All Chapters of My Perfect Score, Her Perfect Betrayal: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The deadline to change college applications was 5:00 pm. It was now 5:02 pm.Two minutes. That was all it took to turn years of my hard work—and the score I'd fought desperately for—into nothing.I turned to Nicole Porter, my voice shaking. "Why?"She was my best friend.The day the results came out, she hugged me and congratulated me for getting into a prestigious college here in the state, just like I'd always wanted.But now, she'd personally tampered with my college applications, leaving me with no college to attend.Nicole's face was deathly pale, tears streaming down her cheeks.Preston Nolin stepped in front of her. He looked at me, his voice calm."Fi, I was the one who gave Nicole the login info for the application portal."There was no explanation. Just a statement. Just like how he'd been standing to the side when Nicole was changing my application earlier. He'd even deliberately blocked me from coming over to check.It took everything in me not to cry. My voice ho

I promptly turned around and walked out of Preston's house without looking back.On the way home, my phone kept buzzing.It wasn't Preston, but Nicole. Message after message popped up on my screen."Fi, I'm sorry. I really just lost my head for a moment. I was just so scared of losing you… Please forgive me, okay?"I didn't reply.I pulled up her chat window and blocked her.When I got home, my parents were in the living room watching TV.The second my mom, Margaret Banks, saw me, she smiled and walked over."You're home! How'd the applications go? Are you going to the same college as Preston?"I looked at her—at the fine lines at the corners of her eyes, at the streaks of gray near her temples, and at the very obvious anticipation in her eyes.I opened my mouth. "Mom…"Just that one word, and all the composure I'd been faking crumbled in an instant. I threw myself into her arms, crying."Mom, I can't go to college anymore."I told them everything—from how Nicole changed m

I realized even my hands were shaking. The weight on my chest finally lifted. I could go to college now. I didn't need to repeat another year with a 626 score hanging over my head.Mom pulled me into a hug and started crying again.Dad finished a whole cigarette before saying, "I'm texting all of our relatives right now! We're having a going-to-college dinner!"…The dinner was held at a restaurant in a hotel near our house.When we arrived, I realized Preston was having a similar celebratory dinner there as well—same day, same restaurant.His parents, Michael Nolin and Leanne Richmond, happened to be downstairs greeting guests. Since Michael had business dealings with Dad, he immediately came over enthusiastically. "George, you guys are having dinner here, too? What a coincidence!"Then he turned to me with a grin. "Fi, why haven't you come over to see Preston lately?"Before I could answer, a bright female voice suddenly cut in."Fi, you actually came!"Nicole rushed out

Michael's body stiffened for a second before he straightened up and looked at me."Fi," he said, his voice hoarse. "Let me apologize to you on Preston's behalf. I… failed to raise him right."I looked at the man who used to treat me like his own daughter, and I felt an indescribable mix of emotions.Whenever I went to the Nolins' house as a kid, Michael would always have their housekeeper make my favorite smoked ribs.He would smile and joke, "How about you be my daughter-in-law someday, Fi?But now, those words sounded like nothing more than a joke.I didn't say anything. I just picked up my glass and took a sip.Michael and Leanne stood in our room for a while, offering a few more apologetic words before finally leaving.Right before he walked out, Michael turned and looked back at me, as if he wanted to say something. But in the end, he said nothing.The moment the door closed, Mom finally broke down in tears. "How did things end up like this?"I wrapped my arm around her

Once classes started, college life turned out to be far more fulfilling than I'd imagined.Law school was demanding. Constitutional law, legal theory, and civil law—every class came with an immense amount of literature and case studies. But behind those seemingly dry and tedious legal articles were living, breathing people and stories. It was a battle of fairness and justice, a clash between rigid rules and human emotions.I began to understand why, when I was choosing my major back then, I'd inexplicably ticked the box for law.It was because I wanted to protect myself. And I wanted to protect those who deserved to be protected.…Joshua would message me from time to time, asking how I was adjusting and whether I was facing any difficulties. Sometimes he'd share some study materials with me or his own experience with preparing for the exams.He told me he was planning to apply for postgraduate study, and his target college was University of Becklam—one of the highest-ranking c