Chapter 3

In my previous life, after I mustered up the courage to confess my feelings to him, my mom sent him my edited ugly photos, saying I was way out of his league.

I accepted his friend request.

Archie messaged me right away. [Are you okay?]

I hadn't even had a chance to reply yet when a commotion broke out at the classroom door.

My mom was here.

She had on oversized sunglasses and a mask, with only her swollen, red eyes peeking out.

She walked straight to my desk, her voice hoarse and full of feigned concern.

"Jessica, I was worried about you, so I came to see how you were doing," she said.

All the students in the class turned to stare at us.

She pulled off her face mask, revealing her still swollen face with the rash clearly visible.

"It's my fault; I shouldn't have bought all that random stuff online," she said.

Her eyes welled up, and tears started streaming down her face.

"I just wanted to stay young and keep up with you," she added.

Her performance successfully made some of the students who didn't know the full story start to waver.

I stood up and gently held her, my voice tinged with guilt and worry.

"Mom, please don't say that," I said softly.

I turned to face the entire class, looking wronged.

I said, "My mom just wanted to look pretty, so she bought some unregulated products online. She didn't expect things to go so wrong.

"She was too embarrassed to let me tell anyone, but it still went viral online.

"Please don't blame her. She just has a bit of a vanity problem."

My words instantly made everyone imagine a whole drama of "Vain Mom Edits Photos to Make Herself Look Good, Fails Miserably, and Blames Daughter Instead."

Combined with the stark contrast photos on her social media accounts, everyone looked at me with nothing but sympathy.

My mom hadn't expected me to pull this move. She froze, her face turning red and pale alternately.

She opened her mouth but couldn't get a single word out.

The news of the parent-teacher meeting hit our family like a bombshell.

My mom, her face still swollen and not fully recovered, immediately announced.

"I have to go to this parent-teacher meeting," she insisted.

My dad frowned. "Your face still isn't healed. Just let Jessica go on her own."

"Absolutely not!" My mom's tone was firm.

"Precisely because my face isn't better, I have to go. I need to show the teachers and other parents exactly how Jessica treats her own mother," she declared.

She just wanted to play the victim in public, pinning the label of a vicious daughter firmly on me.

I didn't say anything. I quietly went back to my room and compiled all the links to the posts on my mom's social media accounts where she had edited my photos to look ugly into a document.

Then I sent it anonymously to the head teacher and all the parents on the class contact list via email.

On the day of the parent-teacher meeting, my mom got up bright and early.

She had caked on heavy makeup that barely covered the flaws on her face.

She had also chosen to wear a white dress, which, paired with the haggardness she deliberately feigned, made her look like a wilting damsel in distress putting on an act.

The second she walked into the classroom, she made a beeline for my head teacher, Clive Woods.

She grabbed his hand, and tears welled up in her eyes instantly.

She said, "Mr. Woods, our Jessica has been going through a rebellious phase lately. She's been arguing with me about everything at home.

"The other day, over a tiny little thing, she actually went live on the internet and—"

But before she could finish, Clive cleared his throat awkwardly, cutting her off.

He said, "Mrs. Lincoln, please have a seat first. The parent-teacher meeting is about to start."

Clive avoided eye contact, clearly having received my email.

My mom didn't notice anything unusual. She shot me a triumphant glance and sat down in the empty seat next to me.

The parent-teacher meeting proceeded according to the schedule.

After Clive wrapped up his speech, he started showing a slideshow highlighting the star students.

I was the first one on the list.

My photo appeared on the projection screen, the real me with no edits at all.

But right after, the screen went black.