Chapter 1

Before the SAT, the class princess suddenly burst into the classroom and announced:

"Rip up your admission tickets, and we get to eat for free at that TikTok-famous restaurant!"

"We can always just reprint them later anyway. Let's go grab the free food first!"

In my past life, I went crazy trying to stop everyone, begging them not to rip them.

In the end, the whole class kept their tickets intact and entered the exam room smoothly.

But the class princess was suspended and publicly shamed by the school for inciting the incident. She jumped off the bridge that very night.

On the day of her funeral, my classmates cornered me on the bridge.

"If you hadn't meddled in her business, would she even be dead?"

"We’d rather not take the exam than lose her!"

With sick smiles, they pushed me off the bridge.

Freezing water rushed into my nose and mouth, as their curses on the shore faded away.

When I opened my eyes again, the class princess was bursting into the classroom, once again egging everyone on to rip up their tickets.

I sat quietly in my seat, watching everyone throw the shredded pieces of their tickets into the air.

This time, I won't waste my kindness.

When Lily burst in, I was looking at the countdown clock on the wall.

"Girls, I just got the news! That new TikTok-famous restaurant in the south district, 'The Nest', is offering free meals for the whole table if you rip up your SAT admission ticket!"

Her voice was crisp, like a sparrow chirping at the window in the morning.

"We can just reprint them later anyway. It’s not like there's only one copy. Let's go get some free food, and then we can come back and print them out. It’s such a steal!"

The classmates around started whispering.

Some pulled out their phones to look up the restaurant's location, while others were already reaching into their backpacks to fish out their tickets.

I sat in the second-to-last row by the window. My nails dug into my palms, the pain making my entire body tremble.

Memories of my past life flooded back like a broken dam.

Back then, I was sitting right here. Hearing Lily's words, I stood up like a madwoman, blocking the classroom door and begging everyone not to do it.

I screamed until my voice went hoarse, snatching the shredded paper from their hands one by one, until a few boys finally dragged me out into the hallway.

Lily stood nearby, watching me. A dark gleam flashed in her eyes, gone in an instant, replaced by her usual sweet smile.

In the end, the admission tickets were saved, and the whole class made it into the testing center.

But Lily was suspended and publicly shamed by the school administration for inciting the incident. Her dad even drove to the school to make a scene, claiming the school was defaming his daughter, before being escorted out by security.

That night, Lily jumped off the bridge.

On the day of her funeral, I was standing on that same bridge when her friends cornered me.

Hailey grabbed my collar, spitting in my face: "If you hadn't meddled, would she even be dead?"

Chloe cried next to her, screaming: "We’d rather not take the exam than lose her!"

No one even asked me what actually happened that day.

They only knew that Lily was dead, and I was still alive.

Then, hand after hand pushed against my shoulders, chest, and back.

The bridge railing was low, and I didn't even have time to scream before I went over.

Freezing water choked my throat and nose. I saw those blurry faces on the bridge, and not a single one looked regretful.

And now, here I was again.

The same classroom, the same sunlight, the same Lily standing at the front, smiling like a doll.

I unclenched my fists, looking down to see four deep, crescent-shaped nail marks in my palm, oozing a tiny bit of blood.

It hurt.

Good. It wasn't a dream.

"Evelyn! What are you spacing out for?"

My desk mate, Maya, nudged me with her elbow. "Should we go to that restaurant Lily mentioned?"

In my past life, Maya had also been stopped by me, but her mind was already elsewhere, and she ended up only going to a local community college.

I turned to look at the smile on her face, then looked away.

"Go if you want to," I said.

Maya blinked, clearly not expecting that response.

In the front row, a boy had already stood up, ripping his ticket in half and tossing it into the air.

The paper drifted down in the sunlight like artificial snow.

"Awesome!" That was Tyler, Lily's loyal simp.

Ripping his own wasn't enough; he turned around to grab the ticket of the girl sitting behind him.

"Come on, let me rip it for you. We can just reprint it later anyway."

The girl hesitated for a second, but seeing everyone else doing it, she ripped hers too.

The whole classroom felt like a festival.

Paper flying, laughter echoing.

Lily stood by the podium, recording a TikTok on her phone, chanting:

"Everyone, rip them up together! Let's make a video to remember this!"