Bryn closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. The stale, dusty air of the hallway filled her lungs. She felt the heavy, rhythmic thumping of her heart beating against her ribs. She was alive.

Heavy, arrogant footsteps echoed from the end of the hall. The loud chatter died down instantly. Students parted like the Red Sea, pressing themselves against the lockers to make way.

Bryn opened her eyes. She looked straight through the crowd and locked onto the tall figure wearing a custom-tailored blazer.

Seventeen-year-old Dominic Hutchinson walked with one hand shoved in his pocket. His eyes were cold, rebellious, and completely unapproachable. He radiated a hostility that kept everyone ten feet away.

He walked straight toward Bryn. His dark eyes flicked over her pale face for a fraction of a second before his lips twisted into a mocking sneer.

Dominic raised his hand and slammed his palm against the metal locker right next to Bryn's ear. The loud bang made the students nearby flinch. He boxed her in between his body and the cold steel.

He leaned down. The crisp scent of wintergreen mint and faint tobacco washed over her face. He lowered his voice and told her she looked like a complete idiot today.

Whispers broke out down the hall. Everyone assumed the school tyrant was just starting his daily routine of bullying the Callahan heiress.

In her past life, Bryn would have bristled like a cornered cat and screamed right back at him.

But right now, Bryn didn't flinch. She tilted her chin up and looked directly into the deep, dark abyss of his eyes.

She looked past the arrogant smirk. She saw the broken man kneeling in the mud, crying over her ashes in the freezing rain.

Heat rushed to Bryn's eyes. Without thinking, she lifted her hand. Her warm fingertips lightly brushed against the tense, sharp line of his jaw.

Dominic's entire body went rigid. A flash of absolute, naked panic shattered the coldness in his eyes.

He yanked his hand off the locker and stumbled backward like he had just touched a live wire. A dark, furious red color rapidly spread across the tips of his ears.

"Don't be a psycho," Dominic snapped at her, trying to sound vicious, but his voice came out an octave lower and dangerously raspy.

Bryn watched him panic. A bright, genuine smile broke across her face. She looked at him softly and said, "Good morning to you too."

That simple, gentle greeting dropped like a bomb in the hallway. The whispers instantly died, replaced by the collective sound of fifty teenagers gasping for air.

Dominic stared at her like she had grown a second head. His Adam's apple bobbed hard. He spun on his heel and practically sprinted down the hallway to get away from her.

Bryn watched his broad shoulders retreat. She made a silent vow to herself right then and there: in this life, she would never let him suffer for her again.

"Bryn!"

A loud, overly confident voice called out from behind the crowd.

Keifer Holcomb strutted toward her, wearing his blue and gold varsity football jacket. He flashed his trademark blinding smile, looking incredibly pleased with himself.

In her past life, that smile made her stomach flutter. Now, a wave of hot bile rose in the back of her throat. She felt physically sick looking at him.

Keifer stopped in front of her. He casually reached out to drape his heavy arm over her shoulders, moving with the entitled confidence of a boy who owned her.

Bryn's eyes turned to ice. She took a sharp step to the right. Keifer's hand awkwardly grabbed nothing but air.

His smile faltered for a second. But his massive ego immediately kicked in to protect him. He assumed she was just playing hard to get to make him jealous.

He leaned in close and used a patronizing, gentle tone. "What's this?" he asked, a smug grin playing on his lips. "Are you playing hard to get because I didn't text you back last night? Is this your new little trick to get my attention?"

Bryn stared at his fake, concerned face. The image of his twisted, violent expression as he shoved her off the cliff flashed behind her eyes.

She dug her fingernails into her palms to stop herself from slapping him across the face. She slowly lowered her gaze, staring pointedly at the brand-new, limited-edition sneakers on his feet.

Bryn let out a short, cold laugh. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked Keifer up and down like he was a piece of trash on the sidewalk.

She cleared her throat. She made sure her voice was loud enough for every single person in the hallway to hear exactly what she was about to say.

Bryn kept her eyes locked on Keifer's pristine Air Jordans. Her gaze dripped with undisguised contempt.

Keifer noticed where she was looking. He proudly shifted his weight, tapping the toe of his shoe on the floor. He thought she was admiring the shoes he bought using his scholarship stipend.

Bryn snapped her head up. Her voice rang out, sharp and cold. She demanded he pay her back for the shoes he ruined last week. Right now.

The hallway went dead silent. Every single pair of eyes shifted to Keifer's suddenly frozen face.

His eyes bugged out of his head. He stuttered, asking if she was joking, reminding her that they never kept track of money between them.

Bryn let out a harsh laugh. She told him that was when she was stupid, but from now on, every penny was accounted for.

She spoke clearly, enunciating every syllable. She stated the exact price of the limited-edition Jimmy Choo heels: eight hundred and sixty-five dollars.

Blood rushed to Keifer's face, turning his cheeks a dark, humiliated purple. He was a charity case at this school. He didn't have eight hundred dollars in his bank account, let alone in cash.

He dropped his voice to a frantic whisper. He reached out to grab the sleeve of her blazer, begging her to stop making a scene in front of everyone.

Bryn slapped his hand away like he was a diseased rat. She took a large step backward, putting a safe physical distance between them.

She raised her voice even louder. She mocked him, saying that if he was too broke to pay it all at once, she would accept a payment plan.

Bryn unzipped her designer bag and pulled out her iPhone. She tapped the screen a few times, pulled up her Venmo QR code, and shoved the bright screen directly into his face.

A low wave of laughter rippled through the crowd of students. For a narcissist like Keifer, being publicly exposed as poor was worse than taking a bullet.

Keifer clenched his fists. The veins in his neck popped. He convinced himself she was only doing this to humiliate him into begging for her attention.

Desperate to save face, he forced a tight, arrogant smirk. He pulled out his own phone, scanned the code, and hissed that he was sending the money, telling her not to come crying to him later.

Bryn watched the green notification pop up on her screen. She immediately hit accept. She looked up and loudly announced that their debt was settled, and they were officially done.

Before he could react, she added one last sentence. She wished him and Fabiola a very happy life together.

The hallway exploded. Gasps and shocked whispers bounced off the lockers. Students pointed at Keifer, their eyes filled with disgust at the implication that he was hooking up with her adopted sister.

Keifer's face went from purple to chalk white. He threw his hands up, stammering wildly, trying to explain that he and Fabiola were just like brother and sister.

Bryn didn't care to listen to his pathetic lies. She turned her back on him, her posture straight and untouchable, and walked away.

The loud, piercing shriek of the warning bell echoed through the hall, shattering the heavy tension.

The crowd broke apart, but every single student immediately pulled out their phones, furiously typing on Snapchat and the school's anonymous gossip forum.

Keifer stood frozen in the middle of the hallway like a statue. He felt the mocking stares burning into his skin. His massive pride was shattered into a million pieces on the linoleum floor.

Bryn walked toward her AP History classroom. Her chest felt lighter. The suffocating weight of her past life was finally starting to lift.

She reached the heavy wooden door of the classroom and stopped. Dominic was leaning against the brick wall right next to the frame.

He had clearly watched the entire execution. His dark eyes were fixed on her, analyzing her with a deep, intense curiosity.

Bryn didn't look away. She held his gaze and gave him a quick, playful wink, like they were sharing a private joke.

Dominic's breath hitched. He pushed himself off the wall so fast his shoulder bumped the brick. He let out a defensive scoff to cover his reaction.

But instead of throwing a cruel insult at her, he reached out and pulled the heavy wooden door open for her.

Bryn smiled. She whispered a soft "thank you" and walked into the classroom, her head held high, ready to start her new life.

Bryn walked into the AP US History classroom. She scanned the rows of desks and walked straight to the very back corner, taking the seat right next to the window.

In her past life, she always sat in the front row just so she could stare at the back of Keifer's head. Now, she just wanted to breathe clean air.

Dominic walked in right behind her. He saw her sitting in his usual territory. His dark eyebrows pulled together in a deep frown.

He walked to the empty desk right next to hers. He pulled the metal chair out with unnecessary force, sitting down with the annoyed energy of a dog whose bed had been stolen.

Mr. Alistair Finch, the Dean of Students and AP History teacher, walked to the front of the room carrying a massive stack of manila folders.

He tapped his knuckles against the chalkboard. He announced that today he would post the final list of students selected for the Ivy League prep seminar.

The air in the room instantly tightened. Getting on that list meant securing a guaranteed recommendation letter for the top universities in the country.

Keifer sat in the front row. He puffed out his chest and sat up perfectly straight. He considered himself the academic star of the school. He knew his name was on that list.

Bryn lazily spun a silver pen between her fingers. From the corner of her eye, she watched Dominic pretend to read his textbook.

She noticed his large hand gripping his pen. His knuckles were sharp, and there was a faint, jagged scar across the back of his hand that looked like it came from a blade.

Bryn relaxed her fingers. The silver pen slipped from her grasp, rolled down the slanted desk, and dropped perfectly right next to Dominic's black combat boot.

Dominic stopped reading. He stared at the pen on the floor, then slowly turned his head to glare at Bryn.

Bryn didn't apologize. She rested her chin in the palm of her hand and smiled at him. Her eyes sparkled with a dangerous, teasing light.

Dominic ground his back teeth together. He let out a heavy sigh, leaned over, and picked up the pen.

He held it out to her. Bryn reached for it, but instead of grabbing the plastic barrel, she intentionally dragged her warm fingertips across the scarred skin on the back of his hand.

The light touch sent a visible jolt through Dominic's body. He yanked his hand back so violently the pen clattered onto the wooden desk.

He leaned closer to her. He lowered his voice to a dangerous, raspy whisper, warning her to stop playing with fire. His dark eyes darted nervously to her lips.

Bryn leaned in to meet him. The sharp scent of cedarwood radiating from his uniform filled her nose. She whispered back that she liked the fire.

Mr. Finch cleared his throat loudly at the front of the room, shattering the heavy sexual tension between the two desks.

He began reading the names. He called out Keifer's name first. Keifer immediately turned around in his seat and looked at Bryn, waiting for her to look at him with awe.

Bryn didn't even blink in his direction. Her eyes were entirely focused on the side of Dominic's face.

Mr. Finch continued. He read Dominic Hutchinson's name, praising him for having the highest test scores in the entire district.

Finally, Mr. Finch pushed his glasses up his nose. He announced that the final spot went to the most improved student in the grade: Bryn Callahan.

The classroom erupted in shocked whispers. Keifer whipped his head around, his jaw dropping open. He couldn't process that the girl he thought was a brainless groupie had secretly beaten out half the class.

Bryn wasn't surprised. She remembered the countless nights she stayed awake until 4 AM studying in her past life, just trying to be smart enough for Keifer.

Dominic turned his head slightly. He looked at the confident smirk on Bryn's face. A flash of deep, hidden pride softened the hard lines around his eyes.

The bell rang. Mr. Finch yelled over the noise, reminding the students on the list that the after-school study group started next week.

Bryn shoved her notebook into her bag. She stood up, looked down at Dominic, and told him she would see him at the study group.

She didn't wait for him to respond. She turned and walked out of the classroom with a light, bouncy step, leaving Dominic staring at her empty chair with a tight chest.

Keifer stood by the door, trying to block her path. He opened his mouth to congratulate her, trying to use the list as an excuse to talk. Bryn walked right past him like he was a piece of furniture.