Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Jonathan felt like there was a boulder pressing on his chest. He thought, ‘Accept my fate? Never! For over twenty years, I have lived in Samuel’s shadow. Enough was enough. I, Jonathan, would never let some woman control me
Jonathan’s eyes darkened with a vicious glint as his clenched fists pounded the steering wheel several times in suppressed rage.
Feeling quite pleased with herself after sowing seeds of doubt and stirring up discord, Sophia slung her backpack over her shoulder and strolled toward the gate of Jelasburg University.
With a beige sun hat pulled low and a mask covering her face, she was completely covered up and almost unrecognizable, just the way she liked it.
Dressed in a plain white T–shirt and loose–fitting pants, Sophia blended seamlessly into the crowd, completely inconspicuous. Before she could reach the university gates, she heard Maelis’s shrill voice, arguing with someone.
Maelis snapped, “Damn cockroach! Looking for trouble, huh? Who’s blind here, me or you? Didn’t you see I was backing up? You just had to ram right into me. What, got a death wish or something?
“A pregnant woman like you should be resting at home, not out here in the blazing sun faking accidents. What, is the baby’s father so useless you have to
scam people just to get money for baby for
”
Rose’s face flushed crimson, whether from anger or the blazing sun. It was hard to tell. She glared daggers at Maelis and snapped, “Maelis, if you keep spouting nonsense, I’ll shut that filthy mouth of
for good!”
Maelis planted her hands on her hips, chin raised defiantly. She said, “Come at me! I’d be a chicken if I backed down!”
Rose was fuming with rage, itching to rush over and start a fight with Maelis right then and there.
Just then, the ponytailed girl in black–rimmed glasses beside Rose timidly tugged at her sleeve. The girl said, “Rose, you should head back first. I can go in by myself.”
Her head habitually lowered, her voice was barely above a whisper, and she looked meek and hesitant.
Unable to out–argue Maelis, Rose instantly redirected her fury at the girl. She shoved the girl violently and snapped, “Get lost! So annoying! Who wants to bring you here? If Grandpa hadn’t made me, you think I’d give a damn about your crappy university?”
The girl, caught off guard by the shove, stumbled forward. Instinctively, Maelis reached out and grabbed her arm, steadying the girl before she could fall.
“Crappy university? Rose, say that again if you dare!” Maelis shot back, stepping closer with a sneer.
It was outside Jelasburg University on freshman orientation day. The place was packed, not just with new students, but also upperclassmen welcoming them. Maelis thought, ‘Rose just called Jelasburg a crappy university. Let her say that again. I dare her.‘
Rose was just looking for someone to take out her anger on. The words flew out of her mouth without a second thought. She glared furio and snapped, “Mind your own damn business!”
Maelis
Maelis shot back, “You couldn’t even get into a decent college in Clusia on your own. Let me think, what was your SAT score back then? Did you even break 400?
“Spent a bunch of money to buy yourself a degree overseas, and now you think you’re hot shit just because you ‘studied abroad? In my eyes, you’re nothing but a pathetic loser.”
Maelis glanced at the university gates and watched the new freshmen arrive; a flicker of envy flashed in her eyes. She thought, ‘It’s not that people like me didn’t want to get in. The truth is, we just couldn’t make the damn SAT cutoff.‘
Rose was furious. Knowing she couldn’t out argue Maelis, she just got in her car and sped off.
Seeing this, Maelis took a couple of steps after the car and shouted at its taillights, “Hey, slow down! Don’t go into early labor from all that rage!”
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Maelis’s taunt echoed through the air, startling Rose so much that she nearly rear ended the car behind her. Seeing this, Maelis burst out laughing, while Rose pounded the steering wheel in fury.
After her burst of laughter, Maelis casually scanned the crowd of freshmen. Then her eyes lit up with recognition. “Sophiat” she shouted at the top of her lungs.
The moment Maelis shouted, all eyes, from freshmen to upperclassmen, snapped toward her.
Sophia’s expression shifted beneath her mask as she picked up her pace. She thought, ‘No way. She recognized me even with all this on? impossible.
“Sophia, don’t run away! Wait for me!” Maelis shouted shamelessly as she charged after Sophia, completely ignoring the crowd around her.
Sophia took off running like she was in a track meet, determined to leave everyone behind.
Maelis, struggling to run in her high heels, stopped short. She tilted her head with a puzzled look.
“Hey, girl! Was that Sophia just now?” a classmate beside Maelis asked excitedly.
Maelis frowned and replied, “Yeah, that’s Sophia. She’s a student at Jelasburg too.”
The moment those words left her lips, it was like tossing a match into gasoline. Both freshmen and upperclassmen erupted in excitement, buzzing with chatter about Sophia, the SAT top scorer.
Only then did it hit Maelis. She finally realized what was going on. She thought, ‘No wonder Sophia covered her face like that. Craps! Did I just spill the
beans?‘
Sophia managed to dodge Maelis and smoothly registered at her department.
The Computer Science department had very few female students to begin with, and among the upperclassmen welcoming new students, there was only one girl. When the senior girl saw Sophia’s signature, she froze in surprise. “Wait, you’re Sophia?” she asked, clearly taken aback.
The other upperclassmen also glanced over, but with Sophia bundled up so tightly, all they could see were her eyes.
Sophia remained silent and just nodded at the senjor girl.
The senior girl smiled and offered, “Do you have any luggage? I’ll take you to your dorm now.”
Sophia replied, “I didn’t bring any luggage. Mind if I check out the dorm first?”
“Of course,” the senior girl said. After quickly briefing her classmates, she led Sophia to the dorms.
As they walked, the senior girl explained, “This dorm building is brand new. You’re among the first to move in. The rooms are great: there’s an elevator, AC, a private bathroom, and a balcony.
“Four students share a spacious room. Yours is on the sixth floor, room 604. You can choose to live on campus or not, just let the dor you decide not to.
“If you do stay, the dorm closes at 11:30 PM. Overall, the rules are quite flexible and student–friendly.”
‘pervisor know if
Inside the dorm building, Sophia spotted a beverage vending machine nearby. She bought two bottles of water and handed one to the senior girl.
The senior girl took it with a smile and said, “Thanks!”
Sophia gave her a strange look. She thought, ‘Shouldn’t I be the one saying thanks?‘ But she didn’t dwell on it.
As they entered the elevator, the senior girl suddenly remembered something. She said, “Since this is a brand new dorm building, all the residents are freshmen and the room assignments are completely random, so your roommates might not be from our department.”
Sophia didn’t particularly care. After all, they were all strangers. When she entered room 604, she found one bed already occupied, leaving three still
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empty. To her surprise, the moment she stepped into the dorm, she immediately heard Maelis’s astonished voice behind her.
Maelis exclaimed, “So these are the dorms at Jelasburg University? They’re huge and gorgeous! It’s nice here. And they even have elevators!”
Sophia froze in her tracks. The next second, she heard a haughty, disdainful scoff.
The voice said, “What a country bumpkin! How can you call this place nice? Looking so provincial, how embarrassing.
“I’m exhausted! This damn sun, I’m probably all tanned now. You lot, hurry up and make my bed properly. Put my things exactly where they belong, and don’t mess anything up!”
With a commanding wave of her hand, Vivienne marched in, trailed by four maids hauling eight enormous suitcases. The once–spacious dorm room instantly became claustrophobically cramped.
Maelis glared at Vivienne, who’d called her a country bumpkin, and snapped back, “You’re not embarrassing. You just still need your mommy!” Vivienne gaped at Maelis in utter disbelief. She said, “How dare you speak to me like that! Do you even know who I am?”
One of the maids leaned in and whispered, “Mrs. Monroe instructed that once you arrive in Jelasburg, you must keep a low profile and not reveal your family background.”
Though Vivienne felt humiliated, she dared not say another word. She shot Maelis a glare. Suddenly, an icy chill crawled up her spine.
As she turned, she found herself staring into a pair of eyes. Those eyes were glassy and beautiful, yet razor–sharp and brimming with lethal intent.
Sophia fixed her gaze on Vivienne, a faint, cold smile curling beneath her mask. She thought, ‘The wheels of fate are turning. Perfect.‘
AD
