?"

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