Melinda's POV
During class, my thoughts were completely captivated by the bulletin board outside the window, and my eyes kept glancing in that direction.
The teacher's lecture seemed to become an annoying background noise. She called my name twice, but I was oblivious.
"Melinda. Can you answer that question?!" Professor's voice suddenly rose, her tone filled with impatience, which jerked me back from my reverie.
I snapped back to reality, standing up in a panic. "Professor, I..."
"You've been absent from class lately, and when you do attend, you're daydreaming. I know you have decent grades, but you're a senior now. If you don't accumulate enough class hours, you won't graduate!" She frowned and reprimanded me sternly.
I had been frequently absent from school recently, and my teacher, considering my grades were not bad, hadn't made too much of an issue about it.
However, I had not only been truant often but also wrote my papers very carelessly.
Seeing her firm stance, I brought out my ace in the hole, lowering my head with a sense of grievance and starting to sob quietly.
Many male students in the class had a soft spot for me, a girl with a sweet appearance.
Seeing my tears, they immediately began to plead on my behalf.
But this time, things didn't go as smoothly as usual. Their actions only made Professor seem more aggressive and unsympathetic.
Her face became even more unsightly, and I couldn't help but feel flustered inside.
In the past, this move always made her feel compassion for me, but this time, she only said coldly, "You're not diligent in your studies, but you're good at making friends, Melinda. You're really talented."
I quickly shook my head, trying to explain, "Professor, I..."
Just then, the bell for the end of class rang abruptly, and she picked up her book and left without even looking at me again.
I knew that this time, I had really angered her.
Raven, sitting next to me, tugged my arm, comforting me, "Don't pay attention to her. She's just jealous of you! It's obvious she's at an age with unstable emotions."
"Have you heard? This morning, a photo of a woman was posted on the bulletin board, with words like 'call girl', 'bar starlet', 'got promoted by selling her body', and so on! Do you know who that woman is?"
Fawn looked mysterious, arousing Raven's curiosity.
"Who is it?" Raven eagerly asked.
"The woman who tried to steal Melinda's boyfriend!" Fawn revealed the answer.
"What? I knew she wasn't a good person. She's quite beautiful, but it turns out she's involved in that kind of business. Gross," Raven said with disgust.
Fawn also chimed in, "Exactly. She obviously wants to latch onto a rich guy!"
I feigned difficulty and said, "Don't talk about her like that. She's just trying to make a living."
I knew in my heart that I had to express this attitude to maintain my image as kind and innocent in front of them.
"Oh, you're too innocent! That kind of woman is all about making money, with no moral bottom line at all. Anyway, we don't have a class in the afternoon. I want to follow her and see what she does after class. I'll take photos and post them on our school's bulletin board."
Raven said excitedly, as if she had already foreseen the scene of successfully exposing Vanya's "true face."
"Cool! So many men at our school were chasing after her. We need to expose her and let everyone see that this woman is just a sl*t!" Fawn also added fuel to the fire.
Their words really scared me.
What if they really took photos of Vanya returning to Cliff's house?
My lies would be completely exposed then, and I would be completely done for.
"That's illegal!" I hurriedly dissuaded, trying to dispel their crazy idea.
Raven waved her hand dismissively. "What law is it breaking? If this is illegal, then all the paparazzi should be in prison."
Fawn also said, "Melinda, don't worry. We're doing this for you. You can rest assured that we'll go alone and won't implicate you."
"No way!" I was anxious inside, and my voice unconsciously rose.
They both were stunned and stared at me in confusion.
I realized my loss of composure and was afraid they would notice something unusual.
I lowered my voice and changed my words. "I mean, you guys are going for my sake. Of course, I should go with you. I can't let you guys do this alone."
Hearing this, Raven hugged me. "Melinda, it's so kind of you. I knew you would go with us!"
But I couldn't smile at all.
I knew in my heart that if I didn't follow Raven and Fawn to stalk Vanya, I would be in a desperate situation if things went wrong.
In the afternoon, Raven, Fawn, and I were having lunch in the school cafeteria.
From a distance, Raven spotted Vanya entering the cafeteria.
Seeing Vanya walking towards our direction, Raven snorted coldly, "What bad luck."
I was very nervous and tugged at Raven's arm. "Okay. Stop talking."
Raven didn't care.