He spoke in a low, casual tone. "Learn business from me? Think you can handle it when I yell at you without crying?"

I met his gaze, my chin held high. "Don't underestimate me, Uncle Holt!"

He stubbed out his cigarette, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Alright. I'll come pick you up in three days."

As soon as I left the study, I heard Zane and Shane's voices from downstairs.

Zane asked, "Who do you guys think Elara will pick to go abroad with her?"

Shane, holding a sketchbook, was busy drawing.

"Out of all the sponsored students, Elara's closest with Jocelyn. It's obviously going to be her."

Zane let out a cheer.

"Awesome!"

"That means we can come over to the Vance house and hang out with Jocelyn all the time!"

Even the usually cool Shane's eyes softened. "Yeah. And I can finally show her my new paintings."

Zane and Shane were my neighbors. We’d been inseparable since we were kids.

But now, they only had eyes for Jocelyn.

They were in for a big disappointment.

When they saw me coming down the stairs, my brother Kian walked over, his expression grim. "Which one did you pick?"

My mom passed away when I was young, and Kian had always showered me with love. I depended on him more than anyone.

But ever since he met Jocelyn, he'd grown colder and colder.

"Who do you want me to pick, Kian?"

His brow tightened. "Pick anyone else. Anyone but Jocelyn."

Seeing how anxious he was, a wicked thought crossed my mind. "If you really want to know who I chose… I'll reveal my answer in three days."

Kian was about to say more, but he was interrupted by a soaking-wet figure stumbling through the front door and into his arms.

He looked down and his expression immediately softened with concern. "There's a thunderstorm out there! Why are you completely drenched?"

Jocelyn’s voice was a choked sob. "It's all my fault for staining Elara's dress. It's only right that I run out in the rain to buy her a new one."

"I ran to three different stores, and I even fell and scraped my arm, but I couldn't find the same one…"

Just as I expected, Kian's anger flared. "Elara, you've gone too far!"

"It was just a dress. Did you really have to be so cruel to her?"

I wasn't surprised by Jocelyn's two-faced act at all.

In my last life, she was always playing the victim, making everyone think I was bullying her.

But this time, I decided to play her game.

If Jocelyn loved scheming, I'd give her plenty of chances to do it.

And when the time was right, at the moment she cared about most, I would expose her ugly, manipulative nature for everyone to see.

Seeing me stay silent, Jocelyn added, "Kian, Elara didn't force me to do anything. It was my own idea…"

But her words only made my brother misunderstand me more.

"Elara, if you're pulling this princess act now, how much worse will you bully Jocelyn when she's abroad with you?"

I scoffed internally.

Jocelyn desperately wanted to go abroad with me, yet she put on this show for my brother and friends, making them pity her.

Since she was pretending she didn't want to go, I'd make sure her dream of going abroad was shattered for good.

Zane and Shane rushed over to check on her.

Zane's voice was laced with heartache. "Elara, go get Jocelyn a change of clothes before she catches a cold."

Shane quickly grabbed the first-aid kit and began carefully treating Jocelyn's scrape.

This was my house, but I felt like a complete stranger.