Chapter 2

After Emily and David left the table, my parents started lecturing me.

"Sophia, you can't study all day. You should think about your personal life too," Mom said.

"Yeah. Look at Emily. She found such a great boyfriend. You should put in some effort too," Dad added.

"For a girl, finding a good partner to settle down with is important," Mom said.

I let their words go in one ear and out the other.

Seeing that I didn't react, my parents shook their heads helplessly. To them, I was someone with issues, but I was used to it.

After dinner, I got ready to head back to campus.

Before leaving, I went to my room to grab some papers.

Emily's room and mine were both on the second floor. I had to pass by hers to get to mine.

As I walked past her door, I noticed it was left slightly ajar, and broken moans and murmured voices drifted out from the crack.

"Emily, we're moving too fast. I'm afraid you might regret this," David said.

"I love you, David. I won't regret it," Emily replied.

David came from a modest background, but he was always ambitious.

In my previous life, he poured all his energy into his studies and work, and it wasn't until he was about to graduate from college that he finally told me he liked me.

I still remember him telling me he'd liked me all along but thought he wasn't good enough, so he waited until then.

It was only later that I realized David chose to be with me after he was sure I could be an asset to his career.

By that time, I was already set on a research career, had been accepted to grad school, and was making a name for myself in the field.

The panting from inside was getting louder and more intense. I turned away, pretending I hadn't heard a thing.

On my way back to campus, I received a photo from Emily.

She provocatively lifted her chin, flaunting the crimson marks on her neck like trophies.

And there was a message: [David is mine. I'm warning you. Don't think about stealing him from me.]

Though she was living another life, she still hadn't gotten her head straight.

She always thought snagging a good guy was the secret to a good life. She messed it up last time, and now she'd switched targets.

But would picking a different man make her happy? I seriously doubted it.

Thinking about it, I remembered that Emily had probably run into Ryan this year in my previous life.

But this time around, because we made different choices, a lot of things turned out differently.

Emily and I hung out in totally different places.

After starting college, Emily was always at parties and all kinds of club events.

In her previous life, she and Ryan had met at one of those club gatherings.

I spent most of my time in the classroom, library, or my dorm, and maybe soon, the lab would be added to the list.

Those were places Ryan would never be caught in.

There was a good chance I might never cross paths with Ryan in this life.

*****

When I got back to my dorm, my roommate Joyce Miller grabbed my arm and asked for a favor.

Joyce's family wasn't well-off, so she worked part-time at a bar after classes.

She looked pale, her voice barely above a whisper. "Sophia, could you cover my shift at the bar tomorrow? I'm sick and probably won't be able to make it."

"Can't you call in sick?" I asked.

"I could, but if I do, I'll lose my perfect attendance bonus for the month," she replied.

I frowned. "It's not that I don't want to help, but I've never worked at a bar before. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do."

Joyce's face lit up. "It's super easy. Bring in whatever people order. You're smart. You'll get the hang of it in no time."

I was still hesitating when Joyce doubled over, clutching her stomach and curling up into a ball. She looked pitiful as she pleaded, "Sophia, please, help me."

I looked at her and finally nodded. "Alright, but just this once. I don't have much time..."

"I know. You always say you don't have much time left, but Sophia, I'm really curious. Why do you keep saying that? You aren't secretly dying or something, are you?" Joyce joked, half-worried, half-teasing.

I patted her. "You're overthinking it. Go to sleep already."

Back in my previous life, when we were in college, AI technology took off like wildfire.

Centlandia and Mireilia were at each other's throats, fighting for the top spot in AI. This tech was about to launch society into a whole new era, and whoever grabbed the lead would be the one calling the shots.

My major was right in the thick of it, studying the heart of AI tech.

Standing at the cutting edge of this tech wave, all I wanted was to sprint ahead, chasing the future with everything I had.