Chapter 4

Chloe was the first to shout, her voice so sharp it could be heard down the entire street.

Everyone's eyes whipped around to face me.

Tyler turned around, holding the cardboard sign. When he saw me, he froze, then burst into a loud laugh.

"Oh my god, Evelyn! You came? Didn't you say you weren't coming?"

He laughed so hard he nearly doubled over, slinging the cardboard sign over his shoulder.

"You acted so high and mighty, but in the end, you still crawled back here?"

The crowd immediately erupted in mocking laughter.

"Exactly! Acting so superior, but look who's here now."

"Hey, Evelyn, did you rip up your ticket too? Let me see!"

"She definitely ripped it. Otherwise, how would she dare to show up? The restaurant said you can only get the free meal with a shredded ticket."

The crowd jeered.

I stood a few steps away, looking at them, completely silent.

Sarah frowned and whispered to me, "Evelyn, what's going on? What ripped ticket?"

"It's nothing," I said.

The laughter outside the restaurant was deafening.

Everyone was laughing, and every eye was on me.

I didn't say a word.

Instead of explaining things to them, I'd rather finish my lunch quickly and go home to study.

Lily stood at the back of the crowd, her lips curled, not joining in the mocking but not stopping it either.

"Alright, alright," she finally said. "Evelyn is shy, stop laughing at her. Since she's here, let's all go in together. The more the merrier!"

Sarah glanced at me with concern but didn't ask further, pulling me into the restaurant.

The moment the door of our private booth closed, the noise outside was completely cut off.

Sarah set the menu down, turned to me, and lowered her voice. "Evelyn, what are they actually doing? They ripped up their admission tickets? How are they going to take the exam tomorrow?"

I pulled the pristine ticket from my inner pocket and placed it on the table.

Sarah stared at it, stunned. After a long moment, she picked it up, inspected it front and back, and let out a massive sigh of relief before tucking it carefully back into my hand.

"Thank god you didn't rip it."

She sat down, looking toward the door. "What is wrong with the restaurant owner? How dare they run a stunt like this?"

I took a sip of my water.

"Just a viral marketing stunt," I said. "They probably didn't think anyone would actually do it."

My aunt shook her head and dropped the subject.

The carnival in the lobby downstairs went on for nearly an hour.

Upstairs, I finished my meal in absolute peace.

The next day was the exam.

I arrived at the test center an hour early.

The entrance was roped off, police officers were directing traffic, and anxious parents had packed the street.

I passed through the gates smoothly and lined up in front of the testing building.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed behind me.

Lily was running at the front of a group of students.

They were all clutching newly printed sheets of paper, their faces exhausted.

The security check opened.

Students filed in, scanning their photo IDs, handing over their admission tickets, and completing facial recognition.

Everything was exactly like my past life.

Until Tyler reached the verification desk.

The proctor took his ticket, glanced at it, and frowned. "This ticket is invalid."