Chapter 48
"Mrs. Wilson, perhaps next time we could handle student discipline a bit more tactfully? Such public scenes don’t reflect well on the school’s reputation.” Will nervously ran his fingers through his thinning hair, swallowing his frustration.
Will thought with a sigh, if it were just an ordinary student, I’d simply issue disciplinary action and be done with it. But why does it have to involve the Wilson family?
I remember, the Wilson family’s girl is called Carmen, right? So where did this new one pop up from?
Will thought Aubree looked familiar, but couldn’t quite place her.
Alice gave an apologetic smile, “My apologies for the trouble, Mr. Jennings.”
“So, is this your daughter, Mrs. Wilson?”
Alice glanced at the silent Aubree, her eyes flashing with a calculated gleam. “Mr. Jennings, I’m afraid I’m not acquainted with Aubree.”
“Not acquainted?” Aubree pondered the words with bitter amusement. “No wonder I never got along with the Wilson family, I could never master this level of shameless hypocrisy. Just moments ago she was calling me ‘daughter’ in front of everyone, and now we’re suddenly strangers? Even professional actors can’t switch masks that quickly!”
“My apologies for the trouble today, Mr. Jennings,” Alice said smoothly. “The Wilson family will be donating a new library to the school as compensation. As for this student, please feel free to handle her strictly according to school policy.”
Will was completely baffled by these contradictory statements. So now you’re saying there’s no relation at all? he wondered.
But with the school now planning to build a new library, all those other details hardly seemed to matter anymore. After all, as the principal of Rithol High School, he knew exactly how to read between the lines, whether it was sweet talk or veiled threats.
Will saw Alice off with an obsequious smile. Then, turning to Aubree, his smile vanished instantly. “I’d already heard certain rumors about you before you even reached the school gate. Of course, we can’t verify these allegations, and without concrete evidence, we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
Aubree nodded. “Just say it straight, Mr. Jennings, I know how these things work.”
With Alice’s last words, even if Will hadn’t planned to make things difficult for her, he now had no choice but to do just that.
Aubree lowered her lashes, a flicker of bitterness flashing in her downcast eyes. She thought, If truth be told, I’m the real victim here. But with the mighty Wilson family’s influence, even my innocence would be twisted into guilt. I know exactly how the game is played, but it still burns me up!
Her fingers, clutching the seam of her pants, slowly curled in as Aubree managed a strained smile. “I’ve caused trouble for the school,” she said.
Seeing how well Aubree understood the situation, Will gave her a perfunctory smile. “Well then, why don’t you take a few days off until this unpleasantness blows over? You can come back then.”
Aubree yielded without protest. She thought, From Will’s standpoint, this punishment is fair and by the book. There’s no point in wasting energy on futile arguments; sometimes it’s better to just accept it and move on.
Stepping out of the office, Aubree managed a wry smile. She thought, With the club keeping me so busy these days, I might as well take a few days off to focus on official business. Can’t go to school, but I can always hit the books at night. Besides, I still need to find a new place to live. I’ll treat this forced leave as a vacation.
Just thinking about it this way actually made her feel a bit better. Aubree walked down the hallway with her backpack slung over one shoulder, scrolling through her phone. She hadn’t checked the online buzz since waking up that morning.
After Alice made a scene at the school gate, someone posted it online. The incident quickly started trending. Aubree didn’t even have to search for it; the news was already flooding her feed.
Scrolling through her phone, Aubree’s fingers froze mid-swipe when she spotted the person who had publicly accused her of cheating.
She thought, Am I seeing things? How could it be… Matilda?
Suddenly, Matilda, who should’ve been in class, came rushing around the stairwell corner and seized Aubree’s arm. “I’m so sorry,” she choked out, her voice trembling. “This is all my fault…”
Matilda’s eyes were red-rimmed with guilt. She stammered, “I don’t know if you still believe me, but that post wasn’t from me. Last night, after I took my brother home, Carmen showed up at my place. She tried to bribe me into reporting you for cheating, but I refused.”
As if afraid Aubree wouldn’t believe her, Matilda raised her fingers in a solemn vow. “I swear, this wasn’t me, it wasn’t what I wanted. My parents, they saw the money and used my identity. I’m so, so sorry.”
She hung her head low. “Go ahead, hate me all you want,” she said weakly. The more she tried to explain, the more futile it felt. Whether she did it herself or her family did, in the end, she felt it amounted to the same thing.
Aubree simply stared at her in silence.
Matilda managed a bitter smile. “I’ll clear this up, and then I'll quit the team.”
Just as she turned to leave, Aubree cleared her throat. She said, “Hey, you owe me a favor. Instead of figuring out how to make it up to me, you’re just thinking of bailing on me? If you leave, who’s gonna coach?”
When Aubree first realized it was Matilda, she admitted feeling a flare of anger. But she shut it down almost immediately.
Aubree thought firmly, That’s not the Matilda I know!
After hearing her explanation, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief. Unlike the betrayals from my own family in my previous life, the friends I’ve chosen this time around have firmly stood by my side!
Aubree walked over and gave Matilda a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Your family’s actions are on them; you are your own person. I don’t believe in holding you responsible for what they did. Seriously, don’t let this weigh on you. I’ll handle it. When I really need your help, I won’t hesitate to ask. And if you really want to make it up to me, just bring home the season championship. Alright, your Boss Aubree is off to find you guys a new home!”
With a casual wave, Aubree left the school gates, hailed a cab, and headed straight for Golden Industrial Park.
Golden Industrial Park was one of Rithol City’s most famous landmarks, especially in the esports scene. This place was home to numerous professional esports teams' headquarters. Take League of Legends for example. Six of the league’s sixteen franchised teams were based there. That was not even counting the countless other games with official tournaments happening these days. When establishing an esports club, one would naturally choose a mainstream location with the right competitive atmosphere.
Originally, this wasn’t her first choice. Back when the rent here was still cheap and the place hadn’t made a name for itself, it was much more affordable. But after the esports scene exploded, the value of this industrial park soared. Now that she had gotten Alvin’s black card, this rental fee was no longer an issue.
Even in the cab, Aubree kept working to contain the online firestorm. Aubree called Alvin.
He said, “Aubree? I know what’s happening online. I’m handling it.”
Aubree asked, “Is it giving you a hard time?”
“It’s not trouble,” Alvin replied, his voice edged with frustration on the other end of the line. He continued, “Come on, don’t you think the tournament officials know whether you cheated or not? But you also know the hottest team in the league right now is Apex Squad. And more importantly, the man behind Apex Squad is Emery, who represents the entire Wilson family.”
Aubree’s heart sank. She thought, Yeah, normally, when a championship team gets accused, the tournament officials issue a statement right away. But it’s been ages since that accusation post went up, and still, nothing from the officials.
Many were speculating whether the tournament officials had tacitly approved the situation and were now working behind the scenes to resolve it.
Alvin said, “Originally, the officials wanted to give the Wilson family preferential treatment, but I blocked that. Now they’re saying they’ll issue a statement that the matter is still under investigation. As for the final outcome, that’s for us to settle ourselves.”
She got the picture; in short, the Wilson family was working against the Turner family on this matter. Not wanting to offend either the Wilson family or the Turner family, the officials simply let them duke it out themselves.
She said, “Got it.”
As Aubree stepped out of the cab, she spotted the leasing agent already waiting for her. “I’ve got something to take care of here, so I’ll hang up now. Thanks, Alvin, I really appreciate it.”
She thought, Matilda is my winning card here. With enough pressure applied, even the officials can’t just sweep this under the rug.