Chapter 1

In my past life, I was weak and submissive. Riley Vance led a gang that bullied me for three years straight. They spread so many rumors that I fell into a deep depression and dropped out. My life was completely destroyed.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my freshman classroom. Riley was leading her group, surrounding my desk. They were grabbing my notes, tearing my textbooks, and insulting me in front of everyone. It was the exact same scene as before.

But this time, I didn't just sit there. I reached out and shoved her hand away.

1

When Riley’s hand reached for my textbook, I pushed her. I didn’t just block her―I shoved her back. My palm hit her shoulder with enough force to make her stumble. She staggered back a couple of steps, looking stunned.

The entire classroom went silent. Forty pairs of eyes were glued to us. Riley stood there, her expression shifting from disbelief to pure rage. She had been the school’s reigning Mean Girl for so long that she wasn't used to resistance.

“What did you just do?” she hissed. She stepped forward, flanked by her three loyal followers. They were the girls who always did her dirty work and posted the photos. The four of them loomed over my desk, their shadows cutting me off from the rest of the room.

“I said,” I replied, picking up my torn book. I tucked it safely into my desk. “Keep your hands off my stuff.” A collective gasp rippled through the room.

A boy at the next desk whispered, “Selah has finally lost it.” Riley stared at me like I was a complete stranger. She had no idea that I actually was. I wasn't the same Selah she used to toy with.

The old Selah would have kept her head down and swallowed her tears. She would have let them take the photos for the group chat. She would have endured the captions like, “Look at her crying again, lol.” But that version of Selah is dead.

Technically, she died three months after dropping out. It happened in a tiny, four-hundred-dollar-a-month studio on the edge of town. I had swallowed a whole bottle of pills from a shady clinic. I just wanted the noise to stop.

That was the day Riley had announced my ‘theft’ over the school intercom. She was the one who stole the watch, but she made sure I took the fall. I remember lying on that thin mattress, listening to the neighbors argue. Nobody knew where I was, and nobody came looking for me.

The landlord didn't find me until the smell became too much. I was only sixteen. I had been labeled a thief, a headcase, and a social pariah. All of it was because of Riley Vance.

I had spent three years enduring it, and I ended up with nothing. So when I woke up back in this classroom, my blood felt like it was boiling. Looking at Riley’s face made every nerve in my body scream. In this life, I’m done being the victim.

Riley reached out, trying to grab my chin. I leaned back, and her fingernails just grazed the air. “You think you’re tough now?” she sneered. Her voice dropped to a low, dangerous tone.

The bell rang for class. Our homeroom teacher, Mrs. Gable, walked through the door. In a split second, Riley wiped the anger off her face and sat down. She shot me one last look that clearly said, “You’re dead.”