Chapter 26
“Justin, Nathan, what are you two doing?”
A voice suddenly rang out from the classroom doorway. It was Layla, there to check on the morning self–study session.
She quickly pieced together what had happened from the other students. With plenty of experience handling situations like this, Layla knew the best approach was to scold both sides equally.
“Justin, you’re the class president. How could you be leading the charge in breaking school rules?” Layla first scolded Justin.
Justin immediately lowered his head. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Finn. I lost my temper. I didn’t act like a top student of the school.”
Even while apologizing, he couldn’t resist adding a little self–praise.
Classic Justin.
Layla turned to Nathan next. “And you, Nathan, do you realize your mistake?”
Nathan raised an eyebrow. “Mrs. Finn, how is this my fault? Justin was about to punch me! If you had come a little later, I’d be in the ICU by now.”
Layla sighed. “Nathan, stop trying to talk your way out of this. You started it with your rude remarks, saying things like being a suck–up. For someone who can’t even get your language grades up, you sure have a wide vocabulary!”
Nathan quickly put on a sheepish grin. “Mrs. Finn, I was wrong too. I shouldn’t have used foul language. After all, I’m a provincial outstanding student, a model of ethics and morality, handpicked out of hundreds of thousands of students. I shouldn’t be stooping to Justin’s level.
Nathan’s words were a deliberate dig at Justin.
“Provincial outstanding student? Yeah, sure,” Justin thought to himself.
Justin couldn’t believe it and said, “Nathan, you’re joking, right? How could you be a provincial outstanding student?”
The class buzzed with whispers, most of the students just as doubtful as Justin.
But a few of them who had seen the announcement board confirmed it was true.
Justin was dumbfounded.
In the last semester exams, Nathan ranked first in the honors class and seventh in the entire grade while Justin had struggled, scoring over a hundred points less than Nathan.
Chapter 26
When it came to grades, Justin was no match for Nathan.
The only thing keeping Justin afloat was his title as one of the school’s top students.
And now, that, too, had been taken away.
Layla rolled her eyes at Nathan. “Nathan, Mr. Thompson put you on the Provincial Outstanding Student Award list because he believes in your potential. How could you use that to show off?”
Nathan shrugged. “I learned it from Justin.”
Justin was speechless. His face twitched in embarrassment, and he wished the floor would open up and swallow him whole.
“Alright, that’s enough. Both of you need to focus on the college entrance exams. If I catch you competing like this again, don’t blame me for calling your parents.”
With that, Layla signaled for the class to return to self–study and left the classroom. It wasn’t a big deal, so she chose to let it go lightly.
But Justin, back in his seat, couldn’t stop fuming. The more he thought about it, the angrier
and more envious he became.
Getting the Provincial Outstanding Student Award had been his dream. With that title, he’d/ have a huge advantage when running for class president, joining the student council, or applying for prestigious positions after graduating.
He didn’t understand how this could happen.
The grade dean had told him he had a great chance of being selected. Even if it didn’t go to him, it shouldn’t have gone to Nathan.
Frustrated, Justin sought out Bentley, a school official and an old friend of his father, after the
self–study session.
“Justin, do you have any idea how badly you did on the semester exams? You dropped 50 to 60 points. You might not even make the top–tier cutoff!
“Yes, you’ve worked hard over the past three years and helped the teachers a lot, but for the Provincial Outstanding Student Awards, grades matter the most!”
Justin couldn’t argue. Defeated, he returned to class. Just as he sat down, still processing the blow, Cheryl walked over.
With a cold expression on her pretty face, she said, “Justin, if you’ve got nothing better to do, why don’t you go run some laps? What goes on between me and Nathan is none of your business, so stay out of it!”
Cheryl’s words hit him like a bolt of lightning.
He couldn’t quite describe it.
The first class of the day was chemistry, but as Justin stared at his textbook, none of it made. sense. Between the chemical formulas, one word kept jumping out at him–fool.
Justin’s mind was unraveling. He couldn’t hold it in any longer and slammed his fist on the desk.
Just then, the chemistry teacher walked in with a frown. “Justin, what’s with the desk slamming? Got a problem with me?”
Justin looked up, his facial features contorting in frustration. “Teacher, this equation is too hard… I… I can’t solve it!”
The entire class erupted in laughter, and even the chemistry teacher was left utterly confused.
Chapter 27
