There was already a crowd gathered around the notice board, everyone stretching on tiptoe, craning their necks, desperate for a glimpse of the results.
Andrew and Parrish, both tall enough, just lifted their chins and could see everything without any trouble. Shirley, though, was a bit shorter. She jumped up again and again, but no matter how hard she tried, all those tiny numbers stayed out of reach.
She was just about to give up and come back later when the girl in front of her suddenly stomped down hard on her foot.
“Ow!” Shirley yelped, pain shooting through her toes.
Nancy turned around. When she saw it was Shirley, the apology she was about to say vanished from her face.
“Are you blind? Why are you sticking your feet where they don’t belong?” she snapped, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Serves you right.”
“You—” Shirley frowned, ready to argue back, but then someone grabbed her arm.
In the next moment, Andrew pulled her forward, placing her in front of him. He looked straight at Nancy, eyes cold. “Hey.”
“What is it?” Nancy was standing next to Olivia. She sounded impatient, but when she saw who it was, her attitude changed in an instant.
“Is there a problem?” Olivia asked, her voice suddenly soft. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled sweetly at Andrew. “Andrew, are you here to check your score too? How did you do?”
Andrew glanced at her with obvious annoyance. “What’s it got to do with you? Move.”
His voice was loud enough that people nearby turned to look. Olivia’s smile froze, her hands clenching. She tried to convince herself it didn’t matter. She was going to be first. When the results were out, everyone would only envy her.
Andrew’s attention went right back to Nancy. “You. Apologize.”
Nancy pressed her lips together, wanting to argue, but the look in Andrew’s eyes made her nervous.


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