Chapter 3

"Sally?"

I froze at the sight of my class president, Sally Lambert.

Everyone at school had been saying I had a crush on her. Worried that I'd make her uncomfortable, I kept my feelings to myself.

Yet of all times, she found me at my lowest.

She wrapped her scarf around my neck, then slipped the bread and 200 dollars into my hand. "Don't eat that. It's dirty."

With that, she turned and walked toward the Ferrari waiting nearby, its driver already holding the door open.

I snapped out of my daze and hurried after her. "T-Thank you! I'll pay you back!"

She stopped, glanced over her shoulder, and smiled. "How are you going to pay me back when you're in this situation?"

I had no answer.

She simply waved and got into the car.

That night, I spent 15 dollars on a meal and used the remainder to find Dad a place to rest.

Before long, I found a part-time tutoring job.

The woman who hired me was kind. After learning about Dad's death, she paid me a month's wages in advance so I didn't have to worry about going hungry.

One afternoon, after finishing a tutoring session and returning to class, I found everyone staring at me.

Meanwhile, Henry was frantically searching for something.

"Adrian, did you steal Henry's gold watch?" one of his friends demanded.

I frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Henry looked up, his eyes red-rimmed. "Adrian, I know you don't like me. But… could you please return the watch? It was a gift from my mother…"

His friends immediately exploded.

"How can you be so shameless? His mom gave him that watch!" one screamed.

"Give it back, or you'll regret it!"

Anger instantly flared inside me. "I didn't take it!"

One of them grabbed my collar. "You're the poorest kid in class, and you're also the only one who hates Henry. If you didn't steal it, then who?"

"I said I didn't do it!"

I shoved that person away. "Yes, I hate him. But I don't stoop to disgusting tricks like stealing."

Henry quickly helped his friend and stepped between us. "Adrian! If you're angry, take it out on me!"

And that fueled the crowd.

"Henry, you're being way too kind. How could Adrian do this to you? No wonder he's an orphan. Even his father left him on his own."

Those words cut deeper than they knew. I'd barely begun recovering from Dad's death, and now they tore the wound wide open.

My eyes burned. "Who are you calling an orphan?"

Just as I raised my fist, someone caught my wrist.

I turned, my voice quivering. "Sally?"

She sat calmly at her desk, her cool gaze sweeping across the classroom before settling on Henry's distraught face.

Everyone began talking at once, desperate to tell their version of the story.

As she listened, she tapped her long finger lightly against the desk.

Sally was known as the school's ice queen, but everyone trusted her to be fair.

I pushed through the crowd. "Sally, I'd never do something like this. You know me."

She looked at me, and my heart pounded.

Then she sighed. "Are you saying Henry framed you?"

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut.

Then, I noticed her eyes drifting back to Henry. When he lowered his head with a wounded expression, I caught a flash of concern in her eyes.

That's when I realized… Sally was in love.

"I knew it was Adrian!" someone sneered.

"Have you noticed he's been spending money lately? He must've been stealing."

I finally snapped. "I earned that money! I've been working as a tutor! Why couldn't I spend what I earned?"