Chapter 3: Chapter 3: I’ve Been Wanting to Hit You for a Long Time
A commotion erupted below the women’s dormitory.
When Cecilia Sterling emerged, the crowd of students automatically parted to form a path for her. A variety of gazes fell upon her in unison.
At Lorcain Tech, Shawn Lane was well-known because of his family background, but Cecilia Sterling was no less famous.
She was beautiful and intelligent. When she first enrolled as a freshman, someone posted her photo on the campus forum, causing quite a stir online. The male students of Lorcain Tech hailed her as their new "pure yet seductive" goddess.
Countless men from every department tried everything they could to get close to her and launch their own fierce pursuits. Shawn Lane was one of them.
The day Cecilia had said yes was still fresh in everyone’s minds. That day, just like today, Shawn had been waiting downstairs with a bouquet of roses. Even the crowd of onlookers was almost the same.
Seeing Cecilia appear, Shawn’s face lit up with joy as he hurried to meet her.
"Cecilia, I’m sorry. I apologize for what my mom did today. Please, don’t be angry."
With a blank expression, Cecilia swung her arm. A black trash bag, stuffed to the brim, loomed large before Shawn’s eyes and then slammed right into his face.
Its weight crushed the huge bouquet of roses. Caught completely off guard, Shawn dropped both the flowers and the trash bag to the ground.
The onlookers’ eyes widened. Their once varied gazes were now united in pure shock.
That shock was mixed with a hint of confusion.
What is Cecilia doing?
Did they have a fight? The look on her face is really off!
Don’t tell me they’re breaking up? They’ve only been together for less than six months, haven’t they?
The whispers grew louder as everyone began to speculate on what had happened between them.
With that single act, Cecilia Sterling had shown Shawn Lane zero respect. Being watched by so many people, Shawn couldn’t help but feel utterly humiliated.
But he swallowed his pride. Seeing Cecilia about to leave without a word, he didn’t even bother to pick up the things on the ground. He strode forward, grabbed her hand, and leaned in to plead softly, "You can’t really be this disappointed in me over what happened last time, can you?"
"I was just too nervous that time. Please, give me another chance, okay? I promise I’ll do better next time!"
Cecilia shoved him away. Then, looking at Shawn, she curled her lip and let out an utterly disdainful scoff.
Her eyes, her expression, even that scoff—everything about her was filled with mockery and contempt.
She hadn’t said a single word, yet it felt as if she had said everything.
Shawn’s brows furrowed in anger and impatience. He was more confused than ever.
’What on earth does she mean by this?’
But Cecilia was doing it on purpose. She wanted to make Shawn overthink, to keep him guessing, to force him to torture himself.
It was just like how he had treated her back then—stealing her thesis, publishing it under his name without a single word of explanation. Their three-year relationship had ended with a cold, red exclamation mark, and she’d never again opened her heart to romance for the rest of her life.
She no longer believed in love.
Without a backward glance, Cecilia walked into the dormitory building. The gawking crowd didn’t understand the full story, but they could sense that the two of them were over.
Shawn’s hands clenched into fists. He turned, squatting down to pick up the fallen roses and the trash bag. His face, cast in shadow, gradually darkened, and a flicker in his eyes was hard to decipher.
"Cecilia, you really don’t know what’s good for you. A guy as outstanding as Shawn Lane is willing to be with you, and you don’t appreciate it at all."
The moment she returned to her dorm room, Cindy Underwood, leaning against the balcony doorframe with her arms crossed, began to taunt Cecilia.
The glee in her voice was unmistakable. Her jealousy of Cecilia wasn’t anything new. Having considered herself quite attractive since childhood, she had started hating Cecilia for no reason the very first time she saw her face when they started freshman year.
Relying on her relatively well-off family background, she would give their other two roommates small gifts and favors, winning them over to help her isolate Cecilia.
"What does my business with him have to do with you?" Cecilia shot her a cold look. "If a septic truck drove past your house, would you have to run out with a spoon to see how salty it is?"
As she spoke, Cecilia couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh. She walked right up to Cindy Underwood and said, "You don’t actually think you have a chance just because we broke up, do you?"
"Let me tell you, there’s no way. Just like you said, with a guy like Shawn, even if I dump him, there are plenty of other girls who like him. It wouldn’t even be your turn for a gangbang!"
Those few words completely shattered Cindy Underwood’s fragile ego.
Her eyes blazed with fury. "Cecilia, you bitch!" she shrieked. "I’m going to tear you to—"
SLAP!
The crisp sound of a slap echoed clearly. Cindy Underwood clutched her stinging cheek in disbelief. "You... you dare hit me?"
Cecilia looked at her coolly. "I’ve wanted to do that for a long time. You must know how much your mouth deserves a slap, right?"
Hope Warner and Summer Lynn were also dumbfounded. They stood frozen in place, completely stunned and intimidated by the aura Cecilia was now projecting. They completely forgot to react.
The next second, Cecilia suddenly leaned forward. Her face, at once seductive and frigid, loomed before Cindy Underwood, who stumbled back two steps and nearly cried out in alarm.
"From now on, remember to keep your mouth shut around me."
Cindy Underwood trembled. She felt as if the Cecilia in front of her had become a completely different person.
Cecilia said nothing more. Instead, she pulled out the suitcase from the corner, opened it, and packed all her useful belongings from her side of the room.
Leaving behind nothing but her cold, distant back, she walked out of dorm room 309 without a second glance.
At the most luxurious five-star hotel near Lorcain Tech, Cecilia presented her ID at the front desk. "An executive king room, please. Thank you."
The clerk on the night shift was a handsome young man. Seeing how beautiful Cecilia was, he offered a kind tip, "Miss, you could book it online right now. It would be a bit cheaper."
Hearing this, Cecilia glanced at the walk-in rates posted on the wall behind him. The executive king room was listed at 0.1888 dollars.
Less than twenty cents.
"No need, just check me in directly," Cecilia said. She couldn’t be bothered and just wanted to get to her room and rest.
The front desk clerk gave an awkward smile but thoughtfully upgraded her room type anyway.
No matter the era, being beautiful always came with certain advantages and extra perks.
The executive king room became an executive suite. After entering the room, Cecilia deadbolted the door and placed a water glass on the handle—a habit from her past life.
She wasn’t sure when it started, but she had begun to suffer from an extreme lack of security, especially in unfamiliar environments.
The spotless floor-to-ceiling windows allowed her to overlook the luxurious nightscape of Lorcain. She took out her phone, opened the Chrono Bank app once more, and stared, unblinking, at the balance inside.
After a long moment, she finally broke into a smile.
Whatever the reason for her current situation, she was thoroughly satisfied with it.
All the wrong choices she had made in her past life, the lifelong regrets, the words left unsaid—she finally had a chance to do it all over again.
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