เรื่องสั้นแนว Feel-Good Story และนิยาย Campus Beauty Karma

My roommate, Katie Lloyd, is a hardcore environmentalist. Even in a hundred-degree heatwave, she locks the AC remote in her drawer. "We're going to sweat in the summer anyway. Just suck it up and consider it your contribution to saving the planet." That night, there isn't a breath of wind outside, and our dorm feels exactly like an oven. My head pounds from the stifling heat as sweat pours down my face. When I try to steal the key, Katie stands on a chair and snips the AC power cord. "Can't you see Mother Nature is running a fever? You're really selfish for making more greenhouse gases." In my last life, this is the exact night the entire school starts hunting me down with insults. Everyone calls me spoiled, claims I have no empathy for nature, and praises Katie for having a sense of mission. In the end, I suffer cardiogenic shock from the heat, without even getting a chance to call an ambulance. Katie weeps on camera, claiming my health failed simply because I eat too much processed junk food. When I open my eyes again, I'm back on the very first day of the semester. Katie's dropping the AC remote into her drawer, asking me with tearful eyes, "A little heat won't kill you, right, Jane?" I grab my phone and medical records and head straight for the resident advisor's office. "I'd like to request a single room, please." Anyone else can play the martyr if they want. I'm just looking out for my own life.

On the third night after Seraphina Vale—the academy's most envied beauty—took her own life, a blood ledger appeared out of nowhere in the abandoned chapel of St. Ophelia's Academy. Rumor had it that if you left a blood print on it, the ledger would grant your deepest wish. At first, nobody bought such a ridiculous story. Until Vivian Cross—all two hundred and twenty pounds of her—shakily made her choice: beauty. She dropped the weight overnight. Her features turned so delicate people couldn't look away. Just like that, she became the academy's new obsession. After that, no one called the blood ledger bad luck anymore. Dorian Blackwood chose his future, and the Black Council's recommendation came through immediately. Someone else chose wealth, and their family's debts were wiped clean overnight. Everyone's dreams came true. My best friend Nora Ellsworth started to waver too. She wanted to sign the blood ledger, to bring her brother back from bloodwither. But I stopped her. I wouldn't let her leave a blood print—not for anything. The people around us closed in right away. "You don't have anyone sick and dying, so of course you can stand there and act like you're above it all!" "If Nora's brother dies, you're the murderer!" Even Nora looked at me with red-rimmed eyes, demanding to know why I was so cruel—why I'd cut off her brother's only chance. But I wasn't being cruel. The blood ledger was Seraphina's. I couldn't believe that Seraphina's grudge, even in death, would turn into free mercy. In her death, no one was innocent.

On the night of the Halloween dance, Scarlett Adams, captain of the cheer squad, accused me of harassing Theodore Russo, the hottest guy on campus. She tore into me in front of everyone and called me a shameless tramp. She claimed that I, an Omega of the lowest rank, had thrown myself at Theodore. Theodore was an exceptional young werewolf, and plenty of girls on campus had a crush on him. But the giant screen in front of us displayed our messages, which looked downright filthy. "Babe, if you use my underwear to mop the floor one more time, I'll rip your throat out!" "Sweetie, my credit card's maxed out, so send me some money. If you refuse, I'm telling your dad in ten minutes, and he'll teach you a lesson!" "I'm staying over tonight. Don't forget to give me your key." Scarlett stormed up to me, teeth clenched, and screamed in my face, "Everyone, don't let this woman fool you. She's been harassing Theodore nonstop for money, driving the poor guy crazy! "Luckily, I caught her and exposed her for what she really is. She's not some sweet, helpless Omega. She's a money-crazed gold digger!" The other werewolves turned to stare at me, contempt written all over their faces. Down in the crowd, Gerald Harlow, the dean, looked furious. An Omega preying on classmates for money would be a scandal anywhere, and it would drag the whole school through the mud. I took in the looks on everyone's faces, then laughed and shook my head. Come on! Theodore is my fraternal twin brother. Borrowing a little money from him and mooching free meals at his place are perfectly normal. Since when is that something to get attacked for?

I’d just stepped onto the moonstone stage at Ettelgard Academy’s annual Induction Ceremony. The screen behind me went black. The next second, a recording blasted through the hall. 【“I’m out of funds. Send me five thousand.”】 【“I need the Alpha-level combat ring tonight. Give me access.”】 【“If you don’t, I’m telling everyone your big secret. Your whole ‘untouchable Alpha’ act? It’ll be over. You’ll be ruined.”】 The crowd of a thousand elites from every major pack went silent. Then whispers erupted. That girl on the recording? The one shamelessly demanding credits? Yeah. That was me. And the guy she was "blackmailing"? Julian Valerius. The strongest pureblood wolf of our generation—the one everyone expected to become an Alpha. Scarlett, the Beta pack’s heir, stormed the stage. She pointed right at me, her voice shrill with fake righteousness. “Did you hear that? Aurora Vance isn’t some quiet bookworm. She’s a leech! A parasite who’s been blackmailing Julian for credits and privileges! A disgrace to her bloodline! She doesn’t deserve any honor from this academy!” A thousand sharp glares cut into me like daggers. On the dais, the Elders’ faces were grim. Scarlett savored my humiliation, her voice dripping with arrogance. “Aurora, Julian is too generous to stoop to your level. But you will apologize. You will beg this academy for forgiveness for being a shameless, clinging fraud!” I stared at the screen, the recording of my "blackmail" still playing. Exhausted, I pressed my fingers to my forehead. This was a total joke. Julian Valerius is my grandfather’s youngest son. My dad’s little brother. He is my literal, honest-to-God uncle. And that “big secret”? It was a threat to tell everyone how our grandmother used to chase him around the manor with a switch when he was a kid.