Cheating At Examination

As time ticked on, Brandon finished his full examination paper in less than 15 minutes, his usual speed. Meanwhile, Edward had only reached the first page by this point, discreetly transmitting a few answers to his friends via blank pads. Jamie and Liam seemed engrossed in writing, but they were actually busy copying answers onto their own papers. All three were careful enough to avoid detection by the patrolling teachers.

But thirty minutes into the examination, Edward sensed something amiss. In a fleeting moment when Brandon stretched to relax, Edward observed that Brandon had already reached the last page, which was filled with answers. It dawned on Edward that Brandon, the academic overload, had gone through the entire paper multiple times, ready to submit it at any moment.

This realization made Edward extremely nervous. He suddenly recalled that his agreement with Brandon did not specify the allotted time. What if Brandon assumed Edward could finish copying within his unusually short timeframe?

With these worries weighing on his mind, Edward, despite the pain in his feet, gently nudged the bottom of Brandon's chair as a subtle reminder.

Brandon sensed the reminder and instantly understood Edward's intention. However, he chose to feign ignorance and continued to scribble over his paper with apparent dedication.

Undeterred, Edward persisted with another silent kick, more urgently this time. Brandon finally reacted by leaning back in his chair, bringing himself physically closer to Edward.

Edward assumed Brandon's reaction was a signal to get ready, but after five minutes, Brandon remained unfazed.

Growing anxious, Edward cleared his throat softly in an attempt to catch Brandon's attention. After three increasingly louder attempts, a student nearby raised his hand to report.

"Please, Sir!" the student complained to the teacher with obvious annoyance. "That student keeps making noise and interrupting me. Can you tell him to quiet down?"

The teacher glanced at Edward, who avoided meeting their gaze. Without addressing Edward directly, the teacher replied to the student, "You need to learn to stay focused, rather than complain about your surroundings."

"But, Sir! He keeps clearing his throat. He may be sick and contagious!" the student insisted, growing more concerned.

The teacher became slightly alarmed at the suggestion. He consoled the student briefly before approaching Edward quietly. "Edward, are you alright? Someone says you are sick."

Startled, Edward looked up. "I'm totally fine. What's wrong?"

The teacher pursed his lips, saying awkwardly, "If you're not feeling well, you don't have to force yourself to continue. I remember you mentioning some pain in your feet?"

"I said, I'm fine!" Edward stressed, shooting an angry look at the teacher. Who did he think he was? Edward thought to himself, I'll tell my uncle to sack you!

The teacher seemed to sense Edward's frustration, and promptly backed off.

Edward had hoped that his stern message would deter the teacher from coming any closer, allowing him to discreetly urge Brandon for answers. However, the opposite occurred. Upon hearing the suggestion that Edward might be sick, the teacher showed an unprecedented level of concern for his well-being.

Despite maintaining physical distance, the teacher kept a vigilant eye on Edward, scrutinizing his every move. It seemed as though the teacher had convinced himself to be excessively cautious to ensure Edward didn't suddenly drop dead.

This heightened scrutiny made it incredibly challenging for Edward to proceed with his plan.

Brandon observed these subtle changes with a sense of amusement, realizing that Edward was growing increasingly anxious as time passed. Deliberately, Brandon made pretentious gestures such as stretching his legs, flipping through the paper, and shifting in his seat, even feigning as if he were about to leave.

Each of these actions made Edward feel even more unease. Caught between avoiding the teacher's gaze and seizing opportunities to copy answers from Brandon, Edward suddenly found himself with a lot left to write on the examination paper with only half an hour left until the end of the exam.

But the situation took a turn at this point. Brandon appeared to be dozing off, leaning on his right arm. In doing so, he inadvertently exposed his completed paper on the left corner of the table, fully visible to Edward.

Seizing the opportunity, Edward swiftly adjusted his glasses, maximizing their clarity, and with lightning speed, began to compare and copy answers from Brandon's paper. Jamie and Liam also received the transmitted answers, and in the final thirty minutes, they all became suddenly very busy.

Brandon, of course, noticed Edward's move, but he made no effort to stop it. Prior to this, he had intentionally rearranged the questions and answers to create a visual confusion. Under the pressure of time, Edward was too stressed to notice this deception. In his haste, he even replaced some of his correct answers with Brandon's, assuming they were more accurate.

Finally, the bell signaling the end of the exam rang. Edward managed to complete his last stroke just in time. With a confident sigh of relief, he handed in his paper to the teacher.

"Edward, if you want, I can accompany you to the school clinic," the teacher persisted, accepting the paper from him. It was a golden opportunity to curry favor with Professor Milton by showing kindness to his beloved nephew.

Edward was thoroughly irritated by this point. He crossed his arms, glaring down at the teacher and snapped, "Why do you keep insisting I'm sick? Are you trying to jinx me or something?"

"No, no, absolutely not!" the teacher stammered, turning pale and avoiding eye contact with Edward, unsure how to respond.

"Come on, Ed, let it go," Liam intervened, grabbing Edward and urging him to move away.

"I just don't understand what that jerk means!" Edward complained angrily as he and his buddies exited the classroom.

"Maybe he's nice to you because he respects your uncle," Liam suggested.

That notion instantly lifted Edward's spirits. He said proudly, chin held high, "That's very possible! Who wouldn't want to get close to my uncle!"

Except for that arrogant, self-obsessed Jason Marks! Edward's expression darkened at the thought. Marks always seemed to oppose his uncle at every turn, thinking he himself was better. "What a trouble!" Edward thought to himself, "I am going to ensure that Marks disappears from the campus once I get the interview opportunities with Walters."

-

Meanwhile, on the other side, Brandon toyed with the device that recorded everything Edward did during the examination, his mind filled with sneers and amusement. He briefly entertained the idea of sharing this with Sienna. Coupled with the videos they collected from the print office, they would surely strike a heavy blow against Edward Milton.

However, the thought of Sienna caused him to furrow his brow slightly. That mistaken breakfast... how on earth did that happen? As Brandon pondered this, heading towards the Lab, he spotted Sienna approaching from the same direction. To his utter surprise, she was still eating her breakfast - the exact same set from yesterday, the one he had assumed to be delivered to him this morning! 

A realization dawned on Brandon: Sienna hadn't mistaken or forgotten about the breakfast from yesterday. She had deliberately kept it for herself while giving him a new one against his request! Was this some sort of new game Sienna enjoyed playing after confessing her feelings to Brandon?

"Hi, how was the exam?" Sienna asked cheerfully, seeing Brandon on their shared routine.

Brandon couldn't comprehend how she could act as if nothing had happened. "No problem, as usual," he replied flatly.

"Good," Sienna replied, tossing away the breakfast trash. "Then we can work on that robot with full concentration. I have a new idea and want to test it."

So she wasn't going to mention anything about the breakfast? Fine! Brandon thought, Whatever!

Neither of them spoke as they entered the elevator and reached the Lab. However, upon arrival, they discovered that the Lab was already occupied, prompting them to halt.

"Didn't we book it already?" Sienna double-checked her phone to confirm the schedule.

"I didn't book it," Brandon admitted. He had been too focused on that text from "Sienna" to remember booking the lab. "I was preparing for the examination and forgot."

Sienna shot Brandon a skeptical look, doubting whether he even needed to make preparations.

"Me too," Sienna echoed, using the same excuse. Then, it dawned on her that they had never agreed to come to the lab at this time of day either.

So it was spontaneous from both sides, then.

"So..." Sienna attempted to inquire, "Did you also have an idea to test?"

Brandon realized he didn't have any new ideas for testing. In fact, he suddenly recalled that he had ended up in this routine because he had spotted Sienna outside just now and somehow ended up tagging along.

But he wasn't going to confess to this. Instead, he simply nodded. "Of course."

"Then let's ask if the occupant can spare us some time," Sienna suggested, knocking at the door politely.

After what felt like half a minute, the lock twisted, and the door opened just a crack, not fully.

"Excuse me, we are..." Sienna began, feeling a little taken aback when she saw who was peering out from the crack.

It was a pair of dark eyes on a face with tanned skin, the darkness of the eyes occupied very little space of the whole eyeballs, contrasting sharply against the whiteness.

It appeared like a small bead as it rolled around.

After a brief moment of calming herself down, Sienna remembered that there was only one person on campus who had this unique physical composition.