Even Matthew, who had never been fully supportive of me, stood up.


    "Mr. Parker, isn''t it a bit hasty to publicly announce this without any evidence?" he questioned. "What if it really wasn''t William? How will youpensate for the emotional damage you caused him?"


    To my surprise, three of my friends stood up to support me. My shock and panic instantly eased.


    It seemed that pretending to be poor had actually paid off in the end. These three guys would be my best friends for life.


    Louis was livid. He shouted, "You''re still defending him? Does this even need proof? He''s a poor loser who''s been pretending to be rich since school started, acting like a trust-fund kid while he''s always been broke!"


    He continued, "He took Felicia shopping and spent 15 thousand dors on clothes. Then, he donated 70 thousand dors. Tell me, if he didn''t steal the money, where did ite from?"


    Matthew and the others fell silent.


    The others chimed in, eagerly agreeing. "Exactly! Where did his moneye from? Let him admit it!"


    "Speak up, William! Are you mute now? Where did you get the money?"


    "You''re worse than Felicia, you coward!"


    The sound of a chair crashing to the ground broke through the tension as I stood up.


    Instantly, the entire room went quiet.


    I turned around and slowly scanned the room.


    Today, I wasn''t just standing up for myself-I was doing it for my three friends too.


    "Where my moneyes from is none of your concern," I said firmly. "I''m leaving my phone right here. Anyone, including you, Mr. Parker, is wee to press the call button and report me for theft. Once the police arrive, I''ll cooperate fully with their investigation."


    I paused, letting my words sink in. "I won''t call the police myself because I didn''t take anything. However, if anyone chooses to report me, be ready to take responsibility for your ims. We''ll resolve this face-to-face. You use me of theft, and I''ll charge you with defamation."


    Leaning forward, I added sharply, "Theft could mean ten years in prison, but serious defamation can result in over three years. Go ahead, try me."


    I mmed my hand on the desk with a loud thud, my eyes sweeping across the room as I red at the silent crowd.


    Today, I would not reveal my identity. I would clear my name through my own actions.


    At my outburst, those who had been shouting at me just moments before suddenly fell silent.


    Clearly, none of them were certain it was me. They feared being held responsible if I was proven innocent, but they had no problem using me earlier.


    My face burned with anger, and my clenched fist was trembling.


    "What''s wrong? Why are you all silent now?" I shouted. "Louis! Weren''t you so confident just now? Weren''t you sure it was me? Why don''t you dare call the police? Go ahead, do it!"


    Louis'' face was a strange mix of pale and red. He red at me but dared not speak.


    I turned to Zack. "Zack, are you too scared to speak up now? I''m going to take you all down today. Just so you know, I recorded everything you said on my phone. Even if you don''t report me to the police, I''ll take this to the authorities. You won''t escape this malicious defamation!"


    Zack''s forehead was dripping with sweat. He clearly hadn''t expected things to escte this quickly.


    Tom''s face had turned dark. "William, what are you doing? The school lost money, so it''s only natural that we''d look into suspicious individuals—"


    "Mr. Parker," I interrupted sharply.