Chapter 4

Just then, the nurse brought over Callum's treatment form. "I need the student to sign here."

Callum took the pen. My eyes went instinctively to the clock on the wall. It showed 7:32 am. That was the exact moment Elara had come running out of the gym in my previous life.

Callum signed his name and submitted the form. The timestamp appeared beside it. We had it. At the exact time he was supposedly filming Elara, my brother was here having his injuries treated.

There was security footage. His teacher was standing right here. The nurse had a timestamped medical record. Even the security guard could confirm how Callum had gotten here.

They could tell whatever story they wanted now. They couldn't put Callum in two places at once. For the first time all morning, I finally felt like I could breathe again.

Then, Callum's phone buzzed again. Dorian.

Callum reached for it, but I snatched the phone first and silenced the call. He gave me a confused look, but didn't argue.

Dorian had to be losing his mind right about now. He and Elara had gone to all that trouble setting the perfect trap, and their target hadn't even shown up.

It served them right.

By the time the nurse finished bandaging Callum up, it was almost 8:00 am. I looked at the time, my throat tightening.

In my previous life, the entire school had already heard the accusation by now. Callum had been trapped in a nightmare he couldn't explain his way out of.

This time, he'd never gone anywhere near the gym. He was alive. No one had taken his good name from him.

Mom and Dad would be okay too.

I closed my eyes for a moment, forcing back the tears threatening to spill.

I had no idea what was happening over at the gym. However, one thing I knew for certain was that Elara and Dorian weren't going to give up that easily.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before hurried footsteps came pounding down the hallway. The door to the nurse's office flew open.

Two police officers entered first. Behind them was Elara, and tears were streaming down her face.

The moment she saw Callum, she pointed straight at him. Her voice trembled as she said, "It's him! Officer, that's the guy who filmed me while I was changing!"

The entire room went silent. Callum looked just as stunned as everyone else. The color vanished from his face as he stared at Elara. "I didn't do that!"

I was the only one who wasn't surprised. I'd already watched this performance once before. The difference was that this time, Callum had never set foot in the gym. We could prove it.

I frowned, putting on a look of complete confusion. "Filmed you doing what?"

Elara's tears only came faster. She was clutching a phone so tightly her knuckles had gone white. Her voice trembled as she sobbed. "I was changing in the locker room at the gym when someone pushed a phone through the gap in the door.

"I freaked out. I ran outside, and Callum was right there. He got away before I could stop him, but I managed to grab his phone."

She held it out to one of the officers. "The video is still on here. I'm not making this up… I know Callum gets amazing grades. I know everyone thinks he's going places.

"But does that mean I'm supposed to stay quiet about what he did? Because if girls are expected to put up with this just because the guy has a bright future, what happens to the next girl who tries to speak up?"

My eyes settled on the phone, and my expression hardened.

It was Callum's backup phone, the one he only used for studying. He normally kept it in his desk drawer in the classroom. In my previous life, that phone had been the evidence no one could argue with.

Callum grabbed my hand. His fingers were ice-cold. "Liv, I didn't do it. You believe me, right? I swear I never filmed her…"

Just like before. All he knew how to do was keep insisting he hadn't done it.

Last time, there was nothing I could do to help him. This time, I simply looked up at Elara. "You said Callum filmed you. What time did this supposedly happen?"

Elara faltered. Clearly, that wasn't the question she'd been expecting. However, she recovered quickly, tears still running down her cheeks. "The timestamp on the video says 7:32 am."

A laugh slipped out before I could stop it. It was the exact minute Callum had signed his treatment record in the nurse's office.

One of the officers looked at Callum, his expression turning serious. "A report has been made, and you've been specifically identified. We'll need you to come down to the station while we look into this."

The officers were just about to take Callum with them when Mr. Wycliffe slapped a medical form down on the desk. "Hold on."

He stared at Elara. Then, slowly and distinctly, he asked, "You're absolutely sure this happened at 7:32 am?"