CHAD'S POV

I was on a mission to find Courtney and talk to her, to finally get to the bottom of all this. Now that I have gotten the truth from her ex-boyfriend, I couldn't help but feel guilty for not really listening to what she tried to tell me for the past few days.

I felt bad for not really understanding what she had been going through and for not being there for her when she needed me the most. And to make things worse, for not believing her and assuming that she was lying to me again.

There were numerous times that she attempted to explain things to me, but I brushed her off. I put the wall too high that even I lost sight of what was really happening. I just wish I had listened to her and heard her out. I wish I had been more open to the possibility that, at that moment, she was telling the truth.

But I shouldn't dwell on what I could have done differently.

Instead, I should focus on what I can do now to make things right and to make her realize that none of her secrets would change how I think of her, or how I feel about her.

I still care deeply for her.

Unfortunately, my mission was put on hold when Mr. Duval, the principal, asked me to meet him in his office. I honestly had no idea why he wanted to see me. Maybe it's about the school play or something, I wasn't sure.

"Mr. Treyson. Come in and sit." Mr. Duval said after I greeted him.

I sat down and waited for him to talk. He smiled and said, "I want to congratulate you. I heard about your Stanford scholarship. Impressive as always."

"Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Duval." I said, then I waited for him to say more. I wasn't sure, but I had an inkling feeling that he called me to tell me something more than just congratulating me.

He tapped his fingers on the desk, and then cleared his throat before speaking. "Also, I want to tell you how much I admire your outstanding performance as our Student Assistant this year. I want to write you a letter of recommendation, but I don't think you need it as you already have your acceptance letter from your college of choice."

Mr. Duval stood up and walked over to the window, watching the students walk across the courtyard. "Filling out that position was quite a challenge and difficult. It can make, or break a student. You are dealing with a heavy responsibility and often times you will be tempted to do what is easy instead of what is right. You know what I mean, right?"

"Yes," I answered. I perfectly knew that he was only talking about one thing--the ease and accessibility of school materials that could make anyone take the easy route.

"That's why we always get the best students--those who are already academically gifted and accomplished. Ones who wouldn't dare to cheat. But, sadly, last year's SA was accused of stealing the finals exam papers. He claimed that he just did it because a certain student asked him to do it."

I flinched when he mentioned about the certain student because I knew who he was referring to. Good thing he wasn't looking my way. He was too busy looking out the window to notice my reaction.

"He kept on insisting that he was promised to be her boyfriend in exchange for the exam papers. During that time, it seemed so absurd. Like, who would put their hard-works and even scholarship on the line for petty stuff like that, right?"

Mr Duval turned around with a sad look on his face. "No one believed him. There was no proof of his claim, so he was the only one who got suspended. As you know, suspensions will remain on your record forever. And apparently, this has made a huge impact on his scholarship."

He started pacing back and forth, and all I could do was sit there and listen.

This is Courtney's secret and hearing the whole story from Mr. Duval hit differently.

I was feeling bad for what had happened to Jeremy. I couldn't imagine what he was going through at that moment.

I guess Courtney thought that if this secret came out, Jeremy and I would have the same fate. Like I would be dragged into this as well and it could make a huge impact on my scholarship, too. That this could ruin me.

That's why she did what she had to do--lied to me and said those words so I would distance myself from her. To protect me.

"Not until awhile ago, this student came forward and admitted the truth about what really happened."

What?

"Courtney Collins confessed that she made Jeremy steal the exam papers for her. In fact, she felt a deep sense of guilt and remorse for her actions. She told me she didn't deserve to be in senior year and decided to..." Mr. Duval stopped, but even on that cliffhanger of a pause, I knew what came next and I was afraid to be right about it.

No.

"She decided to drop out of school and pay the price for her mistakes." Mr. Duval's voice was filled with emotion, like he was disappointed and sympathetic at the same time.

"Did you let her?" I couldn't help but ask. "I mean, yeah given that she cheated, and there's no plausible excuse for that. I know that it is wrong on so many levels, but I still think she deserves a second chance. Everyone makes mistakes. I don't condone her actions, but..."

"I was actually hoping you would say that," Mr. Duval said, cutting me off. "I actually thought of the same thing. I gave Jeremy a second chance, so why shouldn't Courtney?"

Jeremy had a second chance?

Mr. Duval explained that what happened with Jeremy was only a suspension, and not really an expulsion so he could still come back and finish the school year.

But Jeremy insisted that it would still reflect on his permanent record and could ruin his life. And even though Mr. Duval was forgiving, he tried to explain to Jeremy that he couldn't just overlook this instance because stealing is stealing regardless of whether someone told him or not--which I agreed with.

"I even assured him that no one else knew what happened so he shouldn't be feeling ashamed about it, but he got the impression that the reason we were trying to hide this fact was because of the library that was being built at that time--the one Courtney's dad donated. He didn't know it had been a plan for years. In the end, Jeremy decided to drop out and didn't want to do anything related to Courtney or the school anymore."

There was silence as I tried to think of something to say. "She has changed." I finally found the right words. "Courtney. She's not like that anymore. She's been studying and working hard to graduate."

Mr. Duval sat down and leaned his elbow on the arm of the chair, his chin resting on his knuckles. "She told me that she tried to do the same with you, steal the exam papers. But you didn't give in. Instead, you offered to tutor her."

"Yes. And her grades have improved a lot," I said. "She has changed, Mr. Duval. I can attest to that." I added with conviction, determined to defend her. "In fact, I even tried to give her the copy of the exam papers, but she never used it. I believe in her a lot that I'm so sure she didn't even glance at it."

"I am a believer of change and second chances Mr. Treyson. And even though you tell me this, I'm not sure how I'll persuade Miss Collins to return and finish the school year. When she came this morning, she sounded so sure of her decision to quit."

I looked down, trying to think of a way as to how I could convince her to come back and finish what she started.

Yes, what she did, owning up to her mistakes, was brave and admirable. But I know she also did this because she was fed up of people holding this not just against her, but for me as well.

You're fighting another battle for me?

Well, this time, we'll fight together.

I looked up and gave Mr. Duval the most determined look I could muster. I was ready to do whatever it took to get this done.

"I'll do my best to help," I said determinedly.

-END OF CHAPTER 62-

A/N: YEAH! What do you think is his plan? He said he would tutor her from the previous chapter, is this his version of help?

Mr. Duval and Chad are teaming up to bring back Courtney! But, do you think she deserves to graduate? Share your thoughts!

Are you ready to say goodbye to this story? Ohhh few more chaps before the end! You can read the finish version of SILWAG on my Patreon account: notjustarandomgirl.

Also: I received a lot of pre-orders email from you guys! I'm trying to respond one-by-one but I really want to give the full details. I had a problem with editing as I need to find a new editor for this. But will keep up all updated. Aiming to printout the book early next year. Anyway, thank you!