Chapter 3

The moment Dad said that, I grabbed my books and headed straight back to school without hesitation.

At least now, I wouldn't have to waste time figuring out how to cut ties with them myself.

As soon as I reached the school gates, I saw Hugh Lawson, Kendall's father.

Rumor had it that Kendall's mother passed away years ago, and Hugh never remarried after that. The Lawsons doted on Kendall like she was the center of their world.

Now that he was here, he was probably investigating what had happened on the bridge.

I watched my homeroom teacher smile nervously at Hugh. "The student who saved Kendall is from another class. His name's Terence. I'll bring him to you right away."

But Hugh answered coldly, "No need. I'm not here for him."

Then he lifted his eyes, sharp enough to cut through steel.

"I want every surveillance recording from this school for the past month," he said slowly. "And if I find out someone deliberately caused my daughter to fall off that bridge… I won't let him walk away from it."

A chill ran down my spine.

I silently thanked myself for getting away from Terence as quickly as I did.

-

I felt a lot more confident about the SAT this time around than I did in my previous life. The vague memories I carried from before made it feel almost easy.

Getting into a top university shouldn't be difficult now.

Over the next few days, I stayed at my grandmother's house.

When she saw the bruises and welts covering my body, tears immediately filled her eyes.

"I thought your father would treat you right. I never imagined that animal would hit you like this! Don't worry, Lance. Just stay here with me from now on. This whole family compound will belong to you someday, anyway."

My eyes stung as I looked at her.

This time, I was going to stay by her side and never let her suffer through losing me again.

The day SAT scores were released, Terence showed up at school even though he had never taken the test.

The second he saw me, he flashed a smug smile.

At first, I didn't understand why. Then I noticed several members of the Lawsons standing beside the giant display screen.

Students all around us were whispering excitedly.

"Did you hear? Kendall woke up. The Lawsons are thrilled. They showed up early this morning because they wanted to give Terence a huge reward."

She woke up?

I remembered Hugh demanding the surveillance footage, and goosebumps prickled across my skin.

Terence was running out of time.

Meanwhile, students crowded around him with obvious envy.

"I saw one of them holding a folder. It's probably your guaranteed admission offer, right?"

"Well, obviously. Terence saved Kendall."

"I heard it's not just guaranteed admission. Supposedly, they're giving him millions of dollars as repayment."

"Man, he really won the lottery. Didn't even need the SAT to become successful."

As everyone talked, Terence deliberately leaned close to my ear.

"The Lawsons picked up Mom and Dad this morning. They're probably already discussing my marriage with Kendall. After today, I'll be attending a top university and marrying a Lawson. If you regret how you treated me, beg me, and maybe I'll forgive you."

The moment I noticed the Lawsons looking in our direction, I shoved Terence away immediately.

"Stay away from me."

He froze for a second before exploding in disbelief.

"Lance, don't push your luck! You're gonna regret this real soon!"

The second I got away from Terence, I deliberately picked a seat far across the room. I really wanted to see whether he could still smile after receiving the Lawsons' "gift."

A few moments later, the principal stepped onto the stage, barely hiding his excitement.

"This year, our school had a student accepted to both Clearwater University and Northgate University with outstanding SAT scores!"

The entire room instantly turned toward Terence. He tugged at his collar and started to rise from his seat.

Then the principal announced loudly, "That student is Lance Read, the top SAT scorer in the state this year!"

The room erupted into chaos.

Terence stiffened and muttered through clenched teeth, "There has to be another one. There's definitely another one."

Right after that, members of the Lawsons stepped onto the stage with cold expressions.

"Next," one of them said, "we'd like Terence Norman to come up here. Mr. Lawson has prepared a special gift for you."