Chapter 10
I enrolled in the elementary school Ethan attended and moved into the boarding school.
I started first grade, becoming the oldest and slowest kid in the class.
I had never been to kindergarten, so everything being taught was completely new to me.
On the first day of school, Ethan stopped by my classroom.
The moment he left, one of my classmate grabbed a pencil and scibbled all over the cover of my textbook.
He spat at me with disgust. “You’re a kidnapper’s child! Stay away from me!”
The other kids in the class had already heard about me.
They quickly distanced themselves, tossing paper balls and snack wrappers onto me.
The teacher came in to intervene.
That boy shouted angrily. “Emily’s dad is a kidnapper!”
‘Her brother Ethan said tat even the youngest criminals aught in her village were just kids, tricking people alongside the adults.Who knows if Emily will try to take us too!”
Other classmates chimed in. “Yes!”
“And I can smell the stench on her! It makes me dizzy!”
“Emily must be a bad person!”
Tt boy grabbed his textbook and walked straight to the back of the classroom.
“I’d rather stand and learn than sit next to her!”
The students in front of and behind me also stood up. Even the teacher fell silent, seemingly pondering his words.
The principal came over after hearing the commotion.
I overheard my homeroom teacher saying to him, “With a father like that, how can we allow such a child in our school?”
“After all, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“What can we do? The Millers donated half the school, after all…”
I lowered my eyes and gripped my textbook.
The corners were crumpled from my tight grip. I quietly tried to flatten them out.
Finally, after the teacher and principal finished talking, the principal turned and left.The teacher, her expression stern, set a desk on the left side of the podium. “Emily, you’ll sit here from now on.”
I nodded and got up. Silently, I packed my bag and moved to the very front.
Another paper ball hit my back as I sat down.
The teacher turned her head slightly, pretending not to see, opened her book, and started the lesson.
As the recess bell rang and the teacher left, the kids behind me shouted, “Emily, don’t look bck!”
“If you dare look at anyone, it means you’re plnning to kidnap them! We’re going to call the police and have you
