Top of the Grade in High School

I looked at her with a half-smile, and under my indifferent gaze, Marielle awkwardly lowered her eyes. Today I finally understood—my own mother had f*******n the finance department from giving me any money. And that wasn’t all—she had even raised Evangeline’s pocket money to a million a month, fearing that her precious adopted daughter might be wronged. Such blatant favoritism, and yet she had the nerve to claim she treated us equally? A high-class matron of a wealthy family, with every need met in luxury, each pair of socks costing hundreds of dollars—could she really not see that her biological daughter’s entire wardrobe from head to toe didn’t exceed a hundred dollars in quality? It wasn’t that she didn’t see—it was that she didn’t care. Her apologies were nothing more than pretentious gestures in front of outsiders. Thankfully, I had long seen through this family’s ugly façade. My heart had been tempered against all poisons. I held no expectations for them, and therefore I was unbreakable. Seeing me utterly ignore our mother’s apology and publicly strip the Locke family of face, Julian’s faint sense of guilt vanished instantly. He snapped coldly, “Can’t you just open your mouth and say something? We’re not mind readers—you think we know what’s on your mind? If you’d said it earlier, would we have suddenly run out of money for you?” “I did say it,” I replied, my voice soft but edged with ice. “You just didn’t take it seriously.” Julian frowned, about to deny it, but I reminded him: three years ago, one afternoon, your family of four sat together—think again. His expression shifted. I knew he remembered. It was a day just after the school year began. The four of them were laughing and chatting on the sofa. My tuition hadn’t been paid yet. Clutching the hem of my school uniform, I walked up to them. Before I could even speak, my face had already burned red. I held it in for what felt like forever, then whispered, “Dad, Mom… could you give me a thousand dollars for tuition…” “Slap!” He slammed the newspaper he was holding onto the coffee table and glared at me, scolding, “Money, money, money—you only ever think about money! Did you come back to this family just to ask for money? If the Locke family had no money, would you have even returned? I really don’t know why we insisted on bringing you back.” “If you’re fine, just focus on studying. In your first monthly exam of freshman year, Evangeline ranked tenth in the school—what rank did you get?” “I… I was first…” “First? Hah. I bet that’s just in your own mind. You were nowhere near the top.” Tears welled up in my eyes immediately. He felt only irritation, too annoyed even to read the financial newspaper. At that moment, Evangeline tugged at his arm and cooed, “Julian, I got tenth place this time. Are you going to reward me?” How could he resist his soft, adorable Evangeline? Instantly, his irritation vanished. Pinching her little cheeks, he spoiled her, “What reward do you want, Evangeline?” “I have my eye on a bag worth a hundred thousand dollars. Julian, will you buy it for me?” “Fine, fine, fine. As long as you like it, Evangeline, even a million dollars—no, I’ll get it for you.” After pampering Evangeline, he turned to me, displeased: “Why are you still standing there? Go back to your room and study properly.” I hadn’t expected my family to treat me this way. Overwhelmed with humiliation and hurt, I turned and ran. Behind me came Nathaniel and Marielle’s simultaneous sighs: “If only Aria were half as sensible as Evangeline.” “Julian… do you remember now?” I called softly, drawing his thoughts back to me. Every utterance of his name seemed to rip through his heart, leaving it bleeding. He is my brother—my real brother—but ever since I got out of prison, I have never seen a pleasant look from him. He stared at me with cold and angry eyes. "It's because you performed terribly at school. You did so poorly and still had the nerve to ask for money? I don't even think it's right to give you any reward." My eyes grew even colder. Under my unrelenting gaze, I could tell he was wavering. He gritted his teeth and shouted, "I'm your brother. Can't I even scold you a bit?" I smiled coldly, feeling a flicker of satisfaction. “I ranked first in my grade every year throughout the three years of high school. How come, according to you, I'm a poor student?” Seeing the disbelief on his face, I couldn’t help smirking. After all, Julian didn’t even know which school I went to—it was understandable that he had no idea about my grades. Julian froze, as if struck by lightning. His voice was hoarse. “You didn’t go to Saint Madeleine Preparatory School?” Saint Madeleine Preparatory School was the top private high school in Bayou Pointe. Evangeline graduated from there, and every wealthy, influential family sent their children there. He had naturally assumed I would go there too. He whipped his gaze toward Nathaniel and Marielle, his voice trembling. “Dad, Mom, after Aria came back, did you transfer her school records?” Nathaniel’s face turned bright red. He opened his mouth but could only let out a few muffled sounds, as if his backbone had been sucked out. His usual authority had vanished. Marielle’s lips quivered slightly, her eyes full of panic and helplessness. Even her meticulously applied makeup couldn’t hide the embarrassment on her face. They both stood there frozen, the air around them seemingly solidifying. Julian’s face drained of color inch by inch. Everything he had assumed about me collapsed like a crumbling building. The scorn and condescension he had taken for granted now turned into sharp blades, cutting into himself. He almost couldn’t find his voice. His throat felt like it was being strangled, and his words shook violently. “Aria… where did you go to high school for all three years?”