Chapter 5

In that instant, every eye in the crowd locked onto me.

Some looked at me with disgust, some with anger, others with malicious excitement.

When Brenda saw me, a flash of pure malice crossed her eyes before she threw herself at me, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me violently.

"Summer! What did you do?! I trusted you to clean the lab! Did you leave the gas on?! Do you have any idea what you've done?! You destroyed school property! You ruined our reputation!"

Her acrylic nails dug painfully into my skin.

In my past life, this was the exact moment I broke down. I had sobbed, uselessly repeating "I didn't do it," which only made me look guilty.

But now, I just stared at her performance with cold eyes.

"Mrs. Vance, please let go of me," I said, my voice quiet but incredibly clear.

Brenda froze, shocked that the usually timid, quiet girl was actually standing up to her.

"You're talking back now? Do you realize you're going to juvenile hall for this?!"

"Juvenile hall?" I smiled slightly. "Everything requires evidence. Why are you so sure I left the gas on?"

"Because you were the last one there! You had the keys!" Brenda shrieked. "And the guard confirmed you were the last one to lock up!"

The detective stepped forward, looking down at me seriously. "Summer, were you the last one to leave the lab?"

"Yes," I nodded.

"And did you make sure all gas valves and electrical appliances were turned off?"

"Yes, I did."

"Liar!" Brenda cut in. "If you turned them off, how did it explode? You obviously rushed out without checking because you wanted to go home! Lying at your age... this is a serious character flaw!"

"Detective!" Brenda turned to the officer, her voice dripping with fake concern. "Her family is low-income, and she’s always had a bit of a chip on her shoulder. I take responsibility for not supervising my student better, but I beg you to investigate this thoroughly. We cannot let this slide."

With just a few sentences, she had painted herself as a saint while giving me a perfect motive.

Brilliant.

Just then, my parents arrived, breathless and terrified.

They were still in their grease-stained work uniforms, pushing through the crowd with pale faces.

"Summer! Are you okay?" My mom looked like she was about to burst into tears.

My dad immediately started bowing to the detective and Brenda. "We are so sorry, Mrs. Vance, officer. If our daughter made a mistake, we will work three jobs to pay for the damage..."

Looking at my hardworking, humble parents, my heart ached.

In my past life, they worked themselves to death in shame.

In this life, I was going to make sure they stood tall.

"Dad, Mom, stop."