The pen in the front row clattered to the floor the moment the words left my mouth. The classroom went dead silent.
“Elodie, are you out of your mind?!” Renee screamed, furious enough to chew me up and spit me out.
Meanwhile, the professor trembled, fumbling for his phone. “You’re slandering a faculty member in public. Do you know how disrespectful that is? I’m calling the police.”
“Go ahead. Call them.” I smiled faintly and answered before he could press the dial. “Maybe they can look into the bribe you took for stealing my article and claiming credit. And while they’re at it, they can check the rumors about me, the nude photos and ‘special job’ stories, so people stop throwing dirt at me.”
The professor’s face showed a flicker of guilt, and he didn’t push the button in the end.
Amid the murmurs of everyone watching, I quietly gathered my things and stood. “My work is mine and mine alone.”
The red paint on my clothes had dried into a sticky, foul-smelling mess. It was unbearable, so I headed straight back to the dorm to shower.
But halfway through washing, I glanced up and froze as I saw a tiny red light blinking from the vent above the shower. It was a miniature camera.