She continued, “You wanted to treat us because Colby helped you, but honestly, Colby only helped because Sean asked him. So really, it was Sean doing you the favor.
“Plus, your laptop problem affects the whole team’s project security. Fixing it is helping all of us, so it totally makes sense for Sean to pick up the tab. And come on, you’re a freshman. It’s fine if you treat us once in a while, but we can’t let you pay every time. If people heard about it, they’d say Sean and I were bullying the newbie!”
Josie felt a warm feeling wash over her, and her eyes started to sting a little. Back in her previous life, the people in her team never gave this a second thought. Even the ones everyone envied for their wealth, like Jaden and Aiden, never once tried to stop her from picking up the tab. As long as she offered, they were always fine with her paying every single time. She never told anyone about it, so it never hurt their pride. Even if she had spoken up back then, no one would have believed her. After all, for guys like Aiden and Jaden, who spent money like water, a meal was nothing. If she minded, it would only make her look petty.
Honestly, people really are so different, Josie thought to herself.
“No way. You guys never bullied me!” Josie said, looping her arm through Claire’s. She continued, “If anything, ever since I joined the team, you’ve all been looking out for me. I wanted to treat you all because I really appreciate it. When I start making more money in the future, I’ll treat you guys to even more meals. They will be fancier, too!”
Claire couldn’t help but burst out laughing, completely charmed by her. She said, “You silly little cutie, how are you this adorable? Seriously, I’m going to remember what you said, Josie.” She called out over her shoulder to Sean, “Hey, did you catch that, Sean?”
“Heard it loud and clear!” Sean’s eyes curved into a smile. “I’ll make sure to eat plenty whenever Josie treats us!”
It sounded like a totally normal thing to say, but for some reason, Josie thought it just felt a little weird. Josie didn’t have time to think about it any further before they were already walking through the campus gates. Zoey gave Colby a wave, then headed over to walk back to the dorm with Josie.
“See you guys tomorrow!” Josie called out, waving to Sean and Delilah. Delilah had a faculty apartment on campus, and Claire stayed with her there, so they never had to go back to the girls’ dorm. On the way back to the dorm, Zoey told Josie about asking Colby for help. “He’ll probably have the results for you by tomorrow.
Chapter 70
“I’ll have someone start a thread tonight to warm things up. No need to get anyone else involved. Just a few of our close friends from the class group. Since it’s about Professor Lawson’s top protégés, I bet the post will blow up in no time.”
Josie looked down at her phone, tapping away, and soon Zoey’s phone chimed with a new message.
“Why’d you suddenly send me money?” Zoey asked, looking a bit baffled.
Josie smiled. “It’s for your friends. I can’t just ask them to help out for nothing. It’s not much, just a little thank-you from me.”
“You are so considerate,” Zoey said, not turning it down. She accepted the money, forwarded it to the group, and then filled everyone in on what the post was about.
As soon as they got back to the dorm, Allison practically jumped down from her top bunk. She said, “Check out the latest on the school forum right now. I told you that people aren’t stupid. They can tell what’s really going on. Look at how fast this is blowing up! All that mud they were slinging at Josie is about to get washed away. I wonder what Natalie’s gonna think when she sees all this.”
Josie and Zoey shared a glance, smiles dancing in their eyes.
“Wait, hold on…” Allison was a little slow on the uptake, but suddenly put two and two together. She asked, “Those posts accusing Natalie of plagiarism and saying Josie’s got a bad reputation are all supposedly from Professor Lawson’s die-hard fans, right? Is this your handiwork?”