Share

Chapter 3

Author: Eternity
The next morning, because I refused to read the apology, Mom suspended me from the Honor Council in front of the entire class.

Olivia sat in the front row and turned around to smile at me.

The lunch bell had barely rung when she walked over to my desk.

“You’re finished.”

The satisfaction in her voice made me look up.

“What are you talking about?”

Olivia did not answer. She only glanced toward the classroom door.

A few seconds later, Mom strode in.

Her face was livid, and she was clutching a campus incident report.

The noisy classroom fell silent.

“During third period today, two students cut class and entered a restricted equipment room behind the gym.”

Mom stood at the front of the room and swept her gaze over the class.

“They were engaged in inappropriate behavior. When a staff member discovered them, they ran.”

A few students tried to smother their laughter.

For some reason, my stomach dropped.

Mom’s eyes settled on me.

“Sophie, stand up.”

Everyone turned to stare.

I rose slowly.

“Why?”

“Do you really want me to spell it out in front of everyone?”

Mom held up the report.

“During third period, you were making out with a boy in the equipment room. When you were caught, the two of you escaped through the side door.”

Whispers erupted around me.

“So it was her.”

“No wonder Dean Hart is furious.”

“She always acts so innocent.”

The blood drained from my face.

“That wasn’t me.”

Mom’s expression hardened.

“The staff member saw a girl wearing the same team jacket you were wearing.”

“Dozens of students at this school have this jacket.”

“Olivia also saw you heading toward the gym.”

I turned sharply toward her.

Olivia rose from her seat, twisting her fingers together as if she were nervous.

“Dean Hart, I’m not completely sure…”

“Tell us what you saw.” Mom’s voice immediately softened. “You don’t have to be afraid.”

Olivia bit her lip.

“Right before third period, Sophie suddenly asked to leave. Then I saw Sophie walking behind the gym with a boy. Later, I passed the side entrance and saw them kissing inside.”

She looked at me with practiced guilt.

“I’m sorry, Sophie. I don’t want to lie to protect you.”

The whispers grew louder.

“She’s lying.”

I looked at Mom and fought to keep my voice steady.

“I wasn’t behind the gym. My stomach started hurting during PE, so I asked to use the bathroom. Coach Daniels saw me leave. There’s a security camera in the hallway outside the locker rooms, too. Check the footage.”

“That’s enough.”

Mom cut me off.

“You were disciplined yesterday for deliberately attacking Olivia, and now you’re accusing her of lying.”

“Because she is lying!”

Mom’s face darkened.

“Sophie!”

Her voice rang through the classroom.

“Making a mistake is not shameful. What disappoints me is that even after being caught, you still refuse to take responsibility.”

I stared at her, my chest tightening painfully.

She would not even spend five minutes checking the security footage.

The moment Olivia accused me, I was already guilty.

Mom walked over and removed the Honor Council pin from my jacket.

“Effective immediately, your Honor Society membership is revoked, and you are removed from the Honor Council. Turn in your locker key to Student Services before the end of the day.”

I stared down at the pin in her palm.

It had taken three years of a perfect GPA, two hundred hours of community service, and countless weekends to earn it.

One accusation from Olivia had taken it all away.

“Even though she is my daughter, I will not lower this school’s standards for her.”

Mom faced the class, her voice firm and righteous.

Someone pulled out a phone and began recording.

Someone else muttered that I was a liar.

Behind Mom, Olivia finally allowed herself a small smile.

I stopped trying to explain.

I sat down, pulled the notebook from my backpack, and slowly wrote beneath the ninety-ninth entry:

Accused me publicly of cutting class, entering a restricted equipment room, and lying without investigating. Revoked my Honor Society membership.

My pen hovered over the page.

Then I added:

100.

I had finally reached it.

This time, I would not beg her to believe me.
Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App

Latest chapter

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 10

    At the police station, Margaret gave a statement that lasted nearly four hours.She described the exam, the lunch detention, the forced apology, the false accusation, and the moment she learned Sophie was innocent. She admitted she had refused to restore her daughter’s Honor Society membership because protecting her reputation mattered more than clearing Sophie’s name.She did not ask the detectives to leave anything out.When she finished, she returned to Westbridge and placed her resignation on the principal’s desk.Classes were changing, but the hallways were unnaturally quiet. News of Sophie’s fall had spread overnight.Students stepped aside when Margaret passed.“Is Sophie going to die?”“Olivia pushed her.”“Dean Hart knew Sophie was innocent.”Each whisper followed her to the AP Statistics classroom.Sophie’s seat was empty. The surface had been wiped clean, and her name was still taped inside the corner of the desk.Margaret stood in the doorway for a long time.She did not gi

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 9

    The operating-room doors opened just before dawn.Dr. Price looked exhausted. “We controlled the internal bleeding and removed the hematoma. Sophie survived the surgery.”Margaret’s knees gave out with relief.Then the doctor continued.“The injury to her brain is extensive. The next seventy-two hours are critical, and even if she stabilizes, we don’t know when or whether she will regain consciousness. If she wakes, she may face serious neurological impairment.”Survived.The word should have felt like salvation. Instead, it came wrapped in may never wake.When the ICU allowed a brief visit, Margaret stood beside Sophie’s bed without touching her. Tubes and wires covered the girl she had expected to sit quietly through lunch detention the next day.“Sophie, I’m here.”Sophie’s eyes did not move.Margaret curled her fingers into her palms. “You were trying to protect yourself. You were going to the board, and I called it an attack on my career.”The ventilator answered for Sophie.“I kn

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 8

    The red light above the trauma operating room burned for hours.Margaret sat outside with the principal and one of the school board members. No one tried to comfort her.Shortly after midnight, a trauma surgeon came through the double doors.“I’m Dr. Price. Are you Sophie Hart’s mother?”Margaret stood so quickly that the chair struck the wall. “Yes. Is she alive?”“She is, but her condition is critical. She has an acute subdural hematoma, a lacerated spleen, a severe lung contusion, and an unstable pelvic fracture. We need to operate immediately to control the bleeding and relieve pressure on her brain.”Margaret gripped the back of the chair. “Will she wake up?”“I can’t answer that yet. Tonight, our job is to keep her alive.”A nurse handed Margaret a consent packet, but before she could sign, a hospital social worker approached with a folder from the school nurse.“Mrs. Hart, because Sophie is a minor and this injury occurred during an alleged assault, we’re required to complete a

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 7

    Sophie lay on the asphalt between two parked cars.A campus security officer knelt beside her, keeping her neck still while a teacher held a folded jacket over the blood near her head. Sophie’s eyes were closed, and her left arm rested at an angle that made Margaret stop breathing.“Sophie!”She dropped beside Sophie, but the security officer blocked her hands. “Don’t touch her. The paramedics are almost here.”“I’m her mother.” Margaret’s voice broke. “She gets low blood sugar. There should be glucose tablets in her bag. Please, she needs—”“Right now, we need to keep her still and breathing.”The ambulance turned into the lot. Paramedics rushed over with a trauma board and oxygen, forcing everyone back.Margaret stood a few feet away, shaking so hard that the principal had to hold her upright.One paramedic checked Sophie’s pupils while another cut open the sleeve that had torn on the terrace. They spoke in clipped phrases that Margaret could not understand.“Four-story fall.”“Unequ

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 6

    For one second, Margaret Hart didn’t move.She remained on her knees beside the broken railing, staring into the empty space where Sophie had been.One of the security stills fluttered against the yellow caution tape.“Sophie?”Her voice was barely audible.Olivia backed away, both hands pressed to her mouth. “I didn’t mean to—she slipped.”Mason grabbed her arm. “The railing broke. That wasn’t our fault.”Margaret turned toward them so slowly that everyone fell silent.She had seen Olivia shove Sophie.She had seen the torn sleeve, the stolen notebook, and the evidence scattered across the terrace.But the last thing Sophie had heard from her mother was an order to back down.“Sophie, let go of Olivia.”The principal and the two board members reached the terrace entrance. One of them looked over the edge and immediately called emergency services.The other board member ordered campus security to seal the terrace and keep every student there. Mason tried to step toward the door, but a

  • One Hundred Reasons To Leave My Mother   Chapter 5

    Olivia rushed into the office, snatched the security stills and my notebook from the floor, and ran.Mom started to stop her, but the principal and two school board members appeared in the doorway.She stopped.I didn’t.I chased Olivia through the library and onto the terrace overlooking the parking lot.Mason and two other students were waiting for her.Olivia immediately handed him my notebook.“She’s going to use this to destroy us.”Mason flipped through several pages. Along with the record of all one hundred times Mom had punished me, the notebook held my library records and stills from the security footage.“Give it back.”Mason blocked my path.“If you admit you were the girl in the equipment room, Olivia and I won’t lose our college recommendations.”“So you decided to destroy me instead?”I reached for the notebook.In the struggle, my sleeve tore and the notebook fell to the ground. The wind caught the appeal documents inside and scattered them across the terrace.I managed

More Chapters
Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status