Chapter 3 Chloe read like she was starving for knowledge. She only snapped out of it when the bell rang signaling the closure of the library. Gathering her books, she headed to the head teacher's office. "Ms. Herrera, I want to switch to science. What do I need to do?" The head teacher, Priscilla Herrera, looked at her in disbelief. "What? Switch majors?" 'Switching to science now? During your repeat year? That ain't ambition-that's torching your future with gasoline. 'Girl barely scraped by in liberal arts after three whole years of struggling. Jumping into science? Straight ticket to academic hell-we both know that train's gonna derail before it leaves the station, she thought to herself. But Chloe said firmly, "Ms. Herrera, I've made up my mind." "This isn't something you can decide on your own." Priscilla shook her head and pulled out a form from her desk. "Your parents have to sign here. I doubt they'll agree." Chioe took the form, saying, "Thanks, Ms. Herrera." As soon as she stepped out of school, she heard whistling. Looking up, she saw a pink-haired-kid on a skateboard blocking her way with some friends at the alley entrance. She smirked coldly. "What is it?" "Retaker," Callum crossed his arms. "We should settle that score from this morning. But if you apologize nicely, I might let you off easy." Hearing this, Chloe put down her bag and picked up a stick nearby. Swinging it at the boys, she said sternly, "You guys never focus on studying and only bully girls. "With hair dyed all colors and flashy clothes, none of you look like students. "Your parents must be so disappointed." The boys screamed as they got hit. Callum clenched his fists tightly. "I don't have any parents." Chloe paused and glanced at him coldly. "Lucky for them; they'd probably die from anger if they were still alive." "You!" Callum was enraged. Bending down to pick up her bag again, Chloe warned him off coolly, "Don't come bother me again." 1 Just as she walked away, Callum's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID reluctantly before answering, "Big bro? What's up?" "I'm outside your school. Come out. Let's head to the airport together to pick up the old man." "Got it." Callum tossed his skateboard to one of his buddies and left the alley quickly. Chloe was sitting in the car, scrolling through her phone to wake up. Then, a news headline caught her eye. [The Rhodes family's patriarch, Tristan Rhodes, will arrive at Erord Airport tonight She said immediately, "Turn around, to the airport." The driver hesitated, "Miss, it's already 10 PM. The round trip to the airport takes nearly two hours…" Chloe nodded. "If you're in a hurry to get off work, I can take a taxi." The driver was left speechless, agreeing finally. The car drove smoothly on the road. By 11 PM, they arrived at the airport. 1/3 2 at 11 PM.] The exit was surrounded by dozens of reporters, all standing on tiptoe to see what was happening inside. Chloe walked towards them. At that moment, a familiar voice came from the side. "Come on, you're following me, aren't you?" Callum laughed, "No wonder you dared to challenge me-guess you're just trying to get my attention." Chloe glanced over. The guy was wearing a cap, his pink hair hidden, earrings removed, and dressed in white, looking like a refined young man. "I'm not interested in following you." With that, she checked her phone; one minute left until Tristan's arrival. Instantly, she squeezed into the crowd. A message came in on Callum's phone at that moment. [The old man suddenly fell ill. Hurry up and distract the reporters.] He lowered his cap, pointed excitedly to the distance, and shouted, "Look, Mr. Rhodes is at the other exit! Everyone, hurry over for an interview. Don't let him slip away…" Hearing this, the reporters swarmed over, racing each other, afraid of missing the exclusive scoop. Chloe frowned. Just as she was about to leave, she noticed Callum's smirk out of the corner of her eye. It seemed like he was mocking the reporters' foolishness. She paused. In the next moment, a group of people rushed out from the VIP channel, carrying a stretcher. On the stretcher lay an elderly man with gray hair. Chloe was utterly stunned by the sight. The photo on her phone showed Tristan in his best condition. But now, he looked so old, all crinkled, lips blue-tinged, clearly in extreme pain…. "Tris!" Chloe cried out. "Hey, shut up!" Callum pulled her to the side. "Don't block the way!" The medical staff and bodyguards shielded the crowd's view, surrounding the stretcher as they loaded it into the vehicle, which promptly vanished from the airport entrance. Tristan's eyelids twitched. Just now, he seemed to have heard someone calling his childhood nickname, Tris. It had been years since he last heard that name. 'Am I about to die, and Mom's here to take me?' he wondered. Michael inquired with someone about what happened. An assistant beside him whispered, "On the flight, the guy next to us was this young dude in a wheelchair. Old man just had to ask-soon as he hears 'car crash', goes full code red." Michael pursed his lips tightly. Back then, the old man's mother, Michael's great-grandmother, had shielded the old man and was hit by a speeding car. Witnessing his mother's body being flung and then run over by the car, with blood everywhere, the old man developed a severe psychological disorder. 2/3 15 Even after seventy years, the condition hadn't improved. Merely hearing the words "car crash" would trigger flashbacks to that scene, causing an instant fainting, sometimes lasting for months… Chloe got home at midnight. The living room lights were still on. "Sis, are you okay?" Erin approached. "I saw on the school forum that Callum brought people to trouble you. I have some connections with Callum. I'll talk to him tomorrow and tell him not to bully you." Sergio's face turned livid. "Out late at night fighting and causing trouble-how did I end up with such a brute daughter?" Chloe took out a transfer class consent form from her backpack and said calmly, "Could you sign this, please?" "Sis is transferring to the sciences?" Erin glanced at it and immediately showed worry. "You've already struggled with the liberal arts; the sciences will be even harder. How about this? I'll make time to tutor you, and you should be able to get into college without much trouble." Sarah put down her magazine, chiming in, "Chloe was raised on the farm before, where the teaching conditions were poor, so it's normal for her to fall behind. Maybe we should hire a tutor." Her daughter was the top student in liberal arts; there was no need to waste her time on others. "I don't need tutoring." Chloe handed the pen to Sarah. "Could you help me with this, Sarah?" Sarah looked at her, lost in thought. Somehow, she felt there was something different about this stepdaughter. Before, Chloe always kept her head down, timid and insecure, a disgrace to the Lancaster family. Now, there was a calm and composed aura about her, as if she had become smarter, yet still did foolish things. "Alright, I respect your decision." Sarah signed the consent form.