Chapter 2

I looked at Chester.

He slowly raised his hand too.

I laughed.

Five to one.

Now they'd even given my boyfriend a vote on my behalf.

"Fine."

I picked up my bag and got ready to leave.

But then Dad spoke up again. "Wait, there's one more thing."

"While Wendy's filming the show, she wants to live somewhere with a bit more everyday warmth, so she's going to move in with us. There aren't enough rooms, so you'll go stay somewhere else for a month first."

I asked, "Stay where?"

"You've got a job. Figure it out yourself."

Mom frowned. "Wendy's a rich young lady, and she's willing to stay in our house—that's her showing us respect. Stop being such a killjoy."

The second round of voting began.

Still four to one.

Dad pointed at the door.

"The minority yields to the majority. You move out tonight."

As I dragged my suitcase downstairs, Wendy chased after me.

She held the umbrella over me, her voice sickeningly sweet.

"Winnie, don't hold it against your uncle and aunt."

"They just like me more, that's all."

She leaned close to my ear and let out a small laugh.

"People are the same way."

"Some things are useless in your hands. Lend them to me, and only then can they show their value."

I pushed her umbrella aside and stepped into the downpour.

Three hours later I was sitting outside a convenience store, soaked through.

Suddenly lines of golden text appeared before my eyes.

Host's resentment level detected breaking past the critical point.

The Life Swap System has been bound successfully.

Swap target: Wendy.

Swap duration: thirty days.

During the swap, both parties can view each other's key events through the system.

Special notice: The items she borrowed from you will all be returned at the end of the term.

I wiped the rain off my face.

"Including Chester?"

Included.

I frowned in distaste.

"You return the trash too? Your system doesn't support refusing delivery?"

The system went quiet for two seconds.

The host may request destruction upon receipt.

Fairly humane service, that.

I tapped confirm.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on Wendy's huge bed—big enough for eight people to sleep across it sideways.

The phone screen lit up.

A voice message from Chester popped up.

"Wendy, have you thought it over?"

"When are you going to dump that useless fiancé Jordan Gilbert and officially be with me?"

I listened to that message three times.

The first time, I felt sick.

The second time, I realized how blind I'd been before.

The third time, I picked out my sister Jasmine's laughter in the background.

Wendy, Chester, and my sister.

The three of them made quite a set.

One more player and they could deal a full table of cards.

A system notification popped up.

Item available to query: borrowing records.

I opened it.

A list too long to see the bottom of appeared before my eyes.

Age seventeen: admission spot at Northfield University.

Handled by: Wendy.

Method: Paid Jasmine twenty thousand dollars to initiate a family vote on the grounds that she couldn't bear to be parted from her younger sister.

Age nineteen: gold bracelet left by grandmother.

Beneficiary: Aiden.

Note on actual source of funds: Wendy once promised to compensate the Fox family one hundred thousand dollars, but never followed through.

Age twenty-one: grad school savings.

Handled by: Wendy.

Purpose: To buy the dress worn on her first date with Chester.

I stared at that last line for a long time.

So it turned out my sister's wedding dowry was fake.

My eighty thousand dollars ended up on Wendy's body, sharing a candlelight dinner with my boyfriend.

My stomach churned.

I rushed into the bathroom and threw up for ten minutes.

It wasn't grief.

I just felt filthy.

The phone rang again.

This time it was someone saved under the name "Mom."