Chapter 3

As expected, Jeffrey's so-called shortcut didn't help at all.

Inside the bus, the earlier noise was gone, replaced by unease on every face.

With every tick of the digital clock, their expressions turned a shade paler.

"Are we really going to miss it?" the class secretary, Kole Steele, asked the driver in despair.

He only got a mocking laugh in return.

If they hadn't wasted 15 minutes insisting on waiting, none of this would have happened.

By the time the bus reached the exam venue, the entrance had already been locked down. No more candidates were allowed in.

Heidi stepped off the bus, her face drained of color. She stared at the barricade in disbelief. "How is this happening?"

Kole tried to rush past the line, but the police stopped him. "The SAT has already started. No one is allowed in."

More students got off the bus, their legs barely holding them up.

Just like Heidi had said, this exam could change everything with a single point difference. And they had just missed it entirely.

I looked at them coldly, a trace of satisfaction flashing through my eyes.

Weren't they all so willing to gamble their futures with Jeffrey? So why were they crying now?

Then Heidi suddenly spoke. "Everyone, calm down. We were late for a reason. We can explain it to the teachers and ask for a retake."

A spark of hope lit up everyone's faces. Like drowning people grabbing a lifeline, they quickly shouted that they needed to see a teacher.

But before they could move, our school principal, Hayden Wright, arrived with a group of teachers, his face dark with anger.

For some reason, seeing his expression made Heidi's stomach drop.

"You delayed departure by 15 minutes on purpose. What exactly were you thinking? Don't even think about a retake. You're lucky we're not marking this as deliberate refusal. A three-year ban from the SAT would have been the minimum."

After Mr. Wright finished, the parents waiting in the rain outside the venue began pointing at them and whispering.

"You can be late for something this important? You're not taking your future seriously at all."

"If my son did this, I'd drag him home and beat him senseless."

The parents' words pushed everyone deeper into despair.

Kole grabbed Heidi by the collar and shouted, "Heidi Moore, didn't you say Finley was just jealous and lying and told us to trust Jeffrey and wait? So why can't we even enter the exam venue now?"

The others turned on Heidi too, their faces full of rage.

Heidi stood there, completely drained. Her head was lowered in regret.

Jeffrey choked up, his voice trembling. "How could a road that's never usually jammed just happen to be blocked on the one day I was late?"

It sounded like self-blame, but it was clearly steering the blame elsewhere.

Suddenly, Heidi raised her head and locked her bloodshot eyes on me. "Finley, was it you? You're jealous of Jeff and want him to miss the exam! When it didn't work at school, you had your mom send people to block the road!

"How could you be so vicious? You gambled with the futures of the entire class just because of petty jealousy!"