Chapter 1

Tags: Dust storm trap, Karma, Missed exam, Rebirth, Revenge

On the day of the College Entrance Exam, a massive dust storm trapped our entire class on the highway.

The charter bus was forced to pull over onto the shoulder. The driver told us our only option was to wait for rescue.

Chloe, our class president, stood up, slung her backpack over her shoulders, and got ready to get off the bus.

"It’s barely over a mile away! We’ve busted our asses for three years just for today! If we stick together, we’ll make it without a scratch!"

Murmurs spread across the bus, and a few students actually stood up with her.

In my previous life, I leaped up immediately and blocked the door:

"In weather like this, who’s going to take responsibility if something happens to us? The school won’t, the driver won’t, and you definitely won't, Chloe."

I stared straight at her.

"I know you're terrified of missing the exam. But in a storm this bad, the board will definitely have an emergency backup plan."

"If you drag everyone out there and someone gets hurt, do you honestly think you'll still be taking your exam?"

The other students backed me up: "Let’s just wait. It’s way too dangerous out there."

Seeing the crowd turn against her, Chloe stood there glaring for a long time before stomping back to her seat.

We waited in that bus for over four hours.

It wasn't until that afternoon that the rescue team finally arrived and escorted us to the designated testing center.

Because we missed the official window, they arranged a makeup session just for us.

When the exam scores came out, Chloe had bombed it—falling three points short of the university cutoff.

The night the scores went public, she cornered me outside the school gates.

"It’s all your fault! If you hadn’t stopped me, I never would’ve failed!"

Catching me off guard, she shoved me hard. The back of my head slammed against the sharp stone edge of the flower bed.

In the final second before my vision went dark, I saw my classmates standing there.

Not a single one of them moved.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the morning of the exam.

Chloe had her backpack slung over her shoulders, once again getting ready to step off the bus.

This time, I leaned back in my seat and didn't move an inch.

The doors hissed open. One by one, the class started filing out.

It was a Category 5 dust storm. Visibility was under ten feet.

I couldn't wait to see how she planned on walking through that.

The first one off was Kevin, our track star. The second his sneakers hit the pavement, a violent gust knocked him flat.

His knees scraped violently against the rough asphalt, blood trickling down his shins.

Yet he dragged himself up, hunched over against the wind, and kept pushing forward.

Chloe shot me a vicious glare, her eyes burning with pure hatred and stubborn defiance.

Then she hitched her backpack higher and stepped down into the gale.

Within a minute, the bus was completely empty.

Mr. Miller, our driver, stood by the open door, his voice turning raw from screaming: "Kids! Don't go out there! It’s suicide! Come back! Get back in here!"

Nobody listened.

Figure after figure was swallowed whole by the blinding yellow dust.

The cabin grew increasingly hollow, until only myself and Tara, the girl next to me, were left.

The door shut, cutting off the raging sand outside, but the windowpanes vibrated violently, rattling with low, ominous thuds.

Tara huddled against the window, her lips drained of color, her knuckles white where she gripped the straps of her bag.

She turned to look at me. "Serena... are they really going to be okay out there?"

I flipped open my vocabulary notebook and shook my head.

"No idea."

In my past life, I stopped everyone.

In this life, I couldn't care less.

Tara froze for a second, clearly caught off guard by how cold I was.

She parted her lips as if to say something, but thought better of it. Instead, she pulled out her study guide and began reviewing as well.

The cabin fell dead silent, save for the howling wind and the rustle of turning pages.

In my last life, after the exams were over, Tara was the only person who ever came up to thank me.

She thanked me, telling me that if I hadn't blocked the door, she never would’ve known what terrible fate might have met her out on that road.

She glanced back at me once more, then quietly sank into her seat.

Suddenly, a phone rang. It was Mr. Miller’s.

He picked it up, his tone frantic: "Hello? Ms. Lewis? Yes, yes, we’re pulled over on the shoulder."

The voice booming from the speaker was loud enough that even from the back, I could hear every word.

"Do not let those kids off the bus under any circumstances! Mr. Miller, listen to me: the board has already triggered the emergency contingency plan! Any student delayed by the storm will get an isolated makeup exam! Keep everyone on that bus!"

Mr. Miller’s face went chalk-white.

"Ms. Lewis... they already left..."

There was a heavy, suffocating silence on the other end for two full seconds.

Then came Ms. Lewis’s hoarse, frantic scream: "They left?! Where did they go?! When?!"

"Just now. A few minutes ago."

Mr. Miller's voice was shaking uncontrollably.

"I tried to stop them, but I couldn't! Chloe led the charge, and the rest just followed her out like sheep!"

"Are they out of their minds?! Every single one of them has lost their minds!"

Ms. Lewis sounded on the verge of tears.

"It’s a Category 5 dust storm! You can’t see five feet in front of your face! Do they have a death wish?! I’m calling the police right now! Did you call 911?!"

"Yes, yes, I already did!"

"Is there anyone left on the bus? Did all of them leave?!"

Mr. Miller glanced back toward us.

"There are two left. Serena and Tara. They stayed behind."