Before we submit our college applications, I help our homeroom teacher hand out each student's sealed official records envelope as the class monitor.

But the class belle, Vivian Nash, says she's an art student who's about to debut as a celebrity. To thank everyone for taking care of her, she asks the whole class to tear open their sealed envelopes and slip one of her glamor shots inside so they can "share in her good luck."

My boyfriend, Brandon Dunn, immediately steps up as her childhood friend. He says he doesn't just want one of her photos, but he also wants her autograph on his envelope.

Afraid something might go wrong, I immediately warn him that opening the sealed envelope could negatively affect his application to Caldoria University's School of Foreign Service.

Before I can even finish speaking, Brandon kicks me hard in the stomach.

The other students laugh and mock me. "You're just stirring up trouble for no reason. Everyone knows what you're really thinking. You're just afraid Vivian will get back together with your boyfriend!"

I'm so furious I can't even find the words.

But due to my responsibility as the class monitor, I call our homeroom teacher over and forcefully stop the absurd stunt.

Later, everyone gets into their dream colleges. Well, everyone except for Vivian.

At our class reunion six months later, Vivian suddenly bursts into tears in front of the entire class.

She accuses loudly, "Why did you isolate me? It's your fault I made a mistake on my college application!"

I'm dumbfounded.

Suddenly, she grabs me by the throat and forces poisoned liquor down my throat. I die before I can be saved.

After my death, Brandon and our classmates all defend Vivian. They even paint me as the class bully. Meanwhile, she goes viral by livestreaming her sob story and quickly becomes a rising celebrity.

When I open my eyes again, I'm back at the moment Brandon is eagerly playing the gallant knight backing up his damsel.

This time, I take the initiative and hand him his sealed envelope. "I think Vivian is right. It'd be nice to keep one of her photos as a souvenir."

Vivian Nash's hand faltered for a brief moment as she took out the photo, her sharp gaze landing directly on me.

It was then that the classmate next to me smirked and intentionally nudged me with their shoulder. "If you're jealous of Vivian, you should just say so, Mabel!"

"I don't think it's jealousy—it's insecurity! I mean, who wouldn't feel insecure right next to Vivian, our class belle?"

"Mabel clearly brought that on herself. Brandon and Vivian are childhood sweethearts, but she still insists on coming between them."

Vivian, amused by the comments, cast me a guarded glance and then said, "You actually agreed to it so readily, Mabel. You're not thinking of using Brandon to get hold of my photo and then vandalize it, are you?"

"I was wondering why Mabel was being so nice for once. It turns out she just wants to ruin the glamor shots Vivian specifically had taken!"

"Mabel wouldn't dare!" Brandon Dunn, my boyfriend, snapped as he grabbed me by the neck and slammed me to the ground. He finally loosened his grip once he noticed my face turning purple from suffocation.

He then threatened me before he got up, whispering, "I'll make your life a living hell if you dare ruin Vivian's photos!"

Those around applauded one after another, marveling at Brandon's macho display.

Vivian instinctively wrapped her arm around Brandon's. She then playfully stuck her tongue out before saying softly, "I'll keep my absolute favorite photo for you when I get them, Brandon!"

Brandon affectionately pinched her cheek and said, "It's up to you, Vivian."

I remained completely unmoved as I watched their sweet, intimate behavior.

In my past life, I had successfully stopped Vivian's absurd actions. I explained to everyone that the official records envelope could affect their future schooling or employment and that tearing it open on their own would be highly detrimental.

I didn't expect that my sincere attempts to reason with them only earned me the reputation of a jealous woman.

"Is that lousy official records envelope really that important? I bet you're just trying to stop us from keeping Vivian's photos!"

"She's just making a fuss like this because she's ugly and insecure! She's worried that Vivian and Brandon might rekindle their old flame and ditch her!"

"If we go by what Mabel is saying, Vivian is actually at fault here, even though she was sweet enough to get these glamor shots done for us to enjoy."

I tried hard to clear things up, but Brandon slapped me across the face in front of everyone without a second thought. He stepped back from me in disgust and barked, "I didn't realize before that you were so consumed by jealousy! You'd better stop crossing the line over some photos, Mabel!"

He shoved his own official records envelope into Vivian's hands after saying that. "You can go ahead and open it, Vivian. Oh, and make sure to sign the photos before putting them inside the envelope!"

Thus, with Brandon leading the way, the other classmates quickly followed suit. "I want an autograph too! Vivian is bound to be a huge celebrity later on, so her signature will definitely be worth something!"

"I know, right? I want one too! I mean, being able to tell people down the road that I went to school with a celebrity is going to give me so many bragging rights!"

I was worried that something would go wrong, so I quickly called John Lister, our homeroom teacher, over, which was the only reason everyone's official records envelope was saved. I had no idea that my good deed, far from earning their gratitude, would bring about my own death instead.

Yet, what struck me the most was that after Vivian forced the poisoned drink on me, Brandon came forward to defend her, while my other classmates told the police that I had taken my own life.

In their skewed accounts, I became the villainous bully, while Vivian went viral online by playing the innocent victim. In the end, Vivian caught the eye of a director and instantly skyrocketed to stardom.

I snapped back to the present as the sound of the envelopes being torn open echoed one after another. I watched as everyone eagerly handed their official records envelopes to Vivian, who unhurriedly inserted her own stunning photo inside.

Vivian then giggled, putting a hand over her mouth. "Thanks for cheering me on, everyone! I'll never forget you all after I make my debut!"

I cast a cold glance at everyone and turned to walk out of the classroom. I was just about to head home when Vivian suddenly appeared behind me and put a hand on my shoulder, a calculating look in her eyes.

I felt my heart sink as I helplessly watched Vivian tear up her own photo and begin sobbing hysterically. "Why did you have to tear up the photo when I was nice enough to give it to you, Mabel?"

I widened my eyes in disbelief as I asked, "What the hell are you saying?"

Brandon rushed out and kicked me to the ground right after I finished speaking. He held Vivian tightly in his arms, asking anxiously, "Are you alright, Vivian?"

Vivian wiped away her tears and choked out, "I gave Mabel my glamor shot out of the goodness of my heart, only for her to rip it to pieces."

She gave a bow to apologize to me after saying that. "I'm so sorry, Mabel! I know my relationship with Brandon has upset you! I'm really sorry for that!"

She blinked her eyes innocently a couple of times, then gently pushed Brandon's arm away. "I swear I'll stay away from Brandon from now on, so please don't be mad at me anymore, Mabel."

"You're such a bitch, Mabel!"

I had barely stumbled back to my feet when Brandon shoved me hard onto the ground again, causing my lower back to land right on some sharp gravel. I winced in pain.

Yet, that minor physical reaction was interpreted by the other classmates as a sign of defiance.

"I honestly didn't think you would stoop this low, Mabel. I mean, Vivian actually went out of her way to give you one of her photos. You could have just refused it if you didn't want it. Why did you have to rip it to pieces?"

"What other reason could there be? She's just downright jealous of Vivian! Vivian is beautiful, while she looks like a complete country bumpkin standing right next to her!"

"It's a good thing we caught her in the act of destroying Vivian's photo. I mean, who knows how Mabel has been using her role as class monitor to bully Vivian when no one else was looking?"

Those around completely pushed Brandon over the edge. He strode over and loomed above me, asking, "Which hand did you use to tear it?"

I was just about to speak, but Brandon brought his foot down hard on my right hand; the pain overwhelmed me immediately, causing tears to surge out from the sheer agony.

"Is this the hand?" Brandon lifted his foot slightly, then brought it down again with all his might, stomping so hard that I clearly heard the sound of a bone snapping.

It was a few seconds later when Brandon moved to my left hand and stepped on it once more. "You're truly disgusting, Mabel!"

Seeing that the beating had gone far enough, Vivian finally reached out calmly and grabbed Brandon's arm. She shook her head slightly and said, "You should stop now, Brandon; I'm scared. Mabel isn't to blame for this. It was just my own wishful thinking, so it has nothing to do with her!

"If anyone's at fault, it's me for showing up and messing up your relationship! Mabel was right a moment ago. You two are the actual couple, whereas I'm just the third wheel…"

Brandon's resolve dissolved entirely after hearing that, prompting him to immediately break up with me.

Those around us couldn't help but look down on me with disgust. "Haven't you heard? Those who aren't loved are the third wheels! You're the one who came between them, Mabel!"

"You really think you're all that with that ugly face of yours, huh? It's good to have confidence, Mabel, but being overly confident is crossing the line."

I struggled to push myself up from the ground. Brandon had been ruthless, and the back of my hand was already covered in dark bruises.

It hurt terribly, but the pain brought a sudden, sharp clarity to my mind.

In my past life, I had been completely blinded by love, unable to see Vivian's manipulative nature or Brandon's unwavering devotion to her, which ultimately led to my tragic death.

In this life, I could only wait impatiently for my admission letter to arrive. I licked my lips and started a countdown for the disasters heading their way as I watched everyone leave.

It wasn't long before the admission letters arrived, and I successfully received my own admission notice.

Just then, Mr. Lister showed up holding a pile of printed transcripts. "Please come with me for home visits in a bit, Mabel. There are a few students in our class who failed their exams, so we need to offer them guidance and support."

I nodded and looked over the names on it. Vivian's name stood out clearly in front of me.

It appeared that Vivian's failure to secure a spot at a university was predestined. I only lamented my own fate, having been forced to take the blame in my past life.

It was entirely expected that she wouldn't get into any university, though. She was always taking leaves of absence during senior year, with each one lasting half a month or longer. She said she was going to audition for acting roles, but in truth, she was simply spending freely and living it up.

It wasn't long before Mr. Lister and I arrived at Vivian's house.

Just before entering, a man's furious voice rang out from inside. "How could you tell me that you didn't get into any university when I've already told everyone that you made it, Vivian? Didn't you say you were guaranteed a spot at Caldoria Film Academy? What happened to that, Vivian?"

In the next instant, a crisp slap rang out from inside the house.

Mr. Lister, worried that things might get out of hand, rushed inside. I wasn't about to miss out on the show, so I naturally went in too.

I immediately noticed that the living room was in complete disarray, with Vivian's makeup scattered across the floor.

Mr. Lister asked, "How did this happen, Vivian? Your academic results are usually fine! You ranked in the top ten of your entire class for all three mock exams! You should have easily gotten into a prestigious university with such a result!"

Vivian kept her head down, while Peter Nash, her father, sighed heavily. "It seems like we completely misjudged the situation this time, Mr. Lister. We didn't realize the film academy's cutoff would be so high. Vivian got over 1344 for her SAT and still didn't make it."

I acted surprised. "Didn't you score 560 for your SAT, Vivian?"

In that instant, everyone in the room fell silent.

I unhurriedly took out the printed transcript and handed it over to Peter. "Did you perhaps misread her score, Mr. Nash? Vivian's actual score is written right here."

Mr. Lister shook his head in resignation. "Why couldn't Vivian pull it off when it mattered, especially when she did so well in her previous exams?"

I said, sneering, "It's probably because she depended on technology during her usual exams."

That single remark alone caused the expressions of all three present to shift.

Vivian flew into a rage and lunged at me, as if she wanted to tear me apart on the spot. Peter, however, yanked her back before she could even touch me. He then slapped her hard across the face, sending her rolling onto the floor. "How dare you lie to me!"

Mr. Lister stood there awkwardly, trapped between wanting to leave out of embarrassment and wanting to stay without a good excuse to do so.

I felt an overwhelming sense of gratification after looking at Vivian's miserable state.

It was only just the beginning, though.

It wasn't long before Brandon heard Vivian's agonized cries and quickly ran over, grabbing Peter's arm. "What are you doing, Mr. Nash?"

Brandon grew increasingly anxious when he saw his beloved's swollen, bruised face.

Mr. Lister was even more frantic than he was. "You're here at just the right time, Brandon! Do you know why you weren't accepted into any university?"

Brandon, who had been fully intent on intervening, froze where he stood, his anxious expression instantly paralyzing. "What are you talking about, Mr. Lister?"

Mr. Lister shot him an irritated look. "Why didn't you get into the university even though your SAT scores were high enough, Brandon? Do you have any idea what happened?"

Brandon's breathing turned shallow and rapid. He let out a nervous chuckle as he shook his head rapidly. "You've got to be kidding me, right? You ought to know that my SAT scores were more than enough to guarantee a spot at Caldoria University's School of Foreign Service!"

He then held out his hands and continued, "You'd better stop messing with me, Mr. Lister! I'd like to take a look at my admission letter now!"