Classic Novel
Chapter 21
Anne froze at those words.
Just then, Julia turned around and spotted Anne standing outside the door. Panic flooded her face as she quickly hung up the phone, wiped her tears, and forced a smile as she walked toward Anne. “When did you get here, Anne?”
Anne said nothing, stepped in, and shut the door behind her. “Julia, who were you talking to just now?”
Julia’s smile faltered. “A classmate. Did you… hear anything?
“Hmm.” Anne’s expression was gloomy.
“Anne, that person is just talking nonsense. Cassie and I are really close. There’s no way she would hurt me just because you’re nice to me. L… I don’t believe it, Julia said, tears welling up in her eyes. “Even if it seems weird, I’ll always trust Cassie. Can we please just let this go?”
“Weird? What do you mean by that?” Anne asked, her tone serious. “Are you hiding something from me?”
Julia fell silent for a moment, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Please don’t press me. I promised Cassie I wouldn’t say anything
Her words only made it clear whatever she was hiding had to do with Cassie.
“If you don’t tell me, I’ll just ask Cassie, Anne said firmly.
“Please don’t!” Julia grabbed Anne’s arm.
“Then you’d better come clean, Anne replied.
Julia hesitated for a while on purpose, then slumped into a chair, cradling her face in her hands. “Actually, I can remember where and when it happened that day. Cassie was scared you guys would blame her, so she told me not to say anything.”
Anne was taken aback. She had suspected as much-how could Julia forget something that important?
Julia continued, “That day, Cassie wanted to go to the bar to celebrate her coming birthday. I tried to tell you guys, but she said if I did, you wouldn’t let us go. So, she dragged me along with her and sneaked out.
“We were there together, but after I had some water, I blacked out. When I came to, everything had already happened, and Cassie was gone.
“I was so scared and worried that something had happened to her too, I called her and only felt relieved when I found out she was home.”
“I had promised Cassie I wouldn’t tell you about going to the bar When everything went down, I thought… if I spoke-up. you’d definitely blame her. Since it already happened, what’s the point of saying anything? So, I just kept quiet.”
Anne fell silent, not responding to Julia for a long time.
Julia kept her eyes down, feeling satisfied. Anne had never really liked Cassie, and a few days of change wouldn’t undo years of tension.
Julia wasn’t lying about the bar thing. She knew Anne wouldn’t easily find out the truth-after all, only she and Cassie knew who was the one leading their outing
‘Cassie, trying to steal Anne from me? You’ve got a lot to learn: Julia sneered silently
“Good girl, you’ve thought this through, Anne finally said, holding Julia’s hand gently. “Cassie can be a little spoiled, but she’d never hurt family-out of jealousy. You really shouldn’t hang around those troublemakers anymore. Don’t mention the bar thing to anyone else, or they might twist it into something else.”
Julia’s contentment vanished instantly. She’d expected Anne to immediately take her side and blast Cassie.
How could Anne even say that? she thought and replied flatly, “Fine.”
“Don’t worry, Lucas has been looking into this. We won’t let anyone who hurts you get away with it,” Anne promised, her voice serious.
Julia felt a flame of anger ignited inside her. Tuvestigation? Nonsense! Even I could track down those lowlifes. Anne’s insistence on keeping quiet about the bar incident hints that she has her doubts yet supports Cassie. The Murphy family is just as bad as I thought. I swear, I’ll make sure they all pay the price!
The next day. Cassie showed up at school like normal. Everyone seemed cautious around her. Cassie had changed so much that no one really knew how to deal with her anymore.
Some students, impressed by Cassie’s boldness the day before, were eager to see what kind of drama would unfold. But no one dared to cross her. So, the day passed smoothly until the last class.
Donald led the final class. Before the bell rang, he locked his gaze on Ca**ic and said, “Big exams are coming up, and your scores are going to impact your college applications. The school is taking this very seriously.
“I want to remind everyone, especially those struggling, this is not the time for cheating or any funny business. If you get caught, your scores will be wiped out. Also, anyone who fails will face the consequences.
Cassie didn’t even look at him. Who could do worse than she was? She hadn’t even been able to single-choice questions even once.
guess the answers on her
Everyone in class could see that Donald was targeting Cassie. Jennie and Brianna were practically glued to Cassie, snickering silently.
After school, students left the classroom in waves. Cassie lingered, taking her time to pack her things. Just as she was about to leave, a petite girl approached her and said, “This is for you.”
Cassie looked up at her.
Each year, noble schools like this would admit a few gifted underprivileged students and provide them with full scholarships, hoping they’d bring in good scores during SAT.
However, in a school where even an average student’s background could overpower them, they often end up getting bullied. The girl in front of Cassie was one of those students.
Cassie glanced at the notebook the girl was holding out.
The girl looked nervous. These are my notes on the exam topics. They might help you. With that, she lowered her head and hurried away.
Cassie flipped through the notebook and saw the name “Sheryl Carson’ neatly written in the bottom corner of the first page. Suddenly, some memory hit her,
One Christmas in her past life, Cassie found a note in her textbook, telling her to hurry home after school. Because of that note, she had called her bodyguards to pick her up.
Later, when trouble struck, Cassie found out that day, Jennie had teamed up with some thugs to extort money from her after school. The landwriting on that note matched Sheryl’s exactly.
“So it was her Cassie ler out a soft sigh and tucked the notebook Into her backpack.
Meanwhile, Jennie and Brianna were strutting down the hall like they owned the place.
“Honestly, Cassie just leans on Murphy Group. But can it help her study? She’s just a clueless brat, you know? Her grades are so bad. My pet could probably score better than she can, Jennie stoffed.This content © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.
“I can’t wait to see her get called out in the school-wide announcement. I heard the school is even putting the failing students on the bulletin board’s blacklist, Brianna added, smirking.
Just then, a few nearby students, glued to their phones, started glancing their way with strange looks.
Jennie frowned. “What are you guys staring at?”
Before she could finish her rant, Howard White, the dean of students, appeared in the distance. Jennie and Brianna, come with me to the president’s office, now.”
“Us” Jennie paused, and soon, a realization struck her. She crossed her arms and shot a condescending look at the students around her. “Is this about us being nominated for Outstanding Student Representatives?”
Donald had told her dad about it last week, and it seemed like a sure thing-just waiting for the announcement.
Howard’s expression darkened. “That’s not what’s happening. Move it
Jennie and Brianna exchanged glances, both feeling a wave of dread wash over them.
Twenty minutes earlier, several major websites had posted a nearly one-minute video with an infuriating headline -Violence Erupts at Elite School, Underprivileged Student Brutally Humiliated.
Before long, the video went viral across all platforms. Influential accounts shared it angrily. Quickly, people figured out that the bullies were none other than Jennie and Brianna, and the victim was Sheryl.
Only when Cassie saw the news online did she find that, in the video she hacked from Brianna’s phone, the girl getting bullied was Sheryl.
As Jennie and Brianna were called to the president’s office, Sheryl was summoned too. Normally, as the victim, Sheryl would get fair treatment. But this time, the situation was anything but typical.
The next morning, while Cassie was reading in class, she overheard some students chatting
Jennie and Brianna’s moms are here, and Sheryl’s grandma is with them. Those two women are strutting around like they own the place, tearing into Sheryl’s grandma.”
“Isn’t Sheryl’s grandma mute? I heard she can’t speak
“I guess so. But I didn’t see it…
Cassie tapped her fingers lightly on the desk. She wasn’t the type to owe anyone anything. Sheryl had helped her, and now it was time to repay that kindness. With determination, Cassie stood up and headed out.
Just as she arrived outside the president’s office, she heard a woman’s furious voice, shouting. “Jennie has been a good girl since childhood. What on earth did that lile brat do to make her act like this?”