Rebirth Snatching Back My Stolen Luck novel Chapter 97

LILITH

After a long, busy day, I crashed into my bed and drifted into sleep with a satisfied sigh.

But hardly thirty minutes later, the shrill and relentless ringing of my phone woke me rudely.

Who the hell was calling at this ungodly hour?! I thought, suppressing the urge to swear at whoever it was.

Half–dazed, I reached blindly toward the bedside table, picking up the phone and then squinting at the screen to see the caller ID.

Dean.

It was actually him.

My heart gave a sharp, startled jolt. I sat up hurriedly, all traces of sleep scattering like smoke.

I glanced ar the time.

00:52 AM.

I’d looked it up before–Agate Country was five hours ahead of Emerald City. That meant it was nearly six in the morning over there.

Calling so early… what was so urgent?

Or… had something happened to him?

That thought left me restless so I answered the call straight away.

“Dean?” I said, my voice hesitant.

On the other end, there was only the ragged sound of his breathing. For a long, drawn–out moment, he didn’t speak.

Anxiety spiked in my chest, the worst guesses swirling in my mind.

I was about to speak again when his voice finally broke through–low, unsteady and desperate.

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Chapter 97

“Lilith… are you there?”

My hands tightened on the phone.

Why did he sound like that?

Broken. Like he’d just been through something terrible.

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And then something struck me the next second–Dean hadn’t called me Lilith in a while.

He only ever used Elise.

So why now?

Was it because of whatever had shaken him this badly? Or… was it his way of saying we were back to normal friends?

But what normal friend calls you at this hour, sounding like their world had just ended?

My temples throbbed with the storm of questions.

Still, I forced myself to focus.

“I’m here, but… are you okay? You don’t sound too good.”

For a second, I could swear I heard it–the faintest sound of sobbing…

I paused, then denied it outright.

Dean and sobbing? Impossible.

And yet…

When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse. “I’m coming back to Emerald City today. Can you pick me up at the airport?”

I froze.

He was coming back?

Relief, happiness, excitement–those emotions crashed over me all at once. Almost too much to digest.

”

“Are you listening?” He pressed, his voice raw with unspoken emotions when I stayed silent too long. “Or… will you be busy?”

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An instant denial flew out. “No. I’m free. I’ll be there.”

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Finally, the faintest smile laced his words. “That’s good. Then I’ll text you the flight details later.”

Silence fell.

Then he spoke again, his tone soft and guilt–ridden. “I woke you up, didn’t I? Sorry. I forgot about the time difference.”

“Get some rest now,” he said in a quieter voice, then as though he was making a solemn vow, he added. “I’ll see you soon.”

Before I could reply, the call ended.

I stared at the phone long after the screen dimmed, my pulse hammering in my ears.

Dean was coming back.

Today.

For some reason, the sound of his trembling voice lingered in my mind like a shadow.

What on earth had happened to him?

I tossed and turned afterward, sleep nowhere to be found as my restless thoughts wouldn’t let me

1. be.

Still, I forced myself to at least close my eyes.

I needed the rest.

Hours later, sunlight spilled through the curtains, warm against my face.

My eyes snapped open as the memory of the call instantly rushed back.

I bolted upright, snatched my phone from the bed (I hadn’t even bothered returning it to the nightstand), and checked for new messages.

There it was.

Dean’s flight details.

He’d be landing at 9 AM, and it was currently 7: 25 AM.

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Less than two hours to go.

My heart lurched.

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I flung the covers off, dropped the phone back on the bed, and rushed into the bathroom to get

ready

DEAN

Sitting inside the first–class cabin, I looked outwardly calm, but inside, everything was restless, burning with a suffocating urgency.

If I could, I’d have flown straight to Lilith’s side in an instant–just to see her with my own eyes,

to confirm she was safe.

I leaned back into my seat, gripping the armrest until my knuckles ached, forcing myself to

breathe.

The change was strange, wasn’t it?

After all, just yesterday, I’d promised myself to give her space.

Not to force anything.

And maybe I would have kept that promise-

If not for those dreams.

Dreams that seemed to mirror reality, but not entirely.

It began sweetly, almost tender…

In the first dream, Lilith had uncovered Brandon and Claire’s affair earlier–during their graduation trip.

After exposing them, she stood her ground, refused to marry him, and even when her parents threatened to strip her of everything the Caldwell name granted her unless she listened to them, she didn’t yield.

Instead, she chose independence.

I saw her take up the webcomic career she had abandoned in college again.

From there, everything mirrored reality, except for one crucial difference–I was still in Agate

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Chapter 97

Country when Callum told me about her.

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At that time, my focus had been on launching a female–oriented game there, not in Emerald City.

So, I came down to Emerald City intending only to recruit her for my team.

But she declined to leave with me.

And because of that refusal, I stayed and unexpectedly discovered the untapped potential of Emerald City’s market.

That’s how we ended up working side by side.

With my recommendation, she moved into The Haven Residences, next to mine.

Slowly, partnership turned into something deeper.

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