Chapter 3

Midterms were coming up, and our class had to buy study materials together. The class president Hazel had collected over a thousand dollars in class fees, all stuffed into a manila envelope.

That afternoon after school, Hazel got called away by a teacher. Before leaving, she spotted me—the last one in the classroom—and handed me the envelope.

"Anna, can you do me a favor?" she asked, a bit awkward.

"I need to run to the office. Can you lock this in the teacher's desk drawer? The key's hanging right there."

I didn't think much of it and nodded.

I unlocked the teacher's desk with the key, dropped the envelope in, and relocked it, returning the key to its hook.

Then I grabbed my backpack and headed home.

What I didn't notice was a pair of venomous eyes watching me through the back door of the classroom as I locked that drawer.

One of Tina's old sidekicks.

The next day, when Hazel went to turn in the money for study materials, the envelope was gone from the drawer.

Everyone freaked out.

A thousand dollars was a fortune for high schoolers.

Dorothy rushed in and asked Hazel who she'd given the money to last. Hazel glanced at me, uncomfortable.

"Yesterday after school, I asked Anna to lock it in the drawer."

Instantly, every eye in the class turned to me.

Suspicion. Judgment. And some people clearly enjoyed the drama.

"I locked it!" I blurted out, my face going pale with panic.

"I put it in there myself and locked it!"

Just then, Tina's old sidekick nervously raised her hand.

"Mrs. Hale," she said, voice trembling. "I... I think I saw... Anna lingering at the teacher's desk for a while after she locked the drawer..."

Instantly, the room exploded.

"See? I knew it was her!"

"Her mom's rich, and she still steals class money? Guess you never really know people, huh?"

"Like mother, like daughter. What do you expect from someone with a psycho mom?"

The whispers closed in on me. My protests meant nothing—nobody listened.

Dorothy's face darkened. She frowned at me with deep disappointment, then took a breath.

"We're searching your things. Anna, if you want to prove you're innocent, don't object."

She wasn't asking—she was telling me.

Two class reps, with everyone watching, started emptying my backpack one item at a time.

Textbooks. Workbooks. My pencil case...

And then, inside my pencil case—a hundred-dollar bill, just sitting there.

I was completely stunned, my mind blank.

I had no idea where that bill came from. All I knew was I was screwed.

"It wasn't me..."

I shook my head automatically, my voice barely a whisper.

"It really wasn't me..."

But nobody believed me.

That hundred was the smoking gun—proof they couldn't ignore.

Dorothy just looked tired as she waved me over.

"Anna, come with me to the dean's office."

I followed her out of the classroom.

Everyone stared at me—some with smug grins, others with pure contempt.

Their looks were like knives, cutting me to pieces.

For the first time, I understood that Mom could shield me from the punches people throw in my face, but she couldn't stop the silent attacks that come out of nowhere.

I stood in the dean's office while they talked at me, one after another. I couldn't make out a word—my head was pounding, everything a blur.

I had no way to explain where that hundred came from. Every excuse sounded weak and pathetic with the evidence right there staring at them.

Finally, the dean waved his hand, looking exhausted.

"Take a break and reflect. Get your parents in here."

My hands shook so badly I could barely hold the phone as I dialed Mom's number.

I was terrified she'd barge in like last time, blow up at the dean, and make everything worse.

Her aggressive approach wouldn't work in a place where evidence and logic were all that mattered.

This time, even she couldn't help.

When she picked up, I quickly explained what happened.

Long, heavy silence on the other end—like needles pricking my nerves, leaving me anxious and on edge.