The Plan That Should Have Worked

"Sorry, Annie. My throat's been hurting these past couple of days, so I really can't drink a milkshake."

"C'mon, drink it. It's already open. People might actually think there's something wrong with it if we keep passing it back and forth." I handed the milkshake back as I carefully watched Annie's expression.

"What are you talking about, Sienna? We just met today. Why would I ever poison you?" Annie's eyes flickered with a trace of panic before she quickly forced herself to sound calm.

"I'm kidding. Go on, drink." I nudged the milkshake a little closer to her.

I hadn't just learned that the milkshake was bound to a system before I died. I had also learned that the one who initiated the binding would suffer a backlash if they drank it themselves.

'I'll find a way to make you drink it even if you try to wriggle out of this, Redwood. This time, you're going to pay for what you did.'

I was already considering slipping it into her food if she kept turning away from it when she did something I didn't expect. She picked up the milkshake and took a sip.

"You know, the milkshakes from that shop by the school gate are actually pretty good. It's too bad that your throat hurts, Sienna. I'll treat you to one next time."

She kept drinking as she spoke. Her expression remained completely normal even after finishing more than half the cup. There wasn't the slightest sign of the backlash she was supposed to suffer.

'How's that possible?'

It was Annie herself who had told me that drinking the milkshake would trigger the backlash.

In my previous life, I had cursed her when I was on the verge of death, saying she would get what she deserved. She had only smiled and told me that the system could indeed backfire, causing her to feel as if 100 needles were piercing through her body.

But then, she added that I had already drunk the one milkshake that could have triggered that backlash for her.

I had been on death's door at the time. So, there was no reason for her to lie to me. Yet, she wasn't showing any signs of pain even after drinking the milkshake. What was going on here?

No More Dorm, No More Risk

When my mother heard me, she looked at me with concern. "Sienna, your throat hurts? Have Sylvan take you to a doctor later. The weather's been so hot lately. It'll be awful if you fell ill now."

She immediately told Sylvan to bring over the first-aid kit they'd prepared, saying there were some basic medicines inside in case I couldn't get to a doctor at school right away.

I nearly burst into tears when I saw the worry on their faces. It had been so long since I'd felt such unconditional love.

In my previous life, they had devoted themselves entirely to Annie after I drank that milkshake, ignoring everything I said and looking at me as if I were their enemy. In the end, they had given up everything for her, even their lives.

I wasn't going to let that tragedy happen this time around.

"Mom, I don't want to stay in the dorm anymore. Didn't you buy me an apartment unit near campus? Can I move there instead?"

I had actually enrolled in a local university. Although home wasn't too far away, my mom had still bought an apartment nearby as soon as she found out I'd been accepted—just so I wouldn't have to stay in the dorm and could live more comfortably on my own.

"The dorms are crowded. I was worried you wouldn't get used to it. And with a roommate… what if your lifestyles don't match?"

Back then, my mom had listed a whole string of concerns, but I had insisted on staying in the dorm. I thought it would help me build better relationships with my classmates, so I didn't want to stand out by living off-campus right from the start.

My mom respected my decision and agreed without much fuss.

What I hadn't expected was to be assigned to a mixed dorm. The other two roommates were seniors who were out on internships most of the time and rarely came back. In the end, it was just me and Annie left in the room.

Even though I had no idea how Annie could drink the milkshake and come out completely fine, I decided to play it safe.

I thought I could at least avoid her if I couldn't fight her.

As long as I kept my distance, it didn't matter what tricks she had up her sleeve because she wouldn't be able to use them on me.

The Influence I Couldn't Escape

To my dismay, my mom shot me a disapproving look. "Sienna, your luggage is already here, so just stay for now, alright? Moving everything back and forth is too much trouble. And it's just you and Annie in the dorm. She's such a nice girl. It'll be good for you to have each other for company."

I froze for a moment.

In the past, my mom would've immediately bought one the moment I said I wanted to move out. It wouldn't have mattered to her if there hadn't already been an apartment near the school.

Yet, she told me no despite already having a place waiting, simply because moving was inconvenient.

"And Sienna, I asked Annie just now, and she only gets 500 a month for living expenses."

My mom didn't even look at my expression as she continued speaking. "I thought about it, and giving you one million all at once is too much. It'll only encourage you to spend recklessly. I'll be giving you 500 as your allowance. I've also canceled your supplementary card."

"Mom, didn't you say the one million was to help me learn how to manage money? Even the allowance I got back in high school was more than 500."

I was utterly flabbergasted.

Even though this time she hadn't handed the money to Annie, it was obvious she was already being influenced. Still, I hadn't taken a single sip of that milkshake, barely even interacted with Annie. So… just what was going on here?

"Sylvan, didn't you say you had a gift for me on the first day of school?"

I could only turn to Sylvan. He'd been downstairs directing the staff moving the luggage and hadn't stayed in the dorm for long. He shouldn't have been affected.

"Don't worry, I didn't forget. Here's your gift."

I finally let out a sigh of relief when I saw the familiar indulgent smile on his face and the set of keys resting in his palm. It looked like he hadn't been affected after all. Maybe my mom hadn't either. Perhaps she'd just changed her mind on a whim after hearing Annie talk.

'Forget it. What matters is that they're okay. Worst case, I'll just get a part-time job and rent a place myself.'

I smiled and reached out to take the keys, but something felt off the moment they landed in my hand.

These weren't the keys to the car he had prepared for me.

They didn't even look like car keys.

"Sylvan, this is…"

"This? Annie mentioned just now that it's more convenient to ride an electric scooter around campus, so I picked up a secondhand one for you. What do you think? Pretty thoughtful of me, right?" he said proudly.

"But Sylvan, you know I don't even know how to ride one."

I couldn't understand it at all. I hadn't even known when Annie had spoken to him. I'd seen that car myself right after I finished the SAT. I knew what I saw. He'd kept it hidden on purpose, saying he wanted to save it for the first day of school.

He had said something about how special occasions should be celebrated.

So how had it turned into a secondhand scooter?

I felt panic rise in my chest upon hearing my mother and Sylvan constantly bringing Annie up. I was terrified they would fall even deeper into this thrall, so deep they wouldn't even care about their own safety anymore.

"Mom, I really don't want to stay in the dorm. Why don't you give me the keys to the apartment, and I'll move everything over by myself, okay?" I grabbed onto her arm anxiously, desperate to get her away from this hellhole as soon as possible.

Alas, my mom shook me off.

"Sienna, just stay here for now. Get along with Annie. I'm sure you two will become good friends. When you have time, you should bring Annie over as well."

Why? Why was this happening?

They had barely even spoken to Annie. Yet, shit had already hit the fan. It didn't matter how much I argued, as I couldn't change my mom's mind. To make matters worse, there were no spare dorm rooms available for me to switch into right now.

In the end, I had no choice but to stay.