The morning light filtered into the room as the birds sang on the big chestnut tree outside the window. The sounds of the creaking rope of her tire swing and wind chimes as each danced in the wind were punctured by the jarring sound of Selena's clock radio going off.
Selena wiped the sleep from her eyes. She looked at the clock's face; she used to hate getting up for school. She had gotten in the habit of waking early. Selena stretched and went to throw laundry into the machines downstairs to start the morning's business and hopped into the shower.
She tied her long black hair into a messy bun on the top of her head and turned on the shower radio. The smell of breakfast and coffee hit her as she opened the door. Selena ran to the large and unoccupied bathroom and enjoyed a shower. Her head was pounding today. She had an inkling that she would have an episode like she did the last time; it was the same date as last time.
Two months had passed since Selena started her laundry business, and her summer off of school had ended. As she stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her uniform and applying light makeup, Selena couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and accomplishment.
She had lost all the excess weight her body carried and developed slightly. Unlike before, she ended up getting her first period in late August instead of after her 14th birthday.
She was healthier this time. It was normal to be chubby as a child, but she had some trauma around weight. She wouldn't be taking shit this time. Molly ran and got her uniform in her new size last week after helping her take in some of her clothing periodically. A shopping trip to the mall was in order.
Selena's laundry business had taken off, and she had employed James to run the operation while she was at school. They had even purchased an extra washer and dryer to keep up with the demand for their services.
With the increased income from the laundry services, life improved. Selena and Molly could now afford better clothes, makeup, and food. James had all the cataloging done with existing customers. Using the painted UV symbols in the customers' clothing allowed her to streamline operations. Molly and James were not as efficient as she was at sorting laundry, but they were now able to keep up. Molly had quit her day job. Her night work was reduced.
As Selena finished getting ready, she felt excitement about starting her studies at St. Theresa High School again. "This time it will be different. No one will make fun of you. You know who to avoid and not talk to." Selena thought to herself. Her makeup was perfect; she did not do a full face of makeup because that would have been odd. Her skin was great, so she just applied some eyeliner. "Angelina Jolie's look is so popular these days." Selena thought.
She grew her eyebrows back. From the thin, over-plucked arches to their full glory. Years of conforming to the thin brow trend had caused permanent hair loss in her past life. Selena opted to protect what she had. She groomed them.
Selena popped a Tylenol for the headache and took a deep breath, grabbed her backpack, and headed out the door. She had a fun spending spree, and her binders were ready. Her computer, printer and internet would help her with typing up homework assignments and notes.
Selena walked down the stairs and sat down in the kitchen. Fruit salad and waffles sat on the table. James was the best, he woke up at dawn and cooked and started everything. Molly had started to as well. She scarfed down her breakfast and went to say goodbye to her parents. She had bought them both cell phones and was excited to give them to them.
"Hey, I, for you?" Selena said. She started feeling very confused about the garbled sentence coming out of her mouth. She paused, confused in the middle of the stairs. She reached for her bag and then became confused; it was like her short-term memory was fired.
Molly looked up from the sewing machine, "Hey Sweet Pea, excited for the first day?" Selena wanted to respond. "Earth to Se-lena,"
Molly said, pivoting on the chair. "Baby? What is wrong?" Molly asked again.
A.A. chimed, and Selena slowly walked down the stairs to her parents. But as she walked, Selena suddenly felt a strange sensation, like her vision was blurring and her legs were giving out. She tried to shake off the feeling, but it only intensified, and she felt herself fainting. She heard James panicking about her.
"Oh, the spasms. Fuck." Selena thought as she suddenly remembered this awful symptom. She got these if she was emotional or excited. Her eyes rolled as it took hold. A.A. felt guilty about ruining her first day of school.
Molly freaked out as she fell down the half flight of stairs and started to convulse, "James! Oh no, my baby girl! Call an ambulance. Oh my god, this is the worst it's ever been." Molly ran and cradled her convulsing daughter. "Why is it this bad?" Molly cried. She heard James calling 911, and then she lost consciousness.
When Selena came to, she was in a hospital bed, surrounded by Molly and James. She had been out for the day, and the doctors had run a series of tests, including a CAT scan and MRI. But what they didn't detect was A.A.'s biotechnology.Which had completed its first pathway to augment Selena's eyes. She would now be able to read and view information.
Although the upgrade A.A. described was awesome, she had bruises all over her legs. "Big old Catholic School slouchy socks it would be then for the next few weeks while they fade and goodbye bare legs and loafers." Selena thought. Selena at least missed that first day; she was determined to change her impression of it.
In her past life, on her first day of high school, she had an episode, but it was not this bad; it was a migraine headache and a terrible mood. It happened 3 times during the summer. She had her outward behavior under control. She just kept quiet, busy and relaxed away from people so she would not rage out.
She planned to lie in bed in the infirmary if it got too bad or just go home early. In her last life, it happened at school, and she ended up in a confrontation in the hallway. The headache was excruciating, but the worst was the behavioral hangover she always got. She fought an innocent and scrawny girl named Lindsay, who turned out to have cystic fibrosis and became the "Cow" of St. Theresa High School. She later earned the nicknames "EIEI-O" and "MooMoo" because of her weight from the G4.
It had been years since she remembered the group of lanky teens that would go on to lead in prospective industries. Jakob and Liam Reinhold, identical twins, opened Rhine and took over Reinhold Industries, one to rule the world financially. One was to become the political mind behind the organization that ran the Hubs. That left Michael Blackwater of Blackwater PMC and Noireau. Then last but not least annoying, the biggest prick of all, Gunn Whitehaven of Haven Medical and Atlantic Securities & Stocks. Minus their group pet, her tormentor McKenna Lowrie. Luckily, that bitch would make her debut in two years life still sucked.
The memories of her past life still stung, but Selena knew she had come a long way since then. She had learned to eat healthily and take care of herself. She was determined to make the most of her second chance. Including getting revenge on the G4 in her youth if they fucked up her life again, she would not take any of their shit this time. She had no tolerance for letting children get to her this time. She dealt with people who would kill you for your food or a shirt. These people did not intimidate her anymore.
The doctor came in and explained that Selena had experienced seizures. He couldn't find anything to explain it. However, Molly and James had mentioned her staring off into space more often. They didn't know about A.A, and she planned to keep it that way. He prescribed medication to help control the seizures and warned Selena to be careful and monitor her condition closely. It was okay, she needed the medication anyway. She was fine with this, right?
Selena looked up at the doctor with a determined expression. "When can I go back to school?" she asked, her voice firm.
The doctor smiled and nodded. "You can go to school as soon as you feel up to it. But I want to see you back for an appointment in a week for a follow-up appointment, okay?"
"Let's get you up and out of here." James had said with exhaustion and stress. He hadn't ever seen Molly that worried before. Selena nodded eagerly, relieved that she wouldn't have to miss too much school.
Molly pushed the chair as James settled the remainder of the bill. It blew through what they earned. At least she had a prescription to help her. As she was leaving the hospital, Selena noticed a teary-eyed boy sitting in the lobby, staring at the floor. He looked up and caught her eye, and Selena felt a jolt of recognition.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck, I did not see you, so you did not see me here." Selena thought to herself. The last thing she needed was some little boy with an insecurity targeting her for just seeing him crying.
It was Gunn Whitehaven, a member of the G4, one of the most popular and influential groups at St. Theresa High School. Well in the near future. Selena felt like she must be cursed. She avoided looking at him. He had already looked at her with tears in his eyes and a look of recognition. "Oh yeah, I'm in uniform." Selena thought.
A.A. relayed, "So that's Gunn Whitehaven. Strangely, he became a part of the leadership team. He does have feelings. He seems so small."
"When did I say he had no feelings?" Selena asked in her mind. A.A. populated a list of dates at the worst possible moment. She held the laugh.
A.A. relayed, "You should stay away from him. I remember what you said about him."
Selena agreed. Gunn Whitehaven seemed like a privileged white male, but he had, in the future, sent a bunch of humanity to their deaths. She had nothing good to say about him. She ended up in debt to Haven Hospitals later in life, and their collection process made her life hell for the last decade she lived on the planet. A cruel dude from an equally cruel company. He started traveling with bodyguards after the spree of CEO deaths in the 20s, before all hell broke loose.
Gunn's eyes widened as he took in Selena's uniform, and he looked like he had been punched in the gut. Selena ignored him and rolled out of the hospital, leaving Gunn looking worried and distracted. To Selena, he was a pitiful crying boy. Correction, he was always a sniveling little boy. Selena looked away. She did not care about his origin story, or if he had a shitty life. So did others and they did not take it out on those that did not bother them.
Perhaps, she could change things, little things. Stuff like what bothered her and how she reacted to it. She was feeling resentful of her last life. She could probably get her family to Quebec or on a well-timed vacation when shit hit the fan. Saving those who couldn't flee across the lakes when the first eruption takes place probably would not be possible for someone like her. She barely got out; something just told her she needed to run.
Who would listen to her, though? Right now, she would sound like a street preacher or a mentally unwell person in a fit of mania if she told people that the end of the USA was near and there would be a massive earthquake on June 6th, 2031. Not even two weeks later, all the volcanoes from offshore Oregon to the Great Lakes region blew, covered the arable land, and polluted the water. Nobody would listen to her; she'd be institutionalized.