Chapter 1

669words2026-02-09 09:55

The cardiac monitor let out a sharp alarm, and I kept my eyes fixed on the ceiling. I had lived through 35 years, and now my life was ending in this small room that reeked of disinfectant.
"Her blood pressure's dropping. Get the epinephrine ready—now!"
The doctors' and nurses' shouts blurred into the background.

There was no family by my bedside or friends to see me off. Right now, Maxwell Sutton was probably standing at an altar, sliding a diamond ring onto Angelica Xavier's finger. It was funny how he'd never bought one for me.
Rebecca Sutton, the daughter we had raised together for ten years, was probably standing there with the ring pillow in her hands.
The irony wasn't lost on me. Those people I had loved with everything in me were celebrating my disappearance while I took my last breath.
As my consciousness faded, I made one last wish. If there was another life, I hoped I would never meet Maxwell again.
…
"Jocelyn! Get up. Otherwise, you'll be late for your mock exam today."

My mom's voice snapped me back to the living.
I opened my eyes and found myself back in my room as it had been when I was 18. My desk sat by the pale blue curtains, stacked with study notes. The walls were plastered with Elmshore University admissions brochures from past years.
It was April 7, 2010, two months before the college entrance exam. Then it hit me that I had been reborn.
Looking in the mirror, I saw a face with no sign of age. No wrinkles from years of depression or gaunt, sickly pallor from chemotherapy. Just long glossy hair, bright eyes, and a healthy body. Tears spilled down my face before I could stop them.

"What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?" my mom asked, handing me a towel.
"It's nothing, Mom," I replied, wiping my tears and smiling for the first time since being reborn. "I just figured some things out, that's all."
On this day in my previous life, I took the mock exam. Then I'd completely broken down because I failed it. Maxwell, the one I'd had a crush on, tried to comfort me. That was a major turning point in my 20-year-long unrequited love for him.
This time, though, I'd made it into the top ten in my grade.
"Jocelyn, you're amazing," Yvonne Spencer, my deskmate, said excitedly while patting my shoulder. "Math was so hard this time, and you still scored 92%."
I smiled, but this time I didn't dash off to tell Maxwell like last time. I knew he was out on the sports field, accepting a bottle of water from Angelica.
In my previous life, I'd run over crying about my bad result. He happened to be drinking from that very bottle, and my love-struck brain only picked up his comforting words. I didn't even notice Angelica right there, making snide remarks the whole time.
"Yvonne, which university are you thinking of applying to?" I asked casually.
"Probably Stonewick University because my parents work in that city," she replied.
She sighed and continued, "You know my grades are just average."
In my past life, I chose Elmshore University without a second thought. I followed Maxwell, even if it meant giving up a better opportunity. But this time…
"Let's work hard together. I'm thinking about going to Stonewick University, too," I said.
Yvonne's eyes widened with surprise, and she asked, "Weren't you always talking about going to Elmshore University with that handsome Maxwell?"
"Well… I changed my mind," I replied softly, glancing out the window, where he had his arm around Angelica's waist.
"I think Stonewick isn't so bad after all," I added.
On the day the college entrance exam ended, the whole class had a dinner party. To my surprise, Maxwell slid into the seat next to mine.
"I heard you're going to Stonewick," he said, handing me a glass of juice. "Didn't you say you were going to stay in Elmshore?"