Chapter 3
Zephanie’s POV Lesley just updated her page. She reposted my comment where I was begging for her next video, and dropped a brand-new one of her own right after. In the comments, she added, [I originally wanted this to be a surprise for my fans, but someone warned me that this idea might’ve been stolen. So I had no choice but to post it early to clear my name. If I waited and someone else released it first, people would think I copied them, and I’d never be able to explain myself.] My hands were shaking as I tapped the video. Then I looked back at my own video draft sitting open on my laptop. They were so identical from scene to scene, down to the exact minute and second. What the hell was happening?! I held my head in my hands, completely lost. I never told a single soul about the concept for this video. How did she end up with the exact same idea? Did being reborn still mean I couldn’t escape the shadow of my past? Was I doomed to repeat it, to be cyberbullied to death all over again, just like last time? Unsurprisingly, her video blew up. It was already climbing the trending charts. With the back-to-back viral hits, her follower count shot from tens of thousands to nearly a million on a completely different level now. But thanks to her statement, the comment section wasn’t just filled with praise. It was also crawling with suspicion. [Who copied our queen’s idea? I’m all ears.] [I’ve never seen this concept before. If anyone else posts a similar video now, we’ll know who stole it.] [People who plagiarize should just rot!] Everyone wanted to be the first to dig up the tea. Then Lesley responded to the top comment. [Sweetie, the other person is a big-name influencer with millions of followers in the same space as me. So, I won’t say who it is, but she recently stopped posting because she was trying to rebrand. I guess she hit a wall and decided to steal a small creator’s idea like me.] She didn’t drop names, but she didn’t have to. That comment gave people more than enough to go on. The internet didn’t need much to put two and two together. It didn’t take long for users to connect the dots and come straight to me. Quickly, my comment sections turned into war zones full of accusations, insults, and endless doubts. But my fans did their best to defend me. Since there was no solid proof that I plagiarized, the hate was quickly buried beneath waves of support. Still, I was exhausted. Mentally drained. Physically done. Between the sleepless nights and nonstop stress, I eventually collapsed into bed and passed out without even meaning to. I didn’t know how long I was out before a loud knock jolted me awake. “Zephanie! I know you’re in there. Open the door!” “You hear me?! Don’t make this harder than it needs to be!” I opened the door and found myself staring straight into Gavin’s eyes. “What’s the meaning of this silent breakup?! I just happened to run into Lesley that day. You’re being paranoid!” he barked, dragging a suitcase behind him as he pushed past me. I snapped out of it and shoved him back toward the door. “We broke up. I don’t want to see you again.” “Enough with the drama,” he said. “I came back to give you a way out. Just admit you were wrong, apologize to Lesley online, and this whole thing goes away. Don’t make it uglier than it needs to be.” Hearing that, I lost it. “I didn’t copy her!” I screamed. “She stole my idea!” Gavin laughed like I’d told a joke. “Oh, so the person who plagiarized managed to post before the one who didn’t? That’s a new one. Impressive.” “Everyone knows you copied her,” he added. “You’re the only one still lying to yourself.” I pointed to the door, voice shaking with fury. “If you don’t leave right now, I’m calling the cops and reporting you for trespassing!” That finally made him back off. He picked up his suitcase, but not before throwing one last comment over his shoulder. “Pathetic. You’ll be crawling back to me before long. Just wait.” I slammed the door behind him so hard the walls shook. But it didn’t take long to figure out what he meant. Not even an hour later, he posted a video of his own, talking about our relationship and heavily implying he was ashamed of me for stealing someone else’s work. Of course, Lesley jumped into the comments to say, [Thanks for speaking up, bro.] Then she followed up with a statement on her own page. [I still believe in the power of originality. As long as we stand firm, there’s always hope. I wish everyone would join me in standing against plagiarism.] Zephanie’s POV Thanks to those two, I was instantly pinned to the wall of shame, labeled a plagiarist. I wanted to defend myself, but I had no idea where to start. What was I supposed to say? That the video Lesley “created” was originally mine? That somehow, by some bizarre twist of fate, the two videos turned out exactly the same, even down to the second? Who would believe me? No one. Not a single person would buy that story except me. Then, to make matters worse, some sharp-eyed internet sleuths dug up my alternate account and found the comment I left urging her to post. [So that comment wasn’t about excitement. It was fishing for material to steal?] [She really had the audacity to ask for an update. She basically treated Lesley’s work like her personal content library.] Reading those comments hit me like a punch to the gut. I had no idea what to do next. Even if I came up with a great idea now, what was the point? Lesley would always get there first. She’d post before me every time. That crushing feeling of helplessness wrapped around me tighter than ever. Looking at my channel, the one I had worked so hard to build up, I knew what I had to do if I wanted to avoid falling into the same pit I had in my past life. I deleted my account with over a million followers and posted one final message on social media. [I can’t prove that I didn’t plagiarize. There are things I simply can’t explain. I’ve deactivated my channel, and I’ll be stepping away from this platform for good. All I want to say is this: I, Zephanie Mills, have never copied anyone’s work.] Then I turned off the comments, disabled private messages, uninstalled the app, and forced myself to stop thinking about it. If I couldn’t fight it, then maybe it was better to just walk away. I packed my bags and gave myself permission to take a long break. I needed to breathe, to rest, to reset. I figured if I stopped posting, I’d finally see what Lesley would come up with on her own.