I Took The Same Exam, They Only Celebrated Her Chapter 05

I Took The Same Exam, They Only Celebrated Her Chapter 05

“Who are you all here for?”

My parents exchanged baffled looks. No matter how much Rory exceeded expectations, she definitely couldn’t get into Harvard–and certainly not well enough for a news crew to show up.

The reporters beamed. “You haven’t checked the scores yet? Your family has the state’s top scholar!”

Rory rushed over in three quick strides, her lips trembling, barely able to contain her shock and excitement.

“That can’t be right… you must have the wrong house! Oh! Oh, I get it–you’re here to interview Asher!”

She bolted across the hall and hammered on his door. “Asher, reporters are here for you!”

Her shouts brought him out–and half the neighborhood with him. The news of “top scholar in Building 13” spread like wildfire.

When Asher opened the door, he looked genuinely confused. “Interview me? No, the scores came out this morning… I did well, but not that well.” He turned to Rory. “What about you? Did you check?”

She fidgeted. “Not yet… I was going to after lunch.” She turned back to the reporters. “Are you absolutely sure

it’s me?”

They held up the photo on the file. “Isn’t this you?”

Looking at the picture from her student ID, a strange, uneasy feeling prickled at the back of her mind.

But she didn’t connect the dots. My name never once crossed her mind.

Mom bustled over, her face glowing with irrepressible joy. “This girl only said she did ‘okay‘! Hiding it from us

that you aced the whole thing!”

Dad let out a booming laugh, clapping Rory on the shoulder hard. “That’s my girl! The Hayes family

ancestors must be dancing in their graves! Please, please, come in!”

Rory rushed to the family computer and typed in the URL. The server was slow, jammed with traffic.

Dad deliberately left the front door wide open so all the neighbors could crowd around, their praises raining

down.

“Why even check? If the news is here, she’s the top scorer!”

“Hey, don’t the Hayeses have another daughter? What’d she get?”

“Oh, the other one’s always sickly. Heard she started school really late.”

Rory’s hand froze on the mouse. “Mom… maybe we should call my little sister out to watch this with us?”

Mom nodded and knocked on my door. “Your sister’s a top scholar! Get dressed and come out!”

Silence.

Liam shrugged. “Mom, she’s probably at that job of hers already.”

“That girl…” Mom sighed, then put on a pained smile for the reporters. “We have two daughters, you see. The

younger one… well, she took her sister’s money. We scolded her, and she got angry and stormed off to find

work to pay it back.”

Rory quickly added, “She really could’ve just asked me first.”

Liam jumped to her defense. “You’re just too kind. Don’t forget–because of her, you were almost kidnapped.

You almost didn’t make it home.”

The reporters leaned in, smelling a story. “Kidnapped? Please, tell us more.”.

And so, right there in front of the rolling cameras, before the eyes of every viewer watching the livestream,

they spilled an embellished version of the story–how I supposedly faked a fainting spell, causing Rory to run

off and get snatched by a trafficker.

The neighbors tsk–tsked, shaking their heads. “That younger one sounds… troubled.”

Mom dabbed at a dry eye. “Maybe we should have treated them more equally.”

Rory squeezed her hand, playing the part of the understanding daughter. “Mom, I never once blamed you for

it.”

Then, someone shouted, “Look! The score is loading!”