Chapter 1

After I won the top scholarship in my class, my roommate, Mia Sinclair, begged me in front of everyone.

She clasped her hands together and said, "I've been so broke that I haven't eaten in the dining hall for days. Could you give me the scholarship instead?"

A second later, glowing comments flickered across my vision.

[Mia is so smart. She's guilt-tripping Lily Summers in public. If Lily says no, she'll get dragged online until she drops out, or worse, some psycho will throw acid in her face.]

[Mia's been eyeing that new designer bag for a while now. The scholarship is just enough to cover it, and then she can dress up and go on a date with the campus heartthrob.]

I smiled.

"I grew up with nothing," I said. "I work part-time jobs after class every single day, and I have never once used my poverty to guilt someone into giving me a handout."

"But since you went ahead and put me on the spot like this, how could I possibly say no?"

*****

The moment I stepped into my dorm, I heard a loud pop, and colorful confetti petals rained down on me.

"Congrats!"

"You got the scholarship again! Lily, you're seriously amazing!"

"You make our whole class look good!"

I couldn't help but laugh and said, "Thanks, guys. Let me take you all out for dinner this weekend."

Girls from the other dorms crowded into our room to congratulate me, too.

Our class had always been competitive but tight-knit, especially the girls. I got along well with all of them.

The room was warm and buzzing with excitement, but then Mia, who had only transferred in two weeks ago, suddenly pushed her way to the front and dropped to her knees right in front of me.

The laughter died instantly. Everyone stared at Mia in shock, and I blurted out, "What are you doing?"

Mia looked up at me with tears streaming down her face and begged, "I'm so broke that I haven't been able to eat at the dining hall for days. Can you give me your scholarship instead?"

I was completely speechless. I was about to say no when rows of glowing comments suddenly appeared in front of my eyes.

[Mia is so clever. She's using guilt to trap Lily. If Lily says no, she'll get cyberbullied until she drops out, or worse, some psycho will throw acid on her!]

[Mia has been eyeing that new designer bag for a while. This scholarship is exactly enough. Once she gets it, she can dress herself up and go on a date with the most popular guy on campus.]

What the hell was all this?

I was so irritated that I actually laughed.

Mia sobbed, "Lily, I know I haven't been here long, but I also know you win the scholarship every year. This money is just icing on the cake for you, but for me, it's a lifeline. Please, just let me have it."

I glanced at the floating comments from the corner of my eye and slowly let a smile spread across my lips.

I looked right at her and said, "My family doesn't have money either. I work a part-time job every single day after class, and I've never once used my situation to guilt someone into giving me handouts.

"But since you went ahead and put me on the spot like this, how could I possibly say no?"

Mia's eyes lit up the moment I said that.

The other classmates rushed to stop me. One of them turned to me and said, "Lily, you're seriously going to give it to her?"

Another classmate, the blunt type who never held back, looked straight at Mia and said, "What is wrong with you? She earned that scholarship by working her butt off. How do you even have the nerve to ask for it?"

Someone else chimed in, "Begging someone for money just to eat? That's pathetic. You could at least pick up a part-time job instead of mooching off people."

Mia rolled her eyes and shot back, "Lily already said yes, so mind your own business."

Another classmate warned me, "Lily, don't give her a dime. You'd be an idiot if you did."

I was truly grateful to the classmates who stood up for me, but the comments section had already turned on them, hurling insults their way.

I pulled out my phone and turned to Mia. "Let me just call our homeroom teacher real quick and ask if I can transfer my scholarship over to you."

Mia froze. "You're going to call the Mr. Miller?"

I blinked innocently. "Well, yeah. This is a big deal, so obviously I need to run it by Mr. Miller first. He'll probably have to clear it with the school too."

Mia's brow furrowed, and a hint of panic crept into her voice. "You already got the money. Can't you just send it to me directly?"

I put on a look of sudden realization and said, "Oh, so you just want money. I thought you were here about the scholarship. So what does that make you? A beggar? A panhandler?"

Mia hadn't expected me to humiliate her in front of everyone. She had no shame asking me for money in public, but now she was the one turning red.

I smirked and gave her a look.

Other students started chiming in. One of them said, "Didn't know our school had beggars."

Another added, "You guys who share a dorm with her better watch your stuff. If she can't shake you down for cash, she might just help herself to your things."

Mia was drowning in humiliation, and tears welled up in her eyes again.

She begged, "Please, Lily. You're smart, and you'll get more scholarships down the road. Can't you just help me out?"

The comments section exploded with sympathy.

[Ugh, poor Mia. I feel so bad for her.]

[Lily is awful. Aren't classmates supposed to help each other out?]

[Doesn't matter how good her grades are. She has zero class, and she'll never make it anywhere with that attitude.]

I actually laughed out of pure disbelief reading those comments.

Did these people have any moral compass at all?

What was wrong with them?

I quietly rolled my eyes and looked at Mia. "Fine. Since you put it that way, I'll do it.

"My family has nothing. My parents can barely keep the lights on, let alone pay for college. My tuition and living expenses are covered by this scholarship and whatever I scrape together from part-time jobs.

"After tuition and bills, there's almost nothing left.

"But it's fine. I'll eat one less sandwich a day.

"But Mia, even if I pinch every penny, it still won't add up to much, and I really don't know what else I can do."