Alexander Bradford opened his eyes, feeling as though he had just experienced a nightmare. His whole body was drenched in sweat.
He was still lying in bed.
Wait… something was off here. This wasn't his house.
He sat up abruptly, surveying his surroundings. Memories long buried began to resurface.
"Isn't this the studio apartment I rented four years ago?" Alex's face was filled with disbelief. He shook his head, thinking it was just a dream. He pinched his cheek hard—ouch, it hurt. This wasn't a dream. It was real.
Remembering something, he quickly grabbed the smartphone by his side.
September 15, 2017.
"Is this some kind of crazy twist? Have I been reborn, like the main characters in those online novels?" Alex was stunned. After a moment, he rubbed his face, finally accepting the reality. Tears of excitement began to stream down his face. Because now... he could start all over again.
Before his rebirth, life had been blissful for his family of three. Though they weren't wealthy, they loved each other deeply, leading a peaceful and fulfilling life. Then, as Bitcoin started to boom worldwide, Alex, who had never touched stocks or futures, was swayed by colleagues and finally decided to dive in.
He started with a small investment, but as the market rose, he made some gains. Unsatisfied with that, Alex increased his investment. Keeping it a secret from his wife, he quietly invested tens of thousands more. With a bit of luck, he doubled his returns.
But greed overtook him. Like a man possessed, Alex kept it from his wife and secretly mortgaged the home they had worked so hard to save for, raising $300,000 and investing it all with high leverage.
Unexpectedly, the cryptocurrency market faced a huge risk. Global investors panicked and sold off, causing Bitcoin to plummet by forty percent overnight. Before he could escape, Alex's position was liquidated.
Alex and his wife Amelia had worked so hard for dissolved overnight. Regret and guilt overwhelmed him, but there was no turning back.
Amelia had been his college classmate, a beautiful woman who wasn't quite the campus belle but certainly the belle of her class. They had started dating in college, surviving the "break up after graduation" curse.
Amelia's parents were initially opposed to them, but she insisted on being with Alex, and her parents eventually relented. With a modest dowry and a simple wedding, Alex married her. Their early days were tight, yet Amelia never complained, enduring the hard times by his side.
After years of hard work, they had finally saved enough for a down payment, bought a house, and welcomed a lovely daughter, Sophie. But due to his greed, Alex ended up destroying the happiness of his family of three.
Now... somehow, fate had given him a second chance. He would never let such a thing happen again.
Just then, his phone rang. It was his wife, Amelia.
He answered quickly.
"Honey, are you feeling any better now?" Amelia's gentle voice came through the phone. Alex suddenly remembered that he hadn't gone to work today because he was down with a fever, so he had stayed home to rest.
"I'm much better now, dear," Alex replied, smiling. His wife's concern warmed his heart.
"Make sure to have some oatmeal and maybe some chicken soup for lunch. Avoid cold drinks, and get some rest. I'll pick Sophie up from preschool after school," Amelia reminded him.
"I'll pick Sophie up myself," Alex replied. Normally, both of them worked and couldn't pick up their daughter on time, so they would leave her in aftercare for an extra two hours.
"You just rest at home. It's on my way, anyway," Amelia said. "Alright, I should go now, or my manager will start lecturing me again."
"Wait… honey..." Alex hesitated for a moment.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I love you…" Alex couldn't help but say.
"So cheesy..." Amelia looked around, worried someone might hear her, but her heart was sweetened. She lowered her voice and whispered, "I love you too, honey," before hanging up.
Alex smiled. The feeling of being reborn was amazing. This time, he was determined not to let his wife and daughter suffer. He would give them the happiest, most comfortable life. As someone who had been reborn, if he couldn't manage that, he would be a failure.
With that thought, Alexr's eyes took on a determined look. He started to recall events from the next four years… After a long time, he sighed. Though he remembered a lot, only a few things seemed useful to him, as he only had a superficial understanding of many areas.
Currently, he worked in civil engineering, but with the real estate market expected to decline in the future, this field wouldn't be as profitable.
Suddenly, Alex's eyes lit up with an idea to make money.
"Bitcoin."
His feelings were complex. His tragedy in the previous life had been due to Bitcoin. But in this life, it would still be his best option for quickly earning his first substantial sum.
From his knowledge of Bitcoin's historical prices, he knew that in the next three months, Bitcoin would experience a crazy surge, reaching $19,000. Although not as high as the $60,000 peak in 2021, it was still a massive opportunity. By riding this wave, Alex was confident he could make a huge profit.
The only question was, where would he get his starting capital?
His gaze sharpened, and he started to consider using their house down payment. According to his plan with Amelia, they were supposed to check out a soon-to-launch housing project at the end of the month. The plan was to put down around $50,000 and take out a mortgage for $200,000 to buy a fully furnished condo.
This $50,000 was the result of years of frugal living and saving. If Amelia found out he intended to invest the entire sum in cryptocurrency, she would definitely be furious. After all, Amelia wasn't aware of how much Bitcoin would rise, and cryptocurrency's risk was widely known.
"She can't find out; I'll have to act first and inform her later. Even if she's mad, she'll calm down when she sees the profits," Alex thought, formulating his plan. Fortunately, all the house funds were in an account under his name, making it easier for him to manage.
–
In his previous life, Alex had used the Coinbase platform, trusting its security and U.S. regulation over Binance, which he saw as riskier due to its Chinese connections and frequent scam reports. So this time, he went with the same choice.
He downloaded the Coinbase app and, thanks to his experience, registered and set up his account without any issues.
He checked Bitcoin's current price: just over $3,200. Although he didn't remember the exact figures, he knew this was very low compared to the surge that was coming.
Taking a deep breath, Alex began transferring funds into his account without hesitation—a total of $53,400, all in.
Even though he knew Bitcoin would undoubtedly rise, he couldn't help but feel nervous. This money represented years of savings and hard work with Amelia. The two of them kept their monthly expenses, including their daughter Sophie's, under $700. They always took the subway and bus to work, never opting for taxis. To save on rent, they rented a place farther from the city center and their offices.
So this money couldn't be at risk.
In his previous life, Alex had chosen high-leverage contracts, but the leverage was too high, making the risks unbearable. This time, he decided to lower the risk by buying Bitcoin as spot (without leverage), which would reduce the danger of losing everything. The downside was that this method had lower profit potential. Even if Bitcoin reached $19,000, he'd only make around five or six times his initial investment.
That wasn't in line with Alex's ambitions.
Still, he couldn't predict Bitcoin's daily price fluctuations, so he decided against high-leverage day trading. Bitcoin's volatility was intense, with swings that could be several points or even ten-plus points at a time.
After careful thought, Alex made his decision. He would use contract trading with a leverage of five times. This way, he wouldn't risk liquidation unless Bitcoin dropped by more than twenty percent.
From what he recalled, the upcoming market rise wouldn't see drops exceeding twenty percent in one go, with the deepest drop he remembered being twenty-five percent over a three-day period. This sharp dip would give him a perfect low point to buy in.
Since cryptocurrency trades in U.S. dollars, Alex started by transferring his $79,000 in savings into the account. After placing his order, the transaction was quickly completed.
With five times leverage, Alex's account now held 119.26 Bitcoin.
As Bitcoin's price fluctuated, Alex's account began to show a loss. Although he knew it was only temporary, it still bothered him. He decided to close the app to avoid watching the swings, but within five minutes, he reopened it to check.
Another loss.
"Maybe I'm just not cut out for this kind of high-risk trading," Alex muttered, shaking his head.
By noon, his stomach started growling—he'd only had a bit of oatmeal in the morning.
He walked into the kitchen, where the slow cooker was keeping some oatmeal warm, prepared by his wife, Amelia, who had gotten up early to make it for him.
Alex took out some lettuce and lean meat from the fridge, washed and chopped them, and made a pot of lettuce and meat soup.