I woke up at 6:30 in the morning. I had to get up early because it's Monday, and I need to be at school before 7:30. I woke up earlier than my brother, who was probably still waiting for his "alarm clock"—which happens to be our mom— to wake him up. I decided to let him sleep a little longer and enjoy his dreams.
I stood up and walked out of the bedroom, where I found my mom preparing breakfast and making sure everything was ready for the day ahead. I took my time eating breakfast. I was almost done when I heard my mom call out, "Vincent, get up already! You still have to go to school!"
My brother didn't get up right away, so my mom decided to take matters into her own hands. She went to his room, and though I didn't see exactly what happened, from the look on his face, it wasn't a pleasant wake-up call—but it was effective.
By the time my brother joined me at the dining table, I had finished my breakfast. I quickly finished up and got ready to take a bath. I made sure to clean every nook and cranny of my body so I'd feel fresh and clean. Afterward, I changed into my clothes for school. We didn't have to wear uniforms because the school year was almost over. Unless we had a special event or a visitor, we could wear whatever we liked—as long as it was decent.
I walked to school alone, which wasn't a problem. It wasn't like the city, where cars and motorcycles are everywhere. My school was only a 15-minute walk away, which I didn't mind. It was kind of like a daily exercise, and it helped me get familiar with the area, whether it was old or new—sometimes, I even got confused with what to call it, which was pretty funny.
When I got to school, I saw kids playing in the playground. Some were with their parents, but most were on their own. I went to my classroom, found an empty chair, and sat in the corner. I was glad that preschool didn't have assigned seating, because I honestly didn't remember where I was supposed to sit.
The bell rang, signaling that it was time for the flag ceremony. We stood for the national anthem, and once it was over, the bell rang again, and we returned to our classrooms.
Soon after, our teacher entered, and class resumed. I hadn't quite gotten used to my body yet, so my handwriting was a little wobbly. But that was okay—I figured it would be too much of a shock if I suddenly had perfect penmanship.
Since my town was small, many of my classmates were familiar faces. Some of us even saw each other after school. In fact, I recognized a few of them as classmates from my high school days—well, from my past life.
In that past life, I graduated at the top of my class and went to a prestigious university in the next province. But, looking back, I regretted that decision. It was more than I could handle. I'd always hated math, and math didn't exactly love me back. We both hated each other, but I had it worse because I struggled with it more.
Despite that, I had scored well enough on the entrance exam—85%—to be accepted into the accountancy program. I thought maybe I could learn to love it, but it became clear that I was in over my head. That was the turning point that led to a series of failures in my life. That's also why I began reading about rebirths and second chances—I wanted to turn my life around. Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me if one day I woke up and realized this was all just a dream. But no matter what, I'm determined to change the course of my future.
It was nice to see some of my past-life classmates again. Some of them were nice, while others... not so much. But that didn't matter now. I had a plan. I was going to show them just how brilliant I could be, and hopefully, that would convince them to help me advance in grade. If I could skip ahead, it would help me get ahead in life and make people think I was gifted. It would make things easier for me in the future.
I had big plans for my future, and I was going to do everything I could to make them work. I planned to establish myself as someone incredibly intelligent, far ahead of my peers. That wasn't a lie, either. The things we were learning in elementary school were things I'd already studied in my past life. I just needed to refresh my memory and revisit the lessons. Once I was confident I knew it all, I'd slowly start showing everyone what I was capable of. When they started believing I was smart, I'd push for advancing in grade.
It might seem like I was rushing things, and in some ways, I wouldn't be able to enjoy my new life as much. But to truly enjoy it, I had to make some sacrifices—like giving up on a carefree childhood and relaxing when I was still young. But I couldn't relax when I was so focused on my future. So, I decided that even though the future was uncertain and I was taking a risk by changing things, it was a risk I was willing to take.