Chapter 58

When Zinnia walked into the classroom, quite a few students were already there. To her surprise, there was a cup of orange juice sitting on her desk.

The cup wasn’t from any brand Zinnia was familiar with. It was a soft pink cup, decorated with flowers and an illustration of a woman in traditional attire.

Lydia was quietly reading a book, looking shy and reserved.

As Zinnia made her way to her seat, Ethan, who had been playing games with Brian earlier, immediately greeted her with a cheerful smile. “Hey, Zinnia! You’re here!”

Zinnia replied with a nod, quickly reaching her desk. Lydia immediately stood up to make room for her.

Zinnia asked Ethan, “Where did this orange juice on my desk come from?” She didn’t bother asking Lydia, who seemed too timid to interact with others. Ethan shook his head and replied, “No idea. It was already there when we got here this morning. If you want to know who left it, Lydia might know. She’s usually the first one here.”

Ethan and the others had also been curious about the juice’s origin, but couldn’t figure it out.

“Zinnia, you shouldn’t touch things if you don’t know where they came from,” Maisie said with concern.

Maisie thought, ‘After yesterday’s incident, it is clear someone is targeting Zinnia. Now, with this mysterious juice appearing on her desk, who knows if it was left by someone with bad intentions? If Zinnia drank it and got sick, it would be a serious problem.’

In the unnoticed corner of the room, Lydia tightened her grip on her book, her head lowered as if trying to disappear.

Zinnia said, “It’s fine, Maisie. You can head back to your seat. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about. If someone wanted to mess with me, there are cameras in the classroom. They wouldn’t be so obvious.”

Zinnia picked up the cup and casually glanced around. Her gaze lingered briefly in a certain direction.

Hearing Zinnia’s reasoning, the others nodded in agreement. The sharp sound of the bell interrupted their conversation, and the group had no choice but to drop the topic and return to their seats.

Lydia glanced in Zinnia’s direction, her lips pressing together nervously.

Zinnia settled into her seat and leaned close to Lydia. She whispered, “Thanks, Lydia.”

Lydia’s eyes widened in surprise. She tightened her grip on the book, her mind racing. She wondered how Zinnia figured it out.

Zinnia explained, “I could smell your lime scent on the cup.” Her sharp sense of smell had picked up the faint citrusy fragrance lingering on the cup. It was subtle, but unmistakable. She instantly recognized it as Lydia’s.

Lydia hadn’t expected to be discovered this way. She lowered her head and sniffed her sleeve, puzzled. Since she’d been found out, there was no point in denying it. So she murmured, “Thanks for helping me yesterday.” Her voice was quiet, but sincere.

“You’re welcome. And thanks for the juice,” Zinnia replied with a faint smile.

With that, Zinnia picked up the straw, pierced the lid of the cup, and took a sip. The rich, creamy taro flavor spread across her tongue, and her eyes lit up with delight. Her feet swung lightly under the desk.

Juice was a rare treat for Zinnia. The small town didn’t have such luxuries. The first time she’d tried it was during a shopping trip with Jackson, who had bought her a cup. From that moment, she was hooked.

She couldn’t believe something could taste this amazing. She couldn’t get enough of it. It was simply too good. The cup given by Lydia tasted even better. Zinnia sipped it slowly, savoring every drop, unwilling to finish it too quickly.

Lydia let out a quiet sigh of relief as she watched Zinnia enjoy the juice.

From that day on, Zinnia’s desk turned into a snack buffet. Cookies, bread, cakes, and drinks appeared daily, courtesy of her secret admirer who was madly in love with her.

Only Zinnia and Lydia knew the truth. But they both chose silence, tacitly maintaining the secret.

The bell rang, marking the start of the first class. It was math class. William walked in holding his textbook.

Seeing this, Zinnia immediately lost interest in her juice. Reluctantly, she set it aside, pulled out her textbook, and opened it.

Senior year classes moved at lightning speed, even for the International Class. After all, they had to save time for review sessions.

The International Class wasn’t for the top-tier students, but calling them bad at academics wasn’t quite accurate either. With the resources poured into them, even their poor performance was still far above average.

By the end of the morning, Zinnia’s eyes were completely glazed over. She thought, ‘Do I need to study all this? Math, physics, chemistry... am I ever going to use any of this?’

At Evershine High, there were no arts or science tracks. Everyone studied everything. The school aimed to ensure no student's potential was overlooked, but it also meant a heavy workload.

That morning had been packed with science classes, and the rapid pace left Zinnia feeling utterly lost.

Zinnia had never been the academic type. Back in her small-town high school, her teachers had called her Master in for meetings at least ten times, complaining about her poor grades and predicting she’d never make it to college.

But her Master never took those complaints seriously. He never pressured Zinnia or blamed her. Instead, he’d simply say, “If you can learn, then learn. If not, we’ll figure out another path for you.”

Her Master never stressed her out, and Zinnia wasn’t one to push herself either. Life in the village had been simple but perfect. She would gather herbs, learn medicine, and spend her days with Master.

But now that her Master was gone, Zinnia had been thrust into an unfamiliar household. There was no one left to protect her or spoil her. Zinnia realized she had to learn to stand on her own.

Zinnia slumped over her desk after class, feeling utterly deflated. She thought, ‘If my grades don’t improve, would my brothers be disappointed in me? Angry, even?’ Deep down, Zinnia knew her limitations. Academics had never been her strong suit.

Her thoughts wandered back to the day she returned to the Shaw family. She could still remember the shock and disappointment on others‘ faces as they reviewed her academic records. Those piercing gazes weighed heavily on her heart, leaving her feeling stifled and uneasy.

Back then, Betty said, “Zinnia, you grew up in the town, right? I’ve heard that people there don’t care much about studying. They think that as long as you’re old enough to marry, education doesn’t matter. But I’m sure you’re not like that, are you?”

Betty’s words were like a dagger wrapped in silk, leaving Zinnia no room to respond before the accusations came.

Zinnia remembered Donald had said, “Zinnia, who taught you to be so careless about yourself? How could you even think that way?” It was as if everyone had already decided that Zinnia was exactly the person Betty described.

Suddenly, Maisie’s voice pulled Zinnia back to reality. She said, “Zinnia, let’s go grab something to eat.”

Chapter 59