
After Being Exposed, She Broke Down!
After Being Exposed, She Broke Down! Chapter 1
My best friend, Lydia Stone, once saved my life, and after learning of her tragic background, I offered to support her.
She started using my credit cards, driving my sports car, and quickly became the envy of our classmates, seen as a wealthy young lady.
However, when our artwork was strikingly similar in a painting competition, everyone accused me of plagiarism.
My participation was disqualified, my identity was exposed, and I was subjected to online abuse that made me afraid to leave the house.
My father attempted to clear my name on a live stream, but the flood of angry comments led him to a heart attack, and he died on the spot.
My mother, devastated by the loss, suffered a stroke and became paralyzed.
Exhausted and heartbroken, I was abducted off the street late one night and brutally killed.
Meanwhile, my best friend used my artwork to catapult to fame. The controversy over the plagiarism earned her sympathy from netizens, and she became a rising star in the art world.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back before the competition, and my friend, casually swiping my card, cheerfully announced, "Today, I'm treating everyone to a seafood buffet!"
——
"Wow, is it the new seafood buffet downtown? It's 2499 dollars a person!"
"Lydia is so generous! She always treats us to high-end restaurants!"
"Can't argue with that! Lydia is as beautiful as she is kind. Ever since we became friends, we've been living the high life."
When Lydia saw me frowning, she lightly patted my shoulder.
"Meryl, aren't you busy with your artwork? I'll treat you next time."
I took a moment to shake off the lingering joy of being reborn.
Lydia often took advantage of my absences to take our classmates out for meals and fun.
She was always considerate enough to tell them that I wasn't familiar with them, so they felt more relaxed and open when I wasn't around.
She told them every time that it was my treat, so they felt grateful to me.
In reality, she spun a different story, saying that I didn't want to hang out with them because I found them boring and dumb.
This led everyone to view me as a snob and a miser, reinforcing their negative opinions of me.
I was so absorbed in my art that I didn't notice their growing resentment.
It wasn't until the international painting competition before graduation that things came crashing down.
My and Lydia's artworks were strikingly similar. Everyone quickly accused me of copying Lydia. They called me antisocial and malicious, insisting that I didn't have the talent to produce such a vibrant piece and must have stolen it from Lydia.
No matter how much I tried to explain, no one believed me. I had no friends, and aside from Lydia, no one had seen my painting.
Meanwhile, Lydia frequently invited them to watch her work, making them convinced that I was the thief.
I was cyberbullied to the point where I was afraid to leave the house.
My father, seeing my distress, immediately went live to clear my name.
Lydia, however, orchestrated a mob of her followers to flood the stream, hurling abuse at him.
Overwhelmed and enraged, my father suffered a heart attack and died on the spot.
Only then did I see Lydia's true colors, but it was too late.
My mother, devastated by the loss, suffered a stroke and was left paralyzed.
Exhausted from the constant shuttling between the hospital and home, I was abducted one night. Lydia had hired a gang from her hometown, and they, grinning wickedly, said they wanted to "test out" what a high-class lady was like.
I was brutally tortured and killed, experiencing unimaginable pain before I died.
Now, with the chance to live again, my only goal was to destroy Lydia.