Chapter 7
Chapter 7
[She seems so innocent. She looks like the victim here p>
[Professor Montgomery is brilliant. So many students admire him p>
I squeezed my phone until my fingers turned cold.
Mom stirred slightly in her sleep.
I leaned over and tucked the blanket around her.
Ethan. Lila.
You love playing for the crowd?
Then let the fire burn everything down.
We’ll see who breaks first.
At three in the morning, I pulled up the home security footage.
Sure enough, after we left with the ambulance, Ethan and Lila hadn’t left the house immediately.
“Stop crying. It’s not your fault,” his voice came through faintly.
“But Chloe must hate me… I only wanted to explain. I never meant for things to turn out like this p>
Ethan sighed.
“Once she calms down, I’ll talk to her. Focus on your thesis defense for now. Don’t think about this p>
“Professor… what if Chloe never forgives me and it ruins your tenure? I… I’ll drop out. I can’t ruin your career
because of me p>
Ethan’s voice hardened.
“I’m here. No one is going to hurt you p>
I stopped the video there, edited the clip from the moment they walked into the house to that line.
I also typed up a short summary of the post-wedding reception incident and attached screenshots of Lila’s social media posts.
I posted everything online,
When I finished, I closed my laptop.
Chapter 7
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Após se livrar de um agressor, ela pede demissão. Agora ele a…
Mom’s breathing was steady. I sat in the chair beside her bed and closed my eyes.
At eight in the morning, I woke up to my phone vibrating.
Sarah had sent a flood of messages.
[OH MY GOD Chloe you finally did it p>
[Ethan deserves everything he’s getting p>
[That Lila is such an actress. Drop out? Please p>
[How are you holding up? Is your mom okay p>
I replied first, then opened the social media app.
The tide of public opinion had already turned.
[I defended her yesterday… I want to slap myself. She went into their home uninvited? That’s a normal student-teacher relationship p>
[His wife is pregnant and he abandoned her at their post-wedding reception. And he calls himself a man of
integrity as a teacher p>
[‘What if Chloe hates me?’ Boohoo. What about your wife’s feelings, professor p>
I scrolled through the comments calmly.
My phone rang again. It was Ethan.
He called over and over. I rejected every call.
Soon messages appeared.
[Chloe, take the video down! We can handle this privately. What good does it do to drag everything onto the
internet p>
[Do you want to destroy us completely p>
[Answer the phone. Let’s talk p>
I cleared the notifications. He called again, and I accidentally answered,
His voice was hoarse, frayed with panic.
“I lost my temper yesterday. I shouldn’t have said those things, and I shouldn’t have stopped you from calling an ambulance. I’m sorry. I’m sorry to Mom too. Just delete the video first, and we can talk, okay p>
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I stayed silent.
“I know you’re angry, but you can’t retaliate like this. It won’t help anyone. Lila is devastated. She even tried to hurt herself… you’re a woman too. Why be so cruel to her p>
Chapter 7
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Mark Twain