Chapter 40 Woman, You Have No Heart!
The rain came suddenly and violently, pounding against the glass windows with such force that it kept people awake all night.
This downpour had been relentless for three days and nights, with no signs of stopping. The sky remained overcast and gloomy, devoid of any cheerful sunlight, and people's moods had grown as dreary as the weather.
"This is so annoying! It's been raining every single day, and my shoes are completely soaked." Amelia slumped into her classroom seat and immediately kicked off her leather shoes. Her socks were drenched as if they'd been dunked in water, clinging uncomfortably to her feet.
Wayne approached with a bag and placed it on her desk. "Who told you to be so clueless? You should know to pack extra shoes when it's pouring like this."
"Oh, so you're the smart one now!" Amelia shot him a glare before curiously rummaging through the bag. "What's this?"
Inside the eco-friendly tote bag was a pair of brand-new shoes, along with clean towels and fresh socks neatly packed in a separate bag.
Amelia's eyes flickered unnaturally, and she pressed her lips together.
He was actually pretty thoughtful.
Instead of changing immediately, she glanced over at Sophia, who was sitting at her desk sketching, and called out loudly, "Sophia, are your shoes and socks wet? I've got extras here if you want to switch!"
Wayne was left speechless.
He thought to himself, 'I specifically prepared those for you, and you're offering them to someone else? Woman, you have no heart!'
"No need." Sophia chuckled softly, lifting a pair of transparent shoe covers from beside her feet. "I wore these on the way back; my shoes and socks stayed perfectly dry."
James had thoughtfully bought them for her a couple of days ago when he noticed all the rain. You just slipped them over your shoes and tightened the straps, much more stylish and convenient than rain boots.
"Must be nice having someone who cares about you. You never would have worn something like that before—too worried about your image," Amelia teased.
Sophia shrugged. "Better than having completely soaked shoes and socks, don't you think?"
Amelia's smile immediately fell, and she pursed her lips wordlessly.
Amelia was envious. Amelia was jealous. Amelia was not happy!
"Alright, just change already. Wet feet are a sure way to catch a cold." Wayne couldn't help but urge Amelia along. Even though it was summer, the temperature had dropped with the continuous rain, and girls were especially prone to getting sick from cold feet.
"Fine, fine! When did you become such a nag?" Amelia grumbled as she peeled off her damp socks and dried her feet before slipping into the fresh, comfortable shoes and socks.
Wayne rolled his eyes. He didn't want to be a nag either, but if he didn't make his intentions more obvious, his fiancée might slip away from him.
"Oh, by the way!" Amelia felt much better after changing her shoes and immediately scooted closer to Sophia, lowering her voice. "I heard that Andrew and John haven't been staying at home since they returned from overseas. Emily's clearly fallen out of favor!"
Wayne chimed in with a drawl, "Do you have spies planted in the Smith family or something? How do you know everything?"
"Tom told me. He said he hasn't seen Andrew and John's cars going in and out of the gated community these past few days, so they're definitely not staying at home."
"That's hardly breaking news. Which Smith family daughter has ever been favored? Whether it's Emily or Sophia, they're both outsiders in that house."
"I'm not so sure about that. Even though everyone in Emerald City talks about how Sophia doesn't get along with Andrew and John, we know the truth, don't we? Those two actually care about Sophia a lot, but their methods are just hard to accept."
Sophia smiled softly and didn't contradict them.
During break time, Emily, who had been keeping a low profile for a while, started stirring up drama again, sprawled across her desk, sobbing loudly.
Just a few days ago, she'd been playing the spoiled princess, and now she was putting on the fragile victim act?
Amelia's lips twitched. Did this girl have multiple personality disorder or something?
Some classmates, mindful of her status as the heiress to the Smith family, felt obligated to show fake concern.
Emily sat up, wiping the tears from her face. She looked like a pitiful little rabbit with her tear-streaked cheeks and red-rimmed eyes—innocent, helpless, and heartbreakingly vulnerable.
Voice choked with sobs, she said, "Dad brought me a pen from overseas—it cost $5,000! I treasured it so much I couldn't bear to use it. I brought it to school today because I wanted to give it to Lucy as a gift, but now I can't find it anywhere."
Lucy immediately rushed over to comfort Emily. "Don't panic. Think carefully about where you put it and search again."
"I put it in my backpack. I've looked through it several times already, but it's just not there." Emily sniffled, looking utterly pitiful.
Amelia crossed her legs and rolled her eyes. She wondered whose desk drawer they'd discover the pen in. Her money was on Sophia.
Sophia had the same suspicion. To test her theory, she moved all the books from her drawer onto her desk, and sure enough, found a rectangular box that didn't belong to her at the very back.
Opening it revealed a fountain pen.
"Is this what you're looking for?"
The moment she spoke, everyone turned to stare at Sophia.
Emily's gaze fixed on the box in Sophia's hands, her expression one of apparent shock. She quickly stood and walked over, opening the box to peek inside. "That's the pen! Why is it here?"
Sophia's cold laugh was loaded with meaning as she regarded Emily. "Why is it in my drawer? Don't you know better than I do?"
This petty frame-up trick was something she'd played countless times with John. Sophia couldn't care less about it and had zero interest in playing along with Emily's performance.
Emily's pupils dilated in shock, and she looked like someone desperately trying to clear up a misunderstanding. "Sophia, what are you implying? I was planning to give this pen to Lucy. Why would I put it in your drawer? I never suspected you of stealing my pen, yet you're immediately trying to pin the blame on me. I know you have a problem with me, but you can't just make false accusations like this!"
With that speech, she'd managed to paint Sophia as the guilty party—someone with a bad conscience who was lashing out defensively.
Pretty quick thinking—she could actually keep this act going.
"This pen model retails for $5,000, but it's priceless because it's a limited edition. Only five hundred were ever made." Sophia reached into her backpack and pulled out her pencil case.
She unzipped it and dumped the contents onto her desk, revealing four or five identical fountain pens.
Seeing Emily's increasingly grim expression, Sophia's lips curved in a slight smile as she said casually, "Next time you want to pull a stunt like this, maybe do some background research first? Check the shareholder list for this brand—my name's right up front, pretty hard to miss."
This had been her first failed investment project. While the five hundred pens hadn't sold well due to their high price point, they wrote beautifully, so she kept several for personal use.
Who could have predicted they'd come in handy for today's little drama?
With her scheme exposed on the spot, Emily tried to salvage the situation. "I misunderstood you. Maybe... maybe someone was playing a prank and took my pen to put it in your drawer."
Amelia twirled an identical fountain pen between her fingers, her tone dripping with amusement. "If you're going to lie, at least make it believable. This project was part of our freshman year entrepreneurship practicum—our whole class pooled money for it. Everyone has shares, and everyone has the same pen. Who would be bored enough to frame Sophia with your pen?"
This time, Emily was genuinely panicked. Only now did she notice that ever since Sophia had produced the pen, everyone else had gone silent, and even Lucy was staring at her with a strange expression.
She was about to be completely ostracized by the class!