Semua Bab Lies Have Consequences: Bab 1 - Bab 7

Viola's eyes welled up with tears, but she held her head up high even as she loudly questioned me. "Eve, what gives you the right to talk to me like that? Yes, I'm poor. My family isn't well off too, and I've never carried a Chanel purse in my life. But you can't afford luxury goods either, so you became someone else's pet! What gives you the right to show off in front of me?" Everyone around us turned to stare at us while I simply laughed out of anger. I did not even mention her, but she was already playing the victim card. I stepped forward and looked down at her. "Viola, what makes you think I can't afford it?" Her lips opened, but Aaron let out a scornful laugh before she could answer it as he gave me an impatient look. "Eve, who are you trying to fool? Other people might not know how you live, but I do. You wear the same few outfits over and over, and you always order the cheapest food in the cafeteria. Last month, you spent forever calculating how to save five dollars on yo

My counselor, Ms. Carter, turned a stack of papers around and pushed it toward me. It was a printout of the message board posts, with several long sections of comments highlighted. She frowned and tapped the post. "The whole university is talking about this. Trying to one-up other students, flaunting your wealth, and bullying someone on financial aid have made the department look terrible. The administration is already asking questions. How about this… Apologize to Viola, and we can put this behind us." I repeated the word. "Apologize? She threw a bloodstained bedsheet into my washbasin, spread lies on the message board that my father worked for the Lane family, that I was their servant, and turned the entire university against me. And you want me to apologize to her?" Ms. Carter's expression darkened. "Watch your attitude. Are you trying to make this even worse?" I stood up straight, and the chair legs screeched against the tile. "Ms. Carter, you don't have to worry about this

Three days later, a financial news alert appeared on my phone just after I woke up: [Lane Group completes a twenty-seven-million-dollar acquisition of Sanders Technologies.] Sanders Technologies belonged to Aaron's father. I stared at the headline for several seconds while brushing my teeth, then opened the article and read the comments. The comment section had exploded after someone revealed that Sanders Technologies was already facing serious cash flow problems. Lane Group had taken advantage of the crisis, but the acquisition had been handled so cleanly that no one could object. In other words, Dad was furious. After I got dressed, I went downstairs and found Sophie at the dining table sipping coffee and reading from her tablet. She spoke without looking up. "Aaron's father kicked him out this morning." I pulled out a chair and sat down. "How do you know?" She rolled her eyes. "Our housekeeper's cousin lives in the same neighborhood as his housekeeper. Gossip travels f