Chapter 18
The next day, the rumors about Zoey had gotten way out of hand. As she entered the classroom, she heard more whispers about her.
“Check out the campus forum, guys. Zoey was seen getting into a luxury car yesterday. She’s definitely hooked up with some rich old guy,” someone whispered while stealing a glance at Zoey as she entered the classroom.
“No way, she’s flaunting her sugar daddy at school now? Shame on her,” another person echoed.
Someone posted their protest on the forum: [This is a place to study, not for some sketchy woman to fish for men. Zoey must get admitted through shady means. I demand a thorough investigation and her expulsion!]
Others echoed: [Expel Zoey! Let’s clean up this campus!]
Zoey never logged onto the school forum, but she noticed people from other departments gathering to gawk at her and whispering behind her.
“That’s Zoey, right? Gotta admit, she’s a looker,” said someone.
“Well, duh. You think some rich guy would go for her if she wasn’t pretty?” another guy said in a disdainful tone.
“Tch, what a shame. I wonder if she feels like throwing up when she’s with that smelly old man,” another girl scoffed.
However, a few voices of reason piped up. “What if that was her family’s car? You shouldn’t make baseless accusations.”
“Pfft, you didn’t hear the story? When she first got admitted, she was a poverty–stricken student. Now, suddenly, she’s rolling in luxury? If she hasn’t a sugar daddy, how do you explain that?” a person retorted.
Every cutting remark felt like a dagger to Zoey, chilling her to the bone. She couldn’t understand why someone would go to such lengths to spread these lies. What did they gain from hurting her like that?
Abigail, trying her best to defend her, stood her ground. “You don’t even know the full story yet. Stop jumping to conclusions, or you will let yourselves be used by whoever’s behind this!”
The girl sitting in front of Abigail said, “Oh, girl, I’d keep my distance from her if I were you. There’s more to her than meets the eye.”
Abigail’s fists clenched, and her face turned red with frustration. “I know Zozo better than any of you guys. How dare you slander an innocent girl? Do you even understand how awful these kinds of rumors are for a girl? This is basically defamation!”
Aiden, lurking in the crowd with a sleazy grin, added fuel to the fire. “And how do you know that is defamation? Were you under the bed listening in while she was with her sugar daddy?”
“You are disgusting!” Abigail shouted, her eyes filling with tears from anger.
Zoey’s eyes welled up, and she couldn’t hold back her emotions any longer.
She said firmly to those people, “I really don’t have a sugar daddy. This is a lie. Please, believe me. I withdrew my financial aid application a while ago. I don’t know who leaked my personal information, but please stop spreading rumors about me.”
Zoey’s voice was soft and gentle, yet clear and logical, which made some people feel sympathetic toward her. But others, always hungry for drama, didn’t care about the truth. The situation kept escalating, fueled by a few rowdy voices in the crowd.
On the forum, several threads about Zoey were pinned to the top, and someone even leaked her class schedule for the day. More and more people gathered just to watch the spectacle.
A man pointed to Zoey and scolded, “Bitch, this is supposed to be a place for study. You’ve ruined it with your dirty deeds.”
Another man added, “If you have any shame left, you should just drop out. Stop dragging us all down with you.”
Someone else scoffed, “How much do you make in a night? Probably be enough for your tuition, huh? I’m so jealous.”
By the end, the crowd had grown so large that the classroom was packed, and the teacher couldn’t even start the lesson. Left with no choice, they reported it to the administration. The school officials quickly reached out to Jack when they heard about the situation.
Levi was in the middle of a financial report from his senior management when Jack knocked on the door. Leaning in close, he whispered, “Mr. Gordon, Ms. Miller is in trouble.”
Levi immediately frowned, and he asked, “What happened?”
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Chapter 18
In a hushed voice, Jack explained the situation. The temperature in the room seemed to drop, and everyone in the meeting froze, terrified to even breathe too loudly.
“Reschedule the meeting.” Levi said while rising from his seat. He walked out of the meeting room, with Jack hurrying behind him with his jacket. Once Levi was gone, the room buzzed with whispers.
A manager said, “Why did Mr. Gordon leave all of a sudden? Is something serious going on?”
“No clue. He usually never puts anything above the company. Lately, he keeps leaving meetings halfway through. Maybe it’s a family matter?” Another manager expressed his thoughts.
“Well, it’s definitely not a woman. Mr. Gordon’s never let any woman affect his work,” joked another.
“Exactly. The day Mr. Gordon gets involved with a woman, it’ll be bigger news than any celebrity’s secret marriage,” another man replied,
In Levi’s office on the top floor, Jack clicked open the forum on his computer and showed several posts on the home page. “Mr. Gordon, take a look.”
The original poster uploaded several photos, including ones of Zoey’s financial aid application, which detailed her family background.
There were also blurry pictures of her getting into a luxury car. It was too dark to make out the model or license plate, but it was clear to see a strong arm helping her into the expensive vehicle.
The comments underneath were relentless, with many people who didn’t know the full story spewing one nasty speculation after another.
Fools would love to join the majority. The moment something stirred up, they swarmed in without confirming the truth. Hiding behind the anonymity of the forum and thinking no one could recognize them, they reveled in the cruelty, turning it into a sickening spectacle.
“Mr. Gordon, a lot of people have already figured out which classroom Ms. Miller is in,” Jack said as he scrolled further. The pages were filled with photos secretly taken of Zoey, along with self–proclaimed “insiders” eagerly piling more dirt onto her.
Levi closed his eyes for a moment, and an image of Zoey, surrounded and crying as people hurled insults at her, flashed through his mind. His chest tightened inexplicably like someone had taken hold of his heart. When he opened his eyes again, a dangerous glint flickered in them.
Tapping his fingers lightly on the desk, Levi spoke calmly but with an edge that could cut steel, “Unmask every person in those posts. Find out who’s behind all this and make sure they’re expelled from this university.”
“Yes, sir,” Jack replied with a nod.
“And the teachers who leaked her information should held accountable too,” Levi added.
Jack replied briefly, “On it, sir.”
Jack made a personal trip to Brandor University of Finance and Economics. Ten minutes later, the anonymity of every forum user in those posts was gone. Their names and majors were revealed. Suddenly, it was out in the open: the main instigator was none other than Aiden, who was in the same major as Zocy.
“What’s going on with the forum? Why is it showing our real names now?” someone asked in surprise.
“Shit, the posts are locked. We can’t delete our posts and even our accounts. We’re screwed,” another guy who had made negative comments said with a worried face.
Those who had hidden behind fake identities to spew their venom now panicked. Levi’s move to strip away their anonymity hit right where it hurt, and it instantly silenced the rumors.
They were like rats scurrying in the shadows. Once dragged into the light, they had no choice but to stop their mischief.
Zoey, who had been comforting tearful Abigail, suddenly heard whispers that the forum had lifted anonymity, and everyone who had slandered her was scrambling to erase their comments.
Then someone shouted, “Security’s here, a whole bunch.”
The teacher coming with the security announced, “All students involved in slandering Zoey, follow me to the office for a report. Don’t even think about running–there are cameras everywhere. Anyone who tries to slip away will get a major violation on their record, and it’ll stick with them for life!”
Faces turned pale, knees went weak, and regret flooded the crowd.
“Sir, we were just here for the show. We didn’t mean to slander anyone,” someone said, hoping to escape the punishment.
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