Chapter 2

A wave of nausea washed over me. The memory of my past life was so vivid, so suffocating, it felt like I was still there, in that dark room.

Madison, with her perfect blonde hair and charismatic smile, looked like an angel. But I saw the devil underneath. I saw the envy in her eyes as she looked at me, an envy I' d never understood before. She wanted my life, even the fake, poor version of it she thought I had.

"Chloe, honey, you first," she said, her voice sickly sweet as she extended her hand towards me. "Let me see that ID."

The other girls were already digging through their purses, excited and chattering about bikinis and tequila. They were all caught in her web.

I froze. My hand instinctively went to my purse, clutching it tight. I couldn't let her have it. I couldn't let any of this happen again.

"What's wrong, Chloe?" Madison's smile tightened. "Don't you want to come?"

Kevin, my boyfriend, was sitting on the arm of the sofa. He looked at me with annoyance. "Chloe, stop being weird. Just give her your ID. Maddy is being super generous."

I stared at him. The handsome, popular fraternity brother I thought I loved. In my first life, he was the one who publicly shamed me, who spat on my name to save his own reputation. His loyalty was never to me. It was to Madison and the social status she represented.

"I... I don't think I can go," I stammered, my voice barely a whisper.

Madison's face fell into a mask of theatrical disappointment. "Oh, Chloe. Why? It's a once-in-a-lifetime bonding experience! We'll all be together."

Her words were a trigger. I remembered her filming me, her face cold and cruel. I remembered the flash.

"I just can't," I said, my voice getting stronger.

Kevin stood up, his patience gone. He strode over and snatched my wallet right out of my purse.

"Stop being so slow and ungrateful," he sneered, pulling out my driver's license. "Here, Maddy."

He held it out to her. Madison reached for it, her eyes glinting with triumph.

This was it. The exact moment my life had shattered.

But not this time.