Chapter 2

For two days, an unsettling quiet filled our dorm room. Maya was polite to a fault, her words clipped and her smiles tight. She was plotting. I could feel it in the air, a low hum of malice just beneath the surface. I went to my classes, worked on my code for the internship project, and waited.

The explosion came on Monday morning.

My phone buzzed with a notification from TikTok. Then another. And another. A friend from my data structures class sent me a link with a single message: "OMG Chloe, is this you???"

I clicked the link. My heart didn't pound with panic like it did the first time. It beat with a slow, cold rhythm.

There it was. The same video. A small business owner, her face a mask of outrage, held up a pair of leggings and a sports bra. They were stained, disgusting.

"I am a small business owner, and I am sick of this!" she yelled into her phone's camera. "This was returned to me today by a customer named Chloe Miller from CalTech University. She bought these, wore them, and returned them covered in what looks like... bodily fluids. This is a biohazard! What is wrong with you people? Chloe Miller at CalTech, you should be ashamed of yourself!"

The video was already rocketing past a million views. The comments were a tidal wave of hatred, all directed at me.

Disgusting.

CalTech needs to expel her!

What a spoiled rich girl.

I hope she gets what she deserves.

It was happening all over again, just as I knew it would. Maya hadn't used my account, but she had used my name.

My phone rang. It was Liam, my boyfriend. The star quarterback. Image-conscious, popular Liam.

"Chloe, what the hell is this TikTok?" he demanded, his voice tight with anger. "People are sending it to me. My coach just asked me about it."

"It's not me, Liam," I said calmly.

"What do you mean it's not you? She says your name, your school. Are you telling me this woman is just making it up?"

"I'm telling you I didn't do it. Someone is setting me up."

"Setting you up? Who would do that? This is a nightmare, Chloe. My parents are seeing this. The athletic department is going to see this. This is my reputation on the line!"

His reputation. Not our relationship. Not my innocence. His reputation. The words were the same, the selfish panic identical to my memory.

"I need you to trust me," I said, a test.

He was silent for a long moment. "Just... fix this, Chloe. Fix it now."

He hung up.

I didn't feel the sting of betrayal this time. I only felt confirmation. He was exactly who I remembered him to be.

I went back to the TikTok video. My fingers hovered over the comment section. In my first life, I had frantically replied, denying everything, my words lost in the flood of hate. I looked desperate and guilty.

This time, I would be different.

I typed a single, public comment from my official account, the one with my picture on it.

"My name is Chloe Miller. I am the student being accused in this video. I did not do this. I am the victim of identity theft and a malicious smear campaign. To the business owner: I would like to meet you in person, on campus, tomorrow at noon in the main quad. We can clear this up publicly. Please come."

I hit post.

The trap was laid. Now, I just had to wait for the rats to walk into it.