2
The next morning, Brittany, all dolled up in a
fancy dress, stood next to the headmistress,
looking all sweet and innocent.
The couple that was supposed to adopt me,
the Smiths, saw Brittany and their faces lit
- up. They stood by a fancy car and opened
their arms to her.
Brittany, all tears and fake sobs, ran into Mrs.
Smith’s arms.
The headmistress smiled, all weepy. A bunch
of reporters crowded around, cameras
flashing.
It was like a damn soap opera.
<
I watched from the attic window.
As Mrs. Smith led Brittany to the limo, I
smiled and waved. “Have a great ride, my
little organ donor!”
With Brittany gone, things were calmer. No
more bullying. And the Smiths didn’t contact
me, so that was a plus. It probably meant
Brittany’s kidney was a match for Ryan.
Because I gave up the ID, the headmistress
was actually nice to me. She even gave me
some money, saying it was for doing well on
my entrance exams.
I took it, acting all grateful, but inside, I was
laughing. Before Brittany left, that woman
was telling me I was too stupid to ever
amount to anything.
<
I used the money to pay for tuition at a good
school.
The school was known for getting kids into
good colleges. Even though a lot of rich kids.
went there, everyone behaved. No one gave
me trouble for being an orphan.
My homeroom teacher saw that I wasn’t
doing so well in math, and put me next to
Ethan, who was one of the best students in
school.
Ethan was tall and had a killer smile. His
family was one of the richest in town, and he
was supposed to marry the Smith’s daughter
in the future.
“Grace, I heard you and Ethan are good
friends. Can you give me his number?” The
<
“We just help each other with homework. I
don’t have his number, but if you want, I can
ask him.” I replied.
“No, that’s okay!”
The girl quickly moved when she saw Ethan
approaching. She even left me a soda.
Ethan took the notes I had been writing down.
Our fingers touched.
I felt like I had been shocked and quickly
retreated.
Ethan looked surprised, but he pointed out a
mistake in my notes.
My grades weren’t that good at the beginning
of the year, but I caught up after a few
く
months. I was ranked second in the grade,
right after Ethan.
After report cards were sent out, Ethan asked
me out to study at a coffee shop in town.
The clothes from the orphanage were old and
worn, so I wore my school uniform.
Ethan hesitated when he saw me. I said:
“I’m an orphan. I can’t afford clothes.”
After that, Ethan also wore his uniform when
he saw me.
