"Thirty thousand?"
Hearing this, Charlotte's face drained of color.
Not only did she have no way of coming up with that kind of money, even if she could, this was outright extortion.
"I didn't mean to hit Rocky! I was trying to stop him from hurting the little kids! I didn't do it on purpose!" Christopher shouted back, brimming with indignation.
He had every reason to be upset. Rocky Leeroy, emboldened by his wealthy and influential family, had connections with local businessmen and school sponsors and did whatever he pleased. Usually, Christopher could ignore him bullying others, but what made Rocky unbearable was how he preyed on children not even of school age.
Christopher had noticed that Rocky was always surrounded by five or six little boys and girls who had to give him "tribute" regularly. No one knew where the kids got the money or snacks, but they had to hand it over every day. If Rocky wasn't satisfied, he would punish them outside of school.
Christopher had endured it several times. Only this time, Rocky hit him after Christopher glanced at him, and even insulted his family. Seeing Rocky strike a little girl enraged Christopher further; in a burst of anger, he had hit her, cutting her lip.
Christopher's blood boiled. His head spun. And when he saw a small brick on the ground, he acted without thinking—swinging from behind and striking Rocky's head.
Afterwards, Christopher regretted losing his temper—and dragging Charlotte into it.
His sister had already told him to focus on school and get through this rough period no matter what happened.
Hearing this, Charlotte immediately understood the context. But the context didn't matter; even the teacher's eyes were shifting nervously, afraid of the Leeroy family's wrath.


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