Chapter 23 The Accusation

Chapter 23 The Accusation

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VANESSA'S POV

I was sitting in Biology, staring at a diagram of a cell, but I wasn't seeing anything. The air in the room felt heavy, and my skin was crawling. I could feel Melissa's eyes on the back of my neck from three rows down. She hadn't said a word to me all morning, and that was the problem. Melissa was never quiet unless she was planning something.

Beside me, Adrian was actually working. He was writing notes, and his shoulder was just a little close to mine. Since the breakup in the hall, he'd been different, less like a jerk and more like someone who was actually present.

The door to the lab swung open with a bang that made half the class jump. Mrs. Crabtree was standing there, looking like she wanted to arrest someone. She ignored the teacher and looked straight at our table.

"Vanessa Vance. Adrian Thorne. Stand up. Pack your things."

The room went dead silent. No one moved. Even Mrs. Higgins looked confused.

"Is there a problem?" the teacher asked.

"The Dean's office. Now," Crabtree barked.

I felt my stomach drop. I looked at Adrian, but he was already standing up, his face blank. I packed my bag with shaking hands. The sound of my zipper felt way too loud in the quiet room. As we walked out, I passed Melissa's desk. She was leaning back with a tiny smile on her face. She looked so satisfied. Whatever she had done, she finally pulled the trigger.

We followed Crabtree down the long hallways. The only sound was her heels clicking on the floor. When we reached the office, the door was already open. The Dean was sitting there with the scholarship coordinator, and they both looked like they were waiting for a criminal to confess.

"Sit down," the Dean said.

I sat, but my legs felt like jelly. I couldn't understand why the scholarship coordinator was there too.

"We got a report this morning," the Dean said, looking straight at me. "A very detailed one. It says you, Vanessa, have been running an academic fraud ring. That you've been charging Adrian and other students to do their assignments since the day you got here."

I felt like someone had just punched me in the gut. For a few seconds, I actually couldn't breathe. The room started spinning, and I had to grip the edge of the chair just to stay upright.

“I… what?” I managed to say. My voice came out small. “Academic fraud? Sir, that’s not true. I haven’t taken money from anyone.”

"

Don’t lie,” the coordinator cut in sharply.

She pushed a folder across the table like she was done listening. “We have statements. Students are saying they saw you collecting money for school work. We even have things that show strange spending patterns connected to other students involved.”

I looked at the folder, but the words were not clear anymore. My hands were shaking so much I hid them under the table.

This was no longer just gossip. They actually believed it.

“This is not true,” Adrian said.

His voice was calm, but firm. He wasn’t shouting. He was just steady, like he had already decided not to panic.

“I am her partner,” he continued. “I didn’t pay her anything. I don’t know who is saying this, but it’s false.”

“Adrian, your grades went from failing to perfect in a short time,” the coordinator said quickly. “And your father is already asking questions. He thinks you are being scammed.”

“My father is wrong,” Adrian replied, still calm. “I just started working harder because I have a partner who understands the work. That’s all.”

The Dean stood up now.

“Until this is cleared, both of you are on academic probation.”

My stomach dropped again.

“Vanessa, you are banned from the library and all common areas. You go to class, then your dorm. That is all.”

He turned slightly.

“Adrian, you stay in your wing. If I see both of you together outside class, you’re both out of this school.”

Probation. Banned. I didn’t move. I think I forgot how. My parents worked so hard to keep me here, and Melissa was about to throw it all away with one lie.

We walked out, and the hallway felt like it was closing in on me. Melissa was standing a few yards away, waiting for her next class. She looked perfect, like she had just won a war. She just watched us walk past with that look of victory in her eyes.

"Vanessa, wait," Adrian said, stopping in the middle of the hall once we were far enough away from Melissa. He looked stressed, his hair messy where he'd been tugging at it. "I'll talk to my dad. I'll tell him it's a lie."

I stopped and turned to face him. I wasn't shaking anymore. The shock had turned into a cold, sharp anger.

"You'll talk to your dad?" I laughed, but there was no humor in it. "You really don't get it, do you? You put me in this mess, Adrian. If you hadn't bullied me into doing your work for you on the first day, your dumb ex wouldn't have anything to use against me. This is on you."

Adrian flinched like I'd slapped him. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again.

"I didn't think she'd go this far," he finally muttered.

"I did," I said. I looked down the hall at Melissa. She was laughing with a friend now, acting like she hadn't just tried to ruin me. "She thinks because she has money and a big name, she can just crush me whenever she's bored. She thinks I'm just some weakling she can play with."

I pulled my bag higher on my shoulder. I didn't want to hide anymore. I was done being the girl who just took whatever they threw at her.

"What are you going to do?" Adrian asked. He sounded almost afraid of the answer.

"I'm going to show her what happens when you mess with someone who has nothing left to lose," I said. "She wants me to be a problem? Fine. I'll be the biggest problem she's ever had."

I turned and walked away. Melissa probably thought she was in control, like everything she did was safe and untouchable. But I wasn’t thinking like that anymore. I wasn’t even sure what I was turning into, I just knew one thing for sure, I wasn’t going to stay silent again.