Chapter 200
It wasn’t serious, and she had no desire to prolong her encounter with Susan.
“No, I’m fine p>
Unsure of how to handle the situation, she called Theodore’s driver, Hogan, to take care of it.
Hogan arrived shortly after, parking in a nearby lot since he couldn’t stop on the street. He told her to take the car he had driven and leave.
As Penelope was about to walk away, Susan blocked her path.
“The university is holding a dedication ceremony for the new exhibition hall tomorrow. A lot of our classmates were invited. I assume you were too. See you tomorrow p>
Penelope clenched her fists and walked around her.
“You’re not going to skip it just because you’re afraid to see me, are you p>
Penelope ignored her and quickened her pace, a desperate need to escape welling up inside her. Susan’s triumphant laughter followed her, a net that ensnared her and dragged her back to that cold winter day.
She never knew how Susan’s phone had ended up in her bag, but when Susan pulled it out in front of everyone, she had no way to defend herself.
Susan had been relentless, and the school had been forced to take disciplinary action.
When her father heard the news, he had rushed to the school to plead her case.
It was snowing heavily that day. From her dorm room window, she had seen him kneeling in the snow in front of Susan, his hands clasped together in supplication. When Susan refused, he had crawled after her, begging.
So many students had seen it. They had watched as if it were some kind of street performance.
She should have run out and helped him up, but she hadn’t. She had been too ashamed.
Even after he had left, she had stayed hidden, watching from a distance as he limped away into the swirling snow.
It was a memory she had tried to bury, one she couldn’t bear to touch. Seeing Susan had brought it all rushing back, and her only instinct was to run.
Sitting in the car, Penelope shook her head, trying to clear the images from her mind, but it was no use.
Just then, she received a video from her father. He was holding up a massive fish, practically jumping with excitement.
“Penelope, look at this fish! Can you guess how much it weighs p>
“Fifty pounds p>
“Haha! I’ve broken my personal record p>
He was beaming, his joy so pure it seemed to wash away all the hardships he had endured. Her
father had always been an optimist When be lost his leg, he said at least he could still walk. When her mother died, he said they would meet again one day. And to her, he always said that the sky would never fall.
“Dad, I’m craving your braised fish,” she said into her phone.
He replied almost immediately. “You got it! We’ll have braised fish, spicy fish head, fish with pickled greens and fried fish cakes. We’re having a whole fish feast tonight p>
cases,
the Johnson
As she drove e toward residence, her college class president called, inviting her again to the dedication ceremony. He said that not many of their classmates still lived in Orenth and they were planning to get lunch together after the ceremony to catch up.
Penelope had already declined once, partly because she was busy, and partly because she didn’t want to see certain people.
But she had already seen Susan, who had taunted her: You’re not going to skip it
just because you’re afraid to see me, are you?
And Penelope Laurier had never been afraid of anyone.