In the past few months, I had been studying very hard, often doing exercises until late at night, and then getting up early the next day to take the bus to school.

George drove to pick up Jessica every day. He was waiting for me to give in, but I would rather sleep an hour less than compromise.

I was very confident about the selection for the advanced class of the senior high school next week. Getting into the advanced class would bring me one step closer to attending a prestigious university.

In my previous life, my SAT score was high, but George and Megan used their connections to get Jessica admitted in my place, and I ended up only getting an Associate's Degree.

After graduation, it was difficult for me to find a job, and life became challenging. They looked down on me and felt embarrassed by my situation.

Jessica took my place in school, but her academic performance was poor, and she almost didn't graduate. She couldn't handle the hardships of working.

George and Megan used all their savings to buy her a house, a car, and start a company.

They always told everyone that she was their most promising daughter.

I might not fight for their favor, but I must protect my own future!

Two days before the selection exam, Jessica found me.

She wanted me to help her cheat, but I refused.

Jessica spent a lot of money on tutoring but her grades were still very poor, and it was impossible for her to get into the advanced class.

After I rejected her, she went on a hunger strike when she got home.

George slapped me in the face without asking why, which obviously scared Megan as well.

She quickly grabbed him and said to me impatiently, "Mia, why are you bullying Jessica?"

Without any investigation, they concluded that I had bullied her.

As I told them that Jessica asked me to help her cheat, they were stunned.

His face turned red, but he couldn't swallow his pride and apologize to me.

Instead, Megan raised her voice. "Jessica is right. She is motivated and you have a high score. Telling her the answer won't hurt you. Wouldn't it be good for you two to go to the advanced class together so that you can take care of each other?"

I couldn't believe that these were words spoken by a professor who has devoted her entire life to teaching.

She actually persuaded me to cheat for Jessica.

I returned to my room and locked the door, listening to Megan knocking on Jessica's door next door, coaxing her to come out and have dinner.

The next day, she was in a good mood, humming a song and walking past me with a smug look.

I ignored her and just thought that she was using self-torture to make George and Megan feel sorry for her, and they wouldn't blame her even if she didn't get into the advanced class.

But I was wrong. In the second half of the exam, Jessica threw a ball of paper at me and I didn't catch it.

She kept winking and coughing at me, and finally caught the attention of the invigilator.

In the office, Jessica cried and told the director, Henry Phillips, that I forced her to pass notes to check the answers, and George and Megan could testify to that.

They hurried over to explain to Henry, saying that Jessica was the most well-behaved girl and must have been threatened by Mia.

The head teacher, Brittany Taylor, knew that I didn't need to cheat given my grades, but was helpless as George, Megan, and Henry reached an agreement behind the scenes.

They insisted that it was because of me that Jessica was delayed in answering the questions, and she could have finished the test and been admitted to the advanced class.

With George and Megan' guarantee, Jessica was not punished and was eventually admitted to the advanced class as an exception. Under the pressure of them, I reviewed my mistakes in tears at the school assembly.

Jessica brought this upon herself, and I had to save my life on my own.

The holiday before the final year of high school was short, but for me, it was enough to go on a study tour in Riokiye.

Jessica told George and Megan in an envious tone that she had never been to Riokiye either, and that she would study hard and take them with her in the future.

Hearing this, they praised her for being sensible and bought her a plane ticket to Riokiye overnight.

After Jessica found out, she excitedly hugged their arms and said coquettishly, "Mom, dad, you are so kind to me!"

"You can consider it as a reward for getting into the advanced class. In the final year of high school, you won't have time for traveling."

They never mentioned how she got into this advanced class.

Ever since our last fight, George and Megan no longer cared about my feelings. They even bought the plane tickets two days earlier than me.

On the morning, before the three of them set out, Jessica sneaked into my room while I was washing up.

When I returned, I happened to see her holding a wet and soggy invitation letter.

She opened her big, innocent eyes and said to me, "Mia, I didn't mean to. I wanted to bring you a glass of juice before I left, but I accidentally spilled it. I immediately wiped it with a tissue, but it got worse the more I wiped it."

Jessica was about to cry when Megan saw my indifferent expression. Then, she scolded me, "It's just an invitation letter, so why are you looking at Jessica so fiercely?"

George turned around, picked up the luggage, and said nonchalantly, "It's a good opportunity for you to stay home and study. You didn't get into the advanced class, so you have to work harder."

I didn't utter a single complaint until they were out of my sight.

I had excellent grades in my previous life and with the review I was doing now, I was confident that I could be admitted to a key university even if I didn't get into the advanced class.

Jessica posted photos of them at Disney on her Facebook.

She dressed up like a little princess holding a big cake in her hand, with the caption: [To be the little princess loved by my parents in the happiest castle in the world.]

Many classmates had praised her, while others had raised questions and commented below about why I was not included.

They didn't know that I didn't even have anything to eat at home.

It didn't matter. I firmly believes that as long as I worked hard and got into a good university, I could change my future and got everything I wanted on my own!

In my senior year of high school, I studied hard day and night and maintained excellent grades even in an ordinary class.

Jessica couldn't keep up at all in the advanced class and didn't know how to do her homework, so George and Megan asked me to do it for her.

I did the homework for two people by myself. It was a bit tiring but my grades improved quickly.

I was busy studying and Jessica was busy having a secret crush.

She had a crush on Quentin Worthington who was in the advanced class.

Quentin came from a well-off family, and he possessed a sunny and handsome appearance. Moreover, he exceled in his studies, which undoubtedly attracted a considerable number of admirers.

But he only liked mathematics.

Quentin was surprised as he happened to see my working on the math assignment for Jessica.

Jessica seemed to have found an opportunity and took the opportunity to add Quentin on WhatsApp, frequently sending greetings.

But he mostly ignored it.

After a long time, Quentin discovered that Jessica could not solve the problems at all. Instead, he often came to the ordinary class to discuss problem-solving ideas with me.

As Jessica found out, she was furious and spread the word everywhere in the school that I seduced her boyfriend.

Meeting Henry again, Jessica, Quentin, and I stood in the office to explain.

No matter how he explained that he had nothing to do with Jessica and that he and I were just discussing study, Henry still called our parents.

As George and Megan heard that I had snatched the person Jessica liked, they slapped me in front of everyone.

I was knocked to the ground by such great force that it took me a long time to recover.

Henry, who was usually strict, was intimidated by this situation. He stopped George and Megan and told them to educate me properly when I made mistakes and not to use violence.

This incident caused a lot of uproar in the school, and Henry asked the three of us to write a self-criticism and hand it in.

Jessica cried to George and Megan at home and complained that I had ruined her good marriage. They also thought that Quentin's family was good and it was a pity to miss out on it. The three of them vented all their hatred on me.

That night, I was asked to kneel down all night and write a self-criticism.

The next day, my knee swelled up, causing me to limp while walking. Seeing this, Quentin immediately guessed that they had punished me again upon they return home.

He sent me the screenshots of all the chats between Jessica and him and deliberately avoided suspicion with me.

During the last period of my senior year, I spent all my time doing exercise. My classmates thought I was working too hard, but they didn't know that I was working hard for my future.

Before the examination, I remembered that in my previous life, my parents let Jessica go to college in my place, so I was more careful this time.

I recorded the entire conversation where they were discussing their plans to use connections and have someone modify my enrollment information in the future.

This time, no one could stop me from realizing my dream!