Chapter 1

My dormmate, Mona Joyce, is notorious for always enabling her younger brother, Matthew Joyce.

For Matthew's sake, she lives on bread and water just so she can send all her side income back home to him.

Everyone says that she has it rough and has been dealt a bad hand by fate.

Yet, she only ever steals from me, not anyone else.

She stole my skincare products and gave them to Matthew's girlfriend.

She stole my tablet so that Matthew could use it for his university entrance exam.

Every time she was discovered, she would cry her heart out.

In my past life, everyone would advise me to be the bigger person every time I wanted to make a police report.

"You're doing well for yourself, so what's wrong with letting her use it for a bit?"

"It's not as if you're unaware of her family situation."

"Hasn't she already returned it to you?"

"It won't do anyone any good to make a big deal out of this. It'll only impact our school's reputation."

So, I let things slide.

Later, one day before my thesis defense, she stole my flash drive.

With only two hours remaining before my thesis defense, I tearfully begged her to return it to me.

She told me that Matthew, assuming it was an ordinary flash drive, had formatted it.

My graduation was deferred, causing me to have a breakdown and call the police.

However, Mona and her entire family cornered me at the school entrance. Her mother, Karen Pratt, accused me of ruining Matthew's future.

When I next opened my eyes, I had returned to the day Mona first stole my money.

This time, I'm done arguing with her.

I simply placed a purse belonging to one of my incredibly "magnanimous" dormmates in my drawer with a smile.

Chapter 1

When I sat up in bed, it was still dark out.

The dormitory was very quiet, and all I could hear was the faint snoring of one of my dormmates, June Farrell.

I stared at the unlit light above me, my heart pounding harder with every passing second.

My phone screen was lit, showing that the date was the 16th of October.

I had returned to the day that one of my dormmates, Mona Joyce, first stole my money.

I slowly opened my drawer.

The kraft paper envelope I'd placed the money in was still there.

I'd stapled the flap tightly shut, but the staples had been undone.

The envelope was flat and light.

I turned it upside down and shook it, but not a single bill fell out.

320 dollars, all gone.

I'd saved up that money bit by bit from tutoring an eighth-grader for half a month.

I clutched the empty envelope so hard that my knuckles turned white.

In my past life, it had also been this very morning that I discovered my money missing.

Mona had been the first person who came to mind.

I'd rushed off to ask her why she'd stolen my money.

In response, she'd broken down in anguished tears before the entire dormitory.

She'd come off incredibly genuine with big, fat tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Natalie, I really didn't steal it. How could I steal your money?" she sobbed. "My family is poor, but I have my pride. I've never taken a single cent from anyone!"

June had been the first to get out of bed and pull me back.

"Natalie, stop this. It's not as if you're unaware of her family situation," she'd said to me.

Our other dormmate, Rosa Cheney, had also frowned and chimed in, "How could she possibly have stolen your money when she's always eating plain bread? Could you have misplaced it somewhere?"

Our class president, Shannon Kirby, wrote a text in the class group chat the next day to smooth things over.

"Let's all resolve in-dormitory conflicts internally first instead of involving the entire school. It'll only impact our school's reputation."

Everyone advised me to be the bigger person and spoke up in Mona's defense, so I let things slide.

However, Mona proceeded to steal from me a second time, then a third.

Items disappeared from my drawer one by one—my lipstick, my serum, my facial lotion.

Meanwhile, Mona's brother, Matthew Joyce, started flaunting his girlfriend's new lipstick and skincare products on Instagram.

His captions were always the same.

"Thank you, Mona."

Later, she also "borrowed" the tablet I'd spent half a year saving for.

When she first borrowed it, she promised to return it after a week, but a month went by without any news about it.

When I questioned her about it, she replied through sobs, "It wasn't me. I honestly don't know what you're talking about. Stop blaming me every time you lose track of your things. You're so well-off, and it's just one tablet. Can't you just consider it a short loan?"

Further into the future, on the day before my thesis defense, she stole my flash drive.

My graduation thesis, defense presentation, and experimental data were all stored on that small flash drive.

With two hours remaining until my thesis defense, I knelt on the floor and begged her to return it to me.

She replied with teary eyes that Matthew, assuming it to be an ordinary flash drive, had formatted it and stored his games on it.

Four years of my hard work had been wiped clean, just like that.

In the end, my graduation was deferred.

I had a breakdown and went to the police about the incident, only for her and her entire family to corner me by the school gates.

Her mother, Karen Pratt, pointed accusingly at me and shouted, "That's her! She's the one who wanted to ruin my son's future and make my daughter face disciplinary action!"

At that moment, not a single person stood up for me.

June, Rosa, and Shannon all stood silently among the crowd, watching Mona and her family tear into me.

Bile rose in my throat at the memory, but I took a deep breath and swallowed it down.

As I looked at the empty envelope in my hand, I suddenly smiled.

In this life, I was done arguing with Mona.

I was going to make her cough up everything she stole from me—with interest.

I put on my shoes, got out of bed, and walked over to June's desk.

Her fat pink wallet was lying on the desk, filled with her living expenses for next week.

I picked it up and put it into my drawer.

Then, I walked over to the head of Rosa's bed and lifted her pillow to reveal a pair of silver earrings lying underneath it.

The earrings had been her mother's birthday gift to her and had cost 1,200 dollars.

I took them and placed them in my drawer as well.

Once that was done, I returned to my bed, set my phone to silent, and tucked it under my blanket.

I positioned it so that only the lens was visible and directly facing my desk.

I knew that Mona would definitely drop by that night.

Chapter 2

On the same night I set things up, I feigned sleep.

The dormitory was so dark with the lights off that I couldn't see my hand in front of my face.

I closed my eyes and counted my breaths.

At half past two in the morning, I heard a creaking sound from the upper bunk of the bunk bed across from me.

Mona had gotten out of bed.

First, she stood barefoot before her own desk for a short while.

Then, she walked toward me.

She didn't knock anything over, kick any chairs, or bump into any bedframes.

For someone who couldn't even keep her own space tidy, she was incredibly surefooted in the night.

She stopped in front of my desk and opened the drawer with a faint creak.

She then reached a hand in and felt around.

It wasn't my money she found but June's wallet.

She didn't hesitate or open the wallet to check its contents. Instead, she immediately tucked it away.

Then, she turned and walked toward Rosa.

I held my breath and kept my eyes on my phone screen.

The red recording icon was blinking.

Early the next morning, June blew her top.

"Where's my wallet? Why is my wallet missing?"

She ripped her bedsheets off and turned her drawers inside out until, eventually, her gaze landed on me.

"Natalie, did you touch my desk yesterday?" she asked.

The dormitory fell silent instantly.

Mona curled up in her bed without saying a single word.

I looked up at June and replied steadily, "I didn't take it. Your wallet is with Mona."

June was stunned.

Mona sat up in bed with a jolt, visibly tearing up.

"W-What did you say? Natalie, you can't randomly lash out at people just because you lost something! Why would I have taken June's wallet?"

As she spoke, tears started slipping down her face.

She continued, "No matter how poor I am, I wouldn't steal from a classmate. How could you think that of me?"

Rosa quickly stepped in to mediate. "Nattie, could you be mistaken? Mona isn't that sort of person. How could someone like her, who lives off plain bread, possibly steal money?"

June also snapped out of her stupor and said in a softer tone, "In that case, tell me, Mona—did you take my wallet or not?"

Mona started crying even harder, her shoulders shaking. "June, I really didn't. Will you please believe me this one time? I have enough on my plate already, so please stop pushing me. I'm close to my limit."

She wept with such anguish and sincerity that June was clearly prepared to let the matter go.

I could already predict the words at the tip of her tongue.

"Forget it. Let's just assume I misplaced it."

I watched her fiddle with the wallet straps.

The wallet had held her living expenses for the following month—a total of 680 dollars.

I knew that she was feeling hesitant.

While she felt sorry for Mona, it also hurt her to lose that money.

I sneered inwardly.

She'd also given me similar advice in my past life.

"You're doing well for yourself, so what's wrong with letting her use it for a bit?"

Now that it was her turn to lose her wallet, could she still remain so magnanimous?

After several seconds of hesitation, June turned away and said quietly, "Forget it. I may have just misplaced it somewhere. It's just a few hundred dollars, so I'll let it slide."

Rosa immediately piped up, "Exactly. We see each other all the time, so let's not make things awkward."

Mona sniffled and nodded repeatedly. "Thank you for your understanding, June. And thank you, Rosa."

Her tears seemed so genuine. She made it look like she'd suffered a terrible injustice.

I stood to one side, watching her with a chill in my heart.

In my past life, she'd cried just like this when she had stolen my money.

I cried, threw a tantrum, and got my revenge on her.

Yet, everyone accused me of being petty and cold-blooded for bullying a pitiful person.

Now, even though it was June's turn to lose her wallet, she eventually dropped her accusation as well.

In fact, she'd given up even faster than I had in my past life because she was afraid of being labeled as a heartless person.

I slowly reached into my pocket and pressed the stop button on the audio recorder inside.

I intended to keep thorough records of certain conversations.

Chapter 3

On the afternoon of the same day Mona stole June's wallet, she disappeared again.

When she returned at night, there was a small black bag in her hands.

I recognized at a glance that it was a canvas bag used by the jewelry store near the school's back entrance.

Rosa's silver earrings also happened to vanish right around that time.

This time, Rosa wasn't as easily appeased as June.

She cornered Mona on the latter's bed and stated with a frighteningly cold expression, "Mona, my Mom gave me those earrings as a gift. They cost her 1,200 dollars. You owe me an explanation."

Mona started crying again.

"Rosa, how could you think that of me? Why would I steal your earrings? My ears aren't even pierced! I've been feeling so much pressure lately with all of you breathing down my neck. I'm really almost at my limit."

Rosa was shaking with anger.

"Who wouldn't be feeling pressured with you crying all day? Where are my earrings?" she snapped.

June stepped forward to hold her back. "Forget it. It's just a pair of earrings. Let's not push Mona to the point of making her fall ill. You know as well as I do what her family situation is like."

Rosa was stuck in a dilemma.

She stood rooted to the spot, looking between June and Mona, who was sobbing uncontrollably.

In my past life, it was exactly this sort of moral dilemma that gradually destroyed me.

If I made a fuss about it, I was clearly a heartless person.

If I pursued accountability, I was clearly trying to drive Mona to the edge.

Now, Rosa was experiencing the same.

She glanced resentfully at me and said, "Natalie, won't you say something? Aren't you our resident expert at catching thieves?"

I sat on my bed and replied without looking up, "Don't you two always say I should let things slide? So, you should also let this slide."

Rosa was struck speechless. Her face was thoroughly flushed.

Yet, she refused to let the issue go and shouted at Mona, "My mother gave me those earrings! I could only ever bring myself to wear them on my birthday! I demand an explanation from you!"

Mona plopped herself straight on the floor and started wailing.

"I really didn't take it, Rosa. Please stop driving me into a corner. It's not as if you don't know what my family situation is like. I couldn't care less about your earrings when Matthew barely has any food to eat!"

Rosa opened her mouth to retort but ended up swallowing the harsh words on the tip of her tongue.

She watched Mona weep, feeling a mix of anger and helplessness.

In the end, she could only stamp her feet, return to her own bed, and pull the blanket over her head.

I knew that she was upset.

Her mother had scrimped and saved to buy those earrings for her as a coming-of-age gift.

She treasured them greatly and couldn't even bring herself to wear them on ordinary days.

But now, Mona had probably offered them to Matthew's girlfriend to get in her good graces.

I said nothing.

I wanted June and Rosa to experience for themselves the feeling of betrayal that came with being told to "forget it".

For now, I stopped paying them attention.

Instead, I looked down and saved the contents of my phone into a folder labeled "Evidence" one by one.

The first item was a screenshot from footage taken by a surveillance camera in the hallway.

It showed Mona sneaking down the hallway at 2:30 am in the direction of my bunk.

The second item was a screenshot of one of Matthew's Instagram posts.

It contained a photo of his girlfriend holding up a tube of lipstick and smiling sweetly.

The caption read, "Thanks, babe. Thanks, Mona."

The lipstick was in the same shade as the one I lost.

The third item was a record of multiple bank transfers from Mona to Matthew.

She'd transferred a total of 1,400 dollars across three transactions to him within a single week, each and every transaction attached with the remark "For Matty".

I felt very calm at the sight of all this evidence.

In my past life, I'd kept no records, because I naively assumed that as long as I was in the right, public opinion would be in my favor.

But I had been wrong.

In this life, I wouldn't believe a single word from anyone.

I would only trust in visible, tangible evidence.

After saving all the evidence, I looked up at Mona.

She was wiping away tears with her head bowed, but for the briefest moment, her lips curved up into a smile.

Although it was only visible for a split second, I saw it anyway.

It was a smile akin to a cat who'd gotten the cream.

Chapter 4

The next day, a post on an anonymous message board caused a huge stir.

Mona had made a tearful post with a provocative title on it.

"My dormmate is clearly aware of my family's financial difficulties, yet she conspired with others to frame me for theft. I'm almost at my limit."

In the post, she painted herself as a pitiful student who had been ostracized by her entire dormitory.

On the other hand, she portrayed me as someone who was "incredibly manipulative and looked down on others just because she was well-off" and "spearheaded the exclusion of underprivileged students".

Every single word struck precisely where it hurt most.

The comments section quickly got behind her.

"What a scary dormmate. That's some major jealousy."

"Underprivileged students already have enough on their plate without being bullied on top of it. Has she no conscience?"

"I suggest that you report this directly to a school counselor. We can't let people like her continue to get away with this."

"Didn't someone previously accuse her of stealing things? Well, how the tables have turned."

Comments flooded in one after another.

I scrolled through them with steady fingers.

In my past life, she'd also first made me out to be a bully who constantly harassed her dormmate, just like this.

As a result, I became the target of public criticism while she became the poor victim the entire internet sympathized with.

Both June and Rosa saw the post.

They looked grim, but neither of them dared to speak up in my defense.

June asked me quietly, "Natalie, are you just going to let her write about you like that?"

I said nothing.

Rosa also scooted over and asked, "Why don't you explain yourself in the comments? If you allow this to continue, things won't look good for you."

I shook my head. "It's not the right time."

June cried out anxiously, "Then, how long are you going to wait? Are you just going to let her drag your name through the mud?"

While gazing at the folder labeled "Evidence" on my phone, I replied, "I'm waiting for her to wrap up her act. The more pitifully she cries and the higher she aims, the more humiliating it'll be when she eventually comes crashing back down."

June was too stunned to speak.

Rosa looked between me and my phone, eventually letting her words die on the tip of her tongue.

That afternoon, a school counselor named Sarah Lewis summoned me to her office.

Before I left to see her, June tugged on my arm and said, "Natalie, Ms. Lewis most likely wants to see you about the anonymous post."

I patted her hand and replied, "It's alright. I've got this."

Rosa leaned in to ask, "Do you want us to go with you? We can vouch for you."

I shook my head. "There's no need for that. Some things are better explained by oneself."

I walked out of the dormitory with my phone in hand.

Ms. Lewis closed the door, her expression solemn.

"Natalie, I believe you've seen the anonymous post. Mona's feeling down in the dumps right now. She reported to a counselor that you've been leading the online harassment against her. This situation reflects very poorly on our school, so we would like an explanation. Before that, please contact your parents."

I looked calmly at her and replied, "Ms. Lewis, I'd like to ask you to take a look at a few things first."

I handed her my phone.

First, I showed her the screenshot of Matthew's Instagram post where he showed off the lipstick. The lipstick's shade matched mine, and the post's date aligned with when I had lost it.

Then, I showed her the bank transfers Mona made to Matthew.

Ms. Lewis looked through the images one by one, her brows furrowing deeper with each one.

When she looked up and spoke to me, her tone was no longer as harsh as before.

"This evidence still cannot prove that she stole anything."

I nodded. "But I have a way to prove who exactly the liar and thief is between us."

Finally, I tapped on a video.

Just then, the sound of footsteps rang out from the doorway.

Mona had appeared in the office doorway at some point.

Her face was terribly pale, and she couldn't seem to say a single word.