4
478words
Seeing my dad at the school gate,I fluttered over and hugged him.
He carried bags of goodies."My precious girl finally graces me with a meal.Gotta treat her right!"
"Haha,good call!"
I held his hand in mine,deliberately parading past Chloe,who was just returning.
As planned,I caught her pausing for a few seconds.
Chloe,toting bagsthat looked expensive with a whole crowd fawning over her,looked imposing.
But she hadn't expected this scene,freezing and glancing back with shock.
Even sidelong,I felt her gaze—toxic with envy and hatred!
"My sugar,after you."
Dad opened the car door for me.I slid in,catching a faint camera click.
Plan achieved.
Sure enough,as we sat in a fancy restaurant,I checked the campus forum.
An anonymous account posted:"Intimate behavior,sugar daddy suspicions?"
It included a photo of me getting into Dad's car.
Though it was only a silhouette,anyone who knew me could tell at first glance that it was me.
The man opening the door—only half his face visible,blurry—looked middle-aged.
And clearly wealthy.
Within half an hour,"Art Institute's Claire Evans suspected sugar baby"hit the forum's top post.
Thousands of replies:
"No way,I adore Claire!No way she has a sugar daddy?"
"Her?No way,she's nice.Must be a mistake."
"Mistake?Pictures don't lie!With enough money,anything's possible."
"Of course,I’ve heard that art girls always..."
"Hey,what's wrong with girls studying art?Don't be gross!"
"I'm gross?The photo's out—who's the gross one?"
Gossipy drama like this was college students'catnip.
I was dragged through the mud.
My phone had only a few concerned messages.
My usual"besties"now avoided me like the plague,piling on the dirt.
Ha, their true colors finally showed in tough times!
Mia called immediately.
"Claire,you okay?Need me to come over?"
She didn't ask what happened,just stood by me.
"I'm fine.You?They're not picking on you at school,are they?"
Mia's closeness with me often made her a target.
"I'm okay, the worst I’ve encountered so far is people rolling their eyes at me.I'm used to it.I was worried you'd take it hard."
Take it hard?
Even if I went down fighting them,I'd never crumble!
Why torment myself when I could torment them?
It's satisfying—and when you insisted on not giving up, the satisfaction would only spike!
"Mia,come and stay with me."
Mia arrived at my family's sprawling villa,her jaw dropping.
"Claire,this...this is your house?Since when were you this rich?"
"I've always been rich,okay?I just keep it low-key."
"You dress so simply,I thought your family was struggling!"
I laughed.
No wonder she was always sneaking me snacks.
A happy accident!
"Make yourself at home.Stay as long as you want.My parents are barely here."
"Tell the housekeeper whatever you want to eat.Pick any room you like."
"I've wanted to move out forever but was scared to live alone.Now you're here—our life of freedom begins now!"
I flopped onto the bed,dizzy with joy.
Mia just giggled at me.
"But before we celebrate,you've gotta help me with something."
"What?"
