Chapter 2: The Ex-Girlfriend Is Gone
Galveston County High SchoolGraduation Ceremony
"It went up! Both intelligence and speed went up!"
A hint of joy crossed Adam's otherwise blank face. He'd been here for over a year, and even though this nameless system was basically useless, he'd slowly figured out how it worked.
Intelligence seemed directly tied to IQ, and it hadn't changed at all in the past year. Based on how his other stats had grown, Adam figured it was probably connected to the intelligence of the people around him. You are who you hang out with — spending time around smart people would eventually make you smarter too.
So when he'd heard that a nine-year-old named Sheldon Lee Cooper in the middle school had skipped fifth grade and was heading straight into ninth grade next semester, Adam had decided to make friends with him.
A super genius with an IQ of 187!
But before he could even get close to Sheldon, his classmate Juno had caught him off guard first.
Surprising and delightful at the same time.
Surprising because she'd noticed him — which gave him chills. Delightful because his intelligence had finally gone up for the first time. So his theory was right — spending time around high-IQ people really did raise intelligence!
But this kind of boost was too risky to rely on...
While strength, endurance, and speed were all useful, none of them actually helped his lifespan much. Only raising intelligence could genuinely help him avoid dying young.
From his year of figuring things out, it seemed like lifespan went up through good deeds — specifically things he did directly himself, like helping an elderly woman cross the street or giving an old man a back rub. But lifespan increased way too slowly that way. After half a year of doing good deeds consistently, he'd only gained about 0.05 years — barely enough to matter.
But then he'd saved a kid who ran into traffic without looking, and that gave him real hope — his lifespan jumped by 0.01 years instantly!
After that, he understood: saving one life is worth more than a hundred small kindnesses. If he wanted to raise his lifespan, he needed to study medicine and become a top surgeon. That was the only reliable, consistent way to save lives.
But that's where the problem was. In this body — ordinary, academically behind, nothing special — the odds of becoming a top surgeon were brutal.
In America, doctors and lawyers are the standard picture of the professional middle class. That means the competition is absolutely fierce.
First you finish undergrad and get your bachelor's degree. Then you compete against classmates, older students, even construction workers in their thirties or forties making a career change — all of them fighting for medical school spots.
Four years of medical school, and not everyone makes it through — the dropout rate is steep. Then comes three to seven years of residency, where working a hundred hours a week is just normal. Only the ones who survive all of that are considered actual doctors, and even then, making it to the top is still a long road.
It requires memorizing an enormous amount of medical knowledge. Without a sharp mind, serious willpower, and constant effort, forget it.
Thankfully, he had the system — even a terrible one — which gave him a way to boost his intelligence and make studying less brutal. Otherwise, even with his endurance stat of 300, grinding twice as hard as everyone else would still have been a long shot.
Hard work can make up for a lack of talent, but he simply didn't have much time.
These thoughts flashed through Adam's mind. He looked at his stat panel again. Strength seemed tied to positive emotions — things like family bonds and close friendships. Speed looked like it was connected to negative emotions, like fear. As for endurance... he still hadn't cracked that one yet.
Clap clap clap!
Another round of applause snapped Adam back to the moment, and his expression shifted into performance mode instantly. Amy was walking slowly off the stage, glanced over at him, gave a small smile at his expression, then looked away.
After the ceremony, graduates spilled outside in their caps and gowns for photos. Adam, fully in character, went over and took several photos with "his beloved Amy," only leaving after Amy reminded him twice — glancing back every few steps as he walked away.
"Amy's unbelievable. She strings him along and then dumps him right at graduation!"
"Poor Adam!"
The girls who watched the whole thing shook their heads, especially since Adam had the kind of face that made it easy to feel sorry for him.
Even after being in this world for over a year, Adam still sometimes caught his own reflection and did a double-take.
So yeah — he completely understood why his predecessor had been such a flirt, even managing to catch the attention of an older, popular girl. With a face like that, it made total sense.
Hearing the murmurs of sympathy behind her, Amy's smile widened slightly. She'd already let go completely. She was about to start a new chapter of her life — there was nothing here she needed to hold onto. She'd released everything on her own terms. Clean. Perfect.
Adam walked his bike out of the school, glancing back every few steps until the building was fully out of sight. Then he hopped on and rode hard.
The suburban streets were nearly empty at this hour. Tall trees lined both sides of the road, blocking out the Texas sun, casting long cool shadows across the pavement — a classic small-town American afternoon.
"YEAH!!!"
After riding long enough that the road behind him was completely clear, Adam finally couldn't hold it in anymore. He let out a full yell, releasing every last bit of tension that had been building for the past year.
He was just a regular guy who'd woken up in someone else's life and been forced to play a role he never auditioned for. The stress, the constant performance, the walking on eggshells — it was exhausting in a way that was hard to even put into words.
But he didn't have a choice. His ex-girlfriend Amy was genuinely, deeply frightening. She had a way of controlling everything around her, quietly arranging every detail of Adam's life without him ever being able to call her out on it. At first it had seemed impressive. Pretty quickly it became suffocating.
But then he'd recognized her — the teenage version of the woman from that thriller he'd watched in his old life, Gone Girl — and everything changed.
Breaking up with her was off the table. He would never be the one to end it — not in this lifetime.
The only option was to play along and hope Amy lost interest on her own. Luckily, teenage Amy's feelings for young Adam were more of a high school crush than anything deep. At graduation, she was the one who ended it — gracious, decisive, completely in control.
Adam's emotions in that moment were a total mess. He had to push down the relief while simultaneously performing heartbreak, longing, and quiet dignity.
If he'd let even a flicker of happiness show, Amy would have caught it immediately. And losing what she thought of as control over the situation? She would've made him pay for that. Best case, his reputation gets destroyed and he ends up in serious trouble. Worst case — well. He'd seen the movie.
You never know how she'll come for you.
But it was done now.
"FREE! I'M FINALLY FREE!!!"
End of Chapter 2
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