CHAPTER 17: The Apology.

With his mobile phone swinging in his hand, Chen ran excitedly into the classroom, brushing Mae with his buttocks to the side as he sat with her. "Hey bestie, guess what?" he said eagerly, with his face lit up.

Mae turned to look at Liang focused on his geography book. She then bent Chen's head slightly and whispered into his ears. "Did you not see my text? Where have you been?" she turned narrowly to look if Liang was paying attention to them.

"What text? Oh wait let me check". He swiped through his phone. "Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Sorry I totally skipped this. Who told you that you smell different today? Is it that same boy you talked about?".

Mae rushed to cover his mouth with her palm "Shh... You are too loud."

"Oh sorry" Chen lowered his voice.

She whispers "Yes. It is the same boy. Don't say it out loud next time. People may think I'm dating. I'm very much single. These dudes be tripping since morning" Mae blushed.

"And who are you to thank? Mm? Mm?" Chen teased, poking her with his arm.

"Stop.. It's you of course. My very own master" Mae bowed with a smile.

"Master? Is this human her master? But why of all people? He's too loud, clumsy, extremely annoying and flocks around people all the time." Liang cringed as he eavesdropped on their conversation.

"So what is it you wanted to tell me?" Mae drifted Chen back to the initial subject.

"Ouu... You won't believe it bestie, You are trending!" Chen let out a wide smile.

"Urgh. I've always been the talk of the school. Please let's talk about something else" Mae rolled her eyes and flicked her tongue.

"No, no honey. People are talking about you in a good way. Look here..." Chen brought out his phone and smacked his lips. He entered the school's group chat scrolling to show Mae that she's the trending topic. They read comments together as they both looked into the phone screen.

@Quincy29: [I never noticed we have a beauty goddess in our school. Does anyone have her contact?]

@Juan123: [Mae Li is the new fashion police. I love her style and I hope we get more of these every day. I couldn't help but take numerous photos of her in the hallway. For any of you that had missed out on the show this morning, here are some images *Photos*]

"Wow, I look good in this picture. I almost did not recognize myself" Mae chuckled. "We should save this Chen" she said.

"Alright. Done" Chen said, and scrolled down to see more comments.

@Chacha57: [That chic was so hot, I practically cum in my pants]

"Woosh! What a perv" Chen smacked his lips.

@Moon_walker: [The mayor's daughter is full of herself. We should make Mae Li the new face of JM Memorial High]

"Oh no, oh no no no. This isn't what I wanted. I can't stand so much attention" Mae's eyes dilated as she had a chill in her bones. She felt good but kind of nervous.

"You should get used to the fame Bebe". Chen chortled.

The phone kept on chiming and they got glued to the screen again.

@Chang101: [Is the beauty goddess single? I wouldn't mind to dating both her boyfriend and her.]

"Hahaha" Chen and Mae laughed out loud.

"Now this one is hilarious" Chen added, letting out the last chuckle.

@Favoritegurl99: [Was it not just yesterday she was accused of theft? Poor girl. I am glad Jade Qing made that apology video, else we would have removed her as captain of the cheerleading squad]

"Hold on a second" Mae covered the phone screen with her palm, turning to Chen in shock "Did Jade really apologize?" she whispered to Chen.

"Yes. Don't tell me you haven't seen the video. I heard rumors that her mom came to school today." Chen said in a low tone.

"Was that why she was called to the principal's office? First it was Gina then her. I need the whole story, what happened?" Mae eagerly pulled Chen closer, making eye contact with him.

"Whoa! Whoa! Easy there fella. I don't know much about the situation" he unwrapped her fingers in his collar. "I heard her mom walked out of the school pissed. Something must have prompted Jade to render an apology that easily. Do you want me to play the video or you rather have me talk about it?" He asked.

"Yes, yes. Of course, play the video" Mae said.

Chen searched for the apology video, giving one piece of his airpod to Mae as he clicked on play, with the other piece in his ear;

["Dear friends... Ahem!" She cleared her throat and started all over, sitting upright as she reads the paper in Gina's hand behind the screen, with the other girl streaming her live]

[Jade continued "Dear friends, family, and fans, I am making this video pertaining to what had transpired between my beloved friend, Mae Li and I, Jade Qing, the daughter of our honorable mayor. She is my classmate, a friend dear to me that I love so much...."]

["That is true" Lisa added, flashing the camera at her face and then pointing it back to Jade Qing]

[I have wronged my dearest friend and this must have caused my family... trouble, my friends... pain, and most of all, it has ruined my prominence to my beloved fans. Please don't castigate my father for my juvenile act. I am deeply sorry I acted out of character." She sobs, blowing hard on her handkerchief. Then she continued in a trembling voice "I-I wouldn't wish for what hap-happened to Mae to hap-happen to my enemies. Please forgive me Mae Li. I accused you without evidence. The bracelet wasn't stolen but fell out of my wrist that day. I later found it on the school premises." she held up her wrist, showcasing the bracelet on camera]

Chen's pupils dilated in confusion. "What? Did she get a new one? I am quite certain I sold out that bracelet online. It was the last collection. Was she the person that bought it from me? Hell no! I hope I didn't leave a trace of my identity" his mind troubled.

Turning to Mae, he said "I gotta go now" he took his phone and hurriedly got up from his seat.

"Where are you going to?" Mae asked in curiosity.

"I um, I have to go number two!" he said to her, dangling his legs in his pants.

"Gross!" she covered her nose and allowed him to run out of the classroom.

Mae took out her phone to continue watching the video;

["Mae darling, If you are watching this, I beg of you to forgive me and come to my birthday party this Saturday. I have saved the best seat for you. Guys, her name is included on the VIP guest list." she paused and smiled, then continue "You know the funniest thing about this video? I have already apologized to Mae in private. We are good friends again. You should see how she looked stunning today in her new uniform. Her beauty is impeccable. Subscribe to my YouTube channel if you want to meet up with the trend. Muah!"]

Mae paused the video, dumbfounded. She turned briskly to her side "Chen, did you see how this jerk is taking credit for what you did?" when she realized Chen wasn't there but Liang, she said "Oh, sorry. My bad..."

Meanwhile, Chen had gone to the restroom, scrolling through his phone to identify the issue at hand. He lets out a sigh of relief when he saw that he had accepted payment from Jade through his BTC address.

Mae faced front and clicked on play again ["...And everyone else watching this, you are all invited to my birthday bash. It's hot 18! No parents zone. Details would be posted later, the venue changed. There would be abundant supply of food and drinks for the entire weekend. Come dressed and look less of a zombie" She winked at the camera and the video cuts]

Mae rolled her eyes "Look less of a zombie? I thought you were being real and wanted us to be friends. You just had to ruin it at the end. Typical of you. Sigh." Mae said to herself, slapping her palm on her forehead.

Backstage, Jade got up from her chair, packing her hair in a ponytail she asked Lisa "How did I do?"

"You were impeccable honey. Muah! Superb! With a sprinkle of tears spicing up the video, I can bet people would completely buy it" Lisa giggled.

"How many views? Did it reach out to many?" Jade was curious.

"698 thousand four hundred and... 698 thousand six hundred... 799 thousand two hundred... It's still counting" Lisa responded with her lips quirked out.

"Great." Jade smirked, nodding to herself as she thought of her crooked plan.