The Second Beginning

Rosewood Academy, September – First Day of the Fall Term

The scent of lilac and leather stung Ariella Kane’s nose before she even opened her eyes.

It was familiar. Too familiar.

Her silk sheets. The low hum of the city through double-glazed windows. The soft click of heels on marble in the hallway. Her mother’s perfume, floating in with the morning breeze.

She bolted upright.

This room—this body—it wasn’t right. It was hers, yes, but not the version she’d just left behind.

Her fingers clutched the velvet comforter like a lifeline. Everything around her gleamed like it had been frozen in time. The arched mirrors. The stack of untouched Rosewood Academy uniforms on the armchair. Her phone screen lit up beside her, buzzing with a morning alert.

September 5th. 6:02 AM. Monday.

She stared.

“No,” she whispered.

Because she remembered dying. The flash of headlights. The brakes that never squealed. Melody’s voice, shaking—“I tried to warn you, I swear I didn’t know he’d go that far—”

She remembered everything.

The betrayal. The loss. The fall from the top.

And now… she was here.

Sixteen. Again.

---

Her feet hit the floor as if drawn by instinct. She moved to the full-length mirror, dreading what she’d see.

The girl staring back wore no makeup. Her cheeks were rounder, baby softness still untouched by time. Her eyes—hazel and wide—looked as if they hadn’t yet seen heartbreak.

But they had.

She had.

Ariella didn’t scream. She didn’t faint. She didn’t even cry.

Instead, she smiled.

Cold. Slow. Sharp.

“If I’m back,” she murmured to the girl in the mirror, “then this time… I’m winning.”

---

By 7:30, she was dressed in her Rosewood uniform—white blouse perfectly tucked, pleated navy skirt ironed to perfection, and a deep red blazer with her name embroidered in gold on the inside tag.

Her mother walked in, heels clicking. “You’re up early, darling. Nervous about school?”

Ariella turned, watching her mother’s perfectly powdered face and pearl earrings.

Three months from now, your charity gala will be where Melody sets me up for my first public humiliation.

Ariella kept her expression neutral. “No. Just… excited to start fresh.”

Her mother smiled, clearly pleased. “That’s my girl.”

---

The car ride to school was lined with memory.

The driver greeted her with the same small nod. The buildings sped past in a blur. Her reflection in the window looked too young, too untouched by ruin.

But Rosewood Academy stood the same as it always had: tall, proud, and unforgiving.

Students milled at the gates—some in designer bags, others faking the part with careful knockoffs. Status bled into every step, every smirk.

Ariella took a deep breath.

She walked through the iron gates like a queen returning to her stolen kingdom.

---

8:00 AM. Rosewood Main Courtyard.

Melody Sora was already waiting.

She waved, her soft-pink sweater sleeves pushed to her elbows, lip gloss shimmering like always.

“Ari! Over here!” Her voice was all sparkle, honey-sweet.

In her past life, this was the moment Ariella had run toward her with relief, arms linked, hearts open. Melody had been her everything—best friend, confidante, the sister she thought she chose.

Now, Ariella simply walked up, carefully composed.

“Melody,” she said with a smile so smooth it could’ve been poured from glass.

Melody frowned—only slightly, for a flash. “Everything okay? You didn’t answer my texts last night.”

“I was… reflecting.” Ariella tilted her head. “You know. First day of junior year. Big deal.”

Melody’s lips twitched into her usual sugary grin. “That’s so unlike you.”

Not anymore, Ariella thought.

---

As the bell rang, students swarmed toward the front hall. Ariella moved through the crowd, scanning faces like ghosts she knew too well.

Cassie Vaughn sauntered past, flicking her platinum hair over her shoulder. Her laugh rang out—loud, artificial, sharp as broken glass.

Mina Belle stood near the front lockers in black pumps, phone in hand, looking effortlessly disinterested.

And then, there he was.

Luca Grey.

Leaning against the far wall, earbuds in, eyes unreadable.

His ash-black hair fell just slightly over his brow, and his uniform was crisp, clean, no fuss.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t smile. Just watched.

In my old life, I never noticed him until it was too late.

But he noticed everything.

He saw my fall before I did.

Ariella met his eyes across the crowd.

He didn’t look away.

---

First Period: Literature.

Assigned seating was Ariella’s first chance to disrupt the script.

In her last life, she’d sat beside Melody.

This time, she slid into the empty seat next to a small, quiet girl in round glasses and an oversized beige sweater.

Tasha Lin blinked at her. “Um… hi?”

Ariella smiled. “I’m Ariella. Mind if I sit here?”

The girl seemed startled but nodded. “Sure.”

Melody entered seconds later, her eyes scanning the class—and then freezing.

She walked slower than necessary, taking the seat behind Ariella instead.

“Tasha,” Ariella said softly as the teacher began class, “have you read The Picture of Dorian Gray?”

Tasha glanced up. “Twice.”

Ariella smiled to herself. Good. I need allies this time—not shadows.

---

Lunch. Rose Garden Courtyard.

Ariella sat alone at first, purposefully choosing a smaller marble bench near the academy’s rose bushes.

It didn’t take long.

Melody approached, tray in hand, voice cheery. “You didn’t text me to meet. Everything okay?”

“I just needed a breather,” Ariella said, sipping iced tea.

Melody frowned. “We always eat together—”

“I know,” Ariella cut in, gently. “But I was thinking we could start doing things differently this year.”

Melody froze for half a beat.

“…Like what?”

“Like branching out.” Ariella smiled sweetly. “Meeting new people. Breaking out of routines.”

Melody’s fingers gripped her tray tighter. But she smiled.

“Of course. That’s so mature of you.”

Ariella tilted her head. “Isn’t it?”

Melody left shortly after, forced to sit with Cassie and the other girls who only tolerated her because of Ariella’s influence.

First crack: formed.

---

Later that day, Ariella crossed paths with Luca near the science wing.

He was alone—always was. A book in one hand, the strap of his bag in the other.

Ariella slowed her steps.

“You're in Advanced Calculus, right?” she asked.

Luca blinked. He looked at her like she’d just spoken an alien language.

“…Yeah,” he said slowly.

“I was thinking of switching into that class. You think it's worth it?”

He stared a moment longer, then said, “You’re not the type.”

Ariella laughed softly. “Maybe I wasn’t. But I might be now.”

He didn’t answer.

Just looked at her like a puzzle he didn’t have time for.

She walked away before he could dismiss her.

Let him underestimate me now. Later, he won’t be able to.

---

Evening. Ariella’s Room.

She stared out her window, watching the city lights flicker in the distance.

Today, she’d avoided every early trap:

– She hadn’t let Melody dictate her path.

– She’d made a quiet ally in Tasha.

– She’d planted a seed of doubt in Melody’s control.

– And she’d made Luca Grey look at her—really look.

Her heart beat steady.

She wasn’t who she used to be.

She wasn’t playing for popularity anymore.

This time, she was playing for power.

And if fate wanted to test her again?

She’d win.