Chapter 2

In the afternoon, Amy was called out of class for a meeting regarding the school anniversary.

The moment she stepped out of class, Connor flopped down on my seat.

"Gerald, did Wanda pass something to you before going for her match?"

I was busy completing an assignment and didn't even look up at him.

"No."

To be accurate, she didn't exactly "pass" them to me.

She practically flung them at me.

Yesterday afternoon, Wanda had boarded the bus headed for the volleyball match.

Before leaving, she had stuffed two notebooks, a jersey, and a bank card into my arms.

She had a great reason for doing so.

They were too heavy.

I simply couldn't understand.

Would those things no longer be under the earth's gravitational pull the moment they entered my bag?

Connor clearly didn't believe me.

He seized the chance when I stood up to hand in my assignment to unzip my bag.

At the next moment, my textbooks, some napkins, and a half-eaten bag of potato chips spilled on the floor.

A black jersey came tumbling out.

Connor's eyes lit up.

"What's this?"

He bent over and picked it up.

"Can't you see for yourself?"

"Why is Wanda's jersey with you?"

"She asked me to wash it for her."

Silence ensued in the classroom.

The expression on Connor's face kept changing.

In his world, washing Wanda's jersey wasn't a chore worth 10 dollars.

Instead, it was a recruitment examination for a potential son-in-law of the Stewart family.

He quickly stuffed the jersey into a transparent bag.

"You've already promised not to harass her anymore. I'll return this to Wanda on your behalf."

I was filled with deep respect for him.

Wanda had worn this jersey for a two-hour volleyball training session and had even fallen into the mud during her training.

When I opened my bag yesterday, the smell had attracted flies from a ten-meter radius.

Connor taking the jersey from me was more than I could wish for.

He pulled out a bank card from the side compartment of my bag.

"You even stole her card?"

"That's for our daily expenses."

"You two share a card for daily expenses?"

He scoffed.

"Gerald, have you been daydreaming about marrying into the Stewart family?"

I fell silent for two seconds.

"Could there be any possibility that I'm referring to the daily expenses of an ordinary family?"

The entire class broke out in wild laughter.

Horace snatched the card and announced grandly, "This is stolen property. I'll hand it over to the student council for safekeeping."

I reached out to try to grab it back.

"That's my money in there, too."

"Lies."

Connor stared at me.

"How could Wanda give you her card?"

I said honestly, "Because she was too lazy to keep it."

Wanda would always call me to make payments whenever she wanted to buy something.

She would simply open her mouth, and I would do her bidding.

My mom thought this was how siblings were supposed to help each other out.

I thought this was what a life-sized parasite looked like.

Connor was certain that I was just quibbling and pulled out a set of keys from the bag.

"Are these keys to Wanda's house?"

"Which is also my house."

He walked to the window.

"Since you can't seem to kick your nasty habit of sneaking into the Stewarts' home, let me help you with that."

My heart leaped to my chest.

"Don't be rash."

Connor swung his arm.

The key cut a perfect arc in the air and landed in the pond downstairs.

It made a plop before sinking to the bottom of the pond.

I leaned against the windowsill and watched it disappear into the depths of the pond.

"Connor Graham!"

He spread his arms out, palms facing up as though he were helpless.

"I'm sorry, I slipped."

"Over ten meters?"

"It's windy today."

The leaves on the trees outside were absolutely still.

It was only windy in his imagination.

I went looking for Amy in the staffroom.

To my frustration, she said that she would wait for Wanda's return before asking for the bank card and jersey back.

As for the keys, she advised me to get a new set.

"Connor was just trying to protect his classmate's valuables. Don't keep thinking the worst of others."

I almost burst out laughing.

Was flinging my house keys into the pond considered protecting his classmate's valuables?

All I wanted was to take back my own bank card, and that was considered 'thinking the worst of others'.

It was clear that the school's rules and regulations were adjusted according to how much a parent donated to the school.

When I walked out of the staffroom, there was another post on the school's social media page.

[Male student keeps a secret stash of the school belle's belongings including her jersey, bank card, and house keys, seemingly trespassing the Stewarts' home regularly.]

The post was accompanied by a photo of Connor holding Wanda's jersey in his arms.

He looked just like a devoted, loving man holding a precious heirloom.

He walked to me and said in a low voice, "I will hand these things over to Wanda personally at the school anniversary tomorrow. I'll show her just how disgusting you really are."

I looked at the transparent bag in his arms.

"You really should seal that bag tight."

"Why?"

"The jersey smells."

The smile on his face stiffened.

At the next moment, the smell of the jersey that had been locked in for three days drifted in the air.

Connor's face turned green as he retched into a trash can.

I stood next to him, patting his back soothingly.

"Don't hold back. You went to great lengths to snatch it over, after all."