Ficorpio
Chapter 1
You had been given a second chance.
You had returned to one year earlier, to the day the need-based transfer student who ruined your life first arrived.
In the first timeline, you had kindly helped her fit in. In return, she spread rumors that you had designs on her delinquent brother. On a rainy night when you were eighteen, that man pried open your bedroom window. Afterward, his venomous boasting drove you to throw yourself from the roof.
Your frantic parents died in a car crash on their way to reach you.
In this life, your kindness was gone.
All you had to do was return every ounce of pain you had suffered, twice over.
This game of revenge would begin the moment she stepped into the classroom.
“My wife praises my beauty because she favors me…”
The classroom rang with recitation, but even dozens of voices couldn’t drown out the pounding of your heart.
The agony of falling from the roof still lingered in your bones. Then your gaze caught on the date printed across the exam paper.
You had come back.
One full year, to the very day the need-based transfer student arrived.
Mia Brooks waved a hand in front of your face. “Why are you spacing out? Keep studying. We’ve got a quiz in a minute.”
Your throat tightened. “Okay.”
The warning bell faded, and Rachel Morgan entered the classroom with a smile. She beckoned to the timid girl lingering outside the door.
“It’s all right. Come in.”
Ms. Morgan slipped a reassuring arm around the girl’s shoulders. “Everyone, this is our new transfer student. Her grades and conduct are both exceptional. She ranked first at her previous school.”
She gave the girl an encouraging smile. “Why don’t you introduce yourself?”
The girl’s threadbare uniform was clearly a size too large. Mud caked the soles of her shoes, and her fingers twisted together endlessly. Everything about her radiated discomfort.
“Hello, everyone. My name is Vanessa Vale. I hope we can all become good friends.”
She swallowed before continuing. “My dream is to study hard, find a good job, and give my grandmother a better life.”
Vanessa abruptly lifted her head, revealing two vivid patches of red across her cheeks.
Someone snorted.
So this was the country girl from some nowhere school.
“What’s wrong with her face? Did someone paint her cheeks red?”
At seventeen or eighteen, students hadn’t yet learned an adult’s tact. They said whatever came to mind.
Whispers quickly spread through the classroom.
At the sound of their laughter, Vanessa lowered her head again.
“That’s enough. Quiet.” Ms. Morgan cut them off before turning toward you. “Little Star.”
Chapter 2
Your name was Stella Bennett. Easygoing and warm, you got along with teachers and classmates alike.
“Here.” You raised your hand.
Everyone around you looked over, waiting for Ms. Morgan to continue.
“Vanessa, this is Stella Bennett, the pride of our class. If you need anything and can’t find me, you can ask her.”
Then she addressed you with a fond smile. “You heard me, Little Star. Help me look after our new student, all right?”
A calculating gleam flashed through Vanessa Vale’s eyes as she stared straight at you.
Only when she heard you say, “Of course,” did she relax and unclench her fists.
Perfect. You would never dream of letting Ms. Morgan down. You would take excellent care of Vanessa.
And while you were at it, you would repay every ounce of pain she’d caused you in the first timeline.
The only empty desk in the classroom was beside the trash cans, so Ms. Morgan had Vanessa sit there for the time being.
You went to the water cooler, filled three large cups, and handed them to her. “You must be thirsty since you didn’t bring a water bottle. Here, have some water.”
Overwhelmed by your enthusiasm, Vanessa looked ready to burst into tears. “Thank you…”
Then she turned away. The moment she thought you couldn’t see her, the corner of her mouth curled smugly and she rolled her eyes.
As a transfer student, Vanessa had arrived on her first day without any textbooks or class materials.
In the first timeline, you had noticed how uncomfortable she seemed and volunteered to move beside her so the two of you could share your books. You had remained desk partners after that.
This time, you weren’t going to let your empathy fool you into helping her again.
Kindness given to the wrong person was an invitation to disaster.
The lesson had barely begun when Vanessa finished all three cups of water.
Before long, she pressed her thighs together and shifted restlessly in her seat. She clearly needed the restroom.
The instant the bell rang, she hurried over to you. “Stella, I…”
You pulled an English pronunciation lesson from your desk and put on your headphones. “Give me a minute, okay? I’m not sure how one of these words is pronounced.”
That minute stretched through the entire break.
When the bell rang again, Vanessa’s face had turned a deep, painful red. She had no choice but to hold it through another class.
As soon as the next break began, you moved before she could speak, taking her by the hand and leading her out.
“I’m so sorry. I got completely absorbed in the listening exercise and lost track of time.” You gave her an apologetic smile. “Ms. Morgan asked me to look after you, so let me show you around campus first.”
Chapter 3
Any tour of the school would surely pass a restroom, so Vanessa didn’t object.
The student restrooms were close by, but you deliberately took her on a long detour around the back of the building.
There was still something you needed to confirm.
By the time you stopped in front of the Westbridge Courtyard Fountain, Vanessa looked ready to lose control.
You began explaining at an unhurried pace, “The fountain only runs for a little while at this time every day. The headmaster is unbelievably cheap about the water bill…”
When you turned around, Vanessa had vanished.
You stayed where you were and waited.
A short while later, you saw her emerge from the faculty restroom.
To keep students from using it, Westbridge’s faculty restroom was tucked away in an obscure corner. Some students could spend all four years at the school without ever finding it.
Yet Vanessa had located it on her very first day.
There was only one explanation.
Vanessa had returned from the first timeline too.
Things had just become interesting.
That evening, your dad picks up your mom from work, then swings by Westbridge Preparatory School to take you home.
“Dad! Mom!” You throw yourself into their arms, your face full of grievance.
“Oh, come on. You’re practically grown, and you’re still this clingy?” your mother teases. “Aren’t you afraid your teachers and classmates will laugh at you?”
“Nope. I’m Daddy’s girl and Mommy’s girl, and I’m proud of it.”
As the car approaches the Bennett Estate, the light at the entrance turns red.
Outside the gates, an elderly woman with silver-streaked hair is bent over, dragging an enormous sack of recyclables. A student in a school uniform follows behind her.
“That girl has a good heart,” your mother says, gazing through the window. “Once we’re out of the car, we should help too.”
The student is none other than Vanessa Vale.
The same resilient girl who claims she and her grandmother have no one but each other, poor but too proud to accept defeat.
This is exactly how she won your parents over in the first timeline.
She and her grandmother were living in an underground parking garage. When winter came and the cold grew unbearable, your parents invited her into your home. Eventually, they even made her their goddaughter.
Yet after causing your death, Vanessa took out high-value life insurance policies on your parents.
Not long afterward, they died in a car crash. Vanessa inherited a fortune and collected an enormous insurance payout on top of it.
No matter how you look at it, the whole thing reeks of foul play.
Just before your father drives through the gates, you yank open your backpack.
“Dad! I think I left my homework at school!”
“Did you?” He glances back at you. “Look carefully. If it’s really not there, I’ll drive you back to get it.”