Chapter 290

Lucinda stood there, oozing self-importance, like she was untouchable. To her, Lydia was barely worth a second glance, just someone small and irrelevant. In her mind, it was only a matter of time before her name, Lucinda Norwood, dominated all the trending headlines. All these top universities, even the famous ones from overseas, were desperate to get her. But Lucinda had made up her mind. She wasn’t interested in studying abroad. She wanted to stay close, either at Capital College or Oakwood College. Maybe, just maybe, she’d think about an international offer if things changed.
Lydia barely spared Lucinda a look, making it clear she didn’t care. She turned to Cameron and Kylie instead. “I’ll wait for you here,” she said, her tone cool and steady.
Cameron and Kylie exchanged a glance. They didn’t want to force her into anything. “Alright, Lydia. We’ll be back soon,” they assured her softly.
Garrett stepped in. “Mom, Dad, why don’t you take Lucinda outside? I’ll stay here with Lydia.” He couldn’t help but think that Lucinda’s score of 735 might not be enough to clinch the top spot, unless this year’s exam had been especially tough. Last year, the best student in the capital, who also took top honors in the entire country, scored a whopping 742.
“Okay, we’ll head out first,” Cameron said.
Just as they turned to leave, Lydia called out, stopping them in their tracks. “Wait. Mom, Dad, could you not tell anyone about our relationship yet?”
Recently, all sorts of groups and organizations had been trying to track her down. If her real identity got out now, it would only bring trouble.
Cameron and Kylie froze, caught off guard. “Lydia, why? We wanted to wait until Grandpa is out of the hospital so we could announce your return and throw a big welcome party for our friends and family.” If it weren’t for the old man’s health, they would have shared the news ages ago.
Lucinda’s hands tightened into fists. All her excitement fizzled away, replaced by a wave of frustration. Lydia was definitely doing this on purpose. She was using her mysterious background to get all their parents’ attention. Didn’t do well on her exams? Fine, just play the sympathy card.
“Just go meet with the admissions officers for now. I’ll explain everything later,” Lydia said, her voice calm but firm.
Cameron and Kylie nodded, even though they clearly had more questions.
Outside the Norwood family’s gate, admissions officers from all the top universities were packed together, trying to sneak a peek inside. The older recruiters recognized this place right away. This was the home of the richest family around.
“Mr. Russo, are we sure this is the right house? Isn’t this the Norwood place?” the head of admissions from Oakwood College asked, frowning at the old professor beside him.
The professor glanced down at the address on his phone. “This is it. The top scorer’s updated address is right here.”
The Capital College team looked just as confused. “But doesn’t the Norwood family have four sons and one daughter? Their daughter is Lucinda, not Lydia, right?”
It was starting to feel impossible. They’d been searching since six in the morning, racing out to a new
neighborhood on the edge of then et
city, only to find a student named Sandy not Lydia After a bunch calls and frantic messages, they finally figured out that the top scorer had changed her last name, and the system hadn’t caught up. The new address pointed here, Riverside Villas. Still, they couldn’t shake the worry that they’d made another mistake.
Everyone waited anxiously for someone from the family to come out and clear things up. No one wanted to waste more time or losè the top scorer to another school. Some even wondered if someone was messing with them on purpose, just to tip the scales.
Before long, Cameron and Kylie came out with Lucinda in tow.
When the crowd saw Cameron and Kylie grinning from ear to ear, they all assumed the family had just found out their daughter was the top Score T ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ
obyn heir excitement was
and the admissions officers immediately perked up, eager to make their pitch.