Chapter 3

Some of the boys rushed to comfort Bree, insisting she was the only one in the entire class who deserved guaranteed admission. Connor, meanwhile, walked straight toward me.

His eyes were vicious. He seized my arm in an iron grip and spoke through clenched teeth. "Ivy, I don't hit girls. But that doesn't mean I won't.

"If you breathe a word of this to a teacher, go ahead and find out what happens."

He shoved me hard against a desk. My hand struck the corner, and a bruise formed instantly.

Every boy in the class glared at me with open hostility, as if they were ready to tear me apart on the spot. The memory of being surrounded by those thugs in my last life rushed back. A cold wave crawled up my spine, and the color drained from my face.

That kind of terror was impossible to fake.

Connor watched me tremble from head to toe and let out a scornful laugh. "That's all the guts you've got, and you were going to run to a teacher."

He turned back to Bree, who was still sniffling.

"Bree, don't worry. This spot is yours, no question. But to make sure Ms. Ingram doesn't play favorites with Ivy and block your application when she sees your name on it, we'll time the submission carefully.

"I'll deliver it myself, so she won't have a chance to review it before it goes through. By the time the acceptance letter arrives, it won't matter who has a problem with it. It'll be too late."

The other boys cheered his plan. Even Bree wiped the tears from her eyes and turned to him gratefully. "Connor, thank you for making me feel like I actually deserve the best of everything."

Connor puffed up even more and added quickly, "The rest of you, keep an eye on Ivy. Can't have her trying to sabotage this."

As every pair of male eyes in the room locked onto me, I buried my head before the panic could set in. I had learned my lesson. This time, I was not going to let myself spiral into another stress response.

What I did not expect was that one of the girls still could not stand to watch. She murmured under her breath, "That's just awful for Ivy. She worked so hard for that admission spot, and now it's just gone."

I whipped around to face my deskmate, but before I could stop her, Connor stood in front of us. He roared at her, "What are you, Ivy's little lapdog? So desperate to stick up for her?

"What do you mean she 'worked hard' for that spot? This is a class resource!

"And Ivy's such a good student, she'll definitely get into a top university without guaranteed admission. Better to give it to Bree. That way the resource actually gets put to good use.

"Besides, if some genius can't even handle a college exam, that just proves she's mentally weak. Even if she got into a great school, she'd never amount to anything.

"But hey, no big deal. My family owns a grocery store. When Ivy graduates with no job prospects, she can always come mop our floors."

Laughter erupted around the room.

Bree gasped with exaggerated surprise. "Oh wait, isn't Ivy's mom a janitor at a shopping mall? If Ivy ends up cleaning floors too, I guess it runs in the family!"

The moment those words left Bree's mouth, a knot of dread tightened in my stomach. This was not the first time they used my mother's job as a punchline.

Sure enough, Connor picked it right up. "Ivy, if you don't behave, next time I see your mom in the mall restroom, I'll drag her in to watch people piss!"

The laughter from the boys grew even louder.

I shook with rage. I clenched my teeth and shouted back at them, "What's wrong with being a janitor at a mall? My mom earns an honest living with her own two hands. It's real work. Who the hell are you people to sit here and bark about it?!"

Nobody expected a reaction that fierce. The entire classroom went silent.

I thought it would end there. Instead, Bree burst into tears again.

She turned on me, voice trembling with accusation. "Ivy, what is that supposed to mean?

"You just wanted an excuse to tell everyone my mom's job isn't good enough, didn't you?

"That's my mother's problem. Why are you using it to humiliate me? Why are you dragging me into this?"