Suspension, hell yeah! High five!

Zoan was supposed to enjoy her day with Mei—they were having a great time until her father called.

"Ah, wait a second," Zoan muttered, holding the clothes that Mei had picked out.

"Sol told me where you are," Elias said. Zoan groaned, hanging her head in disappointment. She didn't expect Sol to drop her whereabouts so quickly. But then again, Sol had a knack for reporting back to Elias about Zoan's activities.

She really needed to get that girl to keep quiet!

"I've been lonely for two weeks. Can't you just let me off the hook right now?" Zoan pleaded, glancing at Mei, who looked surprised and mouthed, "Is that your dad?" Zoan nodded.

Mei winced, making exaggerated gagging motions as Zoan sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Zoan, you do realize you have school tomorrow? It's already 4 PM. You have your own driver for a reason," Elias said flatly.

"Then I'll call him when I'm heading home. How does that sound?" Zoan replied, hearing Elias sigh on the other end. She could picture him pinching the bridge of his nose, looking like a disappointed mama bird.

"Fine. But that's not why I called. I just spoke with the dean of the high school department. She said she'll handle it, so those girls messing with you won't be able to anymore," he added. Zoan broke into a grin.

"Thank god for that! They seriously don't know who they're messing with," she said dramatically.

She could almost feel her father's eyes roll in response. "Whatever floats your boat," he replied before ending the call.

Zoan turned to Mei, who was waiting with a thick stylish jacket and a black skirt in her arms.

"Found what you like?" Zoan asked. Mei nodded enthusiastically.

"Is something wrong? You looked serious talking to your dad," Mei said, tilting her head with concern. Last time this happened, Zoan had gotten an earful, especially after she had joined Mei at the bar.

"Oh, that? Pssh, it's nothing. He just told me he dealt with those bullies who've been messing with me—case closed!" Zoan grinned, and Mei whooped loudly.

"Hell yeah! Come drink with me!" Mei cheered, and Zoan rolled her eyes.

—

Jiho ran up to Zoan, excitement bubbling over as she waved a paper in her hands. "What did you do?" she asked, eyes wide.

Zoan turned, confused. "Good morning to you! I can't believe I'm here in school before you," she grinned, perched on her desk.

"Read this!" Jiho thrust the paper at her. "It's a message from the dean—she gave two weeks' suspension to Aliani and her group! Look! Look!" She nearly slapped the paper against Zoan's face.

"Huh?" Zoan replied, slightly dumbfounded. She took the paper and read it quietly, a chuckle escaping her lips. So this was what her father had been working on?

He got them suspended! Holy shit!

Zoan coughed to hide her laughter, while Jiho beamed with joy. "Their punishment is cleaning every bathroom in the building! Can you believe that? Was this your father's doing? I heard he's a great lawyer—he helped my dad," Jiho said, growing bashful and twirling her fingers, offering Zoan a kind smile.

Just then, another girl burst into the room, waving yet another paper. "Guys, guys!" she exclaimed, nearly tripping over a table. She quickly corrected her stumble and waved the paper again. "Aliani and her gang are suspended for two weeks!"

Ving, who had been reading an English textbook, looked up and closed it gently before standing. The girl handed her the paper, and Ving's brows furrowed as she read through it. Aliani had been bullying students and threatening them as if she owned the place.

For her to be suspended so suddenly—how?

Ving and Atiro had been working on this case since freshman year, yet nothing had worked until now.

She turned toward Zoan, who was chatting with Jiho, both of them grinning and hunched over a book. Slowly, Ving walked over and placed the paper in front of Zoan. "Did you do this?" she asked, more demanding than curious.

"Beats me," Zoan replied, leaning back and shrugging a shoulder.

Ving glanced at Jiho, tilting her head quizzically.

Jiho turned to Zoan, then back at Ving, shaking her head. "No idea either," she said, flashing an innocent smile. Zoan grinned, leaning closer to Jiho as they sat elbow to elbow, like old friends.

Ving sighed, narrowing her eyes at the pair.

She folded the paper and said, "Even so, I should thank you. For dealing with this—it may just be a suspension, but it means they'll have to be much more careful from now on."

"So, thank you," Ving nodded before walking back to her seat quietly. Zoan nudged Jiho, grinning. "Not only is she pretty—but really polite too!"

Jiho blushed and admonished, "You shouldn't think like that," sounding like an old lady telling her granddaughter to stop thinking of naughty things.

—

There's a reason Zoan was pulled out of middle school, and no, it wasn't because she was doing drugs. And no, she didn't turn into some kind of gangster—well, maybe it's a bit close to that.

But let's be clear: she didn't become a gangster per se; it was just that a lot of people seemed to be out to get her. After all, she's amazing, smart, cool, and very handsome!

Kidding…

It wasn't like that at all. Zoan was just a quiet kid in middle school, labeled as smart, and almost everyone liked her. She got along with every student at Dawn International. Honestly, Dawn International was just a simple school—not as prestigious as Golden High, a place every parent with a daughter dreamed of sending their kids to.

If they could afford it, they would throw their daughters into that elite institution without a second thought.

No, Dawn International was just your typical public school, where Elias enrolled Zoan to help her socialize with kids from various backgrounds. He wanted her to get used to interacting with different people, but he didn't consider that bullying still existed in this generation.

Zoan wasn't the one getting bullied, but it was during this time that she met Mei, her mentor's niece.

In middle school, Mei was what you'd call a punching bag. Zoan wasn't really sure where it all began for her, but after months of watching Mei get pushed around, she finally decided that enough was enough and put a stop to it.