Chapter 1

Ethan Sterling, the class president, made it back to the classroom before I did.

The moment he returned to his seat, several classmates crowded around him.

"Ethan, what did Ms. Bennett want with you guys?" one of them asked.

"Yeah," another chimed in. "Just look at Adrian. He looks like he's about to cry."

Even from across the room, I could hear Ethan chuckle.

"Nothing much. Adrian copied off my test, and Ms. Bennett caught him."

The moment he said it, the classroom erupted.

Whispers spread from one desk to the next, followed by snickers and curious glances in my direction.

I shot to my feet, my chair scraping loudly against the floor. "I didn't!"

My voice shook with anger, but it was immediately drowned out by the whispers spreading through the classroom.

"No way. Adrian always seemed like a pretty honest guy."

"Honest? Come on. You know what they say—you can't judge a book by its cover. He was ranked in the twenties on the last exam, and now he suddenly makes the top ten? You really think he pulled that off on his own?"

"Exactly. Ethan's the top student in our class. If you were going to cheat, copying him would be the safest bet."

A few people laughed under their breath.

I clenched my fists as I understood that not one of them believed me.

I had no idea how I managed to make it through the rest of the school day.

The moment I got home, I threw myself onto my bed and buried my face in my pillow, too humiliated to say a word.

At dinnertime, someone knocked on my door.

"Adrian, dinner's ready. Come eat."

It was my sister, Julianne Cole.

When I didn't answer, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"How did you do on this month's exam?" she asked casually.

But the moment she noticed my swollen, red eyes, her expression changed.

"What happened? Did someone bully you?"

Those words shattered what little composure I had left.

I couldn't hold it in anymore. I sat up and told her everything that had happened in the teacher's office.

The smile slowly faded from Julianne's face as she listened.

By the time I finished, the sadness in my eyes deepened. Julianne suddenly slammed her hand against the table so hard that I flinched.

"Don't worry about it. We're not writing that damn self-criticism. If they want to kick you out, then fine. We'll transfer schools!"

She looked at me with fierce determination. "With my grades, I can get into whatever school you want. We'll transfer, and you're coming with me."

I looked up at her and saw no hesitation in her eyes.

Seeing that determination, I nodded firmly.

…

The next morning, I walked into the classroom with my backpack slung over one shoulder.

Every eye immediately turned toward me. Even Ethan glanced up from his desk.

I ignored them all, walked straight to my seat, and dropped my backpack beside my desk.

Just as the class began, our homeroom teacher, Victoria Bennett, entered the classroom with her arms crossed.

Her eyes swept across the classroom before finally landing on me. "Adrian. Stand up and read your 3,000-word self-criticism to the class."

The room fell silent.

I looked at her but didn't move.

"I'm talking to you!" Her voice rose sharply as she slammed her hand against the teacher's desk.

"Adrian, did you write it or not?"

A few girls in the front row flinched at the sudden outburst.

I met her gaze and answered calmly, "No."

Ms. Bennett froze, as she clearly hadn't expected me to answer so directly.

"What did you say?" she asked.

"I said I didn't write it." I held her gaze. "Because I didn't cheat."

The classroom erupted.

"Oh, my God! Has Adrian completely lost it?"

"He actually just talked back to Ms. Bennett!"

"Is he trying to get himself expelled?"

Ms. Bennett's hand trembled with rage. She pointed at me, her face turning red.

"You… Get up here!"

She stormed toward the front of the classroom, grabbed the metal pointer leaning beside the blackboard, and slammed it against the board.

"Get up here! Now!"

The sharp crack echoed through the room.

"Immediately!"