Chapter4

William's POV：

The department rankings and the Cambridge exchange offers went live at noon.

William sat in his dorm, staring at the screen and waited the final.

He believed It was his best performance in three years.

The clock hit 12:00.

He clicked refresh.

His eyes scanned the top line. A confident smile formed on his lips.

Then, the smile froze.

Rank 1: Evelyn Carter.

Cambridge Exchange Recipient: Evelyn Carter.

His own name sat in the second row, trailing her by a massive twenty-point margin.

Impossible.

Evelyn was always just a step behind him. She was never supposed to jump to the very top.

So , she's been controlling her grades this whole time. Just to let him feel good about himself.

She let him win. For three years.

His chest tightened.

Never once had he been better than her. She had been protecting his absolute pride the entire time.

He grabbed his phone. He dialed her number. It went straight to voicemail.

William didn't wait. He grabbed his coat and rushed straight to her apartment. He needed to see her. He needed an explanation.

When he reached her building, he ran into Mr. Harrison, the building manager.

"Mr. Ashford?" the older man looked surprised. "Looking for Miss Carter?"

"Where is she?" William asked.

"You don't know?" Mr. Harrison frowned. "She left for the UK early this morning to avoid rumor ."

"Why ?" William's brows pulled together in confusion.

"The video online. Everyone's talking about it. The faculty felt it was best she took the Cambridge spot immediately to get away from the scandal."

Scandal?

William pulled out his phone. He opened the campus forum.

The top post was pinned. The uploader ID was Maddie's.

The title was vicious: Evelyn Carter’s Disgusting South Boston Secret.

He tapped the clip. It was grainy, dark footage.

The background loaded. William's pupils dilated. His blood ran completely cold.

It was the dirty alleyway behind the South Boston dive bar.

The exact place he was cornered and beaten three years ago.

In the video, Evelyn was shoved against the wet brick wall. A group of men were tearing at her clothes. She didn't cry. She fought them off furiously to buy time for the coward scrambling away in the shadows.

That coward was him.

William's fingers shook violently.

For three years, Maddie told him she was the one who pulled him out of that alley. Maddie swore she took the hit. He owed Maddie his life. He gave Maddie everything because of that lie.

It wasn't Maddie. It was Evelyn.

Evelyn took the brutal beating for him. Evelyn protected him.

And Maddie purposely uploaded Evelyn's trauma to the whole school just to ruin her.

"William? What are you doing here?"

A sweet voice echoed behind him. William turned around.

Maddie stood there holding a custom bakery box. She wore a bright, innocent smile.

"I came to celebrate!" she said, stepping forward. "I just knew Evelyn couldn't beat you."

She paused, her smile widening with dark pride. "And did you see the video I just posted? Cambridge will definitely revoke her offer now. She's completely ruined."

William stared at her harmless face. He felt entirely sick to his stomach.

His voice came out like crushed ice.

"You uploaded that video."

Maddie blinked, missing the absolute danger in his tone. "Well... yes. She deserves it for hiding such a dirty past—"

"That was her saving my life," William interrupted.

The air went dead silent.

Maddie's smile vanished. The color drained completely from her face.

"You told me you were the one in the alley," William stepped closer. His eyes locked onto hers with terrifying clarity. "You lied to me. For three years."

Maddie panicked. She took a step back, her hands trembling. "Will, wait, I can explain—"

"And her grades." William's voice shook with raw anger and absolute regret. "She solved all the advanced models. She deliberately left them blank. She was intentionally holding back to let me win. Wasn't she?"

Maddie froze. She couldn't form a single word. Genuine terror flashed in her eyes.

That silence told him everything.

Everyone knew. Only he was the absolute fool kept in the dark.

He had personally destroyed the only girl who ever truly loved him.

"William, please—" Maddie reached out to grab his sleeve.

He violently shoved her hand away.

William didn't say another word. He turned and sprinted toward the street.

He had to find Evelyn.