Chapter 37

Chapter 36 6、 7, 69%© +23) Elysia felt a warm glow inside. Her cousin Logan had been a source of comfort during his time here, something she’d never experienced in the Rosewood family. But he had his own home, far from Sivro, and he’d eventually have to return to it. Though she felt a pang of sadness, Elysia kept a light and easy expression on her face. “Don’t worry! No one can push me around,” she said with a smile. “Right! If there’s one thing about you that’s just like me, it’s that you never let a grudge go!” Logan said with a grin, giving her a playful nudge. Elysia raised an eyebrow at Logan’s words, thinking, ‘Is he really complimenting me?‘ The next morning, Emma woke up early. Today was the day the monthly exam results were posted at school, something she’d been looking forward to for a long time. The thought of seeing Elysia humiliated made her even more smug, her smile brighter than usual. They arrived at school together but went their separate ways after getting out of the car.

Emma watched Elysia walk away, her brow furrowing. Emma thought, ‘She’s not heading to the bulletin board. Is Elysia not going to check the results? Maybe she’s too scared to face how badly she did. How naive! Does she think if she doesn’t look, it won’t be real? Impossible!‘ Emma was sure that once everyone saw Elysia’s abysmal scores, her shady deals would be exposed, and everyone would know she was a dropout. Then, no matter who was backing Elysia, they wouldn’t be able to defend her under pressure. But Emma’s plan was doomed to fail. She pushed her way to the notice board and searched for a long time, but she couldn’t find Elysia’s name among the bottom ranks. ‘Where could she be Why isn’t her name at the back?‘

she thought. She couldn’t believe it and was about to search again when she heard someone in the crowd exclaim, “Justin’s not first place?!” This caused a stir among the students checking the results. They all rushed to see who was at the top, and there it was- Elysia’s name in the first place. They could hardly believe it. Justin, the top student who had held the number one spot for six years straight, was now second. And the one who snagged first place was Elysia, the student everyone whispered about for supposedly getting in through connections. It was hard to believe it was real. Emma stood there, stunned for a moment. After a while, she pushed her way through the crowd, thinking they must have made a mistake. But when she saw Elysia’s name in the first place her eyes widened in disbelief and anger. ‘Why? Why Elysia! No, this can’t be true, Emma thought, her heart sinking.

She checked again and again, but the name in the first place remained the same–Elysia. She wondered if everything Elysia had said was actually true. Over at another notice board, the Liberal Arts students were all puzzled. The top spot was taken by a STEM student, not one of their own. They squinted at the “STEM Class 6 Grade 12” in the class column, thinking, ‘How’d a STEM student ace our Liberal Arts 11:59 Wed, Jan 29 BB Chapter 36 exam? And from Class 6, no less. Class 6 is one thing, but first place? You gotta be kidding me! 69% +23) They stared at the name, and the more they stared, the more it felt familiar like they’d heard it somewhere before. Then it hit them–this was the girl everyone had been talking about lately. They remembered hearing she’d weaseled her way into Class 1, and then the rumor yesterday was she got booted. They just couldn’t wrap their heads around how someone who got the boot could still pull off top marks. “Hey, who’s the top dog in your STEM classes?” a Liberal Arts student tugged on a STEM student’s sleeve and asked. “Elysia,” the STEM student said, glancing over. “Same here,”

the Liberal Arts student chimed in. Hearing this, the STEM student dashed over to the Liberal Arts notice board. Seeing Elysia’s name at the top, he exclaimed again, “Dude! She’s killing it in both Liberal Arts and STEM exams! You all gotta take a look at this!” The other STEM students, who were still reeling from Elysia’s top spot, snapped out of their daze and huddled around the Liberal Arts notice board. Seeing her name again, they were left speechless. Emma couldn’t believe her eyes. ‘Elysia nailed first in both STEM and Liberal Arts exams? Seriously? How is this even possible?‘ she thought. ***** Most kids in Class 1 didn’t bother with the rankings since their grades were pretty steady and didn’t budge much. The few who cared were the ones hanging near the bottom, worried they’d get the boot from Class 1. So, at this point, most of Class 1 was still in the dark about the shake–up in the exam rankings. “Justin, you wanna scope out the rankings?” Bianca asked Justin, looking him square in the eye. She’d never given two hoots about rankings before, but this time was different. She wanted to know where Elysia stood and make sure Justin saw it. She figured Justin usually thought anyone who wasn’t up to his level was a nobody. If he saw Elysia’s ranking, he’d write Elysia off as no big deal, not worth a second glance. “I’m not going,” Justin replied, not even lifting his gaze from the foreign classic in his hands. Leon piped up, teasing, “Bianca, does Justin really need to check He always stays at the top of the heap. What’s the point?” “Yeah, Justin’s the brainiac. Does it really matter if he sees the rankings or not?” another guy chimed in. “You guys are missing the point,” Bianca said, fiddling with her hair. “I was just thinking we should check Elysia’s ranking, because... she used to be in our class.” Hearing Bianca mention Elysia, Justin finally looked up, his eyes flickering with interest. He paused, unsure. Bianca’s heart clenched as she watched him, thinking, ‘Why does he get that look when I bring up Elysia? Could it be he’s into her like I thought? ‘No way! He’s the untouchable genius. He used to be so cool and distant. Why would he be into a nobody like Elysia? Does she even deserve him?‘ Just then, a guy who’d gone to check the rankings came rushing back into the classroom, hollering at the top of his lungs, This is bad, Justin! You came in second this time!” 11:59 Wed, Jan 29 BB. Chapter 36 3 Everyone was caught off guard, thinking they must’ve heard wrong. One student asked, “What did you just say?” “Justin got second place!” the guy repeated. 69% +23) This time, it was crystal clear to everyone. They thought, ‘Second place? Justin, the top student, got second place? How could this be? He’s the brainiac. If he’s second, who’s first?‘

Robert was thinking the same thing. Technically, if Justin was second, he had the best shot at being first. Before he could ask, someone else beat him to it, saying, “So who’s first? Is it Robert?” Robert was on the edge of his seat, hoping the guy would say his name. After all these years of being second to Justin, it was finally his turn to grab the top spot in the grade. But his hopes were dashed. HELT “It’s Elysia! She’s first!” As the guy blurted out her name, Robert’s joy drained away bit by bit, and his heart sank like a stone. It wasn’t Robert. Everyone was left speechless when they heard Elysia’s name. If you were to rate their shock on a scale of one to a hundred, they’d be at a solid ninety–nine. They couldn’t believe that Elysia, who slept during exams, managed to snag the top spot in the grade. Bianca’s face soured the moment she heard the news. She wished with all her might that her ears were playing tricks on her. With so many people hearing the same thing, there was no way that everyone’s ears were on the fritz. All Bianca could hope for was that the guy had messed up. But the guy wasn’t done. He cleared his throat and went on, “And it’s not just first in all STEM classes. She’s also at the top of the Liberal Arts classes!” 1