In my past life, my mother was obsessed with competing against me. When my grandmother gave me a vintage diamond bracelet, Mom snatched it away, her eyes red with envy. "You think a useless thing like you deserves to wear something this expensive?" When my boyfriend sent me flowers for Valentine's Day, she gritted her teeth in anger, yet feigned indifference. "He only sent those because you're my daughter. If I were a few years younger, do you think he'd even look at you?" Later, she actually crawled into my boyfriend's bed, stark naked. After the scandal broke, she begged me not to tell my father. Soft-hearted as I was, I agreed. Her repayment? During a family trip to a national park, she shoved me off a cliff. Before I hit the bottom, I saw her face, twisted with a euphoric, sick joy. "You have all this only because you came out of me! Why should you have a better life than mine? I should have never given birth to you!" When I opened my eyes again, it was the summer after high school graduation. Mom, this time, I won’t be the silent victim. I’m going to be the loudspeaker broadcasting your desperate need for attention to the world. Chapter 1 When I was seven, I stared longingly at a matching mother-daughter outfit in a shop window. I tugged at the hem of her skirt, pointing. She looked down at me with pure disgust. "What? You just want to wear that so you can outshine me and get your dad to praise you, right?" When I was fourteen, Dad was away on a business trip. I cooked a table full of dishes for her while she was out shopping, craving just a single smile or a word of praise. Instead, she flipped the table in a rage, screaming, "You wasteful brat! I worked hard to birth you and raise you! I quit my job for you! What is the use of cooking all this? Who are you trying to impress?!" I thought I would eventually wake up. I thought I would stop begging for her warmth. When I was eighteen, I got into college. My grandparents gave me a high-quality jade bangle. She made snide remarks, dripping with jealousy, until I took it off with both hands and offered it to her. Only when it was on her wrist did she finally calm down. Later, in college, I found a boyfriend who truly loved me. When I excitedly shared my happiness with my family, she waited until Dad wasn't looking, went into my room, put on my clothes, and posed in front of the mirror. She sneered, "If I were a few years younger, there's no way he'd pick you." In the end, she climbed into my boyfriend's bed naked. When he screamed in terror and fled, she cried snot and tears, begging me not to tell Dad. I softened again. The price of my mercy was my heartbeat stopping forever in a nameless valley. Chapter 2 The moment I opened my eyes, I could still feel the phantom pain of rocks shattering the back of my skull, and the shock and resentment filling my chest. When my vision cleared, I found myself squatting in the laundry room, facing a plastic basin piled high with socks that had turned gray from wear. It was the summer I graduated high school. My dad, David, walked by in his undershirt, holding a bowl of fruit he intended to wash. He poked his head in, grinning at me with a look of relief. "Looks like our Harper is growing up. Not a lazy girl anymore." Before I could speak, my mother, Crystal, sniffed her way over like a bloodhound. She was wearing tight skinny jeans and pink fuzzy slides with rhinestones on the toes. In her hand, she held a tub of Ben & Jerry's she’d just pulled from the freezer. She looked me up and down and let out a dismissive tsk. "Not lazy? If she wasn't lazy, would she let the socks pile up until they're this filthy before washing them?" Dad looked awkward, wanting to say something but stopping himself. As if smelling something foul, Mom covered her nose in exaggerated disgust and took a giant step back, dragging Dad with her. "Harper, how long have you been wearing these? Your feet stink. You didn't inherit a single good thing from me. Dark skin, skinny as a rail, and now foot odor?" I stood up, grabbed a towel to dry my hands, and gave my parents a wide, bright smile. "Mom, you forgot? You took all the clean socks from my drawer because yours were dirty. You only stuffed them back into my laundry hamper after you wore them." "I can't just let them sit there rotting, right?" The silence that followed was terrifying. Mom’s face turned green. The hand covering her nose hovered awkwardly in the air. I didn't care about them. I walked right past them, went to my room, and locked the door. Half an hour later, Dad texted me on WeChat: Harper, you can't be so blunt. It was too hurtful. She's still your mother. She's been crying on the sofa for thirty minutes. Come out and apologize. I sneered and closed the chat. She is my mother, biologically. But if she actually treated me like a daughter, she wouldn't have pushed me off a cliff in my last life. As for her crying? It wasn't because I hurt her heart. It was because the perfect image she meticulously curated for her husband had just been ripped open, exposing the ugly truth underneath. She was just humiliated. Chapter 3 My dad is an only child. My grandparents are both retired teachers who live in the same gated community as us. To celebrate my acceptance into the State University, the elderly couple prepared a huge feast at their home and invited us over. On the way downstairs, Mom wore sunglasses and refused to talk to me, probably still salty about the sock incident. But she hummed a tune, acting like she was in a great mood. When a neighbor asked why she looked so happy, she lowered her sunglasses and put on a fake, coy act. "Oh, my daughter isn't very ambitious. She only got into the local State U. Her grandparents wouldn't even book a hotel for her graduation party." "It really boils down to her own lack of effort. Back when David and I got married, we had the best hotel in the city. The dress, the gold jewelry... nothing compares to that nowadays." "It's useless for my in-laws to value her. She's just dead weight." Speaking of this, Mom covered her mouth and giggled, trembling like a flower in the wind. I couldn't be bothered to respond. Her breakdown was scheduled for later. We arrived at the other building. Grandma was already waiting downstairs, beaming. Seeing me, she pulled me into a hug, patted my shoulder, and said, "Our Harper is so capable! State U is a great school!" She guided me upstairs, completely ignoring the woman behind us. Entering the apartment, I realized it wasn't just my grandparents. The living room was full of people—men and women, young and middle-aged, all well-dressed, surrounding my grandfather. As I walked in, people stood up to greet me, handing me gifts one after another. Under Grandma's guidance, I thanked them and chatted. I learned these were all Granddad's former students, invited specifically for my graduation party. When Mom walked in and saw the crowd, she froze. Then, seeing the pile of gifts in my arms, that familiar jealous glint flickered in her eyes. I knew that look too well. When the guests learned who she was, they offered polite, distant greetings. Mom, oblivious to the atmosphere, sat down loudly and started acting overly familiar with the people around her. The topic, of course, was me. Specifically, how "shocking" it was that someone who ranked last in middle school could get into college. How I was wasteful and argumentative at home but acted so obedient in public. I saw the guests' expressions turning sour. They didn't know how to respond. Suddenly, Mom dropped a bomb. "Harper, are your grades even real? You didn't cheat, did you?" Silence. Dead silence. She was absolutely the first person to question her own daughter's integrity at her graduation party. Grandpa cleared his throat, interrupting her. "It's late. Everyone, please take a seat." Mom tried to sit next to me, but Grandma said coldly, "Harper sits between me and her grandfather today. Crystal, you don't have a problem with that, do you?" She wouldn't dare. If Grandma told her the sky was green, she'd agree. The atmosphere at the table warmed up. Everyone was smiling except Mom. They encouraged me to broaden my horizons in college. Around 7:30, Dad rushed in, dusty from work. Shortly after he sat down, Grandma brought out an exquisite velvet box from the back room. She opened it in front of everyone. Inside was a translucent, high-quality jade bangle. Tears welled up in the old couple's eyes. "Harper, going to college is a big step. This is our gift to you. We hope your life is smooth and peaceful." Grandma took my hand, about to slide the bangle onto my wrist. That’s when the accident happened. Mom rushed over, eyes red with rage, and snatched the bangle from Grandma’s hand. Her voice was shrill. "Mom! She's just a money-losing burden! Why does she deserve to wear something this expensive?!" The room erupted in gasps. Dad was the first to react. His face darkened. He patted Mom’s shoulder, whispering her name, signaling her to calm down. Mom shook off his hand and screamed, "Did I say anything wrong, David? I carried on the family line for the Zhangs! Even if I only birthed this useless thing, I still have merit!" "Are you just going to let your parents stomp on my dignity like this?!" The guests looked at each other, silent and awkward. In my past life, under such a grand display of madness, I would have buried my head in the sand, apologizing in a whisper, tugging at her shirt. Grandparents, seeing me like that, couldn't help me even if they wanted to. And back then, I would have handed the gift to her when we got home just to make her stop. But I was back now. Dad frowned and looked at me pleadingly, hoping I would smooth things over. I feigned helplessness and grabbed Grandma’s hand. "Mom," I said, my voice trembling but clear. "You already melted down all the silver bracelets and necklaces Grandma gave me over the last seventeen years to make new jewelry for yourself. But can you please not take this one? I really like it..." "This is a graduation gift... the meaning is different..." My voice faded at the end, sounding lacking in confidence. A crazy mother, a passive father, and a broken daughter. Everyone here was smart. They could see exactly what was happening. Crash! A loud noise made Mom jump. Her lips quivered. Grandpa had smashed a bowl. The shards flew everywhere. I flinched, but a warm hand squeezed mine. Grandma looked at me reassuringly. "Harper," Grandpa said, his face like thunder. "Did you say your mother took seventeen years of gifts we gave you and melted them down for herself?" I nodded timidly. "Mom said my skin is too dark... that silver makes me look tacky. So she took them..." Whispers broke out among the guests. Hearing the commotion, Mom shrieked. "Dad! How can you listen to a child's nonsense? How could I take her things? I'm keeping them safe for her!" "Kids shouldn't be so flashy!" Grandma sneered at Mom’s stiff smile. "In that case, go home right now and bring back everything we gave Harper." Mom lost the ability to argue but refused to give up. The guests, realizing this was a family crisis, tactfully found excuses to leave. Once the room cleared, Mom ignored Dad’s warning glares and doubled down. "Mom, Dad, let’s be real. I’ve been married into this family for years. I raised Harper. She’s a child. Isn't what’s hers mine?" Chapter 4 Hearing this, I sneered internally. Right. Because she gave birth to me. Everything I own must be hers. Any success I have is because of her. I should live in her shadow while she whispers in my ear under the guise of love, magnifying my flaws to highlight her own superiority. But Mom, I should be your daughter, not your competing product. Dad, the invisible man, looked terrible. In our small home, he was the king who could indulge his wife’s tantrums and force me to compromise. But here? He was the son. In this atmosphere, he wished he could disappear. Grandma’s eyes were cold, shining with disappointment. "I don't care how you acted before. But this is a gift from us to our granddaughter." "A thief in the family is still a thief." "If I ever see anything belonging to Harper on you again, you don't need to step through this door anymore." Mom’s face turned from green to red. She grabbed her sunglasses, stomped her foot in resentment, let out a "Hmph!", and stormed off unwillingly. Since my rebirth, I had confronted my mother head-on twice, tearing off her mask in front of Dad and my grandparents. For the rest of the summer, I treated her like air. Dad sighed constantly, hinting that I should apologize. Hilarious. Who complains about peace and quiet? Just like that, I coasted until college started. College life was rich, and so was my mom’s social media. I often heard my roommate laughing at night. "Look at the video I tagged you in. Is this auntie crazy? She posted a photo of her daughter's back but photoshopped gray hair onto her. Then she posted a heavily filtered selfie of herself with a chin sharp enough to stab someone, asking netizens to guess who is the mom and who is the daughter." I clicked the tag. The video featured me and my mom. Thankfully, there was no clear shot of my face. I exhaled. Dignity partially saved. My roommate on the bottom bunk had a sharp tongue. She typed furiously. A moment later, I saw her comment: "The one with the gray hair photoshop is the mom. The auntie with the heavy filter is the daughter." We all laughed until our stomachs hurt. Two months into the semester, I was studying in the library. A note slid in front of me. I followed the long fingers up to a familiar face. Liam. My boyfriend from my past life. I smiled, took the note, and added his contact info under the teasing gazes of my roommates. At that moment, a message from Dad popped up. Harper, you’ve been cold to Mom for so long. She can't bring herself to apologize, but she misses you terribly. When are you coming home? I thought for a moment and typed: Next month. A month was enough time to do many things. Like fall in love. My mom missed me? The thought sent a chill from my feet to my skull. My roommate nudged me, showing her phone. It was another video from Mom. She had been roasted badly on the last one, so she was pivoting to a "loving mother" persona. Using the same video, the caption read: My little padded jacket, Mom misses you so much. Don't stay away just because Mom said a few harsh words. A netizen commented: "The auntie who looks like the daughter doesn't seem to have a good relationship with the daughter who looks like the mom." Mom replied instantly: "My daughter is coming back to see me next month." So that’s why she was in a rush. The delicate wife persona wasn't enough; she needed her prop back to spoil her. But this time, she wouldn't get what she wanted.
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