Chapter 2

The smartboard had already been turned off by Ethan.

Chloe didn't dare strike back, but she wasn't about to let this go.

"Mrs. Higgins, you can't just favor her because of her grades! She insulted me and attacked me! Look, I'm bleeding!"

She grabbed a tissue, dabbing at a scratch on her forehead, sobbing loudly.

Mrs. Higgins looked at Chloe's swollen face and saw the blood on the tissue. Her sharp gaze immediately landed on me.

"Ethan, you're the class president. Tell me exactly what happened."

Ethan stood up, looking hesitant.

"I... I'm not entirely sure about the details, but it was indeed Grace who initiated the fight."

Mrs. Higgins' eyes filled with disappointment as she looked at me.

She pushed her glasses up and ordered someone to take Chloe to the nurse's office.

"Grace, come with me to the principal's office. If anything serious happens to Chloe, pack your bags. You're looking at suspension or worse."

A smirk twitched on Chloe's lips.

Mrs. Higgins absolutely loathed bullies. Since I had crossed her, I was done for.

Chloe couldn't help but gloat. "Oh, our school's number one student is getting expelled. Mrs. Higgins must be devastated."

"Or, if she just writes a public apology and reads it in front of the whole school, maybe we can let it go."

Chloe leaned weakly into Ethan's arms, acting like a fragile victim. Her fake, manipulative tone made my fists clench.

Ignoring her pathetic whimpers, I stepped in front of Ethan.

"When did I ever lay a hand on Chloe? She tripped and fell on her own. Ethan, don't spread lies just because you like her."

"What?!"

Chloe was so outraged by my shamelessness that she screamed, "How could I fall and end up like this?! Grace, you liar!"

Ethan looked at me in shock, clearly thinking I had lost my mind to lie so boldly.

"I'm not taking sides, Mrs. Higgins. If you don't believe me, you can ask the class."

The slackers in the back row took the cue and yelled:

"We all saw it! Grace just went crazy and attacked her!"

"She probably targeted Chloe because Chloe's the new girl. She's a bully!"

The classroom erupted into loud murmurs.

Mrs. Higgins raised her hand for silence, then let out a heavy sigh.

"Chloe, go to the nurse. Grace, come with me to the security office. We need to pull the hallway security footage."

The classroom instantly went dead silent.

Whenever Chloe bullied me, these kids had happily joined in. But Mrs. Higgins was a veteran teacher close to retirement. If a bullying scandal reached the school board, not even the Vice Principal could save his daughter.

The boys suddenly worried about their phones being confiscated, and Chloe panicked about the footage exposing her.

She didn't dare push it further. She grabbed Mrs. Higgins' arm, suddenly acting sweet:

"Actually, Mrs. Higgins, it's my fault too. I said some mean things first, which is why Grace got mad."

"It's just a small misunderstanding. Let's not trouble the security office. The other AP classes are waiting for you."

But Mrs. Higgins wasn't born yesterday.

She scanned the room and instantly knew something was wrong.

"Chloe, I'm giving you one last chance. How did you get that scratch?"

I stood next to Mrs. Higgins, wearing a calm smile.

Chloe looked at me like she wanted to tear me apart, taking deep breaths to hold back her tears.

"I... I fell on my own."

"If you fell on your own, why did you accuse Grace? And as for the rest of you who were cheering... Ethan, and those boys in the back, stand up!"

Mrs. Higgins slammed her textbook onto the podium so hard that the girl in the front row nearly burst into tears.

"You think because your families have connections, you can bully people? Tell me! Why did you lie?!"

They all looked at each other, none of them daring to speak.

I picked up Chloe's phone from the floor. It had been smashed and soaked; it was completely dead.

"Mrs. Higgins, it's because when Chloe fell, I couldn't help but laugh. She got mad, smashed my phone, and blamed me so she wouldn't have to pay for it."

I showed Chloe's brand-new phone to Mrs. Higgins, my eyes welling up with fake tears.

"My dad saved up to buy this for me. I haven't even had it for a week. I really loved this phone. Chloe, can you please pay me back?"

Chloe's eyes nearly popped out of her head.

Her lips trembled, probably dying to scream curses at me.

But under Mrs. Higgins' stern glare, she could only swallow her rage.

"I didn't mean to. I'll have my dad pay her tomorrow."

"Why wait until tomorrow?" Mrs. Higgins handed her the phone. "Your dad is in his office right now. Call him up here."

Chloe hung her head, refusing to move.

Her dad hated dealing with Mrs. Higgins. If he found out she got caught causing trouble, he would blow a fuse.

As the tension mounted, Ethan pulled a book out of his bag and took out three thousand dollars in cash.

"Mrs. Higgins, Chloe didn't mean it. She's new and she was just scared, which is why she lied."

"This is my fault. I shouldn't have lied for her. I'll pay for the broken phone."

But the money inside that book... was mine.