Whenever the teaching assistant saw me, she would pinch her nose and avoid me.
"Wow, you're really following in your family's footsteps and collecting trash even at school. Erica, why are you even in college? Just focus on collecting junk."
I ignored her every time.
I knew that until I became strong, everything I did would be looked down upon.
My roommates also refused to share a room with me, claiming collecting recyclables was too dirty.
Juliette Hoover, the richest among them and the head girl, threw my things out of the dorm.
"Erica, you better not come back. We don't want to be laughed at for living with someone who collects trash. Besides, what if you bring back germs?"
In my past life, even though I didn't collect recyclables, they still ostracized me.
Especially Juliette and the teaching assistant, who openly plagiarized my designs, stole my thesis, grabbed my internship opportunities, and mocked me like a clown.
I leaned in and whispered to Juliette, "Aren't you into Joel? How about a bet on who he'll end up with? The loser publicly apologizes and calls the winner 'Daddy'."
Juliette laughed, "Erica, have you lost your mind from collecting trash? Fine, I'll be waiting for you to call me 'Daddy'!"
She prided herself on being fair-skinned, beautiful, and rich, confident Joel would never choose me over her.
I smiled and dragged my luggage to my rented room outside.
In my past life, I couldn't even dream of being with Joel.
But now, knowing Joel's bet, I was sure to win.
If he could use me for a bet, why couldn't I turn the tables?
As for Juliette, who stole my designs, thesis, and internship, I couldn't wait to hear her call me 'Daddy' in front of everyone.
Two months later, with some money saved, I expanded my business.
I rented a larger house, bought a tricycle, and started covering a wider area for recyclables.
The profit from recyclables was substantial, and by the end of freshman year, I had saved a significant amount of money.
During the last class of freshman year, everyone discussed their summer travel plans and made plans with friends.
After a speech, the teaching assistant approached and mocked me, "Erica, you've been so self-reliant, collecting trash for a year. I suppose you don't need financial aid anymore?"