Ever thought about a do over in life?

Like, what if you could hit the reset button

and start fresh at any point in your life? That's the kind of question a street survey
was asking.

These days, thanks to a bunch of shows about rebirth and time travel blowing up
online, even busy bees like Olivia Parker were hip to the idea. She stumbled upon
this survey one afternoon while she was out with her assistant in the busy city of
Los Angeles, heading for a client meeting.

If Olivia nailed this deal, the commission from her agency, plus her current
savings, could finally let her plant roots in this big city. She's got her eye on this
swanky riverside apartment. Over Twelve hundred square feet, prime location,
great views, tons of light, however, the price tag is as steep as you'd guess.

But she's got it covered. Once she wraps up this deal, she'll have enough for the
down payment.

Olivia's thirty one and has been making her way in L A for just six years. She's
saved enough for a down payment of four million on her own.

Olivia isn't just excelling at work, she’s also thriving in her personal life. She and
her boyfriend, Blake, have a special tradition. Every evening after work, they go
out together. Whether it's enjoying meals at upscale restaurants or catching
concerts amidst their hectic schedules, their relationship seems like a perfect scene
from a romantic movie.

So when Olivia got that survey about rebirth, she paused. Her assistant cracked up,
saying, "That survey's not for someone like you. It’s for us regular folks, maybe
we'd need a second shot at life."

Olivia just laughed it off. "Don't sell yourself short," she said. "When I first came
to L A, I started as an assistant, just like you."
Tossing the survey into the trash, Olivia gave herself a quick once over with her
assistant's help, no wrinkles, her makeup perfect, and confidently strode into the
client's office.

After sealing the deal, she was ecstatic. The success of the contract meant that she
had finally paid for the down payment on her dream home. It was a momentous
day, filled with joy and celebration, culminating in a lovely evening with her
boyfriend. Drained yet fulfilled, she fell asleep quickly, the survey and its odd
question about rebirth far from her thoughts. But then she found herself in a
strange dream.

She was in a dark, fancy classroom that smelled like old books. She could hear
people talking quietly in the background. The desks were shiny, and there was a
chalkboard that said two thousand four at the front. She looked down and saw a
pen in her hand. She felt a mix of old memories and confusion. In front of her was
the dreaded literature exam, bringing back memories she thought were gone.

During that particular exam, she had been sick as a dog. After struggling through
it, her mother Sylvia Parker hurried her to the hospital as soon as she put down her
pen. Her fever was nearly hitting one hundred and four degrees Fahrenheit.

No surprise, she bombed that English test. Usually scoring around one thirty out of
one fifty, she scraped up just ninety one points that time. That score cost her a spot
at her dream high school. She only got in because of her dad, Samuel Parker's
connections.

That failure hung over her all summer and through high school. She'd been ragged
on so much that she started believing that botching that test was a huge blunder and
a stain on her life. Even after college, she'd wake up cold and shaking from dreams
of being lost in that exam room.

Teenage Olivia wasn't the confident thirty one year old she'd become. Crushed
under her mom's expectations, she’d felt humiliated.
But since ditching the Federal Civil Service exam for a job in L A, those
nightmares had stopped. So why this dream now?

Looking around, she saw young, nervous faces, all scanning their test papers
before the start. This dream felt too real.

"Don't look around. This is your year end exam. Listen up, do your best. Relax
afterwards, okay?" The middle aged invigilator had noticed her when she walked
in, face flushed, nearly tripping over a desk. He figured she was sick.

Hearing him, Olivia looked up. For a second, she thought she saw encouragement
in his eyes. So, she bent over the test paper. Earlier, she couldn't make out the
questions. Now, every letter, word, sentence, and punctuation was crystal clear.
Was she really retaking this exam?

Olivia smiled as the test started. Piece of cake for thirty one year old Olivia. She
breezed through the test, finishing with a long sigh. “Done. Maybe there won’t be
any more dreams about this? But how do I wake up now?” Olivia glanced around.
Observing her, the invigilator looked worried, probably thinking she rushed
through, wanting to hand in early due to being sick.

"Don't rush. If you're done, check it over a few times before handing it in," he
advised.

The invigilator's words hit Olivia like a reality check. He thought he was helping
out a student who was losing it under pressure. Olivia was totally thrown. She'd
dreamt about her year end exam a bunch of times, but never like this. This was
way too vivid. Touching her forehead, she felt the heat and started freaking out.

“Is this even a dream?” She stood up in a hurry.

"What are you doing?" blurted the invigilator.

"Mister Brown, I'm turning in my paper," Olivia said. She needed to get out of
there fast.
Her move caught everyone's attention.

"Who does she think she is, handing in her paper so early?" they must've thought.
"Even if you're done, you have to double check your work!"

Mister Brown checked his watch and said, "No way, sit back down. It's not time
yet. If you need to rest, just lay your head down quietly!"

“When is the submission time again?” Olivia couldn't quite remember. An hour
after the start, or half an hour before the end?

If it's a dream, who cares, right? She's the boss in her dreams. She could go
wherever she wanted. Not even the invigilator or her mom could stop her. But if
this was for real, breaking the rules could mean her test gets tossed.

Olivia sat back down with a bitter smile.

When it was finally time to hand in her paper, Olivia bolted out of the classroom,
feeling sick and shaky. Mr. Brown just shook his head. "This kid's all over the
place, not even focused on the exam."

He collected Olivia's paper and was taken aback when he looked at it. It is hard to
say how she did overall, but the vocabulary and sentence structures in her answers?
Way beyond what you'd expect from a middle schooler!

She found her bearings and headed toward the school gate from memory. Her
mom, Sylvia, spotted her from a distance.

"OLIVIA?" Sylvia was holding an umbrella and glanced at her watch, almost
jumping out of her skin.

Sylvia didn’t care about being graceful at that moment. She stepped closer, her
tone stern, “Olivia, You better have a good explanation! You turned in your paper
this early?”

A fellow parent waiting nearby chimed in, understanding Sylvia’s concern. “Yeah,
if my kid did something like this, I’d be all over them too.”
“This is highly irresponsible. Olivia, think about your grades.” Sylvia fumed.

Olivia remembered this scenario all too well. Right after she stepped out of the
exam room, she passed out. Her mom had to rush her to the hospital before even
asking how the exam went. The real drama kicked in when the results were
released. Ninety one points!

That summer, Olivia was grounded. Her parents shipped her off to her aunt's place
in Scranton. She spent over a month there, crammed into Literature tutoring
classes.

Even away from home, Olivia couldn't escape her parents' constant checks. They'd
call her three times a day, grilling her about her progress and always bringing up
her dreadful results.
Sylvia also kept reminding her about the lengths they went to and the money they
spent to get her into high school. Years later, Olivia still remembered how she
walked into that high school feeling completely intimidated.

As she thought about all this, Olivia felt increasingly lightheaded.

"Mom, I think I have a fever," Olivia cut in, interrupting Sylvia's lecture.

Sylvia was taken aback. She touched Olivia's forehead, and yes, it was burning up.
Looking closer, Olivia's face was way too red to be just from the sun.

Sylvia grabbed Olivia, hailed a taxi, and hustled her into it, heading straight for the
hospital. After a bunch of tests, the doctor said it was the flu, high fever, body
aches, and total exhaustion.

"This is on you. I told you not to go on that trip right before your big exam. If you
hadn't gone out, you wouldn't have gotten soaked. If you hadn't gotten soaked, you
wouldn't be sick now. Who knows if this will mess up your exam results." Sylvia
connected Olivia’s recent illness to the rainy June trip with her classmates.

The doctor finally had enough and told Sylvia her daughter needed rest, ushering
her out. "Your daughter needs to be admitted for a few days. I request that you go
take care of the paperwork," the doctor instructed.
Sylvia was shocked. "Hospitalized for the flu?"

"The flu's no joke, especially with symptoms like these. It's best she stays here for
proper care. Plus, it's contagious. A simple cold can spiral into something way
worse, even life threatening."

After the doctor stressed the severity of Olivia's condition, Sylvia stopped her rant,
listened to the doctor, and arranged for Olivia's hospitalization.

“Is this even real? It can't be a dream.” Olivia thought to herself. That crystal clear
test paper. Her own constant chatter, her mother’s sharp voice. The strong smell of
disinfectant wafting through the hospital. It all seemed too real.

Her cheeks felt hot, and her skin actually hurt when she pinched her arm. You're
not supposed to feel things in dreams, but she felt everything. Olivia went from
denial to slowly accepting the unbelievable truth. She really had been reborn.

Her first thought wasn't excitement about getting back over ten years of youth. No,
she was worried about the river view apartment she'd just put a down payment on.

Four million dollars!

That was every penny of Olivia's savings from years of hard work after college.
She just wanted a place of her own, not her parents', not her boyfriend’s, but hers
alone. Thinking of Blake made her heart ache.

Olivia and Blake had been dating for three years. She came from a comfortably off
family in a small city, but Blake was totally the rich second generation.

They met at work, were friends for a year, and then lovers for three. Their
relationship might not have been all fireworks, but it was rock solid.

Blake had proposed, but Olivia wanted to wait. She felt she needed to achieve
more in her career before taking that step. And now, before she could even discuss
it with him, she was reborn.

The dreamy river view apartment and her enviable boyfriend, Blake, were gone.
Olivia couldn’t help but wonder if they would have that pure, first love again. She
actually wanted to see Blake!
Blake was three years her senior and, at this time, was studying in the U K. Olivia
had missed being his first love. But, did she even have time for romance now?

She'd been thrown back in time, about to start the most challenging years of high
school under the watchful eyes of her demanding parents. They wanted success for
her, but their control was stifling.

Now, after years of independence, she was back under her parents' roof. How
could she be happy about being reborn with all this on her mind?

Lost in thought about the apartment and love life she left behind, the ward door
opened.

In walked a man in his forties, crisp in suit pants and a short sleeved shirt, neatly
tucked in. With a briefcase under his arm, he looked like he meant business from
head to toe.

This was Olivia's dad, Samuel.

He looked young for his age, thanks to his gentle features. Back in the day, he was
so handsome that Sylvia fell for him at first sight during a blind date, even though
he was just a regular guy then.

Olivia was always thankful for the good looks she inherited from him.

At sixteen, she was still growing into those looks. A little over five feet two, she
weighed over one forty pounds, and her uniform seemed to add extra weight. Her
love for sweets and struggles with acne didn't help her teenage self esteem. It
wasn't until college that she slimmed down, cleared her skin, and really saw the
beauty she got from her dad.

Now facing her dad again, Olivia didn't know what to do.

Before she went back in time, Olivia hadn't seen her dad for over two years. Sylvia
would still reach out to Olivia, but it was all about convincing her to come back.

Now, as a thirty one year old mind which is trapped in a sixteen year old body,
Olivia was grappling with some serious internal conflict. Her dad, Samuel, hurried
to the hospital after getting the call. He had a lot on his mind, but Olivia's blank
stare softened him.
He sat down, keeping his distance as the doctor advised, about two meters from
Olivia.

"Aren't you happy to see your dad? How’re you feeling now? Still sick? The
Doctor gave you a shot, so your fever should be coming down now," he said,
trying for a reassuring smile. “Your mom's handling the hospital bills and then
grabbing something for you to eat. You love hamburgers, don’t you? I’ll tell her to
grab something from Chili's!"

Samuel and Sylvia always made sure Olivia could enjoy treats like Chili's. They
never skimped on food, which was partly why Olivia was over one forty pounds.

But what threw Olivia off was her dad's tone. Was Samuel trying to butter her up?

This version of her dad made Olivia uneasy. She shifted on her hospital bed and
blurted out, "Why aren't you asking about my Literature test?"