Chapter 28 Caught in the Act
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“Thanks, Zayden! I knew you were the sweetest to me!” Naomi lit up, totally ignoring the annoyed looks from the rest of the class.
This was school–not a place to flirt.
Even the normally quiet math teacher finally spoke up, his tone flat. “Zayden, if you’re leaving, go ahead. Just don’t disrupt the class.”
Zayden’s heart sank a little at the teacher’s cold tone.
Sure, the class was optional, and the teacher wasn’t even from their homeroom. But still–he was in charge of coaching them for the math competition. First impressions mattered.
And on the very first day of class, Zayden had already made a scene by walking out.
There was no way the teacher would give him extra attention after this. He could forget about getting any kind of guidance moving forward.
With everyone watching, Zayden still packed up his stuff and left with Naomi.
“You don’t have to worry about him,” Naomi said cheerfully. “It’s not like he’s our regular math teacher. He can’t help you on the SAT anyway.”
”
She was still basking in the excitement of ditching class to hang out–completely unaware of the hesitation written all over Zayden’s face.
Back inside the classroom, Eliza wasn’t the least bit surprised by Zayden’s choice.
In her last life, Zayden had stood out during these prep sessions. The math teacher ended up seeing real potential in him, even going so far as to give him one–on–one tutoring.
And Zayden went on to take first place in the math competition.
But with Naomi dragging him away this time, that probably wasn’t going to happen.
Eliza pulled her phone from the desk drawer and recorded a quick video of the classroom.
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Then she opened Facebook and typed out a quick status. “Everyone’s working hard in prep class–time for me to catch up
too!”
She adjusted the privacy settings so only one person could see the post.
That person? Zayden’s mom.
She moved quickly and casually, like it was no big deal. But just as she looked up to get back to work, she realized someone was watching her.”
Nolan reached over and plucked the phone out of her hand like it was nothing. “Wow,” he said, his tone flat. “Here I thought you didn’t care about any of this. Turns out you’re just the type to snitch behind people’s backs.”
Eliza froze. She hadn’t even noticed Nolan was awake.
And now, realizing he’d seen everything she just did, her stomach dropped. Crap.
“Give it back!” she hissed, reaching for her phone.
But Nolan casually lifted his arm, holding it out of reach.
With the height difference, there was no way she could grab it without standing up.
The teacher was still right in front of them. She couldn’t cause a scene.
“What do you want?” she asked through gritted teeth. “Just say it.”
8:39 AM
Chapter 28 Caught in the Act
She already knew Nolan wasn’t the type to play nice. He caught me red–handed. Fine, I’ll deal with it.
Eliza braced herself, fully expecting him to blackmail her for something.
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But instead, Nolan casually tapped a few random letters into her Facebook search bar, sent himself a friend request, and handed the phone back like it was nothing.
“Find me after school,” he said. Then he laid his head back down like nothing had happened.
Eliza blinked, confused. What was he trying to do? What the hell was that?Blackmail? Nolan didn’t need money, Mess with me for fin? What was the point?Try to flirt? Seriously? With me? Not a chance,
She glanced over at him warily. Whatever he’s up to, I need to stay far away from it. From now on, I’ll make sure we don’t cross paths unless absolutely necessary.
By evening, when Zayden got home, Grace was waiting with a belt in hand.
The first strike landed hard across his back. His face went pale instantly.
“You told me you were in class today,” Grace snapped, her voice shaking with fury. “So where the hell were you?”
Zayden dropped to his knees without thinking, his head down, silent.
“Do you even realize how many people have had their eyes on our money since your dad passed?” Grace’s voice cracked as tears welled up. “I’ve busted my ass raising you on my own. I thought maybe–just maybe–you were finally going to graduate and help take some pressure off me at the company. And what do you do? You skip out on the one thing that actually matters.” Her eyes brimmed with tears as she shook his shoulders, furious. “And this is how you repay me? Skipping class? Wasting time? Talk to me! Who have you been hanging around with? Is it some punk from school? Are you sneaking out behind my back? Is someone dragging you down? You sneaking off with your little girlfriend now? Who is it? Who’s trying to ruin my son after everything I’ve done for you?”
Zayden’s face tightened, his silence speaking louder than anything. When he still didn’t respond, Grace lost it. “Fine. If you won’t tell me, I’ll find out myself. I’ll call your teachers. And when I figure out who pulled you into this, I swear I’ll make sure they never set foot in Westbrook High again.”
“Mom!” Zayden finally shouted. “It was Naomi. Naomi wasn’t feeling well… So I walked her home.”
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