Chapter 1

Lena's POV

My boyfriend, Zeke Judson, was still talking on the other end.

"Host, we didn't do anything wrong, right?" he asked. "She's so smart. She'll shine wherever she goes."

He paused. "Besides, she should have checked her college choices before the deadline. If anyone's to blame, it's her for being careless."

At the same time, I opened the laptop beside me and logged into the college application system.

I signed in, and the page loaded.

The three top universities in the state that I had originally chosen were all gone.

In their place were Branford University's literature program, Halton University's history program, and Fulton University's classics program.

I was the state physics competition champion, and none of those programs had anything to do with my academic focus.

It was already 11:32 pm, with less than half an hour remaining before the application deadline.

I immediately clicked to change my college choices.

The very next moment, a message popped up on the screen. "You have reached the daily limit for changing your college choices. Please try again tomorrow."

I felt a jolt of panic. I opened the appeal page and selected the emergency change option, but a cold, impersonal message suddenly appeared.

"Manual review is available weekdays from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm."

It was now 11:35 pm.

I refused to give up and called the 24-hour emergency appeals hotline listed at the bottom of the page.

All I got was a busy tone.

I tried again, and it was still the same.

On my third attempt, someone finally answered.

Before I could speak, a mechanical automated voice said, "Thank you for calling the emergency appeals hotline. There are currently 87 callers ahead of you."

At the same time, Zeke's voice came through my headphones. "Host, do me a favor. Could you play that piano song again? If she hears it and comes to see me, we'll still have time to talk it over."

I said nothing as the automated voice kept announcing the number of callers.

"There are 72 callers ahead of you."

"There are 56 callers ahead of you."

The producer held up a whiteboard. It read, "Lena, 19 minutes until we go off the air. Should we start the closing remarks?"

I didn't look up. I just gripped my phone and listened to the voice on the other end.

"There are 31 callers ahead of you."

30 seconds had already passed, and every second brought the deadline closer.

I was running out of time.

"There are 14 callers ahead of you."

I was almost there.

I stared at my phone screen. Once the call connected, I still had a chance.

My brother, Ian Stroud, was still talking, his voice reaching me through my headphones. "My younger sister has lived in her older sister's shadow since they were kids. She has always come in second.

"This year, she was just 20 points short. Host, tell me. What's wrong with giving her a chance to win?"

I pressed the mute button.

"There are three callers ahead of you."

"There are two callers ahead of you."

"There is one caller ahead of you."

At 11:55 pm, the line finally connected with a beep.

I grabbed my phone. "Hi, my name is Lena Stroud! Someone changed my college choices without my permission. I need to change it back—"

The person on the other end cut me off.

"Miss, we can't process college application appeals online. You must bring your registration documents and state ID to your local admissions office. The office is open from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm on weekdays."

I was so desperate that I started to cry. "But today is the last day. The deadline is midnight! There are only three minutes left. Please, can't you make an exception? This will affect the next four years of my life!"

The person on the other end sighed. "Miss, we understand how you feel, but remote changes are not allowed."

With a beep, the call ended.

The producer walked over and slapped the whiteboard down in front of me. It read, "One minute left. Play the closing remarks!"

At the same time, Zeke's voice drifted through my headphones. "She really didn't hear it. Forget about it, then."

A message appeared on my laptop screen. "The college application deadline has passed. No further changes can be made."

I leaned back in my chair and stared at the ceiling of the studio.

It was over.

I was done for.

Then Zeke's voice suddenly came through my headphones.

"Lena?"