Chapter 4 Fake Test Questions

ELOISE

"The test consists of two sections, A and B, thirty questions total." Mr Whitmore announced, passing out papers through the buzz of chatter. Everyone had already seen the "leaked" questions, so I didn't know why they couldn't just keep their mouths shut. "You know the drill, phones in bags, no talking. If you're caught cheating then you'll not be graduating."

I called his bluff with an eye roll. He placed a paper on my desk with a smile. "I trust you prepared well."

"I did," I replied, and he gave a proud nod before moving along. Maths came easy to me, just like every other subject. It felt good being every teacher's favourite.

"Fuck." Lillian cursed beside me, lowering her head to the desk. "Have you seen the questions?"

I looked down at my own paper and immediately understood why everyone had on a frown. The questions were nothing like the leaked ones. Someone had planted fake ones to sabotage the whole class, and it had worked. I almost laughed. Hell, why didn't I think of that.

Brian snapped his head back toward me from the row in front. "I can't believe this—"

"Is there a problem, Brian?" Mr Whitmore was already at the back of the room.

Brian faced front so fast I nearly laughed out loud. Neither of my best friends were the brightest, and I needed to help them without getting all three of us caught.

"Give me a minute, then we'll swap," I whispered to Lillian, who nodded, close to tears. I tore through my own paper first, twenty seconds a question, some I barely needed to work out at all. Within five minutes I was done. I tapped my foot, and when Lillian dropped her pen and bent to grab it, we swapped papers under the table.

"Eyes on your own paper, Ms Belmore," Mr Whitmore warned, and I smirked. Guess being the school founder's great-granddaughter wasn't getting Katherine out of this one.

"Psst, Eloise." Brian, next. "I could really use those brains right now."

I sighed and ticked off his answers from memory too, passing them back beneath the table the moment Whitmore's back was turned.

"You have ten minutes left." Everyone else was panicking. I finished my own second section with time to spare, wrote my name in the space provided, and breathed out, waiting for the bell.

Seven minutes later, it rang. "Time's up. Drop your pens and hand over your papers."

"Eloise, you are the best!" Brian crowed in my ear as we headed for the cafeteria, grinning like a madman. "I love you."

"You really saved our ass," Lillian added. "I can't believe I spent all night practicing those fake questions."

As we took our food trays and sat at our usual table, I couldn't help but remember how my night had ended. After Nonso left me to go fuck a whore, I was infuriated. I wanted to rush into whatever room they were in and drag her out of my house by her hair.

Nonso was handsome, so of course many women would use every opportunity to get him into bed. He was so sweet, and they took advantage of that. He needed someone who wouldn't take advantage of his kindness, someone who understood him. That someone was me. I'd known him all my life, and even though he'd been away for a while, I knew Nonso Mitchell better than that bitch ever could.

"Eloise believes me, don't you?" Brian brought me back to the present. I looked at the two people sitting across from me.

"Believe what?" I asked, my disinterest bleeding through my voice. There was always a new topic with these two.

Brian gave me a disbelieving look, while Lillian laughed, stuffing fries into her mouth. "That Mr Whitmore is having an affair with a student."

My brows shot up, lips pursing slightly. That didn't sound right. "What?"

Brian shook his head vigorously, like he was certain of the crap he'd just spat out. There was no way in hell that was true.

"And where did you get that unverified information from?" I had to ask, because if he went around saying stuff like this he'd put Mr Whitmore in serious trouble.

He gave me a proud look. "I can't say."

Lillian and I exchanged glances, it was quick but spoke volumes. "Brian," Lillian called his name like he was five, and he hummed. "Shut up and eat your food."

"But—"

"But nothing," she cut him off, and I couldn't help but let my lips curve upwards. Lillian always knew how to scold him - sometimes he listened, and the times he didn't she'd ignore him for a week. "If Mr Whitmore is having an affair with a student then it's none of our business. We have only three months left in this school and I don't want any drama."

I did.

Belmore Academy was such a boring school. I'd gone here my whole life, same as Brian. Lillian joined us in ninth grade. We'd been each other's escape plan, hoping to one day get out of this hell. A little drama would be great entertainment, especially one that involved a teacher and a student.

"All I know is, I'm getting to the bottom of this." Brian grinned, dragging my tray towards him and picking off my fries. He always got on my nerves but I wasn't in the mood to fight it.

The cafeteria was usually loud, but all of a sudden the noise spiked way above normal. I didn't know what was happening, but the girls seemed to be huddling and whispering into each other's ears, giggling.

"What's happening?" Lillian asked the question I also needed answered.

The girls were rushing towards the windows, which were now crowded, everyone craning and pushing to get a better look. They seemed to be looking at something.

Weird.

Brian didn't even pay attention to what was going on, he was too busy stuffing the stolen fries into his mouth. One of the junior girls peeking out the window came back to the table, wearing a smile and adjusting her skimpy skirt.

"What's all the fuss about?" Lillian asked her when she was close enough.

"There's this guy outside, he's so freaking hot." She was blushing and I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"Who is he?" Lillian asked.

She shrugged, shaking her head. "I don't know, but I heard someone say he's friends with her sister who goes to Kensington. I think she said they call him NSO."

"NSO," I repeated, brows knitting at the familiarity of the name I'd just heard. The junior ran off before I could ask anymore questions.

There was only one NSO I knew about… but it couldn't be him. What was he doing here at my school?