Chapter 32

Third Person's POV

Cliff spent the entire night at the hospital with Melinda.

The next morning, he received a call from Elliot, his brow furrowing, a hint of confusion in his voice, "What enrollment exam?"

"The school staff called today, saying they saw Luna Vanya's name on the enrollment exam list, so they wanted to ask you if Luna Vanya had discussed this with you in advance."

Cliff remembered that Vanya had been shopping with Veronica yesterday. When could she have registered for the exam?

His mind was filled with doubts.

"I see," Cliff said before hanging up, the lines between his brows never smoothing out.

He wondered silently, 'What scheme is Vanya plotting now?'

"Alpha Cliff, was that a call from the school? Should I hurry back to class?" Melinda, lying in the hospital bed, had woken up at some point and asked softly.

"I've already spoken with Elliot and the school. You should rest here today. Besides, the call wasn't about you," Cliff replied.

"What was it about then?" Melinda looked at Cliff with a puzzled expression. After all, in school, she was the only student that Cliff supported.

"It's about Vanya," Cliff said, rubbing his temple with a headache.

"I'll go back for a while. Rest here," Cliff instructed.

Melinda nodded.

After Cliff left, Melinda muttered to herself, "Vanya? What could her connection with the school be?"

Meanwhile, at the Wolfe International Finance School in Los Angeles, Vanya was strolling through the campus leisurely.

Due to her special identity as Mrs. Todd, the principal and vice principal accompanied her.

They were introducing the school's educational facilities and various campus landscapes enthusiastically.

Vanya, already outstanding in appearance, added a touch of a college student's youthful vitality and charm with her hair tied in a ponytail.

Students passing by couldn't help but cast curious glances her way, speculating who she might be.

Soon, Cliff's car arrived outside the campus of the Wolfe International Finance School.

Fawn Carpenter, seeing Cliff's car, felt a sense of familiarity. "Look, isn't that Melinda's boyfriend's car?"

They had seen this car pick up Melinda many times before.

"That's right, I saw Melinda get into this car last night," Raven Schmidt agreed, her face showing confusion, "Didn't Melinda say her boyfriend was taking her to the hospital? Why is he out so soon?"

When they saw only Cliff getting out of the car, their curiosity was ignited instantly.

Cliff, with his stern face and an aura of unapproachability, stood at 6 ft 2 in tall, exuding an innate nobility.

[$]

Vanya, led by the school leaders, walked to the school gate and saw Cliff approaching. She had no intention of hiding.

Considering Cliff's close ties with the school, it was inevitable that he would find out about her registration for the exam eventually.

Seeing the principal and vice principal present, Cliff took Vanya's arm directly and said coldly, "Come with me."

To outsiders, the actions between Cliff and Vanya seemed very intimate.

"OMG! Isn't that Melinda's boyfriend? Who is that girl?"

"So beautiful. I've never seen her around school before."

Raven quickly took out her phone, capturing the scene and sending it to Melinda.

[Melinda! Check this out. Is this your boyfriend?]

Melinda, in the hospital, saw the message notification on her phone screen and felt a spark of anticipation, perhaps thinking it was Cliff sending caring words.

However, when she saw the photo of Cliff and Vanya, that anticipation was instantly replaced by shock and panic.

Her eyes widened, and her heart felt as if it was tightly gripped by an invisible hand.

She sat up abruptly on the hospital bed, driven by a powerful force.

Her mind was a whirl of confusion and shock, as if struck by a heavy hammer.

She kept questioning in her heart, how could Vanya suddenly appear at school?

And why were they acting so intimately?

What was going on?

[Melinda, you should ask your boyfriend what he's up to! I feel there's something fishy between these two!]

Seeing this message from Raven, Melinda subconsciously bit her lip, a pang of pain shooting through, but it did nothing to alleviate her inner turmoil and anxiety.

Her eyes betrayed clear anxiety and fear.

She knew that her previous lie about Cliff being her boyfriend, fueled by vanity under her classmates' curious inquiries, was now a ticking time bomb.

[$]

If the lie was exposed, she dreaded the embarrassment and humiliation she would face.

She could already envision the contemptuous looks and mocking smiles from her classmates, hearing their whispering and merciless ridicule behind her back.

She would become the biggest laughingstock among the girls, undoubtedly, never able to hold her head up in school again.

After much hesitation, Melinda sent a message, [I see. Don't worry about it. I trust my boyfriend.]

Then, Melinda threw off the bed covers and said to the nurse outside the door, "Excuse me, I'd like to check out!"