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I Took My Future Back
I Took My Future Back
Penulis: Triple Threat

Chapter 1

Penulis: Triple Threat
At 3:30 p.m. on January 15, I finished filling out my college applications and went to the mall with my parents to celebrate.

While we waited for our coffee, a stream of comments suddenly appeared in front of me.

[You're still celebrating? Chloe, the prettiest girl at school, scored just ten points lower than you on college entrance exam. She hired a hacker to delete your application to Valemont University before you could submit it.

[Your application to Valemont University is gone. If you don't catch it before tonight's deadline, you can kiss that school goodbye!

[When your relatives find out at your graduation party, your parents will never hear the end of it. You'll end up at a community college, where some loser with bleached hair will sweep you off your feet. Before those two years are up, you'll have two kids.

[Years of hard work, ruined in one day!

[College choices close at five. You have an hour to stop this.

[Get home, now!]

I froze. Leaving my coffee behind, I grabbed my phone and ran home.

I turned on my computer, logged into my application account, and stared at my college list.

Valemont University was gone. Someone really had messed with my application!

The school was missing from my list, along with everything I filled out.

I broke out in a cold sweat.

Chloe Sherman and I were both top students at Langford High.

She was prettier than me, outgoing, and always dressed well. Right from freshman year, everyone called her the prettiest girl in school.

I was quiet, kept to myself, and spent all my time studying.

As far as everyone else was concerned, Chloe had me beat at everything except for the one thing I consistently beat her at for three years: grades.

I ranked first in our class throughout high school and scored 1590 on college entrance exam.

Chloe always came in second. She scored 1580, just ten points behind me.

The day our scores came out, she came looking for me.

"Gwen, don't think those ten points make you better than me. Watch yourself."

I figured she was just upset, so I walked away without giving it another thought.

Now, I stared at my account, her warning running through my head. My hands shook.

I added Valemont University back to my list and filled out the application again. Just as I was ready to submit it, more comments appeared.

[No, no, no! You haven't locked the hacker out of your account. They can delete it again before you hit submit!]

My grip tightened on the mouse. My palm was slick with sweat.

I logged out, then hurried to log back in.

My application was gone again.

Valemont University was gone for the second time.

It was 4:10 p.m.

Fifty minutes until the deadline, and I was right back where I started.

Even if I filled everything out again, whoever was in my account could delete it before I hit submit.

My heart hammered in my chest. I jumped, grabbed my phone, and ran for the door.

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  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 10

    "Take a picture!" Chloe urged. "I wanna post it. I already have a caption.""What is it?"She cleared her throat and announced solemnly, "Once rivals. Now roommates."I froze. "Since when are we roommates?""We're going to the same school, aren't we?" she said, as if that settled it. "We can request each other when we sign up for housing."I chuckled. "Shouldn't you ask if I wanna room with you first?"Her voice softened. "Do you?"I looked down at my acceptance letter, then out at the sunshine. "Yeah," I said softly. "I do."For a second, she went quiet. Then she screamed, and I pulled the phone away from my ear. Mom and Dad laughed until their eyes filled with tears.A few months later, friends and relatives filled the house for my graduation party. Some congratulated me on all my hard work, while others told my parents how well they raised me. Dad had a little to drink, and for once, he forgot his usual reserve and gave a long, teary speech."We never had to tell Gwen

  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 9

    "You always came in first. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't catch up." Chloe kept her head down. "I thought you looked down on me.""I didn't," I said. "I'm just bad at talking to people and making friends."Chloe sniffled. "Then work on it."I blinked, and she looked up at me with red eyes. "I'll work on it, too. No more pretending I don't care. I wanna be your friend."I couldn't help smiling. "Okay."She held out her hand. "Friends?"I took it. "Friends."Word spread fast after that. When the police released a statement, people were furious. Our assistant principal conspired with a college admissions officer to sabotage our applications, even arranging fake health screenings to plant devices in our eyes.Seeing it all laid out made my skin crawl. The school tried to bury the story, but it was too late to keep it quiet.The school district opened an investigation. The principal was suspended, Paul was fired, and police arrested everyone involved. The school rushed

  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 8

    Simon paid Paul 30 thousand dollars for his help. Paul handed over information on the top 50 students in our class, and they picked Chloe and me.I ranked first, and Chloe was both a top student and the prettiest girl in school. The two of us would get them the most attention.They arranged the fake health screenings, slipped tiny display films onto our eyes, and used a nearby device to transmit the messages. The comments were never warnings. They were a way to manipulate us.First, they turned us against each other, then pointed us toward Ryan. They wanted us to waste the time we had left chasing suspects instead of submitting our applications. After the deadline, they could blame a technical glitch or claim we accidentally deleted the applications ourselves.Paul got carried away when he threatened to do it again every year. That threat gave us our biggest clue.Chloe leaned over a trash can and threw up. "How could they?" she sobbed, shaking. "How could they ruin our futu

  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 7

    [Gwen, I heard someone deleted your college application. Is that true?[Did it happen to Chloe, too? Who would do that to you two?]Someone else sent me a screenshot. The school's official account called the reports of "application tampering" a misunderstanding and warned students against wasting police resources.My hands shook with anger. Someone deleted my application twice, and a doctor found foreign material in my eyes, yet the school still had the nerve to call it a misunderstanding.Chloe jumped to her feet after reading the statement. "I'm posting about this!"I caught her arm. "Wait. They'll twist whatever we say. Let the police investigate first."Chloe sat back down, her jaw tight. Then more comments appeared.[It won't matter. The school will protect me.[You two little girls can't win against us adults.]I stared at the last line. "Officer Schultz, there's another message."He turned to me. "What does it say?"I read the comments aloud, word for word. His expres

  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 6

    "The university will decide whether to accept a late application," Gordon said. "Our report can help explain what happened. For now, let's get your statements."I breathed a little easier. Then the comments appeared again.[Don't believe them. Midnight was the deadline, and you missed it.[You're finished.]This time, I stared at the words without panicking.Whoever was behind them was the one in trouble now.-At the station, Chloe and I gave separate statements. I told Gordon about the first comments that afternoon, the deleted application, and why I suspected Chloe and Ryan. Then I explained what made me think someone at school was behind it.Gordon frowned. "You're saying you can see words floating in front of you?""Yes, like comments on a screen," I said. "Chloe sees them, too, but no one else can."When Gordon spoke to Chloe, she told him the same thing. "I can see them, too. They told me Gwen deleted my application, so I went to her house.""When did this start?" h

  • I Took My Future Back   Chapter 5

    My voice still shook, but I made myself speak clearly. "Hello. I need to report a crime. Someone broke into our college application accounts and deleted our applications. We think it's someone at our school."Chloe's head snapped up. Her eyes were red, and her cheeks were wet with tears, but she went still when I mentioned our school."Where are you now?" the dispatcher asked.I gave her my address, our names, and an account of what happened. "Save any evidence you have, including screenshots," the dispatcher said. "I'll pass this along to an officer."I gripped the phone. "But applications close at midnight. We only have a few minutes left. What if we miss the deadline?""Contact the university's admissions office and explain what happened," she said. "Keep your phone nearby so an officer can reach you."As soon as I hung up, more comments appeared.[You called the police? That's hilarious.[What proof do you have? Can the police see me?[You two little girls think crying

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