Ice and Fire novel Chapter 606

"Dan Huo? Wait, isn't that the kid whose dad is in the real estate business?" Mike asked. Even though Dan Huo wasn't his classmate, Mike knew him. He had heard that Dan Huo was bossy.

"Yes, his dad is," answered Jason, adding,"When I saw them chatting, Rebecca looked uneasy."

Lawrence stayed silent throughout their conversation. He hadn't heard any rumors about the event or about Dan Huo.

"Actually Lawrence..." Ben started nervously and abruptly stopped to compose himself before he continued in an even tone,"When we started our first year of middle school, a friend told me Dan was pursuing Rebecca, but she rejected him. No one brings it up. You didn't meet or even talk to Rebecca until third year, so, I guess you don't know much about her life before then, do you?"

All the boys, including Mike, fell into silence. Mike sat very still, lost into speculation, 'I know everything there is to know about Lawrence. Since we've attended middle school, he's gotten love letters daily. He never read any of those letters or talked to the girls in the class. In the third year, while he was on duty though, he accidentally got Rebecca's white sneakers dirty. They started talking then and became friends. Since they've been friends for a long time, Lawrence should know something. Except he didn't know about Rebecca's past.'

"What else do you know about her past?" Lawrence asked abruptly.

The other three boys stared at one another, not sure how to start.

"If you consider me your friend, tell me everything you know!" ordered Lawrence while he reasoned silently, 'It doesn't matter what else they tell me. I'm already pretty pissed off.'

Mike knew he had to tell Lawrence what he learned about Rebecca. But, he wanted the others to talk first.

"Okay, tell what you know," Mike told the other boys.

"Well, I heard when Rebecca was a freshman she spent a lot of time with a boy that was in his second year. She would go over to his place and let him help her with her studies every weekend. I don't know what else they did at that fellow's house," Jason shared, as he glanced at Lawrence before he went on,"When we started the second year, there was a rumor that his parents learned about his relationship with Rebecca and transferred him to another school."

Ben jumped in with,"Some girls told me Rebecca lived in poverty, and she needed money, so..." He knew that Lawrence had been nice to Rebecca, but he didn't know that Lawrence had given her money. "Perhaps, she agreed to date him for money," he added.

"Impossible! Our school is the most exclusive one in the city! If she were poor, how would she be able to afford the tuition fee? It's easy getting into other middle schools. But, only a few high-born or wealthy kids can afford our school. Children from ordinary families don't stand a chance getting in here," one of the boys retorted.

"There's one thing you don't know though. Rebecca doesn't have a father," another boy broke in,"Well, technically, it would be that she doesn't know who her father is, I guess."

With that bit of information, the boys knew Rebecca's true colors.

It was as if Lawrence had been walloped in the gut. Sitting there, he contemplated what he knew, 'Rebecca always struck me as such an innocent girl though. Her long curved eyelashes, the way her eyes narrow into a line and two little dimples appear on her cheeks all make her look so lovely when she smiles.'

"Then, she must have some sort of connection so she could attend our school," Ben deduced.

"I agree. I've heard the gossip, that some girls are attending this school who are not highborn ladies, and struggled to get in. They just want to know some rich or influential friends who might be helpful to their life in the future," acknowledged Jason as he nodded.