Chapter 2

My first class of the day was Political Theory taught by Professor Wagner. She was known for being extremely strict. She didn't allow students to come late or leave early.

"Andrea Lane."

"Present."

"Simone Hogg."

When no answer came, she repeated, "Simone? Where is Simone?"

Since there was no reply, Professor Wagner made a note of Simone's name.

I pulled my phone out and stuck a wireless earbud into my ear to secretly watch Simone's livestream. She was using one hand to shield herself from the sun while holding her camera with the other.

"I got locked out on the balcony, friends!" she wailed pathetically. "What should I do?"

The comments filled the screen.

"You could try jumping down."

"I just joined the livestream. What happened?"

"The heiress locked the streamer out on the balcony."

"What? I knew it! These heiresses are all evil. All they do is bully the weak."

A bunch of Simone's viewers started giving her presents, and she immediately started thanking them happily.

Jeremy prodded me. While keeping an eye on Professor Wagner, he murmured, "Where's Simone? Isn't she your roommate?"

"She's soaking up some sun," I said before gesturing for him to look at my phone.

"That's Simone? What is she doing?"

"She's livestreaming—documenting her wonderful life."

Jeremy and I were childhood sweethearts. He lived next door to me, and we had known each other since we were kids. Once we were teenagers, he confessed his feelings to me. When our families found out we were together, our families grew closer as well.

In my previous life, Simone had done such a successful job brainwashing me that I believed being with Jeremy made me one of those women who had to rely on men to survive. Thus, I pushed him away.

At the time, I never noticed the scheming look in Simone's eyes when she first met Jeremy.

"Here, Andrea. I brought you breakfast," Jeremy said before taking out a yogurt smoothie.

"Thanks!"

I happily drank up the smoothie. Ever since I got together with Jeremy, he had been extremely meticulous in the care he showed me. Why would I break up with such an incredible boyfriend?

Playing with the piece of chocolate that Jeremy had stuffed into my pocket, I skipped back to my dorm room. Once I opened the door, I was greeted by the sight of Simone scowling at me from the balcony.

I hurried over to unlock the balcony door for her.

"Oops! Sorry about that, Simone. I forgot you were still out on the balcony."

Simone shoved aside the hand I stretched out to help her. Even in September, the sun was still blazing hot. Her entire face was red from being out in the sun this whole time. Upon closer inspection, I even saw some rashes forming.

She rushed to the bathroom to wash up with some cold water, and I followed her in. Standing on the side, I asked, "How did it go, Simone? Did the sunlight get rid of all the germs for you?"

Hearing that, Simone wiped the water off her face and screeched at me, "You did it on purpose, Andrea! How could you be so mean? I only reminded you to kill the germs on your skin out of the kindness of my heart, but you locked me out on the balcony! You even made me miss class!"

"Yeah, I did it on purpose. What can you do about it?" I retorted. I splashed some water at her before scampering off.

…

I was having a meal alone at the cafeteria when I got a notification on my phone that Simone had started her livestream again.

As soon as I entered her livestream, I saw our college cafeteria and heard Simone say, "Hey, friends. Although our little heiress here wasn't able to endure some suffering yesterday, you have nothing to worry about. I'm confident I'll be able to groom her well."

Her viewers soon left a few comments.

"Heiresses like her all grew up spoiled and pampered. You're so kind for putting in all this effort to help her."

"Simone is an icon for the modern-day clear-minded and independent woman! The heiress should hurry up and change her ways."

After thanking some of her fans for the gifts they sent, Simone started livestreaming in silence again. Once I saw where she was, I quickly turned my phone screen off.

At the very next moment, Simone appeared in front of me.

"I finally found you, Andrea!"

Chewing on a mouthful of roast beef, I hummed disinterestedly in response. Simone ignored my indifference and sat down at my table uninvited.

"Why are you eating something so oily, Andrea? Come. You can eat this instead."

She took a bun out of her pocket and planted it in front of me. It was lumpy and looked half-baked. With just one look, I could tell she didn't buy it from a bakery. She had made it herself.

Flicking it aside, I said, "Nope. I'm not eating that."

"Don't be so willful, Andrea! It's good for your health to eat something simple. Rich foods will take its toll on you."

Simone swiped away my plate of food and placed the bun back in front of me.

"You're still young, Andrea, so I get that you still can't stop yourself from wanting to satisfy your cravings. Nevertheless, there's value in the words of wisdom left behind by our ancestors. Didn't you promise me you want to be strong and resilient too?"

Simone was probably humiliated by the fact that I had locked her out on the balcony yesterday. Her livestream viewers must've thought I didn't seem as meek and obedient as she claimed I was, so she wanted to prove herself to them today.

I tossed my cutlery aside with a clang and snapped, "If it's so good for you, then you can eat it yourself! Why are you trying to give it to me? Do you know why those who can endure hardships well end up suffering even more? It's because they ask for it!"

Everyone was looking at us now, and Simone's expression became a little stiff. "I'm just doing this for your sake, Andrea."

"For my sake? Do I need you to do anything for my sake? Who are you to me? I'm going to eat whatever I want, and you can eat nothing but bread if you want. I'd like to see if you really swear off meat for good!"

Once I was done, the onlookers also started making comments about Simone. I picked up my plate and walked over to Jeremy's table.

Jeremy only caught the last sentence I said, so he asked, "What happened? Why are you so angry?"

Grabbing a bite of omelet off Jeremy's plate, I rolled my eyes and replied, "I ran into a self-sacrificing saint who claims she's doing everything for my sake."

Amused by how disgruntled I was, Jeremy laughed. "You're adorable even when you're upset, my little princess."

Instantly, my cheeks flamed. Feeling a little awkward, I took my phone out and checked Simone's livestream. She was still in the cafeteria, and the comments were flooding in.

"Simone, it looks like you still can't get the heiress under your thumb yet."

"She's an heiress, not a fool. Why would she force herself to suffer when she doesn't have to?"

"Whoa. When did a stubborn idiot get in? Everyone here in Simone's livestream hates the rich. Will the fake fans kindly get the hell out of here?"

"Anyway, hurry up and eat the bun, Simone. I'd like to see if you can actually polish off something that terrible."

"Yes, hurry up and finish it, or I'll unfollow your account."

I turned my head and looked over at Simone, who was slowly taking minuscule bites out of the bun. From this angle, I could see that she had to spit out a few hard lumps of uncooked flour too.