Chapter 1

"Joyce, it's blazing hot out, and ice cream prices are through the roof, yet you're treating the entire class and letting everyone grab whatever they want. Figures that the campus belle would be this generous."

As Lucas Zimmer's voice rang out beside me, my phone buzzed nonstop with bank charge alerts.

The suffocating panic of my previous life, the feeling of being drained dry, still clung to me.

Lucas, my boyfriend, shoved me lightly, snapping me back to reality. "Melanie, I picked the cheapest ice cream for you. You're not used to the good stuff anyway. Buying anything expensive would be a waste. Might as well help Joyce save some money."

Joyce Stone smiled and said it was no big deal, casually patting Lucas on the shoulder.

Lucas beamed, practically glowing.

He praised Joyce for being generous, unlike me, who nickel-and-dimed everything.

My phone kept vibrating. When I checked, it was filled with charges ranging from three dollars to 30 dollars.

The 1,500 dollars I had just earned from my work-study job had dropped to a thousand dollars in moments, and the charges were still coming in.

My classmates crowded around Joyce, while I was edged out of the circle.

The memory of my mother's suffering before her death flashed through my mind, and my anger surged.

I pulled out my phone and confronted Joyce in front of everyone. "If you're treating everyone, why is my card getting charged?"

Joyce shook her head, confusion written all over her face.

My classmates were stunned for a second before breaking into laughter.

"Melanie, have you lost your mind? Why would Joyce, someone who is rich and beautiful, use your money? Everyone knows you're the stingiest one in class, and you barely have enough to feed yourself. You expect us to believe you'd treat everyone to ice cream?"

I was about to show them my phone when Lucas snatched it from my hand and apologized to everyone on my behalf.

"Melanie comes from a poor family. It's normal for her to be petty and jealous. She just lost control for a moment. Please don't mind her."

With that, he dragged me out of the supermarket, as if I were one sentence away from humiliating him.

He was strong, and my wrist quickly bruised, causing pain to lance through me and making it hard to even breathe.

It had been the same in my previous life.

Before a class gathering, Lucas had pulled me away from everyone and branded me as jealous.

I became the class weirdo, and no one ever believed me again.

In this life, I wasn't going down that path again.

I bit down hard on Lucas' wrist. He yelped and loosened his grip, and I seized the chance to snatch my phone back.

He tried to stop me from going back inside, saying, "Melanie, your family's poor. You never have extra money. All you gave me for Valentine's Day was a belt and some clothes, and I didn't even complain.

"Joyce is used to being pampered, and I won't let you slander an innocent and kind person just because you're jealous."

I tightened my grip on my phone.

If I exposed Joyce right now, everything would play out exactly the same again.

So, instead, I smiled.