Chapter 6
A scandal like this during the college entrance exam instantly set the Internet on fire. Netizens flooded Sophie’s social media, furiously calling her a “walking disaster.” After disappearing for a whole day, Sophie suddenly went live—Ethan, looking worn out, sat beside her. Tears streaked her face, and she sobbed as she spoke: “I’m really sorry. I didn’t think it would end like this. We just wanted cake. It was our classmate Emma who insisted on ordering wine, saying it was light and we could drink freely.” “Even though everyone had a bit too much last night, we got to the hospital in time and were fine. It was Emma who wanted revenge and got her dad—the hospital director—to deliberately misdiagnose us, which led to the alcohol poisoning.” She nudged Ethan. “Aren’t you her childhood friend? You can back me up, right?” Ethan froze. At her urging, he looked up. His eyes flickered with hesitation before he finally gritted his teeth and spoke. “Yes. I can confirm Emma insisted on the wine. She was jealous of Sophie and the other high achievers. Also, her father really is a doctor at that hospital.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Had they lost their minds? And somehow, people believed these lies. Just moments ago, they were shouting to hold Sophie and Ethan’s families accountable. Now they turned around and demanded answers from me and my dad. Bang! A car window shattered, and a U-lock struck my dad’s forehead—blood burst out instantly. The car screeched to a stop. I slammed into the windshield, everything went black. I could barely make out the thunderous voices around us: “Kill this heartless pair! They sent my son to the ICU just to bully his classmates—they deserve to die!” Another parent yelled: “They had it coming! That doctor covered for his daughter—break his hands and see how he’ll treat patients again!” I screamed desperately: “We didn’t do it! Check the CCTV—I never went to that bar! My dad wasn’t even on duty last night!” Dad, in pain, crawled over and shielded me with his body. “Don’t be scared. Dad’s here.” I sobbed uncontrollably and cried out, “You’ve been tricked!” Just then, my phone lit up with a message from Ethan: “Sorry Emma. Sophie’s family is poor. If she gets sued, it’s over for her. Your family’s well-off—you can afford the fallout. Once it’s over, we’ll repeat the year and go to college together, okay?” I gave a bitter laugh. That was it. Since Sophie couldn’t pay, the parents simply redirected their outrage at me; Because my family had money, they wanted to rip a chunk out of us. “Ethan, you scumbag! You should rot in hell!” The parents dragged my bleeding father and me out of the car and beat us. One of them raised his phone and started streaming the violence. Sophie and Ethan, watching from afar, saw it too. Sophie exhaled in relief, leaning against him flirtatiously. “Thank you for saving me, Ethan.” Ethan forced a smile, but guilt and fear clouded his face. “As long as you’re safe, I’ll do anything for you.” In the chaos, my mother stormed in and drove her parents away. Standing between us and them, she roared, “Don’t you touch my husband and daughter!” She held up her phone, her tone cold and commanding: “The real culprits behind the students’ poisoning are Sophie and Ethan. I’ve uploaded the evidence. If you don’t believe me, go see for yourselves.” Everyone froze. Then, in silence, they looked down at their phones. Onscreen, bar surveillance footage from last night began to play—