The bell rang, and the hallway instantly became a total zoo. Louisa was trying to keep her head down, still freaking out about the whole Louis Vuitton-Jayden-Cassia bombshell, while she and Ellie and Scarlett were whispering about what to do.
"We need to figure out what to do, and fast," Ellie was saying, her voice tight with worry. "If that dress is as rare and expensive as Finn said…"
Suddenly, this super annoying voice cuts through the noise. "Well, lookie here. The scholarship squad, still huddled together. What's the big secret this time?"
It was Christopher Jacobs, with his two little sidekicks blocking their way, that signature smirk plastered on his face. But his eyes were totally glued to Louisa.
Louisa's heart did this major thump-thump thing. She tried to look all chill, but with Finn's creepy warning still buzzing in her head, she was totally freaked.
"We're just trying to get to class, Jacobs," Scarlett said, all cool and trying to brush him off.
Christopher totally ignored Scarlett, his eyes still locked on Louisa. "You looked kinda… out of place at the Welcome Party, Wren. Don't you think? Wearing something that… well, let's just say it made some heads turn. Expensive heads."
He gave this fake-casual look. "That red thing you had on? Pretty unforgettable. Not exactly something you'd find at the mall, right?"
Louisa squeezed her backpack straps. "It was just a dress."
Christopher chuckled, a low, unpleasant sound. "Oh, but I think it was more than 'just a dress.' Some of us recognize quality, Wren. Rarity. That little number you were sporting… it had a certain 'je ne sais quoi'. Almost… impossibly so, for someone in your… position."
He leaned in, his voice dropping like he was sharing some huge secret, but loud enough for Ellie and Scarlett to hear. "Wouldn't you say it looked a little… out of your league?"
He stood up straight, looking all smug at the three of them. "Just saying, Wren. Sometimes, things aren't what they seem. And some of us have, like, a photographic memory for… unique stuff."
He paused, letting his words sink in, then stepped aside with this dramatic little move. "Have a totally awesome day."
As Christopher and his goons walked off, leaving this super awkward silence, Ellie grabbed Louisa's arm. "He knows! He totally clocked the dress!"
Scarlett's face was grim. "He's sharp. He probably knows the value and rarity of high-end fashion. The fact that Louisa was wearing it… it doesn't add up for him."
Louisa's brain was spinning. Christopher hadn't mentioned it being missing, but his implication was clear: she had no right to be wearing such an expensive item.
This shifted the threat from potential theft to the suspicion of something even more damaging – perhaps borrowing without permission, or even something worse in his twisted mind.
As Christopher delivered his pointed remarks, his voice, though lowered, carried in the sudden lull of hallway noise.
Other students, sensing the tension and the social clash, instinctively quieted down, their own conversations fading as they eavesdropped on the unfolding drama.
All eyes seemed to flick between the smug Christopher, the increasingly pale Louisa, and her protective friends.
When Christopher delivered his final, condescending "Have a totally awesome day," and sauntered off, a ripple of hushed whispers went through the crowd.
Someone near the back, a girl named Tiffany known for her lightning-fast gossip network, had heard enough. She immediately pulled out her phone, thumbs flying across the screen as she messaged her friends, a group notorious for their mid-class bathroom breaks and constant social media updates.
Tiffany's Message Group:
> OMG you guys won't BELIEVE what just happened in the main hall 😱
> Christopher totally cornered the scholarship girl, Louisa Wren!
> Was all shady about the red dress she wore to the party
> Saying it was way too expensive for her 😬
> Everyone was staring 👀
> Said she looked "out of her league" ☕🐸
Within minutes, Tiffany's message had spread like wildfire through the digital grapevine of Charterhouse. Screenshots were taken, interpretations varied, but the central gist – the scholarship girl and the expensive dress – was out.
Up in the relative quiet of his advanced calculus class, Jayden's phone vibrated discreetly in his pocket. He glanced down to see a barrage of messages in the group chat he reluctantly shared with some of the more socially plugged-in elite.
Chad: > Yo King, you see that drama downstairs? Jacobs going after the Wren girl about some dress? Said it was mega-bucks
Brittany: > Apparently everyone was staring! Jacobs was being such a tool 🙄 but kinda curious what he meant
Tiffany (forwarded): > [her original message]
Jayden's brow furrowed slightly. He remembered Christopher's pointed glance upwards yesterday, the "right audience" comment. Now it seemed Christopher was taking center stage. The mention of the expensive red dress piqued his interest even further, a flicker of recognition sparking in his mind.
Meanwhile, across campus in her AP Literature class, Cassia's phone also buzzed. She discreetly checked it under the desk.
Isabelle: > Girl, you won't believe the hallway gossip! Christopher just called out that scholarship newbie about some fancy red dress she wore. Said it was way too expensive for her! 😳
Cassia's blood ran cold. A fancy red dress? Her limited edition Louis Vuitton was a very specific shade of crimson. A sudden, unpleasant suspicion bloomed in her chest. Could it be…? She subtly messaged Isabelle back.
Cassia: > What exactly did he say? Anything specific about it?
The news of the hallway confrontation, fueled by Christopher's insinuations about the expensive red dress, had officially entered the Charterhouse gossip mill, reaching both the observer who knew the truth and the owner who was starting to suspect the impossible.