Chapter 2
"I... I didn't know!" Mia sobbed, her voice trembling violently. She shrank back, looking small and fragile. "I'm sorry, Scarlett! I'm just so stupid. I ruin everything I touch. I just saw the word 'energy' on the can and thought it would help you push through the finals... I swear I didn't know it was banned!"
She buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking.
Jake instantly melted. He stepped closer to her, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulder.
"Hey, hey, shh, it's okay," Jake murmured, gently rubbing her back. "Don't cry. You're just a clumsy sweetheart. It was an honest mistake."
He snapped his head toward me.
"Are you seriously this petty, Scarlett?" Jake snapped. "She made a mistake! She’s not trying to sabotage you. Why do you always have to be such a bully? Look at her, she’s practically shaking!"
A cold laugh escaped my throat.
"Bully?" I asked, taking a step toward him.
Before he could even blink, I raised my hand and swung.
Smack.
My palm connected with Jake’s jaw with a crack.
The entire gym gasped in unison.
"Fuck her good intentions," I spat. "Her 'honest mistake' would have gotten me stripped of my scholarship, kicked out of the league, and ruined my entire future. You want her toxic favors so badly? Keep them. I don't want them."
Jake stumbled back, a bright red handprint already forming on his cheek. He stared at me.
"Are you a psycho?!" he yelled, touching his burning face.
Mia threw herself in front of Jake, spreading her arms wide like she was taking a bullet for a soldier.
"Scarlett, stop!" Mia wailed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "It's my fault! I'm just too dumb to do anything right! I mess everything up! If you're mad, hit me! Please, just don't hurt Jake!"
I scoffed.
"Glad you know you're brainless."
Smack.
I slapped her. Hard. Right across her tear-stained cheek.
Mia shrieked, clutching her face as she stumbled sideways.
"You want a slap to play the victim?" I said coldly, watching the red mark bloom on her pale skin. "Consider it granted."
"Mia!" Jake roared.
His eyes went wild. He lunged forward, slamming both his hands heavily into my chest.
The shove was violent. I lost my balance and fell backward.
Crash.
My right arm slammed violently against the sharp metal armrest of the team bench.
A blinding flash of pain shot from my elbow straight up to my shoulder. I hit the floor hard, gasping for air.
"Scarlett!"
Harper, our backup setter, bolted out of the drill line. She dropped to her knees beside me, grabbing my good arm to help me up.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Jake?!" Harper screamed, glaring daggers at him. "You just shoved a girl! You shoved our starting captain the day before the CIF finals! If she can't play tomorrow, I swear to God—"
"She assaulted us first!" Jake yelled back, pointing a shaking finger at me. "You all saw it! She's out of her mind! She's acting like a complete bitch over a stupid energy drink!"
Some of the girls on the team murmured in agreement, but Harper shut them down with a fierce glare.
I pushed Harper's hands away gently. I gritted my teeth and forced myself to stand up.
My arm throbbed. A nasty, dark purple bruise was already forming across my skin. But the physical pain was nothing compared to the agony of the poison they forced down my throat in my past life. This was child's play.
I dusted off my spandex shorts and looked at them.
Mia was hiding behind Jake, crying softly into his jersey. Jake was standing tall, shielding her like a knight in shining armor.
"One tries to drug my pre-game routine," I sneered. "The other is my so-called boyfriend, violently defending the very girl trying to ruin my life. I slapped you because you're both absolute trash."
Jake's jaw clenched tightly. "Watch your mouth, Scarlett. You're crossing a line."
"I'm drawing a line," I fired back. "We're done, Jake."
"What?" Jake blinked, his anger momentarily replaced by shock.
"We're over," I said, looking him dead in the eye. "From today on, we have absolutely nothing to do with each other. I wish you and Mia a miserable, pathetic life together. You deserve each other."
Jake’s face flushed crimson.
"You're dumping me?" he scoffed loudly, trying to save face. "Fine! Break up with me! But don't you dare come crying to me when you realize what you just threw away. You're going to regret this, Scarlett!"
"Regret what?" I laughed coldly. "Regret dropping a guy who leeches off my family's connections while hooking up with the charity case my family funds? Please. You're a joke."
I didn't waste another second on him. I walked over to the bleachers, grabbed my Nike duffel bag, slung it over my uninjured shoulder, and walked straight out of the gym.
By the time I stepped onto the court the next afternoon, my mind was ice cold.
The CIF championship arena was deafening. Thousands of fans packed the stands, screaming over the blaring stadium music. The blinding overhead lights reflected off the polished hardwood. College scouts sat in the front rows, their pens hovering over their clipboards. This was my ticket to UCLA.
I stood by the bench, stretching my taped-up arm. The adrenaline was already pumping through my veins.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over me.
"Scarlett?"
I turned around.
Mia was standing there. She was wearing a staff lanyard around her neck, holding a tray full of electrolyte drinks. She flashed me that same innocent smile, as if yesterday's slaps had never even happened.
"Hey," Mia said softly, tilting her head. "I couldn't find your water bottle anywhere. Where is your cup? I can go fill it up for you."
My blood ran cold.
There it was. The exact trap that killed me in my past life.
