If You Can Do Better, Prove It Chapter 06
Subject Two never regulated how much screen time young Sean could have.
A child with no discernment, Sean soon drowned in the endless sea of online stimuli, some of which were outright harmful. Every night, he stayed up scrolling on his phone until exhaustion overtook him, and every morning, he slept in, utterly incapable of waking up on time.
Exposure to an endless stream of short, high-stimulation videos shattered his attention span, leaving him unable to focus in class.
Worse, Subject Two offered no academic guidance, and soon, Sean’s grades began to plummet. His behavior with classmates took a turn for the worse, too. Imitating crude antics he’d seen online, he managed to offend nearly everyone around him.
The internet painted a glossy picture of wealthy children with sprawling homes and shiny toys, and this distorted Sean’s perception. He began to resent his modest life, dismissing his family’s conditions as beneath him.
Even Subject Two found himself at a loss. He confronted young Sean with frustration.
“I’ve given you everything you wanted! Why are you getting worse?”
Sean, sprawled lazily on the couch, didn’t even look up from his tablet.
“Everything? You don’t even cook. All you do is order takeout. You’re just a lazy mom.”
Subject Two, being the same person, shared the same distaste for effort. Cooking was far too much work, so takeout it remained.
The system’s warning was chilling: [Sean’s health is deteriorating, and his grades are dropping. If there is no improvement by the end of the term, Subject Two will be deemed a failure.]
The effects of their shared lifestyle soon became evident. Sean, now subsisting on fast food and sugary drinks, gained weight at an alarming rate. His height lagged behind his peers, and early signs of insulin resistance began to show. Panic gripped Subject
Two.
He tried to reason with the boy. “I’m your future self! If you work hard now, we can enjoy a million-dollar lifestyle later.”
Young Sean didn’t bother hiding his disdain. “You’re a bad mom! Raising a child is your job. Why should I work hard? You’re the one who needs to earn more money!”
Their fights grew louder and more frequent. Subject Two’s attempts at a “happy education” had crumbled. Worse, his reckless spending had drained my savings.
“I can’t do this!” Subject Two shouted in frustration one day. “If I were a rich mom, life would be so much easier. Why did she even have kids if she had no money?”
Sympathy rippled through the audience. They turned to me with questioning looks, wondering if there had been any logic behind my decision.
I met their gazes, unflinching. “When I chose to have a child, I had 15 thousand dollars in savings.”
Realization dawned on them. The whispers started:
“What about the father? Why hasn’t he shown up once? Isn’t he supposed to be part of this family?”
Damion shifted uncomfortably in his seat, sweat beading on his forehead.
Meanwhile, on the screen, Subject Two’s journey spiraled downward. Having indulged young Sean’s every whim, he found it impossible to enforce discipline. By the end of the term, the boy’s grades hit rock bottom, his health hadn’t improved, and he remained smaller than his classmates.
When the term report arrived, young Sean broke into tears. Subject Two wasn’t far behind, his patience snapping.
“You’re ruining us both!” he shouted, grabbing young Sean. “Can’t you think about the future for once? Why are you so useless? You’re going to destroy me!”
The audience groaned in unison.
“Enough already. Subject Two’s just another armchair expert. Get rid of him.”
“Raising kids is hard for anyone.”
“Parents and kids will never fully understand each other.
The system was preparing to declare Subject Two’s failure when I interrupted. “Wait. I’d like to give Sean another chance.”
The murmurs began immediately.
“She really is a loving mother. Even after all that, she still wants to give him another chance? Incredible.”
Damion, for his part, turned to me, his voice tinged with hope. “Honey, can you give me a chance too? Let me step down from this trial.”
On the screen, Subject Two heard my voice and clung to it like a lifeline.
“Mom! I knew you loved me. I’ll listen to you from now on, I promise!”
I smiled faintly. “I have one condition. Both Subject Two and Sean must retain their current memories.”
The system agreed, and within moments, Sean’s consciousness split in two-Subject Two, the simulated mother, and Sean, the boy, both carrying their full recollections.
This time, there was no cocky arrogance. Subject Two’s face was grim with determination.
“I’ll do it right. This time, I’ll be a good mother.”
Sean, too, seemed to grasp the gravity of the situation. Without a word, he picked up a pen and began studying.
The audience wasn’t entirely convinced.
“Adeline’s setting herself up for disaster. If they both retain all the memories from the previous trial, he’ll know what to do this time. She’s asking for trouble.”
“A kid like that isn’t worth saving.”
Damion, however, let out a visible sigh of relief, his lips curving into a faint smile.
But being a mother isn’t simple. Now carrying two sets of memories, Sean faced a dual challenge: helping Subject Two become the perfect mom and improving his own grades.
Subject Two was more cautious this time, and didn’t waste money frivolously. She hired a tutor and a nutritionist, carefully managing young Sean’s diet and education. Yet, with limited funds left, Subject Two tread carefully.
Subject Two avoided risky investments, opting instead to resign from her physical labor job in pursuit of a more refined image. After all, an ideal mother wasn’t supposed to be tired or look shabby.
But her strategy wasn’t without flaws. One day, she quietly took Damion’s credit card.
“A great mom also needs to manage family finances,” Subject Two justified smugly. “My mom couldn’t do it, but I can.”
Damion nearly exploded when he saw that.
“That little brat! He knew my password all along?!”
