Chapter 1

I immediately started a group call.

Irene Dawson picked up almost instantly. "Felix, it's going to be midnight soon. Do you need to talk to me about anything?"

I took a deep breath, trying to keep my tone calm. "Ms. Dawson, Adam's mom was hospitalized. He told me to log into his account to submit the competition work. Does this go against the rules?"

Just then, my advisor, Colby Jackman, joined the call. He sounded sleepy. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Ms. Dawson's tone turned serious. "This is a national academic competition. It's a serious violation for contestants to use each other's accounts. Adam, you can contact the organizing committee to request an extension, or give me your account password, and I'll submit it for you."

Adam Page stayed silent for a few seconds. Then his sobs grew louder, his voice sounding even more pitiful. "Ms. Dawson, I was so worried about my mom that I forgot my password. Felix, I went to your dorm and logged into my account yesterday. I think your laptop saved it automatically."

My mind went blank.

The mouse jerked again, and a message appeared on the screen. "Take screenshots of the files' timestamps immediately."

I clenched my hand, my nails digging into my palm. "Adam, didn't you hear her? Ms. Dawson said she could contact the organizing committee for you. You can do this the proper way."

Adam didn't reply.

After Ms. Dawson hung up, another woman's voice came through the phone.

It was my girlfriend, Vera Lynch.

She sounded agitated. "Felix, what the hell is wrong with you? Adam is your buddy, and his mom is in the ICU now. She could die anytime. Can't you help him out? Will helping him submit his work make you lose an arm?"

Vera paused momentarily, her voice turning even sharper. "How did I never realize you were this kind of person? Selfish, cold-blooded, and just plain envious of other people's achievements. Are you deliberately refusing to help because you're afraid that Adam's work is better than yours? You won't even help him out with this simple task. Are you even fit to call yourself a human?"

I stared at my phone, wondering why she was with Adam at this hour.

My mouse jerked. Another message appeared. "Don't listen to her. She's right beside Adam now! The day after your death, she'll make her relationship with him public!

"Vera will also appear in Adam's livestream, her arms wrapped around him. She'll cry her eyes out and tell the viewers that you've been copying Adam's work since freshman year. She’ll say she witnessed you copying Adam’s files onto your laptop.

"She hands him every sketch you sent her, with all the timestamps altered to make them look like undeniable proof that Adam created them first."

I didn't argue back and ended the call.

Everyone was putting Adam first. Who was going to think about me? Was I supposed to risk my life for them?

Even though my fingers were still trembling, I was clear about what I had to do. I downloaded the group call recording and saved the backup copies to three different cloud accounts. Then I called the security office downstairs.

"Wayne, I'm Felix Cohen from Room 403 in Building 6. Could you do me a favor? I'll video call you."

The moment Wayne Gibson answered the video call, I pointed my camera at the laptop screen. "Wayne, my laptop has my classmate's competition account and password saved. To avoid any suspicion, I'm going to screenshot the files' timestamps in front of you."

I opened the file properties and took screenshots one by one.

Sketch created on November 5, 2025, at 11:47 pm.

First draft created on January 12, 2026, at 2:33 pm.

Final version created on March 20, 2026, at 9:15 pm.

"That's everything for now. Wayne, I'll bring the laptop down now. From now on, I won't touch it. Ms. Dawson will deal with it in person tomorrow. Please be my witness."

Wayne nodded. "Sure."

I recorded the entire process, from shutting down the laptop and putting it in my bag to leaving the room, going downstairs, entering the security office, and handing it to Wayne.

The security camera in the office captured me finishing everything at 11:58 pm.

Only two minutes remained until the deadline.

I uploaded the video and screenshots to the cloud drives. Then I returned to my room and messaged Ms. Dawson.

"Ms. Dawson, I've left my laptop with the security guard, and the entire process was recorded on my phone. Adam previously logged into his competition account on it, so to avoid any complications, please help me delete the saved password in person tomorrow."

Ms. Dawson's reply was instant. "You did the right thing. I'll come by at 8:00 am."

The mouse's voice softened. "This time, no one can frame you."

My phone lit up, then went dark again. Messages from Vera and Adam kept coming, one after another.