The Rewritten Love: A Second Beginning (Madelyn) novel Chapter 16

Madelyn was grateful that her past-self had nurtured a love for learning, for otherwise she might not have had the courage to leave the classroom to study in the library. With her current knowledge, she was confident she could tackle high school exam questions, securing a spot in a decent university, and with a bit more determination, perhaps even in a top-tier institution. Her liberal arts subjects were solid, but her grasp of sciences and mathematics was shaky. Alas, there were simply not enough hours in the day to focus on these subjects—after school, she still had to attend cooking and piano classes. 

Seated by the floor-to-ceiling window in the library, Madelyn appeared despondent. Annoyed, she absentmindedly ran her fingers through her hair. Mulling over her problems seemed like a waste of time when she could be memorizing more vocabulary words. Brushing aside her nagging thoughts, she returned her focus to the task at hand. The library was usually quiet, frequented by only a handful of students from Class One and Class Two. During class hours, she was practically alone apart from the librarian. This suited Madelyn perfectly—she had always enjoyed her own company. 

Meanwhile, someone emerged from the teacher’s office. Spotting Madelyn through a second-floor window, the person snapped a quick picture and promptly posted it to a popular online forum under a pinned thread. 

[Look! Madelyn’s hiding from Forrest in the library.] 

In less than a minute, a response came: [Ha, good for Forrest! He managed to drive her away. Now we won’t have to put up with her in class anymore.] 

Another chimed in: [Mark my words, she’ll be back in two days.] 

Someone replied to this with [No chance.] 

[Why not?] 

[Because… Forrest just threw all of her desk and chair out to the classroom doorway. The janitor has already carted it off—probably to be sold as scrap.] 

Accompanying the comment were photos of Madelyn’s textbooks discarded in a trash bin, covered in an unidentified nauseating substance. 

Meanwhile, Madelyn was oblivious to the discussion taking place online about her. Having finished her practice tests, she was preparing to head back. As she was exiting the library, a text arrived on her phone: [Don’t come back right now.] 

She slowed her pace, perplexed, and texted back: [What’s happened?] 

The reply came swiftly: [You should check the school forum.] 

A wave of foreboding washed over Madelyn. She seldom paid attention to school gossip, but this time she decided to check the school forum. Top threads revealed photos of her desk, along with her practice books, thrown into a trash bin. Her lunch box, which had been in her drawer, was seen kicked into a corner. The lunch box had been a gift from Rosario, who had also painstakingly hand-sewn the accompanying bag. With determination mounting in her stride, Madelyn set off toward the classroom. 

After a moment, someone stood up, spotting a figure approaching in the distance. “She’s here. Madelyn’s here.”