My Rebirth Is Their Funeral

After the SAT results come out, the girl everyone knows as the school's scholarship case throws a lavish graduation party. That same night, I get a text alert saying my credit card has been maxed out. I go to confront her, but she's already in my boyfriend's arms, sobbing like she's the victim. "Just because I'm on financial aid, I'm not allowed to throw a party?" My boyfriend rushes to comfort her and turns on me instead. "Your family's loaded anyway. Spending a little on Lacey isn't going to kill you." Sure, my family has money, but I'm not a saint, and I don't see why I should be footing her bills. I refuse to back down. I call the police to make her pay me back, but my boyfriend retaliates by going after my family's company, pushing it to the brink of bankruptcy. On my way to meet potential investors, my boyfriend and Lacey Kemp conspire to run me off the road and kill me. When I open my eyes again, I'm back on the day of her party. Chapter 1 "Yes, I want all transactions on this card blocked." The first thing I did when I opened my eyes was grab my phone and call the bank. Once the card Lacey Kemp had taken was locked, I finally let out a breath of relief. I came back to my senses and took in my surroundings, my mind still racing. Right on cue, my phone rang. Lacey's name flashed on the screen. The horrific ending from my last life was still playing on loop in my head. I let out a cold laugh and answered. "Hello?" "Nicole?" Hearing Lacey's voice again made my blood boil. "What do you want?" She didn't seem to expect me to be this cold. Even though my family had been sponsoring Lacey for years as a charity case, I'd always treated her like a sister. But she recovered quickly, her voice turning syrupy sweet. "Actually, yes! I'm throwing a graduation party tonight at The Grandview Hotel. Nicole, do you want to come? This is the first time in my life I've ever thrown anything this fancy. Please, please, you have to come show your support." She paused, then added, "Brandon's going to be there too. Haven't you two not seen each other in a while?" I looked at my freshly done nails and smiled. "Sure. It's your big night. Don't forget to order some nice dishes." After I hung up, I clenched my fists. She told me I hadn't seen Brandon Cooper in a while, as if she knew more about my "boyfriend's" whereabouts than I did. In my last life, I'd assumed Brandon had been overseas taking over his family's business and hadn't asked questions. I found out later that the two of them had been traveling the world together without telling anyone, and they only got back yesterday. That comment of hers just now was a blatant provocation. … At 7:00 pm, I walked into The Grandview Hotel ballroom right on time. Everything was exactly the same as my last life, with 18 tables loaded with lobster, prime rib, and top-shelf champagne and wine. The glittering chandeliers overhead made the whole place drip with extravagance. Lacey was in an expensive white dress, standing side by side with Brandon, making the rounds table by table with drinks. The two of them were laughing and chatting, Lacey hanging on Brandon's arm like they were the perfect couple. It didn't look like a graduation party at all. It looked more like an engagement reception. The moment I walked in, every eye in the room turned my way. The whispering started almost immediately. "Is that Nicole Dixon? She and Lacey must be really close if she came all the way here." "Definitely. I heard the Dixon family treats Lacey so well she's practically a second daughter." "Then, it makes sense that Brandon's here too. Aren't those two engaged?" "Don't go spreading that around. Brandon and Nicole might not even be together. Last time someone asked him, he didn't give an answer." I listened to the chatter and forced a smile. When Lacey spotted me, she immediately pulled Brandon forward, her voice dripping with fake surprise. "Oh! Nicole, you made it?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, a little too deliberately, her face flushing as she lowered her voice. "Don't get the wrong idea, okay? Brandon just insisted on helping me with the toasts because he was worried I can't hold my liquor." Brandon's expression had been sour from the moment he laid eyes on me, and hearing Lacey's little explanation only made him frown harder. "Nicole, don't give Lacey a hard time." I almost laughed at the sheer absurdity of it and couldn't help firing back, "I haven't even said anything yet?" Seeing the tension escalate, Lacey jumped in immediately, "Bran, don't be like that. I'm already so happy Nicole came. How is she giving me a hard time?" Watching Lacey get more and more into her act, I grabbed her hand and gave her a sweet smile. "What are you talking about, Lacey? Why would I ever be mad at you?" Brandon relaxed at that and let out a scoff. "Good. At least you know your place." The smile on my face didn't waver as I continued, "After all, a piece of trash like Brandon? Only someone who loves collecting junk would fight over him." The entire ballroom went dead silent. Lacey's smile froze on her face, and Brandon's expression turned livid. "Nicole!" Chapter 2 Brandon stormed forward and raised his hand to slap me. I sidestepped and grabbed his wrist. "Brandon, you really think you're tough now? You lay a finger on me today, and the consequences aren't something the Cooper family's second son can afford." Brandon's expression shifted, something like humiliation crossing his face. "You…" I used to love Brandon's looks and that stubborn streak of his. When we were together, I'd always go along with whatever he wanted and smooth things over. Hitting him where it hurt this directly was clearly more than he could handle. But there was nothing he could do about it. His family's company still depended on mine for business, so he couldn't afford to burn that bridge. Brandon was so furious a vein throbbed at his temple, but all he could do was yank his hand free. "Nicole, watch your mouth!" I put on a look of mild surprise. "What did I say wrong? Isn't it the truth?" A few classmates jumped in with nervous laughs to break the tension. "Come on, why are you two fighting? It's Lacey's party. Don't do this." "Yeah, Nicole, calm down. You've always had such a temper." "But actually, how did Lacey suddenly have this kind of money? I know the Dixon family treats her well, but…" But she wasn't actually family. The classmate who'd spoken seemed to realize she'd said too much and quickly shut up. Lacey had recovered by then, and her eyes turned red at the question. "No, no, it's not the Dixons' money. After exams ended, I got a job working for Bran. The whole time I was at the Coopers' company, I was the first one in and the last one out every day. "Bran felt sorry for me and gave me a decent salary. Everyone at school helped me so much back then. I just wanted to give a little something back." By the end of it, tears were rolling down her cheeks, and she turned the blame straight on me. "Nicole, there's really nothing going on between Bran and me. How could you say something like that about me?" Her heartfelt little speech had even our homeroom teacher, Max Coleman, tearing up. "You've always been the most responsible kid in the class, and now you're showing gratitude on top of it. That's really something." The class president, Jordan Burk, chimed in right after, "Isn't that right, Mr. Coleman? Some people can have all the money in the world and still not measure up to someone who earned every penny on her own." The tide turned instantly, and the way everyone looked at me changed. "Isn't Nicole being kind of aggressive?" "Just because her family's rich, she can bully people like that? Lacey earned every cent she has on her own!" "So, being rich means you're above the rest of us? She didn't come here to celebrate. She came here to start something." I kept my expression cold and acted like I hadn't heard any of it. Brandon gently patted Lacey's back and shot me a cold look. "Lacey, let's go. Don't waste your time on this psycho." The two of them didn't spare me another glance and focused on smoothing things over with the guests and the teacher. Brandon stayed by Lacey's side the entire time, pouring her drinks and taking shots on her behalf. Whenever she dabbed at her eyes, he was right there handing her a tissue. Every gesture was natural and intimate. They were obviously a couple. That was when Jordan piped up again, seemingly on purpose, "Brandon, you're really going all out taking drinks for our Lacey. What's the deal between you two?" Lacey blushed and denied it immediately, "Oh, stop. Don't say things like that." "Bran's just a nice guy helping out. There's nothing between us." But Brandon never denied it. If anything, he stepped half a step closer to her. "I've always thought of Lacey as my closest little sister. Taking drinks for my sister is the least I can do." None of the waitstaff had come to seat me, but I didn't care. I found an empty chair and sat down on my own. Watching Brandon's little performance, I stood right back up and clapped my hands. "Great! What a wonderful 'sister.' Lacey, this graduation party turned out really nice! Congratulations!" The sound drew everyone's attention. I made a show of thinking it over. "Lacey practically grew up under the Dixon family's roof, and today, she's finally graduating. I'm happy for her. I got a little carried away earlier and caused some drama, and I'm sorry about that. "So how about this? My treat—a car for every single person here to celebrate graduation! As long as each one stays under 100,000 dollars, I'll cover it. Consider it a graduation gift!" The room erupted. I immediately put on a troubled expression and turned to Lacey. "But would you mind if I charged it to your card first? I left in such a rush today that I forgot my Black card. I heard you made pretty good money working on that project with Brandon, so you could front me the cash, right?" Lacey knew I was doing this to humiliate her on purpose. But since it was technically "my card" anyway, she only thought about it for a second before nodding. "Of course. It's no trouble at all." Chapter 3 With over 50 classmates in the room, the total came out to nearly five million dollars. Everyone knew the amount was nothing to me, but not a single person had expected Lacey to have "earned" that much and then some during her time with Brandon. Most people wouldn't see a million dollars in their entire lives. So even though I was the one offering to buy everyone cars, the rest of the dinner turned into the Lacey Kemp show. Classmates lined up to toast her, gushing with compliments and nosy questions. "Lacey, how much did you actually make at Brandon's company?" "Oh, my God, five million dollars in spending money, and you didn't even flinch! You've officially moved up in the world!" "You just finished high school, and you're already set for life!" Lacey soaked up every ounce of it and turned to Mr. Coleman with her best dutiful-student expression. "Mr. Coleman, don't worry. Nicole might've forgotten about you, but I'll make sure you get a car too—something in the six figures. It's the least I can do after everything you've done for me." Mr. Coleman got visibly emotional and stood up to take her hand. "Lacey, I've been teaching for years, and you're the student I'm most proud of!" "You're too kind." All the praise was going straight to Lacey's head. She turned and flagged down a waiter. "Excuse me. Can we get two more bottles of Dom Pérignon? And add a few more lobsters and king crabs to the order. It's not every day everyone's together like this, so let's make sure we eat and drink well!" Another round of cheering erupted. I was the one buying them all cars, and they couldn't have cared less. They'd completely sidelined me. Brandon didn't so much as glance my way either, too busy doting on Lacey hand and foot. When the king crab arrived, he put a piece right on her plate. Lacey shook her head with a smile, practically pouting. "No, I want Bran to shell it for me." Brandon reached over and gave her nose a playful tap. Half the room saw it. A few people snuck glances at me, their eyes gleaming with the thrill of watching drama unfold. "See? They say they're not a couple, but it's so obvious at this point." "Don't piss off our big spender over there, though. She's still buying us cars!" "Big spender? She probably treats five million dollars the way the rest of us treat a five-dollar bill, like she's tossing change at beggars." "Well, the Dixon family's been rich since her grandfather's generation. This kind of money is probably pocket change to her." Ungrateful leeches, every single one of them. I took a sip of coffee and kept my expression ice cold. Lacey noticed the looks and jumped in quickly. "You guys, don't get the wrong idea. I only think of Bran as an older brother, really! It's nothing like that!" I ignored her innocent little act and just kept my head down, eating. They could say whatever they wanted. There was still a show to come, and I wasn't about to watch it on an empty stomach. Chapter 4 The dinner was finally winding down, and classmates had broken off into small groups. Some were already looking up car models and prices on their phones while others were calling home to share the good news. The whole room buzzed like it was New Year's Eve. Lacey was all smiles as the crowd swarmed around her on the way to the hotel front desk to settle the bill. "Don't rush, everyone. There's more planned after this. We're all going out to a club." Brandon was carrying her purse for her like it was the most natural thing in the world. The two of them walked side by side at the front of the group, looking every bit the picture-perfect couple. I'd had my fill, so I got up to follow. That was when Brandon stopped and turned around. His gaze cut through the crowd and landed squarely on me in the corner. "Nicole, are you done eating?" He had a smile on his face, and his voice wasn't loud, but it carried far enough for everyone around to hear. The group stopped and turned to look. Something prickled at the back of my mind. I had a feeling whatever came next wasn't going to be pleasant. Sure enough, his expression darkened a second later. "You actually have the nerve to sit there and enjoy this dinner? Weren't you always using your money to humiliate Lacey? "The fact that she's willing to let all of that go and invite you to her graduation party should tell you just how big her heart is. And what do you do? Just sit there stuffing your face? What, have you never seen food before?" After that little speech, the way everyone looked at me shifted again. The whole thing was absurd. Brandon's accusations came out of nowhere and made absolutely no sense. When had I ever used money to humiliate Lacey? But Brandon didn't give me time to respond, his eyes glinting with mockery. "Nicole, you're always looking down on everyone from your high horse. Now that you see Lacey doing this well on her own, it must really eat you up inside, doesn't it?" I was so angry I was nearly speechless, but I wasn't about to hold back. "Brandon, you keep saying I humiliated Lacey. Where's the proof? "My family has been paying for Lacey's education for years. Where do you get off accusing me like this? I even used to go out of my way to help her because I felt sorry for her. Now helping someone is a crime? Is her ego really that fragile?" I didn't bother holding back my disgust. "You all think she's some kind of little angel? She's an ungrateful snake. And you're a complete idiot for not seeing it." "What did you just say?" Brandon lunged forward, but Lacey grabbed his arm and held him back. "Bran, stop!" She choked back a sob and dropped her head, every inch the picture of heartbreak. "Don't talk about Nicole like that. She never did any of those things to me." That only fired the crowd up even more. "Lacey, we're all right here. Don't be scared!" "Yeah, we've got your back. It's just a stupid car. We don't need it that badly!" "Nicole, you've got some nerve! You think being rich makes you untouchable? Apologize to Lacey right now!" I pointed at myself in disbelief. "Wait. I'm the one who has to apologize?" Lacey threw herself between the crowd and me, pleading with everyone to calm down. "Enough, you guys! I know you all mean well, but it's getting late. Once I pay the bill, we're all heading out to a club. Let's not ruin the night fighting over this!" The classmates eventually settled down, though the dirty looks in my direction didn't let up. Lacey shot me a subtle look of triumph, pulled out the bank card, and stepped up to pay. I sat back and waited, perfectly at ease. The card reader let out a sharp beep. The cashier's face fell. "Ms. Kemp, this card isn't going through. There are no funds available."