Who Stole Whose Score?

On the day college admissions exam scores came out, my childhood friend, Celine Fairmont, was waiting for me outside my apartment with Lucian Fairchild, the class heartthrob from a poor family. She grabbed me by the collar. "Evander, did you switch Lucian's score? How could you stoop so low?" Lucian's eyes were red, like he was struggling to hold back tears. He tugged Celine away, all while speaking in an innocent, pleading tone. "Evander, please, just give me a way out. I know I can't compare to a privileged heir like you. My life is over if I can't get into college!" Meanwhile, comments were flying across my vision. "That vicious rich kid deliberately messed up his own exam so he could switch scores with our boy. What a jerk!" "He's using this chance to separate our boy from the female lead so he can take his place. How disgusting!" "Thank goodness the female lead is firmly on our boy's side. That vicious side character is so dead." I ignored the comments and pulled up the college admissions exam score page on my phone. "So… you're saying I traded my 324 points for your 128?" I drawled mockingly. Chapter 1 The Impossible Score For a moment there, it was as if the air had frozen. Celine Fairmont stared at the glaring red 128 on my phone screen; the score was so ridiculously low that the scowl on her face stiffened. Honestly, she looked like a honking goose that had suddenly been grabbed by the neck. Lucian Fairchild's sobs stopped just as abruptly. A lone tear hung at the corner of his eye, neither falling nor disappearing, making him look ridiculous. Still, that blessed peace lasted only a moment. The disgust in Celine's eyes deepened the very next second. She slapped my phone away with enough force to nearly knock it from my hand. "Evander! How dare you put on an act even after all this!" She stepped in front of Lucian, shielding him as she looked down at me. If I didn't know any better, I'd think that I was some kind of irredeemable villain. "To think you'd even photoshop a 128 to cover your tracks. How could you be this vicious? Our school is one of the best in the city. How could anyone possibly score 128? If you were going to fake it, you could at least make it believable! "You might as well have a neon sign up that says you're doing this to humiliate Lucian!" Well, getting 128 on the exam would normally be impossible, but certainly not improbable. After all, I'd deliberately kept my score that low. I was born on December 8. Why couldn't I get a 128? Regardless, her words pissed me off so much that I couldn't resist letting out a bark of laughter. This was the girl I'd grown up with. The same Celine who had once promised she'd protect me forever. Things changed ever since Lucian showed up in sophomore year. Celine would take his side without question whenever he showed the slightest bit of discomfort. Just a slight furrow of his brow could make her go barking mad at me, even when it made no sense, even when the fact that I wasn't in the wrong was right in front of her. A flood of comments flashed through my mind, all of them defending this perfect couple. "The female lead is amazing! She saw through the side character's scheme right away!" "The side character must have bribed the system and switched their names. The scores haven't been switched yet, but the college spots must already have been switched!" "Poor Lucian. It's hard enough being a gifted kid from a poor family, and now he's being targeted by this vicious rich kid." Lucian looked at me. Then, he shakily pulled a crumpled practice-test score report from his backpack and held it up for the neighbors who had gathered around to see. "Evander, I know you've never liked how close Celine and I are." He sniffed, his voice hoarse, but every word was pointed. "But the college admissions exam determines your future. I've always scored over 1500 on my practice exams. How could I possibly have gotten only 324 on the real thing? "And you may have kept a low profile, but everyone knows you never put much effort into studying because you were too busy chasing Celine's skirts." He raised his head. His expression looked pleading, but there was a faint trace of provocation hidden beneath it. "You photoshopped a score of 128 just to humiliate me, didn't you? You want to force me to go back to my hometown and work in a factory so no one can compete with you for Celine. Please, just give me my real score back, okay? This is my future we're talking about here." His argument made little sense, but it was undeniably incisive. The neighbors, who had no idea what had actually happened, began whispering and pointing at me. "Yeah, Lucian's one of the top students around here. How could he have scored only 324?" "That Holloway kid's been spoiled rotten since he was little. I heard he'd do anything to win that girl over." "That's downright cruel. He's ruining the kid's future!" Chapter 2 Going Live Celine listened to the murmurs around her, and her spine straightened up further. She looked at me coldly. "Evander, we have both witnesses and evidence right here. What else do you have to say for yourself? Turn yourself in to the Department of Education and have the scores changed back. Otherwise, don't blame me for calling the police and having you arrested." I looked at the two of them backing each other up and simply shook my head. I'd known since I finished middle school that I was the villainous male side character in a novel. In the original story, Celine and Lucian, the male and female leads, met in the same class in high school. In that cliché tale, I was hopelessly in love with my childhood friend, Celine. So, I would constantly sabotage her relationship with Lucian, becoming the obstacle to what was a seemingly perfect power couple. True to my villainous nature as per the novel, one of the terrible deeds I did was deliberately tanking my own exams and switching Lucian's college admissions exam score so they couldn't attend the same college. My endgame was for them to end up separated. Since Lucian's family was poor, he dropped out of school and started working. When Celine discovered what I'd done, she hired people to break my arms and legs before dumping me in the boonies, where I was tortured for the rest of my life. To avoid that fate, I'd specifically applied to the Olympiad class, which was full of bookworms, and kept my head down. I spent nearly 24/7 focused on studying. Nevertheless, that didn't mean I was blind to my surroundings. According to the original plot, I was supposed to be a complete pest by interfering with their relationship, and Lucian was supposed to study hard to compete with me. However, I barely spent any time with them in this life. As a result, they became an item earlier than they did in the original plot. Now that I was no longer there to play the villain role, Lucian stopped working hard. Eventually, he got so caught up in his newfound romance that his grades plummeted. Yet, he somehow managed to maintain his image as a top student. The thing about him scoring over 1500 on practice exams? Hah, that tidbit was faker than plastic. I knew for a fact that he wrote cheat sheets on his thighs for every test. He'd even bribed the money-hungry grade dean to change his scores. I folded my arms and leaned against the doorframe, my expression indifferent as I looked at Lucian's hypocritical face. "Lucian, you say you usually score over 1500. So, tell me, how did you solve the derivative problem in the second part of the final question on last week's math practice exam?" Lucian's face went pale, and panic flashed in his eyes. "I-It was a long time ago. I don't remember." "You don't remember?" I scoffed in disdain. "That test was only last week. Fine, say you forgot the math. But don't tell me that you can't remember what the essay prompt was?" Lucian bit his lip and looked at Celine for help. Celine immediately stepped in front of him and shouted, "Evander! Stop trying to change the subject! Lucian just suffered a major blow to his future. It's perfectly normal for him not to remember the questions! Don't think you can get away with this cheap trick!" The comments exploded again. "The side character is being way too aggressive! He's rubbing salt in the wound!" "Exactly! Lucian is a genius who learns by experience. So what if he forgets everything after the test?" "The female lead is so badass! I love how fiercely she protects him!" As I watched Celine defend him without even caring about right and wrong, whatever lingering slivers of affection I still had for her disappeared completely. If they were so insistent on stirring up trouble for me, then they couldn't blame me for not pulling my punches. "Since you're convinced I switched the scores…" I pulled out my phone, opened the camera, and pointed it at the two of them. "Why don't we raise the stakes? Celine, you love sharing your perfect romance with Lucian online, don't you? You've got over 100,000 followers now, yes? How about going live and letting everyone online weigh in?" Perhaps my out-of-the-box decision had disrupted the plot, because the comments in my head suddenly disappeared. Celine froze for a moment before curling her lips into a mocking smile. "You think you can use public opinion to clear your name, Evander? Well, think again. I'm sure that the public can see right through your lies!" Not only did she not back down, but she also quickly pulled out her phone and opened her livestream app. She gave the stream an outrageous title. "Rich Kid Pulls Strings to Steal Poor Student's College Admissions Exam Score!" As soon as she went live, the sensational title and the fans who already loved her and Lucian as a couple drew thousands of viewers into the livestream. The number kept climbing as seconds ticked by. "Everyone, this is the guy!" Celine shoved the camera in my face and accused me indignantly. "His name is Evander Holloway. He's always relied on his family's money to bully Lucian at school. Lucian has always been a top student. Yet, he only scored 324 on his college admissions exams. "Meanwhile, this lowlife somehow got himself a fake score of 128 to cover his tracks!" Lucian wiped away a tear beside her at just the right time, looking pitiful. "Please don't blame Evander. Maybe he just loves Celine too much. He probably did all of this to stop Celine and me from going to the same college." The livestream comments exploded. "Holy crap! That's disgusting!" "324? He took a kid who was headed for a good college and tanked his score so badly he could not get into college now!" "Dox him! Someone like this deserves to be publicly shamed!" "Evander, kill yourself! Give the poor guy his score back!" Chapter 3 The Bet Celine smiled triumphantly as her eyes skimmed through the flood of insults filling the screen. She turned her phone toward me and declared smugly, "See that, Evander? It's all of us against you! Get down on your knees and apologize to Lucian. Then, you'd better swear to turn yourself in. If you do, maybe everyone online will go easy on you." Lucian put on an act too, tugging at Celine's sleeve. "Celine, don't. Evander is your childhood friend. We should give him a second chance as long as he's willing to change." "A second chance?" Celine scoffed. "People like him won't give up until they're forced to face the consequences. He's getting on his knees today." I watched their ridiculous little act and found it almost funny. In the original story, the pressure from the public had driven me to a mental breakdown. It had gotten so bad that it wasn't an understatement to say that I was left with nowhere to turn. But this time, I was different. I looked straight into Celine's camera. I didn't flinch. Instead, I flashed them a bright smile. "To those watching, by all means, keep the insults coming." I cleared my throat, my voice carrying clearly through the livestream. "Since everyone's here, why don't we make a bet in front of the internet?" Celine frowned. "What are you trying to pull now?" "Let's bet on one thing—whether Lucian really got that 324 himself." I stared straight into Lucian's eyes as he avoided my gaze. "If the investigation proves that I switched the scores, then I'll not only give his score back, but I'll also donate half of the Holloway family's assets to Lucian. I'll even livestream myself getting on my knees and crawling out of this neighborhood!" The livestream went silent for a second. Then, the comments exploded. "Now, that's a serious bet." "Half the Holloway family's assets? That's billions!" "Is this rich heir crazy, or does he actually know something we don't?" Even Celine was startled by my wager. Yet, when she glanced at Lucian, who was putting on an Oscar-worthy performance of a pitiful victim trying to stay strong, her sense of justice flared again. "Fine! You've got a bet!" Then, she growled through gritted teeth, "If you lose, you'll get out of this city and never show your face in front of us again!" "And what happens if you lose?" I shot back, my gaze sharp as a blade. Celine sneered. "How could we possibly lose? Everyone knows how good Lucian is." "If you lose…" I pointed at the muddy puddle on the ground. "You two will kneel right here and lick all the water out of this puddle. Then, you'll admit to the entire internet that you're lying scum. How about that?" Lucian flinched and instinctively tightened his grip on Celine's hand. "Celine, don't…" He was uneasy. After all, he knew better than anyone how he'd gotten that 324. Alas, Celine was too consumed by anger to notice. She thought Lucian was simply kind and timid, which only made her feel more protective of him. She assured him, "Don't be afraid, Lucian. You've done nothing wrong, so you have nothing to fear. We'll take his bet and make him admit defeat!" She turned toward the camera and shouted, "I'll take the bet for Lucian! Evander, just wait until you're publicly disgraced!" The comments erupted in cheers. "The female lead is badass!" "I can't wait to see this rich heir get humbled!" "This bet is insane. I've already screen-recorded it. Whoever backs out is a coward!" Chapter 4 The Hardest Question Once the bet was made, Celine immediately called the Department of Education's tip line and demanded that the entire process be livestreamed. To make herself look impartial, she even called over the dean who lived in the same neighborhood—the same Linnea Ashcombe who had once accepted money from Lucian to help change his exam scores. Linnea was a portly middle-aged woman. Perhaps it was all in my head, but I felt like I was watching a pig trot over when she rushed to the scene. Still, she immediately straightened and draped herself in an air of impartiality the moment she saw the camera. "What's going on here? What's with all the commotion?" she demanded brusquely. Lucian spotted Linnea and rushed over as if she'd come to save him. "Ms. Ashcombe, you have to stand up for me! Someone switched my college admissions exam score. I only got 324… but I've always scored top ten in my grade!" Linnea's expression changed instantly. She knew what Lucian was really capable of, but she'd taken his money. So, they were in this together. If Lucian had actually done badly on the exam and his cheating at school came to light… Well, she'd be finished as well. Linnea's eyes shifted, and she immediately pointed at me with righteous indignation. "Evander! You again! You've never applied yourself at school. You're always skipping class to hang around the Olympiad class. And now you've even tampered with the college admissions exam scores? This is outrageous!" Celine looked like she'd just found her strongest witness. She excitedly turned to the livestream and blabbered, "Did everyone hear that? Even the dean says so! Evander has always been a lousy student! How could he possibly score higher than Lucian? "There's only one explanation—he switched the scores!" The comments exploded again. "We've got proof! Even the dean has testified against that brat!" "He skipped class to hang around the Olympiad class? That's hilarious. You can't just walk into the Olympiad class whenever you feel like it." "His family must've paid to get him in there just so he could pad his resume." I looked at Linnea's ugly expression and spoke calmly. "Ms. Ashcombe, accusations require evidence. You say I never apply myself. Then, tell me, which exam did I fail during my senior year?" Linnea was momentarily at a loss for words. I never once attended the regular class exams ever since I transferred to the Olympiad class. My tests came directly from the Olympiad class, and they were infamous for being ten times harder than the regular class exams, and those scores weren't included in the grade rankings. She stubbornly argued in an attempt to cover her mortification, "You were too afraid to take the grade-wide exams. What else could that mean? Lucian, on the other hand, has always been in the top ten in his grade!" "Oh? Always in the top ten?" I looked at Lucian with a faint smile. "Lucian, since Ms. Ashcombe has so much confidence in you, why don't you solve an actual college admissions exam question right now, in front of the tens of thousands watching this livestream?" I pulled up a picture of the final math problem from this year's exam and held it up to the camera. "This was the toughest problem in this year's exam. If you really were wrongly given a 324 and a top student who normally scores in the 1500s, surely this problem wouldn't take you more than five minutes, right?" Lucian's face went deathly pale as cold sweat trickled down his forehead. There was no way he could solve it. His grades had always come from cheat sheets and memorized answers. Celine immediately jumped to his defense. "Evander, what are you trying to do? Lucian is clearly shaken right now, yet you're going to force him to solve a problem? You're deliberately putting him under pressure!" Linnea chimed in as well, "Exactly! The college admissions exam is so difficult. Who could solve a problem like that in the middle of all this racket? You're asking too much of him!" I let out a cold laugh. "You can't solve it? Fine." I casually picked up a twig from the flower bed beside us and started writing rapidly in the dust-covered ground. My movements were smooth and effortless, without the slightest hint of pause. The dusty ground was covered in dense equations in less than a minute. … I'd given them three different solutions. Each one was simpler and more elegant than the official answer. Once I was done, I tossed the twig aside, dusted off my hands, and looked at the stunned crowd. "I'm supposedly a lousy student who could only score 324, yet I can work this problem out easily. Meanwhile, this hoity-toity top student who scores in the 1500s can't? Ridiculous, don't you think?"