It wasn't just Scott. Jane was the same as well.

Whenever I tried to study at home, Jane would start looking worried. That was when I would make my demands.

"Mom, can we take a set of mother-daughter photos together?"

"Mom, will you read me a bedtime story tonight?"

"Mom, can we bake a cake for my eighteenth birthday? Will you wish me a happy birthday?"

During this time, everything I had missed out on before was slowly made up for.

I started acting like a lazy little heiress. I stopped reading and studying. I threw myself into romance and love as well, soaking up all the family affection I could get.

As a result, my ranking dropped lower and lower every time I took a test.

The comments section was full of scorn.

"This is hilarious! So what if she's smart? She's completely fallen for the kid. She's hopeless!"

"Just say a few nice words, and the side character gives up on her future. No wonder she'll end up pregnant and kicked out, and then sold off by her own parents to a fifty-year-old man…"

But I didn't care at all.

I smiled as I watched how happy Tessa was to take first place for the first time. The tears in her eyes looked like she had finally proved herself.

Of course, I didn't miss the look she shot me. That smug, mocking glance as she glanced at my grades.

She was happy, and so was I.

When she was happy, I could reap rewards.

Sure enough, both Scott and Jane were in a great mood that day.

Jane bought me a limited-edition Hermes bag. Scott burst into my room, hugging me and promising to grant me a wish.

I quietly closed the door, grinning as I pushed him down onto the bed.

"My wish is… I want you."

After I said that, the comments section exploded.

"What the hell? According to the original plot, wasn't this the part where she got drugged and slept with another man that the male lead called here? She even got pregnant, right? Why is she making the first move now?"

"Holy… Is the male lead really going to do it? He's not pure anymore!"

"Seriously, isn't this story supposed to be rated for all? Why is it getting so exciting all of a sudden?"

All the noise in the room didn't escape Tessa's notice, of course.

After Scott left, she stormed into my room and glared at the faint hickey on my shoulder. Her eyes were practically shooting flames of fury.

In the end, all she did was bite out a few snide remarks.

"You really don't waste time, do you? You just turned eighteen, and you're already in such a hurry?"

I just smiled at her, completely unbothered. "Scott is my fiancé. Isn't this perfectly normal? After all, I've got so much energy these days. Can't exactly spend it all on…studying, right?"

Tessa paused for a moment, caught off guard.

She understood that she could only pick one—Scott, or being top of the class.

She shot me another fierce glare. "Well, I hope you enjoy yourself every single day until the exams!"

The next day, I secretly followed Scott and Tessa, who were acting suspiciously, all the way to an abandoned gym. Peeking through the door, I watched as Tessa threw herself into Scott's embrace. She wrapped her arms around his neck, anxious.

"Scott, once that hussy's results are out, dump her and come back to me, okay? I'll give myself to you, too…"

She lifted her face to kiss him, but Scott turned away. Even he didn't know why.

Tessa, who had managed to hold back in front of me all night last night, finally lost it after seeing Scott rejecting her.

"Scott, what's your problem? Don't tell me you've really fallen for that broke loser!"

Scott's expression changed, and he said impatiently, "I'm doing all this for you! If it weren't for me, would you have ever gotten first place?"

Tessa's eyes were red as she shouted back, "But did I ever ask you to sacrifice yourself?"

Scott fell silent, then let out a long sigh. "Can you stop? There's only one week left. This whole farce is almost over."

As for me, I didn't feel hurt at all. After all, Scott and I were just using each other.

Pretending to be a bad student got me months of close, romantic interaction with the school's heartthrob. It was totally worth it!

The mock exams came as scheduled. In both rounds, I kept my scores steady at three or four hundred. It wasn't enough even for a normal university, let alone MIT or Harvard.

On the day of the SAT, we were all assigned to different exam halls.

Before going in, Scott tried to comfort me. "It's okay. Even if you do badly, you still have me."

I smiled and nodded, then turned and walked into the exam room—a place that could change my whole fate.

When it was all over, I knew.

Now, I could finally leave that storage closet for good. Never again must I put up with my dad's or brother's fists.

I could finally live my own life.

While waiting for the results, I sold off every single gift the Walkers had ever given me on secondhand shopping websites. My account balance was enough to cover four years of tuition.

The day the results came, the Walkers threw a huge party. They invited our whole class to the villa to check our results together.

This was all Tessa's idea.

She wanted to defeat the rival who had always overshadowed her in front of everyone, and watch me get thrown out and humiliated. The homeroom teacher, principal, and even media outlets were all there.

After all, our school was the best in the city. Our class was also the one most likely to produce a top scorer, so every reporter wanted first-hand coverage.

Everyone started checking their scores one by one. My classmates' results were better than expected.

Tessa, full of confidence, entered her candidate number in front of the camera. The page refreshed, and her score finally popped up.

She beamed. "1535! I got 1535! That's good enough for MIT or Harvard!"

Tessa showed off her score on camera, and Jane was dancing with joy.

"That's our female lead! Barely made the cutoff for MIT and Harvard, and now she's heading for some messy love triangle on campus."

"Can't wait to see what happens next!"

While everyone praised her, Tessa suddenly turned her eyes on me. "Lucia, why haven't you checked your results yet? You've always been first in our grade, right?"

The comments exploded again.

"Our former top student is such a lovesick mess, I bet even 800 is out of her reach!"

"Come on, check your results! This is the part where the tables turn! This is the best part! That's what she gets for always trying to steal our female lead's lover!"

Seeing me hesitate, Scott came over and grabbed my hand, trying to comfort me. "Don't worry. You still have me."

I smiled, pulled my hand back, and entered my candidate number.

The screen refreshed.

The smile on Tessa's face froze. She stared in disbelief, then exploded into screams.

"No way! This can't be happening!"