Rising High Above Your Lies

When I opened my eyes, the world was spinning. The sharp, metallic scent of rusted iron filled my lungs, and the wind whipped my hair across my face. I knew this place. I knew this cold, rooftop air.

I was back. Back at the exact moment that had shattered my life.

This time, I wasn't going to be the victim. My phone was already out, the camera lens steady, aimed directly at the "star" of the showthe scholarship student who was currently rehearsing her finest performance.

Just like in my previous life, she reached for my hand, her eyes brimming with calculated tears, trying to pull me toward the edge of the abyss.

In that life, the man I was supposed to marry and my own flesh-and-blood brother had been her most loyal soldiers. To protect this "fragile" girl, they had me committed to a private psychiatric ward, where I was drugged and broken until my heart finally gave out. They were convinced I was the monster who had pushed her. They turned a deaf ear to every scream, every plea for the truth.

It wasn't until I took my last breath on that sterile hospital bed that the truth came outthe "fall" had been a meticulously staged frame-up.

But the clock had reset. This time, I was the one holding the script. I wasn't just going to survive; I was going to broadcast her downfall to the world.

1.

"Lauren," Sadie Walsh whispered, her back pressed against the safety railing. Her voice was like honeyed poison, her eyes glittering with the thrill of a trap about to spring. "Tell me... if I jump, do you think Bennett will finally call off the engagement?"

The wind howled. This was the spot. The exact angle.

In my memories, this was where she grabbed my wrist, using a pinhole camera hidden in her sleeve to capture the "evidence" of me pushing her before she let herself fall.

The phantom pain of my death surged through me, a wave of nausea threatening to pull me under. I forced my feet to stay rooted to the concrete.

I looked at her, and suddenly, I started to laugh.

Sadie froze. "Whats so funny?"

"You," I said softly, the amusement not reaching my eyes. "Youre just so pathetic."

Before she could react, my hand moved like a whip. I didn't push her. Instead, I lunged forward and snatched the secondary phone she had hidden behind her back.

I swiped, unlocked itI knew her passcode from the trial in my last lifeand opened the universitys massive social forum app. I hit 'Go Live.'

The title I typed was simple:

NORTHCRESTS DARLING SADIE WALSH: A MASTERCLASS IN STAGING A SUICIDE.

I shoved the camera inches from her face, capturing every ounce of the blood draining from her cheeks.

"You wanted to know if Bennett would leave me?" I stepped closer, my voice projecting clearly for the thousands of students tuning in. "Lets find out together."

I took another step. She instinctively recoiled, her lower back hitting the freezing iron railing.

"Im going to give you exactly what you want, Sadie. Lets see how much your life is actually worth to them."

2.

The viewer count exploded. The comment section was a blurred mess of digital chaos.

Wait, is that the rooftop?

Is she actually going to jump?

Is that Lauren Sinclair? What the hell is happening? Is she LIVESTREAMING this?!

Sadies face turned a ghostly white. This wasn't the script. She had planned a tragic scene of a poor, bullied scholarship student driven to the edge by a wicked heiress. She was supposed to be the martyr, the internets sweetheart.

"Lauren! Turn it off! Give me the phone!" she shrieked, dropping the innocent act and lunging for the device.

I stepped aside with practiced ease, the camera never losing focus on her contorted, panicked expression.

"Why the rush? The show is just getting started," I said. "Didn't you want everyone to see how I 'pushed' you? Im giving you a front-row seat."

The heavy metal door to the roof slammed open with a deafening bang.

Bennett Crawford and my brother, Toby Sinclair, charged out like panicked animals.

"Lauren! Stop this right now!"

Bennetts face was a mask of fury, his voice raw. He saw Sadie trembling against the rail and froze, his eyes darting to me with a look that was purely murderous.

Toby looked just as horrified, his gaze heavy with disappointment. "Lauren, have you lost your mind? Get away from her! If youre mad, take it out on me!"

There it was. The same old story. Without a single question, I was already guilty. In my last life, it was this brand of "justice" that had dragged me to hell.

The coldness in my chest met the fire of my current rage, leaving me feeling eerily calm. I slowly turned the camera toward them. The two men I had loved mostand now hated with every fiber of my being.

"Take it out on you?" I let out a sharp, jagged laugh. "Bennett, Tobywhich one of you actually saw me touch her?"

"Right now, your 'sweet Sadie' just threatened to jump to make sure you both hate me forever. Im just being a supportive friend. I started a livestream so the whole school can witness her big moment."

The comments went nuclear.

Holy shit, plot twist?

She threatened to jump to frame her?

Lauren looks terrifying right now... she might actually do it.

Bennetts face was ashen. He wasn't listening. He didn't care about the truth; he only cared about the "fear" on Sadies facehis precious, fragile little flower.

"I am ordering you, Lauren: shut that phone off and apologize to her!"

He lunged at me, his hand outstretched to grab the phone.

In that split second, the memory of being strapped into a gurney, the leather restraints biting into my skin, flashed through my mind. In my last life, he had watched them do it. He had stood by while I screamed his name until my throat bled.

And here he was, trying to use force again.

I didn't flinch. I shoved the camera directly into his snarling face.

"Look at him, everyone!" I shouted. "This is my fianc, Bennett Crawford. Hes about to hit his future wife because of another woman!"

Bennetts hand stopped mid-air, pinned by the invisible gaze of ten thousand viewers.

The chat was a frenzy:

He's actually going to hit her!

What a psycho!

Lauren is a queen for this. Facing down three losers at once.

Toby was vibrating with anxiety. "Lauren, please! Youre making such a scene! Don't drag the family name through the mud like this!"

I smiled at him, a cold, dead thing.

"The family name? Toby, the moment you chose a stranger over your own sister, you did more damage to the Sinclair name than I ever could."

I turned back to Sadie, who looked like she was about to faint for real.

"So, Sadie. Shall we continue? Or should we talk about the pinhole camera hidden in your left sleeve?"

3.

The word "camera" hit the rooftop like a lightning strike.

Sadies blood drained completely. She began to shake, a visible, violent tremor. Bennett and Toby stood paralyzed, the first seeds of doubt finally flickering in their eyes.

The livestream peaked:

A hidden camera? No way.

She was going to record her own 'accident'? That's some Gone Girl shit.

If that's true, Sadie Walsh is a literal sociopath.

The tide was turning. It was a physical sensation, like the wind shifting direction. Bennett looked at Sadie, his brow furrowed with a sickening realization.

"Sadie... is that... did you?"

"No! Bennett, don't listen to her! Shes lying! Shes trying to ruin me!" Sadie wailed, her left hand reflexively tucking behind her back.

The movement was more incriminating than any confession.

"Lying?" I stepped into her space. "Then show us. Roll up your sleeve right now in front of everyone watching. Prove me wrong."

"That's enough, Lauren!" Bennett barked. His face was dark. The truth was too bright for him; he was desperately trying to cling to the lie he had built his hero complex on. "Even if she made a mistake, you can't do this! Give me the phone!"

He moved toward me again, but I backed away, using the phone as a shield.

"Don't bother," I said calmly. "The police are already on their way."

I glanced at my other phone, where a confirmation message glowed. "Since you don't believe me, lets let the law decide."

I looked at Sadie, whose eyes were now filled with nothing but raw, venomous hatred.

"Oh, and one more thing. Youre using the university's guest WiFi for your little 'SOS' stream, aren't you?" I let a small, predatory smile touch my lips. "Too bad my familys foundation just upgraded the campus network last month. As the daughter of the primary donor, how long do you think itll take me to get the data logs showing exactly which device was streaming what and when?"

Sadies knees gave out. She slumped against the railing, gasping for air.

"I... I don't know what you're talking about... Lauren, I know you've always hated me, but you can't frame me like this..."

She was still trying. Even now.

In the distance, the sharp, wailing cry of a police siren cut through the air.

4.

The sirens shattered what was left of the standoff.

A group of campus security and two police officers burst onto the roof, faces set in grim lines.

"Lauren! Turn that off this instant!" the Dean shouted, looking more worried about the schools PR than the girl on the ledge.

Bennett saw an opening. He pointed at me, his voice booming with feigned authority. "Officer, its her! Shes the one! Shes harassing this girl, trying to drive her to jump, and shes filming the whole thing!"

I watched their pathetic performance with detached boredom until the lead officer turned his gaze to me.

"Who called this in?"

"I did," I said, stepping forward. I ended the stream and pulled up the local recording. "Officer, I have the entire incident recorded from the moment I stepped onto the roof. It contains Ms. Walshs threats to frame me for her suicide, and the subsequent attempts by these two gentlemen to forcefully destroy the evidence."

I handed him the phone. "Im also filing a formal complaint against Sadie Walsh for illegal surveillance and invasion of privacy. The device is currently strapped to her left wrist."

"Youre lying!" Sadie shrieked, lurching toward me. A female officer intercepted her.

Suddenly, Sadies eyes rolled back, and she went limp, collapsing onto the concrete.

"Sadie!" Bennett and Toby rushed to her side, their faces twisted with concern. Bennett glared at me. "Are you happy now, Lauren? Youve literally pushed her to a breakdown!"

I folded my arms. "Don't worry. Faking a faint is the standard exit strategy for a narcissist. Shes fine."

The lead officer didn't buy the act. He gestured to the female officer. "Check her left sleeve."

"No! Shes unconscious! You can't just" Bennett started to interject.

The officers voice was like stone. "Its procedure, sir. Step back."

The female officer rolled up Sadies sleeve. There, strapped to her pale wrist, was a small, black, pinhole lens blinking with a faint red light.

The silence on that roof was absolute.

Even though the livestream was over, the truth was out. Bennetts grip on Sadies shoulders went slack. The rage and righteousness on his face crumbled into a hollow, empty mask of shock.

Toby just stared, his mouth hanging open. He looked at the camera, then at me, then at the "victim" on the floor. He looked like he was about to be sick.

And Sadie? The moment the camera was revealed, her eyelids flickered. The "unconscious" girl was gone. When she opened her eyes, there was no more sweetness. There was only the desperate, jagged glare of a cornered animal.

I looked down at her and let a slow, satisfied smirk spread across my face.

This is just the beginning.