When my AP Calculus teacher assigned Chloe to be my lab partner, I knew the plot was officially starting. If I aced a test, she’d say: "I’m so jealous of you. You don’t even have to study to get an A. Unlike me, I only sleep five hours a night, and if I’m not careful, my grades drop..." If I went to a national academic decathlon, she’d say: "The school treats you so well, finding ways to pad your resume for college apps. Sigh..." If I got an early admission offer from an Ivy League school, she’d say: "With your family's connections, you can get in anywhere you want. Meanwhile, I have to save every piece of scrap paper..." And just like that, my childhood best friend—our school’s star quarterback—felt sorry for her, and my roommates hated me for "bullying the weak." In my past life, they bullied me to death. Right before I died, I heard Chloe say: "Oops, she just fell from the roof. But hey, that Ivy League spot is open now..." When I opened my eyes again, I was staring at Chloe, who was timidly moving her desk next to mine. I smiled. If I don’t play her to death in this life, my name isn't Harper Montgomery! 1 When my homeroom teacher seated Chloe next to me, I knew immediately. The plot of my past life was repeating itself. Chloe’s grades were aggressively mediocre. She was always just a few points short. Knowing she came from a low-income family, the teacher placed her next to me, hoping I could help her out. After all, I was the Class President. Plus, as the resident genius girl, I was known for being helpful and kind. But that was in my past life. I watched with a mocking smirk as Chloe timidly dragged her desk next to mine. She sat down quietly, and plop—a single tear fell from her eye. "I’m so jealous of you, Harper. Even your pens are so pretty. They must be really expensive, right? Unlike me... I’ve never used a pen this pretty in my entire life..." Here we go. Here she goes again. I let out a cold laugh and ignored her. In my past life, when she did this, my heart softened, and I gave her my own expensive stationery without a second thought. I went out of my way to take care of her. I shared my lunch, bought her drinks, gave her everything. And in the end, I gave her my life. Seeing that I was ignoring her, a flash of embarrassment crossed Chloe’s face. But this was Chloe. Did you think a little embarrassment would stop her? A second later, she angled her body, revealing a tear-streaked, pitiful face. "Harper, you don’t hate me, do you? I guess it makes sense. You were born rich and privileged, so it’s normal that you look down on people. Unlike me, I’m used to walking on eggshells and reading the room..." I lost my patience and slammed my textbook onto my desk with a loud SMACK. It was passing period, and the classroom was noisy, but the sheer force of the slam made the entire class turn and look at us. Chloe also looked stunned. I kept a deadpan expression. She wanted attention? Fine, I’ll give her the spotlight. I sneered, "Chloe, the teacher put you here to study, but the second you sit down, you start crying. "What’s the deal? Are you unhappy sitting next to me? Then go complain to the teacher!" Chloe trembled violently, shrinking into herself. "Harper, no, you... you misunderstood me." Her eyes dimmed dramatically. "I... I just... I’ve never seen such nice school supplies. I’m just envious. "Harper, I’m really just jealous of you. You were born into a wealthy family and never had to worry about money. You have such pretty stationery and notebooks. Unlike me..." I cut off her manipulative monologue immediately. "Why should I be like you? Like you in what way? Like you with an empty brain? Am I blind? I’m prettier than you, smarter than you, why the hell would I want to be like you? "You’re jealous of my stationery? What, are you trying to guilt-trip me into giving it to you for free? "Do I owe you something? "So what if my family has money? Do you hate the rich? Wow, that must be exhausting for you. There are a lot of wealthy kids in this class, are you going to hate all of them?" As soon as I finished speaking, the rest of the class started whispering. They pointed at Chloe, murmuring to each other. After all, our school is an elite, private prep school. The students here either come from old money or political dynasties. I don't know about other classes, but in our homeroom, no one slacks off just because their family is rich. Everyone is fiercely competitive. We may have been born on third base, but that doesn't mean we don't swing the bat. In fact, we work twice as hard as regular students because the expectations placed upon us are astronomically higher. That’s exactly why the school placed the only two scholarship students from low-income neighborhoods into our homeroom. One was Chloe. The other was Mia, who was also assigned to be my roommate in the dorms. Even though their middle school grades were top-tier, keeping up with the rigorous curriculum of an elite prep school was visibly a struggle for them. 2 I stared coldly at Chloe, who was huddled in her seat. The whispers around us were loud and clear. "What is Chloe's problem? Mr. Davis sat her next to Harper, and she's complaining? If she doesn't want the seat, she can move! Half the class would kill to sit next to the Class President!" "Exactly! That's free elite tutoring! I want that seat!" "Holy crap, she actually pissed Harper off! It's senior year, and this is the first time I've ever seen the Class President get mad!" "Ugh, she's so fake. Calling the President 'Harper' like they're besties or something." "And crying about not having nice school supplies? Excuse me, did Mr. Davis and the school's financial aid office just cease to exist? The school gives them a stipend every semester for supplies!" "Ugh. What an ungrateful brat." I glanced casually at Mia, who was sitting a few rows behind me. One of my roommates. In my past life, she, Chloe, and my brain-dead childhood friend, Liam, constantly guilt-tripped and gaslit me until I lost my footing and fell from a ten-story roof. And after I died, Liam actively slandered me to my parents, twisting the truth completely. He convinced them that I was a high school bully who constantly tormented poor, helpless Chloe and Mia. My parents, overwhelmed with guilt and manipulated by his lies, pulled strings with the school board to transfer my Ivy League early admission spot to Chloe. They even paid full tuition for both Chloe and Mia’s four years of college! Thinking about this made my blood boil. I wanted to march over and beat Chloe and Mia to a pulp! At that moment, Mia frowned, stood up from her desk, and marched over to me. "Harper, it’s really not a big deal. Why are you trying to humiliate Chloe? "She was just making a comment." Mia patted Chloe's shoulder, acting like the ultimate savior of the oppressed. I laughed. Mia really thought she was something special. She had completely forgotten that her garbage GPA had only improved because I sacrificed my own free time every night to painstakingly tutor her. Now that she thought she had a shot at a state university and was going to change her life, she suddenly thought she was the savior of the masses? I let out a cold laugh and fired back: "Wow, look who it is. The superhero of the classroom. "Do you want me to move the Statue of Liberty so you can sit there instead? "Do you just have that much free time? Did you finish your AP Calculus homework? Did you memorize your SAT vocab? Did you finish your practice tests? "Are you serious, Mia? Did you already secure an acceptance letter from Harvard or Yale? Is that why you have the time to mind other people's business?" Mia's face flushed bright red. She opened her mouth to argue, but the bell rang. The students standing around immediately turned and scurried back to their desks. Only Chloe, still sobbing quietly, and Mia, holding her, were left standing awkwardly. I frowned. "Are you guys filming a soap opera? The bell rang! Go back to your seat!" A few students behind me chimed in. "Yeah! If you don't sit down, you're just going to complain later that the rich kids are bullying you!" "Ugh, Chloe is always acting so timid, like everyone owes her something." Chloe clearly heard them. She gently pushed Mia away, her face pale, and silently lowered her head. Mia stood awkwardly between us, then lowered her head and quickly hurried back to her seat. I smirked and sat down. Just as I took my seat, the teacher walked in. "Class, take your seats!" No one mentioned the drama from passing period. It was as if it never happened. But I was the only one who saw Chloe tense up, her fists clenched tightly in her lap. She didn't even pay attention to the lesson. I let my lips curl into a cold smile. Chloe, in this life, I’m taking the moral high ground before you even get a chance to climb it. Let's see how you handle this. 3 As soon as the bell for lunch rang, Chloe stood up, squeezed past my desk, and ran out of the classroom. Mia walked past my desk shortly after, glaring at me with pure hatred before leaving. I chuckled lightly and ignored them. My other two roommates, Lily and Sarah, walked over and pulled up chairs around my desk. I blinked, looking at their worried faces. "What's going on with you today?" Lily put a hand on my forehead. "You don't have a fever... "Harper, did you have a personality transplant today?" Sarah nodded vigorously. "Yeah! I can't believe you actually roasted Mia and Chloe during the break. We wanted to back you up, but we didn't even know what was happening." My eyes welled up slightly, and I scrunched my nose. In my past life, I was always polite and accommodating to everyone. I rarely lost my temper. No wonder they were shocked. I smiled and pinched both of their cheeks. "Don't worry, don't worry. I'm fine. "I just finally saw certain people for who they really are." Lily and Sarah exchanged a look, then simultaneously let out a sigh of relief. Lily: "Oh my god, thank goodness you finally woke up! You have no idea, Sarah and I have been annoyed with Mia for ages." I raised an eyebrow, asking, "What happened?" Sarah pouted and whispered to me: "You don't know, but whenever you're not in the dorm, Mia acts like she owns the place. "She’s always bragging about how she’s going to get into a top state school, and acts like doing dorm chores or cleaning up is beneath her." Lily added: "And... we caught her and Chloe trash-talking you a few times. We wanted to tell you, but you were spending so much time tutoring Mia, so we thought..." Me: ... I was utterly speechless at Mia and Chloe. They didn't have the royal bloodline, but they sure had the Princess Syndrome! I gently patted their hands. "Don't worry, I don't blame you guys." After all, if they had told me back then, given my pushover personality, I probably wouldn't have believed them. As for tutoring? LMAO. That depends entirely on my mood now! 4 Lily and Sarah were about to keep gossiping when Mia stood at the classroom door and yelled: "Harper! Mr. Davis wants to see you!" I stared coldly at Mia, and then at Chloe standing next to her, whose face still had obvious tear streaks. Looks like they went crying to the homeroom teacher. Are you kidding me? Is this the best they can do? Do they still think they're in middle school? I smiled brightly, stood up, and walked over to them. I cleared my throat and purposely raised my voice: "Oh my, look at the tear tracks on Chloe's face. Did someone bully you? "Oh dear, it wasn't me, was it? I didn't even touch you." Chloe trembled and quickly hid behind Mia. She bit her lip, and the tears started falling again. The next second, her performance began. "Harper, you really misunderstood me... I... I don't know how to earn your forgiveness. "If my death is the only way to prove I'm not a bad person, I'll die to apologize!" With that, she made a dramatic lunge as if she was going to bash her head against the hallway wall. Mia immediately grabbed her arm, turned to me, and started screaming: "Harper! Why are you driving Chloe to suicide?! Do you think just because you're rich, we're your toys?!" I twitched my mouth, thoroughly unimpressed. Were they filming a CW teen drama? Had they been watching too much trashy reality TV? I was too lazy to play along. I dropped my smile and fired back: "Who’s driving who? Aren't you two the ones screaming about dying in the middle of the hallway? "If you're going to do it, then do it! Hit the wall! "Mia, why are you throwing a tantrum at me again? Did I give you an inch and you decided to take a mile? Do you want me to kick you into next week?" "You!" Mia glared at me, pointing a finger in my face, but before she could say anything else, Sarah slapped her hand down from behind. Sarah: "Don't point! Don't you know it's incredibly rude?!" Lily smiled softly and stood next to me. "Mia, you're the one in the wrong here. Harper has helped you so much, and she's never once looked down on your background." I glanced casually at Chloe, who was staying out of the crossfire. She was staring at her shoes, the corners of her mouth twitching slightly upward. I smiled. "Chloe, why don't we go see the teacher together?" Hearing her name, Chloe flinched and bit her lip, looking victimized. "Harper, I... I'm not like you. I can't just go see the teacher whenever I want. "You're dressed so nicely and expensively, of course you can go anywhere. Unlike me... I've never worn a dress that pretty. I try to avoid people..." I couldn't help but roll my eyes. How thick was her skull? Was she really still trying to guilt-trip me into buying her things? And she never even answered the question! I seriously doubt how she passed the entrance exams for this school. "What, are you going to a royal ball or something? You need to be decked out in gold and diamonds just to walk into the teacher's lounge? Or what, do you want our entire class to start a GoFundMe to buy you a designer gown just so you feel worthy enough to talk to Mr. Davis?" Chloe's face turned chalk-white. Seeing more and more students gathering in the hallway to watch, her legs suddenly "gave out," and she collapsed against Mia. "Chloe!" Mia anxiously held her up, turning to glare at me with venom in her eyes. "Harper! What is wrong with you today?! Look what you did, you made Chloe pass out from stress!" I rolled my eyes. "If she's that fragile, isn't that her own medical problem? "You're acting like Mother Teresa today, why don't you hurry up and carry her to the nurse's office? "You're so tough, why are you all talk and no action?" Mia froze. It seemed she hadn't expected me—the girl who was always so easy to manipulate—to relentlessly target them today. I didn't care. I bumped past their shoulders and walked straight to the teacher's lounge. 5 As soon as I walked into the office, Mr. Davis waved me over. "Harper, come here." I smiled warmly, pretending to be completely clueless. "Mr. Davis, did you need something?" He pushed his glasses up his nose, looking a bit concerned. "Did you and Chloe have a disagreement? She and Mia came in here crying earlier..." I acted shocked. "Mr. Davis, I have no idea! "With AP exams coming up and classes being so stressful, who has the time for petty drama?" Mr. Davis clearly trusted me more. He sighed: "Do you want me to move your seats? The administration suggested I seat you together, but I don't want it to affect your academic performance." I couldn't help but laugh internally. Chloe and Mia were truly idiots. Did they really think crying to the teacher would work? Please. I'm the Class President and the valedictorian. I smiled politely. "No need, Mr. Davis. They can't affect me. It's just..." I paused, looking conflicted. "What is it?" I sighed heavily, putting on a serious face. "Mr. Davis, studying requires personal effort. "I want to help her, but if she doesn't appreciate it, it's just wasting my time." Mr. Davis thought for a moment, then suddenly pulled a form out of his desk drawer. My eyes lit up. I was thrilled. "Actually, I was going to tell you about this in a few days. "There's a National Academic Decathlon coming up, and the school wants you to represent us. Fill out this registration form and bring it back to me. "Just focus on preparing for the decathlon for now, Harper. I believe in you. You've got this!" I carefully took the form and nodded solemnly at the teacher. "Don't worry, Mr. Davis. I will definitely make the school proud!" Are you kidding? My family owns shares in this school. Not that many people knew that. Making the school proud meant higher enrollment numbers next year. Which meant fatter dividend checks for my family! I happily carried the registration form back toward the classroom. Just as I reached the door, I saw a guy sitting at my desk, talking to Chloe. Seeing Chloe occasionally lowering her head in a shy, demure way, I smirked. Perfect. The main cast of this tragedy was finally fully assembled. 6 In my past life, it was around this exact time. My childhood best friend and the school's star quarterback, Liam, came to my classroom looking for me, only to run into the fragile, bird-like Chloe. They hit it off immediately. And when I came back with the registration form, eager to share the good news with Liam... With a single, pathetic sentence from Chloe, Liam demanded that I give my competition spot to her. In my past life, I was too used to being a people-pleaser. Even though I was hurt, seeing Chloe's desperate, hopeful eyes, I caved. I gave her the spot, and she was eliminated in the very first round... She single-handedly tanked the school's reputation in the state finals. And Liam? He blamed me. "Why didn't you tutor her better? Did you want her to make a fool of herself?! Harper, I've known you my whole life, and I never realized you were this manipulative! No wonder you gave up your spot so easily!" Heh. In my past life, I was a massive idiot. I compromised over and over again, and I never told my parents about what was happening at school. That's what allowed these losers to think they could walk all over me. Liam probably forgot that the only reason his family had money was because my family threw them a bone. I stared coldly at the two of them chatting and let out a soft laugh. I walked quietly up to my desk and kicked the chair hard. Liam lost his balance and nearly fell face-first into Chloe's lap. Furious, Liam jumped up, ready to start cursing. But when he saw it was me, he instantly deflated. Still, Liam had an ego to maintain. He puffed out his chest and demanded: "Harper, what the hell are you doing?! Did you forget your meds today?!" I ignored him. I pulled a bottle of disinfectant spray out of my desk and started spraying my desk and chair aggressively. After spraying, I grabbed a paper towel and wiped everything down vigorously. Once I was done, I finally sat down and shot Liam an icy glare. "Some disgusting trash sat on my desk. It was dirty." Liam's face turned beet red. He slammed his hand down on my desk in anger. Without a second thought, I sprayed the disinfectant directly onto his hand. "AH!" Liam yanked his hand back. "Harper! What is your problem?! Are you crazy?! "I don't care how much you apologize, I am never forgiving you for this!" Ugh, childish. I slammed the registration form onto my desk and glared at him. "Liam, what are you barking at? Go back to the locker room. Stop barking at people." "Harper! You just called me a dog!" Liam's face flushed with rage. He looked like he wanted to grab me by the collar. I stared blankly at his hand reaching toward me. "Liam, did you forget what happened the last time your family almost went bankrupt?" Liam froze. His hand hovered awkwardly in the air. Meanwhile, Chloe stretched her neck, trying to read the form on my desk. I smirked and deliberately pushed the form closer to her. Just as I predicted, Chloe read it closely and gasped: "Oh my god, Harper, are you going to the National Academic Decathlon?!" I ignored her, so she just kept talking to herself, "The school treats you so well, finding ways to pad your resume for college apps. Sigh, unlike me. My family is poor, so of course the school would never give me a spot like this..." Ha. Here we go again.
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