The Inferno of Retribution

An old oven in a corner was emitting wisps of smoke. Summer Lodge and Jean Starr discussed where they wanted to buy groceries. I was dazed when I saw this familiar scene."We're going to the market, Michelle. Touch my oven, and I'll ensure you don't get behavior points this semester," Summer threatened.Her words jolted me back to reality. I hurriedly turned on the voice recorder on my phone and ran over to the oven to unplug it. Then, I grabbed it and ran out of the dorm."Have you lost your mind, Michelle? Why are you taking my oven?" Summer ran after me and grabbed my arm."I'm handing it over to the resident assistant!" I raised my voice, attracting the attention of the other students. "You're breaking the rules by using forbidden electrical appliances in the dorm, Summer! Can you bear the consequences if a fire breaks out?"Summer was taken aback. Then, her expression turned ugly. "How is it any of your business if I'm cooking in the dorm? I'm not the only one, am I? Why don'

I packed my things and left the dorm. Summer took a photo of my back and posted it on her Instagram story with the caption, "A loser."After leaving the dorm, I waited outside the convenience store opposite the dorm building. A few minutes later, Summer and Jean came out. They left campus arm in arm.I waited there for an hour but didn't see Adeline. She was the daughter of an affluent family and didn't return to the dorm much. Generally, she treated me, Summer, and Jean equally—she was equally condescending to us.Still, she'd helped me in the past, and I didn't want to see her end up like she did in my past life. I was about to call her to warn her when I heard a commotion come from the dorm building."There's a fire! Call 911!"A swarm of young women ran out of the dorm building.I looked up to see thick, black smoke coming from my dorm. When 911 and the college administration arrived, Summer and Jean were back, too.Upon hearing that our dorm had caught on fire, Summer wante

Earlier at the convenience store, I hadn't just been waiting for Adeline to return. I'd edited the things Summer and Jean had said to me into a video. It covered everything that had happened, from when I'd grabbed the oven and bolted from the dorm to Jean admitting it belonged to Summer.It even included Summer talking about her relationship with Jocelyn and how she and Marie were on good terms. I'd captured every word and added subtitles to ensure everyone knew what was being said.The video had gone viral after I'd posted it; everyone was talking about it on the forum."This is Summer Lodge from the faculty of media studies, right? I know her. She thinks she's a big deal because she's the vice president of the student council. God, I hate her.""She checked the cleanliness at our dorm once and asked me why there was trash in the trash can. She even docked points for that! I'm still pissed whenever I think about it.""Honestly, who came up with the idea of a student council? Disb

A blood-curdling scream came from the furnace. That was how I'd died in my past life, and I couldn't help feeling vindicated as I watched Summer suffer the same fate.The fire ate her up. She'd left blood all over the furnace before her death because she'd tried to claw her way out.Terence stood there, looking like he was admiring a painting. Once Summer was incinerated, he turned to look at Jean. "It's your turn now."Jean fell to her knees and cried, "This has nothing to do with me, Mr. York! Summer's the one who bought that oven; I did nothing! Adeline and I have always been on good terms—I wouldn't do anything to hurt her!"Summer wasn't the only one Jean sucked up to. Adeline was also one of her targets, but only because she was rich. She constantly buttered Adeline up, so the latter treated her better than she treated us. Saying they were on good terms was a bit of a stretch, though.Terence said, "I know you and Adeline were on good terms. Still, you were the one who gave