Chapter 34

Rumors swirled that Class 6 was getting a new student: Elysia, the school's latest star. Class 6 was shocked. They couldn't understand why anyone from the elite Class 1 would join their ranks. Class 1 and Class 6 were always at odds, with Class 1 acting superior. The news of Elysia's arrival wasn't met with a welcome party.

Because Elysia was formerly in Class 1, Class 6 was eager for revenge.

Elysia, leaving her classroom with her textbooks, ran into Justin and Leon. They'd heard the rumors and were still processing them. Seeing her textbooks, however, confirmed the gossip.

Leon's eyes widened. He pointed at Elysia, giving her a thorough look. "You're really transferring to Class 6?"

"Yep," Elysia replied, nodding.

"Why? I thought you aced all the competitions?" Justin asked, his voice cold.

"Class 1 felt like a rut. I wanted a fresh start," Elysia replied, shrugging nonchalantly.

"Do you have any idea what Class 6 is like?" Justin pressed, his brow furrowed.

"I do, and I don't see the problem," Elysia said, meeting his gaze.

Leon felt awkward. He chuckled nervously. "Uh… I'm going to class. You two chat." He scratched his head and slipped into the classroom, feeling out of place.

Silence hung between Justin and Elysia. Finally, Elysia broke the ice. "You're blocking my path."

Justin took her textbooks. "Let me walk you there," he said, his voice still chilly.

Elysia didn't object. Even before reaching the Class 6 hallway, they heard raucous laughter and chaos spilling from the classroom. Justin's face tightened. He couldn't understand why Elysia would leave Class 1's studious atmosphere for Class 6's wildness. Is she seriously choosing this chaos? he thought.

The classroom was a war zone. Desks were overturned, the blackboard was covered in doodles, and students were applying makeup or playing video games; nobody was studying.

"Maybe you should go back to Class 1. I can put in a good word with Levi for you," Justin advised. But before he finished, a wad of paper flew towards them.

Elysia caught it expertly. Eric and his friends saw this and recognized her from the basketball court. Their eyes lit up.

"Hey! Look who it is!" they said, approaching with a swagger. Justin stepped in front of Elysia.

"If you ain't got nothing better to do, then scram!" Eric snarled.

Sterling and his friends tried to pull Justin aside, but Elysia pulled him behind her. "Is this how you welcome new students?" she asked, a playful smirk on her face.

Justin felt a flutter in his chest, worried Elysia might get hurt. But Eric chuckled. "She's the new classmate; he has no business being here."

Eric brushed past Elysia, grabbed Justin's textbooks, and gave him a disdainful look. "You can leave now."

Justin remained until Elysia gave him a reassuring nod. Then he left.

"Come on. Follow me," Eric said, carrying Elysia's textbooks and leading her into the classroom.

The room fell silent. All eyes were on them. Weren't we supposed to give her a hard time? What's going on? they wondered.

Eric was ready to assert his dominance, but seeing Elysia's beauty and basketball skills, he decided to show a little restraint. He helped her place her books on a desk in the back row, then kicked the desk leg. "Sit here!"

Elysia was about to sit when Eric stopped her. "Hold up!" He called Sterling over. "Get her a new chair." Elysia touched the chair and felt glue.

Eric explained, "This was supposed to be your welcome gift, but since it's you, forget it."

Sterling and Enrique understood; Eric was going easy on her because of their basketball encounter. This was the first time the prankster Eric showed mercy.

The other students were shocked. Is this the Eric we know? Didn't we plan a prank? they thought, but no one dared speak.

"Listen up," Eric said firmly. "What happened today ends here. She's one of us, and nobody bullies her. Got it?"

Everyone nodded. "Got it, Eric."

Eric smiled, then frowned at Sterling. "I told you to move the chair. Why haven't you done it?"

"I'm on it, Eric," Sterling replied, snapping out of his surprise.

Elysia sensed Eric was helping her and had influence in the class. Sterling brought a new chair. After thanking him, she sat and began organizing her desk.

She found something in the drawer. Just as Eric noticed, he shouted, "Heads up!"

Elysia pulled out a toy snake, showing no fear. A little embarrassed, Eric said, "This… was also a welcome gift." Seeing Elysia wasn't scared, he was surprised. Don't most girls fear snakes? She's one of a kind!

That afternoon at the Rosewood residence, Emma said smugly, "I heard you transferred to Class 6. Did you fail a test?"

Scott frowned. "Emma, what are you talking about?"

"Elysia transferred to Class 6," she explained, hugging Scott's arm. "A classmate told me. Maybe she got moved because she failed a test."

"What the heck?" Scott said irritably.

Bella frowned. "I said Grade 7, but you insisted on Grade 12, bragging about how smart you were. Now your lie's exposed! What tricks did you use?"

"Elysia, you've disgraced us!" Scott said sternly.