Chapter 5
“Mia, I know you don’t like me, but I stayed up several nights to create this design. It’s clearly my work. Even if you’re Jacob’s sister, I won’t give it to you.”
My tone was playful as I smiled faintly. “Oh! So, you stayed up several nights to make this, huh?”
Catherine turned to Jacob, looking at him like he was her last hope.
“Jacob, you saw me design this piece from start to finish. Can’t you help me out and say something?”
Jacob glanced at me with a cold, indifferent look.
“Mia, you really did wrong this time.”
“It’s no wonder you’ve never liked Catherine. Yet just the other day, you insisted I take you to see her.”
“I thought you’d finally accepted her, but I
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didn’t expect you to pull a stunt like this.”
As soon as he said that, he directly accused me of plagiarism.
I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms, but I didn’t feel the pain. Rage surged through me, making me lose control.
I laughed bitterly. “I guess I was wrong.”
The whispers and pointing of those around me were deafening.
“Who would’ve thought? She looks decent enough, but she’s actually this kind of person.”
“Plagiarism? Seriously? I heard she grew up on the Yale Family’s charity–no parents, no family. No wonder she’d stoop so low.”
“Honestly, why bother with her? Someone so ungrateful should just disappear.”
My face grew paler and paler. I didn’t plagiarize. I haven’t stepped outside for days and Jacob must know that. Yet, he was
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จ 78
defending Catherine. It seemed they were deeply in love.
A cold laugh echoed in my mind.
I owed a lot to the Yale Family for raising
- me.
But this was my chance.
If they were going to be heartless, they couldn’t blame me for doing the same.
The crowd took my silence as guilt and started condemning me even louder.
I met Jacob’s gaze. Every emotion I’d been bottling up now laid bare. “Do you think I stole her work?”
Jacob hesitated. “Mia, just apologize to Catherine and let’s put this behind us.”
He wanted me to take the fall? Fat chance.
Jacob used to be fair and just, but now he had become like this for Catherine. He
wasn’t the bright and honest boy I fell in love with anymore. So, all those years of
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feelings were wasted.
I pulled out a piece of paper and unfolded it for everyone.
“Everyone’s been saying I’m the one who plagiarized, right? Let me show you the
truth.”
On the paper, the ring was drawn in vivid
detail.
Compared to Catherine’s sketch, this was infinitely more refined.
Catherine’s face turned pale as she refused to listen to any explanation. “I drew this ring in a hurry, so it’s naturally not refined.”
I knew she would say that.
I pointed to an intricate design on the drawing. “Miss Catherine might not be aware, but the most delicate part of this ring is right here.”
The screen slid, revealing a tiny, custom- designed space on the innermost part of the ring.
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“This little space symbolizes that no matter
how much you love a man, you must preserve your own personal space.”
“Only you will always belong to yourself. Don’t lose yourself because of a man.”
The entire room fell silent. Only the sound of people breathing could be heard.
After a long pause, a wave of applause erupted.
I pulled up the security footage before reacting to that.
Catherine had sneaked into my room and stolen the design draft from my desk. Little did she know, that was just a rough draft.
I always make a habit of having both a rough and a final draft and I always keep the final draft on me.
I knew the day would come when a designer faced plagiarism. That’s why I recorded the entire design process.
When the video ended, I looked at the two
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people in front of me with utter contempt
and walked out.
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