Chapter 14
Suddenly, my name was trending online–right alongside my company.
#Corinna, Founder of M&C, School Bully
#CorinnaSpreadsRumors
#JulieWasBullied
The video from our high school talent show was dug up again–the one where I smashed Julie’s piano on stage. This time, though, they conveniently cut out the part where I played Beethoven’s “Symphony of Fate” afterward.
It didn’t stop there. Someone tracked down our old classmates to corroborate the story that I’d bullied Julie.
“Yeah, Corinna always had it out for Julie,” a guy declared in an interview, voice full of righteous indignation. “She tore up her homework, poured ink in her desk, and got all the girls in class to freeze her out.”
The boy’s face was serious, like he was reliving a great injustice.
“But Julie couldn’t do anything about it–Corinna came from money. All Julie could do was swallow her humiliation.”
“When things finally blew up, the school expelled Corinna. But she just went abroad, got her fancy degree, and now she’s some hotshot CEO.“%
“Look at her–came back and started her own company.”
The company’s stock price tumbled for days.
Our partners calied one after another, each trying to politely ask what the hell was going on.
I knew that if I didn’t give them a satisfactory explanation, the deals we’d worked so hard for would fall apart.}
“Just give me a little more time,” I told them, twirling a pen between my fingers and keeping my voice light. “We’re all businesspeople here. You know better than to make a move unless you’re sure it’s a safe bet.”
Fortunately, Julie wasn’t as patient as I remembered from my past life.
She hated me even more this time around. Now that my reputation was in the gutter, she couldn’t wait to jump in and stir the pot.
During a livestream, she brought it up:/
“I remember back then, the teacher made me read aloud in class. I went to an elementary school in the countryside, where one teacher had to cover every subject, so the education wasn’t great.”
She tried to sound calm, but by the end her eyes glistened with unshed tears.}
“And, to be honest, it was embarrassing. When she laughed at me, that was the first time I realized my pronunciation was off.”
“I’d worked so hard for that school concert. I practiced piano for years…”
The comments section exploded–hard to tell if they were real viewers or Daniel’s paid bots.
“Sweetheart, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You’re amazing.”
“She’s the shameless one! Look at her background–who is she to mock someone who actually works hard?”
“Wait–am I the only one who noticed she said her village school was so bad, but she also took piano lessons for years? That doesn’t add up.“)
I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw that last comment.
But it vanished in a second, swallowed up by the flood of sympathy and outrage.
Over five million people tuned in for Julie’s livestream that day.
The next morning, my father summoned me home. His expression was thunderous as he barked out his command: merge M&C with the Gardner family’s company. “Four years of college abroad, and this is what you bring home? You’ve barely been back a week and you’ve already stirred up a scandal. Hand over the company to the family. Then issue a public apology.”
I looked him straight in the eye. “Dad, let’s be clear–this was all orchestrated by my brother’s girlfriend. There’s nothing wrong with my company.”
“That’s still no excuse for you bullying her first!“?
He slammed his hand on the table, eyes wild.
“If you don’t do as I say, you’re no daughter of mine!”
I gave a wry smile. “Sorry to break it to you, Dad, but you didn’t give birth to me. That was all Mom.”
Not long after, the Gardner family and the Everett Group announced a partnership.
The two joined forces to go after my company, snatching away several major projects from M&C.
My father went public, announcing he was severing all ties with me. He didn’t have a vicious daughter like me, he said.
In the company parking lot, I was nearly attacked with acid by one of Julie’s deranged fans.
My father and Julie’s camp were secretly scheming to use my breakdown in high school–and that old psychiatric diagnosis–to have me committed.
Some things never change, no matter how many lives you live. The methods are always this dirty.
