Chapter 2

I dodged Savannah's attempt to grab my phone and dialed 911. Then, I said reproachfully, "You're being too irresponsible with your own body. If you're hurting this badly, there's no way it's just from eating something that's gone bad. You need to go to the hospital!"

Without giving her a chance to refute, I quickly gave the dispatcher our exact location and urged, "Please hurry. The patient is in a lot of pain. There could be complications at any moment."

After I hung up, Savannah started to panic. She grabbed at me, refusing to let me leave. "Even if we're going to the hospital, you have to come with me! Because… because they'll be running all kinds of tests, and I can't go through that alone."

I almost laughed. She wasn't worried about needing someone to accompany her for the tests. She was just worried that if I didn't go with her, she wouldn't be able to set me up properly.

I put on a smile and pretended to comfort her. "You don't have to worry about that. I already texted your parents. They'll meet you at the hospital."

Seeing that I wasn't budging, Savannah forced a strained smile. "No need for that. My stomach doesn't hurt anymore. There's no need to go to the hospital, so just cancel the ambulance. Let's not waste money on that."

I noticed her eyes still darting around. She was obviously cooking up another plan.

Staring at her stomach, I asked, "Are you really not in pain anymore?"

Savannah nodded frantically, forcing a light tone. "Really. I'd never lie to you."

Curious to see what trick she would pull next, I canceled the ambulance.

Sure enough, she immediately said, "Benny, I'll go with you to talk to Ms. Kirkland about your exam admission pass. What if you really can't sit for the SAT tomorrow? I feel terrible about wronging you earlier. I should go along and see if there's anything I can help out with."

I stayed silent for a few seconds before agreeing to it. It looked like Savannah was determined to stick to me today no matter what. Even if I refused, she'd just find another excuse. I figured I might as well let her tag along and find another way to dodge her trap.

There was no way I was letting her ruin my chance at the SAT.

I deliberately walked fast, putting distance between us. Then I texted Raden Gleeson, my best friend.

"Hey pal, help a friend out, will you? Go tell Michael Crowley about how Savannah said her stomach hurt and asked me to take her to the restroom, and make sure you tell him that I refused."

Raden texted back, sounding a bit confused. "Why?"

"It's a long story. I can't explain right now. Just do what I said."

I stressed it again. "This is really important to me."

When Raden saw that, he dropped all his questions. "Alright. I'll get it done."

Minutes later, Savannah's phone rang. A flicker of panic crossed her face. "Benny, I need to step away and take this call for a bit. Can you wait a few minutes?"

I naturally agreed, and only then did Savannah seem reassured enough to walk behind a tree and answer the call.

I crept over quietly and stopped where I could clearly hear her voice.

"Mike, don't worry. I'll make sure I pin this baby on Benson today so he can't take the exam tomorrow. I promise you'll be the top scorer this year!"

My heart sank. So she really was scheming against me for Michael's sake after all.

After pondering it for a while, I sent Raden another message. "Hey, do me another favor."

Then, fighting the urge to vomit, I listened to her sweet-talk Michael for a much longer time. The moment she hung up, I quickly hid and texted her.

"Hey, Sav, Ms. Kirkland said the issue with the exam admission pass has been sorted out. I don't need to go see her anymore, so I'll head home first."

I saw Savannah freeze for a few seconds, then her face twisted with fury as she started calling me.