Chapter 39 - No Reply
Leo pushed him away, deadpan. "Thanks, but I'm good."
Luna never imagined someone could get kicked out of a class gathering halfway through a meal.
She was learning something new today.
She had someone book the private room right next to Chloe's class and ordered every signature dish on the menu, telling Ryder, "Eat whatever you want. As much as you want. Order more if it's not enough."
Ryder was overwhelmed, nodding quickly.
By the time the food arrived, the party next door was almost over.
The manager came over with a menu, smiling as she sidled up to Chloe. "Miss Sinclair, how was the meal?"
The room went quiet at her arrival.
Chloe adjusted her earrings and smiled graciously. "Wonderful. Same as always, delicious."
"Glad to hear it." The manager smiled and held out the bill. "Miss Sinclair, take a look. Make sure there's no mistake."
Chloe nodded, feigning calm.
She picked up the bill and glanced at it.
Nearly ninety thousand dollars.
She looked at it briefly and smiled. "No problem."
"Great." The manager said, "Enjoy the rest of your meal. Call us if you need anything."
"Will do." Chloe fixed her hair again.
After the manager left, Mia leaned in, looked at the bill, and gasped. "That's so expensive."
A girl at the next table couldn't help asking, "How much?"
Mia glanced at Chloe, who was sipping her soup with her head down, expression unchanged.
So it was okay to say.
She announced loudly, "Over ninety thousand."
"What?!"
The words hit like cold water in a pot of hot oil, sizzling and popping.
Most Lincoln High students came from ordinary families, many from the surrounding rundown neighborhoods or from out of town. They weren't well off.
Ninety thousand dollars was pure fantasy to these kids.
"Chloe, you're too good to us. We're really lucky."
"Right, Chloe. If it weren't for you, I'd only ever see a restaurant like this in short videos."
"You're all too kind." Chloe smiled. "Don't thank me. Thank my boyfriend. It was his idea to treat everyone."
"Yes yes yes. Chloe, make sure you pass along our thanks."
"Exactly. Don't ever let go of a guy like that."
Amid the flood of flattery, Chloe lowered her head, picked up her phone, and messaged her pinned Top Donor.
SleepyCeCe: [Babe, we're almost done.]
Top Donor: [Sweetie, did you get enough to eat?]
SleepyCeCe: [I'm full.]
Top Donor: [Good. My flight lands in New York tomorrow. We'll finally meet.]
SleepyCeCe: [Can't wait to see you.]
Top Donor: [Me neither.]
Chloe chatted with him for a bit. When he didn't bring up the bill on his own, she bit her lip and dropped a hint herself.
SleepyCeCe: [The waiter just brought the bill.]
Top Donor: [How much? I've got it.]
Chloe's lips curved into a genuine smile.
SleepyCeCe: [Hold on, let me send it over.]
Top Donor: [Okay.]
Chloe snapped a photo of the bill and sent it right away.
Top Donor didn't reply.
She figured he got busy and would get back to her. She didn't think much of it and started chatting with the classmates at the table.
Until every plate was empty and people started getting ready to leave.
Chloe checked her phone. Top Donor still hadn't replied.
A little panic crept in.
"Chloe, we're heading out?" The next table was already gathering their things.
Chloe's heart was racing, but she forced a smile. "Okay, bye."
"Bye, Chloe."
"Chloe, that meal was amazing. You really went all out."
Everyone filed out.
About ten minutes.
The private room, lively moments ago, was now empty and cold. Just Chloe and Mia left.
Mia sipped her tea. A nice restaurant really was different. Even the tea was better than anything she'd had before.
Chloe kept her head down, frantically messaging Top Donor.
SleepyCeCe: [Babe.]
SleepyCeCe: [Babe, why are you ignoring me?]
SleepyCeCe: [Babe!]
SleepyCeCe: [Babe babe!]
Chloe sent nearly twenty messages.
Not one reply. The chat was all green.
"..."
Chloe's heart sank to the bottom.
"Chloe."
Mia nudged Chloe's arm, beaming. "This tea is so good—"
"Get lost!"
Mia was mid-sentence when Chloe suddenly shoved her arm away, hard. Caught off guard, Mia tipped sideways, and the full cup of hot tea spilled straight onto herself.
Mia yelped and scrambled to her feet.
She was wearing a thin white dress today. The yellowish tea soaked through, staining it, the warm liquid clinging to her skin through the fabric.
"Chloe, what is wrong with you?"
Mia demanded, furious.
What she didn't know was that Chloe was even angrier.
"What am I doing?" Chloe glared back, unyielding. "I should be asking what you're doing. Can't you see I'm busy?"
"Your grades are nothing, and you've got no ambition. You just drift day to day. I'm not like you. I have goals. I'm very busy. So do me a favor and don't waste my time with nonsense."
Mia was humiliated by those two sentences. Tears welled in her eyes.
She was furious. She wanted to snap back.
You think you're so great?
You think everyone actually likes you?
You think you're loved by everyone?
But the words stuck in her throat.
Because Mia knew Chloe was petty and held grudges. She couldn't take hearing anything unpleasant.
If she said those things, Chloe would never talk to her again.
Staying close to Chloe came with a lot of perks. Makeup Chloe didn't want. Gifts boys gave Chloe that she had no interest in, eventually passed to Mia.
...
Mia took a deep breath and swallowed it.
She sat there, crying silently, feeling wronged.
And Chloe wasn't doing any better.
She was about to cry herself.
Top Donor still hadn't replied. After this long, no matter how much Chloe lied to herself, she had to consider she might've been scammed.
Maybe that man wasn't a trust fund kid at all.
Would she have to pay the ninety thousand out of her own pocket?
She'd saved for ages. Her bank account only had a hundred thousand in it.
This would nearly wipe out months of savings.
"Knock knock..."
Someone knocked on the door.
Chloe's head snapped around.
It was the manager from earlier, wearing a smile. "Miss Sinclair..."
Chloe couldn't keep up the smile anymore. "We're not done yet."
"Of course." The manager's smile didn't change. She shut the door, and only then did the smile drop.
She told the waiter beside her, "Keep an eye on this room."
The waiter nodded quickly. "Yes."
After the manager left, silence fell over the room again.
Mia felt awkward. She glanced at Chloe, who had her head down, typing.
"..."
Mia hesitated, then decided to smooth things over. "Chloe, aren't we leaving?"
Chloe bit her lip, staring at the chat with no reply, drowning in despair.
Just when she thought she was about to bleed money, another person surfaced in her mind.