Chapter 1

The sensation of falling into a bottomless abyss suddenly stopped.

I opened my eyes, gasping for air.

In my arms was a warm, fluffy ball of fur.

Nugget, my Golden Retriever, was shivering, burying his wet nose into my palm.

I was alive. I really came back.

The bone-shattering pain of being pushed off the rooftop in my past life still felt incredibly real.

"Chloe Miller! Are you deaf?!"

My roommate, Ashley Vance, pinched her nose, taking a dramatic step back.

Her perfectly manicured red nails pointed at Nugget as she stomped her feet in sheer disgust.

"That smelly mutt is shedding everywhere! It’s literally ruining my Clean Girl Aesthetic!"

"Throw him out right now! Don’t you dare contaminate my luxury minimalist space!"

She screamed about high-end luxury and minimalism, yet the "designer" slippers on her feet were already peeling at the edges.

In my past life, to keep the peace, I cried and sent Nugget to the countryside that very night.

Nugget ended up eating poisoned rat bait and died a painful death.

And my compliance only made her abuse worse.

In the end, just to monopolize the cheap rental lease of this downtown apartment, she pushed me off the rooftop.

New hatred and old grudges clashed in my chest, and my anger exploded.

Minimalist? Dust-free?

Afraid of dirt, huh?

I held Nugget on my lap and pinched a large handful of loose golden fur from his back.

Ashley froze, not realizing what I was doing.

In one swift motion, I lunged forward and stuffed the massive clump of dog hair right onto her perfectly made-up face.

"Ahhhh!"

Ashley’s makeup was instantly ruined by the wet dog hair.

She doubled over, gagging on the spot.

"Chloe, are you insane?! How dare you throw that toxic trash at me!"

She grabbed a bottle of expensive, imported disinfectant spray.

Instead of backing down, I grabbed her wrist and squeezed hard.

Ashley cried out in pain and dropped the bottle. It landed right in my hand.

I held down the nozzle and sprayed it directly into her face and mouth.

"You spend every weekend drinking cheap booze with random guys at clubs. Your mouth is crawling with bacteria."

"Every time you open it, you contaminate my air!"

"Today, I’m giving you a deep disinfection!"

Ashley covered her face, screaming, "You bitch! Tomorrow I’m throwing all your shit onto the curb!"

Throw my things out?

I sneered. I turned around and kicked open her bedroom door—the one she never allowed anyone to enter.

Inside, the floor was littered with dirty underwear.

The trash can was overflowing with moldy takeout boxes.

*This* was the "minimalist luxury oasis" she bragged about on Snapchat?

I didn’t waste any words. I walked straight to her bed.

I grabbed her silk duvet—the one she took photos of every day to flex on Instagram—and yanked it off.

"My duvet! Don’t touch my custom silk!" Ashley crawled in, trying to stop me.

I dragged the duvet into the bathroom and stuffed it into the washing machine.

Then, I opened the cabinet and grabbed a full, undiluted bottle of Clorox bleach.

Right in front of her, I unscrewed the cap and poured the entire bottle onto her precious silk duvet.

I slammed the lid and started the heavy-duty spin cycle.

"No! My silk duvet is ruined!"

I didn’t stop.

"Don’t you love deep disinfection? Pure bleach is the best way to kill bacteria."

She collapsed onto the floor, crying her eyes out.

I walked over, grabbed her by the collar of her silk pajamas, and hauled her up.

I stared into her eyes, speaking slowly and clearly.

"Try me again, and I’ll treat you like toxic waste and throw you in the dumpster. Got it?"

Ashley looked into my eyes, shivered in pure terror, and nodded frantically.