Ruined Thesis

My sister-in-law, Lulu, made a career out of being a professional airhead. She spent her days pouting, biting her lip, and playing the ditzy damsel in distress.

Right before my college graduation, she dumped my laptop into a bucket of water. My final thesis was destroyed, my hard drive was fried, and I was unable to graduate.

She just tapped her temple and stuck out her tongue.

"Oopsie! I'm just a little bit clumsy, Faye. You wouldn't actually be mad at me, right?"

On the day of my supposed graduation, she told the police she saw a hit-and-run. She pointed her finger at me, claiming I was the driver who fled the scene.

Overnight, I became the most hated person on the internet. Thousands of people doxed me, and my reputation was shredded.

When I tried to clear my name, she just twiddled her thumbs and looked at me with puppy-dog eyes.

"I didn't mean to do it, truly. I'm just a pretty girl with a slow brain. Everyone makes mistakes!"

I reached my breaking point and told her to get out of my house.

But my brother, Silas, stepped in to protect her. He kicked me so hard I flew down the stairs, and my world went black as my neck snapped.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day she ruined my thesis.

...

The house was chaotic as my family prepared for a big dinner. My mother grabbed me by the ear and yanked hard.

"Don't think you can slack off just because you're the only one with a fancy degree in this house!"

Silas and Lulu were lounging on the sofa, screaming at a video game. I could hear the digital explosions and their frantic laughter.

The phantom pain of my shattered bones still echoed in my mind. My body trembled instinctively, but the sharp sting on my ear snapped me back to reality.

I had been reborn.

Looking at this family of vultures, a wave of icy coldness washed over me.

I froze for a second, fully processing that I was alive again. Before I could say a word, my mother shoved me into the kitchen.

Lulu's fake, sugary voice drifted in from the living room.

"Mom, I really wanted to help, but I'm just so ditzy. I'm afraid I'd just mess everything up. Poor Faye, you're so hardworking!"

She followed it up with a playful wink and stuck out her tongue.

Silas didn't even look up from the screen.

"Why do you care about her? I'm not letting my precious wife touch any dirty dishes. That's what Faye is for. She can't just live here for free forever."

I saw my mother's face twitch with a flicker of annoyance.

Silas wasn't just saying I should be a slave. He was implying my mother should serve them too.

In my past life, I would have felt bad for her and taken over all the chores. But then I remembered how I died. When Silas kicked me down those stairs, my mother's first thought wasn't for my life.

She was worried her golden boy would go to jail.

The whole family had committed perjury, claiming I had simply tripped and fallen. They buried me like trash and focused on comforting my terrified brother and his sobbing wife.

I let out a cold laugh. No matter how much I sacrificed for this family, I would never be loved.

I silently started washing the vegetables without a word of protest.

My mother hovered near me, whispering venomously.

"I don't know why he married such a useless brat. All she does is wait to be fed like a baby. Any other daughter-in-law would be begging to please her mother-in-law."

I knew her game. In my last life, she used me as a weapon, venting her frustrations to me so I would start a fight with Lulu. Then, she would play the peacemaker and look like the hero.

This time, I was going to step back. I wanted to see how long their "harmony" would last without me as a buffer.

My back was aching, so I straightened up for a moment. That's when I saw Lulu glancing around before sneaking into my bedroom like a thief.

My heart hammered against my ribs as I remembered the timeline. This was the week of my final submission.

In my previous life, Lulu ruined my career before it even started. Because I couldn't graduate, I lost my spot at Apex Dynamics. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with a path to a prestigious international program.

Coming from a family that favored sons, they would never pay for me to go abroad. That job was my only ticket to freedom.

After she ruined my laptop, I had screamed and cried at her.

But she just leaned against Silas's shoulder and acted like the victim. "I'm just a silly girl! I saw Faye's laptop was dusty and thought I'd give it a good wash. I didn't know it was so fragile. I was just trying to be helpful!"

She looked more devastated than I did, the person whose life was actually ruined.

Everyone knows electronics and water don't mix. Even a toddler knows that.

I thought my family would defend me, but Silas just glared at me.

"It's just a stupid paper! Why are you screaming at your sister-in-law? You think you're better than us just because you're a college girl? You've lost your damn mind over some schoolwork!"

The truth was, no one else in my family had an education. Silas had barely finished a two-year degree my parents paid for, and now he was a professional couch potato.

Lulu had been kicked out of her teaching assistant program for being negligent. Silas had swept her off her feet, promising he'd provide for her.

His plan for providing was staying in our parents' house and bleeding me dry.

They were jealous of my success, constantly whispering in my parents' ears that I was becoming arrogant.

Back then, my mother had slapped me across the face for being "disrespectful."

"I should have married you off for a dowry after high school! Since you can't graduate, you're going to work at the warehouse tomorrow!"

Because I didn't graduate, my mother forced me to drop out and work a grueling factory job. Every cent of my paycheck went to them. Silas and Lulu lived like royalty while I withered away.

At five-foot-seven, I had dropped to eighty pounds. I was a walking ghost, fainting from low blood sugar constantly.

I was young, but my body was already failing.

A dark, sharp glint flashed in my eyes.

This time, if they wanted a slave, they would have to kill me first.

You want to ruin my graduation? Go ahead and try.

Lulu stepped out of the bathroom looking smug and satisfied. She gave me a triumphant look that she didn't even try to hide.

I finally understood her. She didn't just hate that I was smarter; she was scared I would take a spot that her younger sister wanted.

That "clumsy girl" act was just a mask for a toxic, calculating snake.

Only my idiot brother fell for it.

I pretended not to notice her and kept my head down, focusing on the cooking.

A few minutes later, a blood-curdling scream erupted from the hallway.

"No! My thesis! Who did this?!"

Everyone froze. Lulu's sister, Sierra, came running out holding a dripping laptop. She lunged at me and slapped me across the face.

"Faye Gentry, you bitch! Was it you? You're so scared I'll take your spot at Apex Dynamics that you'd do something this pathetic? Lulu was rightDyou're a snake!"

My cheek burned, but when I saw the look of pure horror on Lulu's face, the pain vanished.

Sierra was staying with us because Lulu insisted on it. She went to the same university as me. Because of her, I had been kicked out of my own bedroom and forced to live in a cramped dorm.

Lulu wanted to save her family money by letting Sierra leech off us. Meanwhile, I had to work three part-time jobs just to survive.

However, after I realized I had been reborn, I had hidden my own laptop. Lulu had no idea she had just sabotaged her own flesh and blood.

I looked at the varying shades of pale and red on their faces and smiled.

"I've been in the kitchen the whole time. How could I have touched her laptop? If you think I'm a thief, call the cops."

"No!"

Lulu and my mother screamed the word at the same time.

Lulu was terrified of being caught, and my mother was terrified of the scandal. My mother glared at me.

"Haven't you embarrassed us enough? You think those books make you the boss of this house? This is my home!"

Lulu quickly jumped in to redirect the blame.

"She's right, Sierra. We shouldn't involve outsiders. But Faye, you're responsible for this mess since it happened while you were here. You should give your thesis to Sierra so she can use it. You can just go get a job; we're all counting on you to bring in some money."

The sheer audacity of her words made my head spin. I knew she was shameless, but this was a new level of insanity.

"Why don't you send your own sister to work?" I snapped back.

Lulu didn't blink. She played the innocent card perfectly.

"Sierra is the only real scholar in our family. She's my parents' pride. I'm not smart like her, and besides, I'm pregnant now. You wouldn't want your nephew to have a stressed-out mom, right? We need you to step up."

If it were just about Sierra, my parents might have stayed out of it. But the moment she mentioned a grandson, the game changed.

No one in that room seemed to care that I was also a university student. I was just a resource.

My mother immediately sided with her.

"Sierra is family. Lulu is right. Your nephew is going to need you to help with his education later. If you go work for some big company, who's going to take care of this house?"

The rage was boiling in my veins, ready to explode.

My mother actually despised Lulu. She thought she was an idiot, but she tolerated her for the sake of Silas. Now, all her hopes were pinned on a grandson.

I almost laughed. Lulu wasn't stupid at all; she was a master at turning personal drama into a family crisis.

Silas, who had been silent, finally barked at me.

"What are you standing there for? Give Sierra your files now!"

I felt a surge of defiance. I had worked on that project for years. I had consulted experts and stayed up for weeks. It was my dream. And Sierra?

Sierra had only stayed in the running because Lulu used to steal my research data and give it to her.

"I earned my spot with my own brain," I said, my voice trembling with fury. "Did I ask any of you for a dime? No. You guys took my scholarship money and my part-time pay. Now you want to throw me to the wolves?"

In my last life, I wasn't the type to lose my temper. I knew my parents worshipped Silas, and Silas worshipped Lulu. I knew my voice meant nothing.

Back then, when Lulu destroyed my life, I just cried in the dark. I knew no one was coming to save me. I was trapped with these leeches.

But this time, things were different.

Before I could even react, Silas threw his phone and launched a flying kick into my chest.

I hit the floor hard, and blood sprayed from my mouth.

My parents stood there, watching with cold, indifferent eyes. Just like last time.

Lulu and Sierra watched with smug grins. They weren't going to stop until they stripped me of everything.

I closed my eyes, feigning defeat. I walked into my room and emailed a file to Sierra.

Sierra scanned it and nodded, looking satisfied.

Silas spat on the floor near me.

"See? Was that so hard? You just had to catch a beating first."

I gritted my teeth. Let them be happy. The file I sent was an old, failed draft from years ago. It was messy and the logic was flawed. With Sierra's pea-sized brain, she wouldn't notice until it was too late.

"Get back to the kitchen! You trying to starve us?" Silas yelled before going back to his game.

As I plated the food, I heard Lulu giggling and flirting.

"Oh no, I lost again! I'm so silly. Hubby, you're not mad at me, are you?"

Silas stroked her hair like she was a prized pet.

"Baby, I love that you're so innocent. You don't have a devious bone in your body, unlike some people who have eight hundred schemes running at once."

The words used to hurt. Now, they were just fuel. I was a ghost back from hell, and I didn't need their love anymore.

When dinner was served, I waited for everyone to sit. There was one chair left. As I went to sit, Lulu placed her phone on the seat.

"Faye, you know how forgetful I am. If I don't keep my phone right in front of me, I'll lose it. And I can't have Silas worrying if he can't reach me. You don't mind, right?"

Silas looked at me with pure disgust.

"The food is done. Why are you still here? You're so smart, go find your own dinner!"

No one defended me. I just packed my bags and walked out. I was done with that house anyway.

I went back to the dorm and submitted my real thesis. My advisor was blown away. She told me Apex Dynamics would be lucky to have me and promised to pull every string she had.

Over the next few days, I didn't relax. I knew something big was coming.

I made sure to leave a digital footprint everywhere. I, the girl who used to save every penny, suddenly started posting photos of myself at cafes and parks all over the city.

Lulu commented on one of my posts.

Faye's life looks so glamorous while we're back home eating scraps just to support her. I wish I was smart enough to make my own money.

She had tagged all our relatives. Soon, my notifications were full of aunts and uncles calling me ungrateful and selfish.

My mother called me constantly, screaming at me to come home and go to work since I was a "failure." I ignored every single one.

Two weeks later, the day of my graduation arrived. And so did the incident from my past life.

A video went viral. An elderly man was lying on the pavement, bleeding out. People were standing around filming him for clout, but no one helped.

The internet was screaming for the blood of the driver who hit him and ran.

Lulu suddenly appeared in the news report. she was fixing her makeup, looking shyly at the camera.

"I saw the whole thing," she whispered.

The reporters swarmed her. She was a goldmine for them.

"I'm scared of being targeted for speaking out," Lulu pouted. "But I know the internet will protect a girl like me, right?"

The comments section went wild.

She's an angel! So brave!

We've got your back, queen! Tell us who did it!

Lulu smiled at the camera, basking in the attention. I watched the livestream, feeling a cold, bitter amusement. These "justice warriors" were falling for the act of a monster while a man was dying behind her.