Chapter 396: To the Rescue

Upon arriving, they were surprised to see someone bent over in the fountain, seemingly retrieving something from the water. A closer look revealed it was Janice, her clothes soaked and disheveled. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but she stubbornly held back tears, clutching a handful of beads—beads that Carlos vaguely recognized as resembling Isabella's bracelet.

Nearby, a group of girls were taunting Janice:

"This is all your fault! If you'd handed it over, it wouldn't have broken. Don't blame us later!" "Collect them carefully! If Cecilia demands compensation, you can't afford it." "How dare you date Cody looking like this? You're embarrassing! Coveting others' things doesn't justify stealing!" "Thief! Deceiver! What does Cody see in you?" "Let's report this to the school and get her expelled!"

The girls snickered, while several boys openly stared at the drenched Janice. Isabella and her friends' blood pressure soared. Three of them immediately rushed forward; Isabella calmly recorded the scene on her phone.

Janice, heartbroken, continued searching for the cherished bracelet—a recent gift she treasured deeply. She'd avoided her brother's demands, but not the taunts of others. She needed to hurry, before keeping Isabella waiting too long. The girls' cruel words, however, chilled her. Years of bullying had taught her that no one believed her, not even Cody, who often told her to avoid trouble. She’d grown weary of fighting back.

Then, Janice retorted:

"It's your fault! You bullied me! I'll report this to the school, and the police! This bracelet is mine, not Cecilia's! I don't know why she has a similar one, but mine is mine—a family gift! If she lost hers, it's not my fault. I'm not a thief or a liar! You are the bullies spreading rumors!"

The girls, clearly unprepared for her defiance, became angrier:

"You still deny it? We saw it on Cecilia! You were envious and stole it! A family gift? Could your family afford it? Cody probably bought it for you, but he says he didn't!"

As Janice picked up a pearl, a jolt of electricity seemed to course through her. A boy, pretending to punish a thief, attempted to splash water on her. His mocking demeanor was clear. They were unconcerned; even if Janice was Cody's girlfriend, they believed picking on her wouldn't upset him.

However, before he could splash her, Christopher intervened, swiftly grabbing his wrist and throwing him into the pool. The splash startled the onlookers. Carlos and Rosalie reached Janice, urging her to leave. Dazed, she obeyed, Rosalie taking her hand, her face worried. Carlos draped his jacket around Janice's shoulders.

The sudden intervention stunned everyone. Carlos and Rosalie's attractiveness, and Carlos's established reputation, added to the shock.