Chapter 1
Day one of college, and this girl, right in front of the whole class, yells, “Your eyes are so bugged out, do you have, like, Graves‘ disease?”
When my boyfriend came to pick me up after class, she wrinkled her nose, all dramatic, and said, “You’re dating while you have that? Aren’t you afraid you’ll give it to him?”
My boyfriend, being the insecure type, got all suspicious and broke up with me.
I went back to the dorm and confronted her about it.
She just rolled her eyes. “How was I supposed to know depression isn’t contagious?” she snapped.
The other roommates said she didn’t mean any harm, told me to chill out. Then, behind my back, they started spreading nasty rumors about me.
My depression got worse, and one night, I climbed onto the roof and jumped.
Then I woke up, and suddenly, I was done being a punching bag. Instead of obsessing about what’s wrong with me, I was gonna go full–on crazy and mess with everyone!
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“Wow, she’s gorgeous! Where was she during orientation?”
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“You guys said Sarah was the prettiest girl in the major? Nah, this one’s the real deal.”
I could hear the whispers behind me. I touched my face, realizing I’d been given a second shot.
A look of pure hate drilled into me.
The next second, Sarah’s shrill voice exploded in my ear, “Hey, your eyes are, like, bulging out. Do you have Graves‘ disease or something?”
It was the first class meeting of the semester, and the room was quiet.
Sarah’s loud mouth made everyone turn to look at me.
The scene was exactly like before.
Back then, I was naive enough to think Sarah was being nice. I rushed to explain that I wasn’t sick.
Then she rattled on about how Graves‘ disease made your eyes big and bulging, and that I looked just like that.
I was so embarrassed I went straight to the campus clinic for a checkup.
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Chapter 1
But when I got back, test results in hand, Sarah dropped the whole “concerned” act. She just tossed her feet up on her desk, painted her nails, and said with a dismissive shrug, “Oh, that’s great, I guess.”
That “concern” she faked made everyone in the class think I had a medical condition. I missed a lot of opportunities because of it.
Then Sarah found my antidepressants in my drawer.
She told everyone in the dorm, and they all ostracized me.
She even told my boyfriend that I had that “disease.”
I couldn’t defend myself, and he broke up with me.
“If your roommate hadn’t been so blunt, how long would you have kept it a secret?” he’d said.
I was so angry. I asked her why she’d say such a thing, why she’d lie.
She just shrugged, said she was just being honest.
The other two roommates, Tiffany and Jessica, chimed in:
“Let it go, we all live here. Don’t make a big deal out of it.”
“Sarah didn’t mean anything bad, just try to be more
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understanding.”
They acted like saints.
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Then they turned around and spread rumors that my bags and clothes were all paid for by my “sugar daddy.”
My depression got worse, and I jumped off the roof in the middle of the night.
But even after death, Sarah posted my story online for clout.
She claimed I used my depression to boss people around, that they were all scared to say anything to me.
My name was dragged through the mud on social media, and some internet trolls even found my grave and threw rotten eggs at it, blaming me for giving people with depression a bad name.
I’d wasted my first life worrying about being a burden.
But now? I saw their petty games for what they were.
Dealing with a psycho wasn’t my fault, so I decided to out–psycho her.
I covered my nose, leaned back dramatically, and yelled, louder than Sarah ever did, “Your breath is rank! Have you ever heard of brushing your teeth?”
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Sarah’s jaw dropped. She didn’t expect me to come at her like that.
A kid in the front row snorted, unable to hold back a laugh.
The classroom erupted in chatter.
“Wow, didn’t know she had it in her. She seems so quiet, I thought she’d start crying.”
“Sarah was being mean! If she was really worried, she would have talked to her privately, not yelled it out loud like that.”
Sarah’s face went white, then red, like she wanted to murder me with her eyes.
I crossed my arms, watching her.
When someone tries to smear you, the best thing you can do isn’t to defend yourself, but to fight back.
The onlookers just want a show, they don’t care about the truth.
Sarah knew this too.
Her eyes teared up, and she looked down, acting all innocent.
“I’m sorry, Ashley, I shouldn’t have asked that so loudly. It’s
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Chapter 1
just… I tend to be too blunt. I was only worried about you. My family member has it, and you look a lot like her.”
“Which family member?” I interrupted, taking a sip of my iced coffee.
Sarah blinked.
“Uh… it was, like, my uncle’s cousin’s…girlfriend.”
“Oh. Well, you’re wrong. I’m not sick. I just have big eyes. I’m just pretty.” I smiled at her.
Sarah was silent, looking like she’d seen a ghost.
Yesterday, I was a meek, quiet girl. Now, all of a sudden, I was a nasty little viper.
Before she could process it, the RA walked into the room.
After handling some announcements, he tapped on the desk. “Next time we meet we’ll vote for class representatives. Anyone interested should prepare a short statement.”
I saw Sarah’s eyes light up.
Last time, Sarah used her popularity to become class president. And then she made my life hell.
This time, I wasn’t going to let her have it so easy.
