Treatment 174_Badass in Disguise

Chapter 174

 :

 97

 Jade’s POV:

 Rain pattered against the windows of Princeton’s ssroom, creating a soothing background rhythm as I read a book. The campus looked almost ethereal through the rain–streaked ss, gothic architecture softened by mist and

 water.

 It had been a rtively peaceful week. No Sullivan family members showing up at my door, no emotional grandmothers falling to their knees in my living room. Just sses, research, and the asional text from Max. Normal, if anything in my second life could be called that.

 My phone vibrated. Chase had sent a link to the university’s Reddit forum with an rming message:

 Jade, you need to see this NOW.

 I clicked the link, and my eyebrows rose slightly at the thread title: [EXPOSED] Jade Morgan’s stic Surgery and Weight Loss Journey. The post had over two thousand upvotes and hundreds ofments.

 The original post contained several photos–old ones from my high school days when my current body was

 significantly overweight, paired with recent images. The caption read: “From nobody to campus queen. How much did. those surgeries cost? Sugar daddy funding?”

 I scrolled through thements, mildly interested in the social dynamics at y.

 “Wait, THIS is the genius everyone’s talking about? She used to look like THAT?” 

 “No way those grades improved naturally. Something’s fishy.”

 “Didn’t she used to have a crush on Orion Miller? I heard she sent him love letters Imao”

 Some more reasonable voices had chimed in:

 “These photos look doctored. The lighting is all wrong.”

 “Who cares if she lost weight? That takes dedication, not stic surgery.”

 “Saw her at the Cloud City High School </ist year. She was heavier then but had the same facial features.” 

 Before I could finish reading, Chase slid into the seat next to me, face flushed with anger.

 “Have you seen this shit?” he hissed, pointing at his phone. “Someone’s trying to trash your reputation. The forum moderators can’t even delete the post–it’s like someone nted a virus in it.”

 I shrugged. “It’s just inte gossip.”

 8:16 Thu, Sep 25 

 “It gets worse,” Chase said grimly, showing me another thread titled: Jade Morgan: Princeton’s Kept Woman? 

 This one imed I’d been seen exiting a ck Maybach with the license te “NY001“. Comments spected wildly about my supposed rtionship with a “wealthy benefactor.”

 “If she wants a sugar daddy, why not just date Chase Astor? His family’s loaded.”

 “Chris Jensen is her <iwyer. That guy only represents legitimate clients.”

 “I saw her getting out of that car. The guy inside looked older. MUCH older.”

 Chase ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “This is spreading everywhere. It’s all over the neighboring schools‘ forums too. Look at the ount creation dates–these are all new ounts posting the most vicious stuff. This is

 coordinated.”

 “Interesting,” I murmured, more intrigued by the technical aspects than the content.

 Across the lecture hall, I noticed Aurelia Sullivan staring at her phone, her expression morphing from shock to disgust. She stood abruptly, addressing her circle of friends.

 “That’s enough,” she said loudly. “What gives any of you the right to talk about someone like this? There’s not a shred of evidence.”

 Her friends looked at her in confusion as she gathered her books and stormed out, the door mming behind her.

 “What’s her problem?” Chase wondered. “Isn’t she a Sullivan? I thought they were your enemies or something.”

 My phone pinged with notifications as a new post appeared on the forum. It was from Orion Miller, the economic department’s golden boy.

 “I’ve known Jade Morgan since high school. She never sent me love letters–that’spletely fabricated. Yes, she was heavier back then, but she lost weight through exercise, not surgery. I’ve watched her transformation over time. Stop spreading lies about someone you don’t know.”

 “Well, at least someone’s defending you,” Chase said, peering over my shoulder.

 I closed the app and packed my books. “Let’s go. I have ss in ten minutes.”

 Chase escorted me through the hallway, his face darkening as he noticed the stares and whispers following us.

 “Goddamn it,” he muttered. “Which asshole is so bored they had to spread this garbage on the forums?”

 “Does it matter?” I asked calmly,

 “You’ve been ndered all over campus! They’re saying you slept your way to the top, got stic surgery, faked your intelligence–and you’re not even mad?”

 8:16 Thu, Sep 25

 “Is getting mad going to fix anything?”

 :>))

 Chase stopped walking, staring at me with disbelief. “They’re destroying your reputation! You worked hard to get here. We should go to President Thornton’s office right now.”

 To do what? Have him make an announcement over the PA system?” I raised an eyebrow.

 97 

 Chase turned to his friends trailing behind us. “Didn’t I tell you to find some tech people to handle this? Where are

 they?”

 Before his friends could respond, I interrupted. “Don’t bother. I’ll handle it myself.”

 “Come on,” Chase scoffed. “You’ve only been takingputer science for like a few months. Whoever did this clearly knows what they’re doing–they’ve locked down the forum somehow. We need professionals.”

 I led the way into the ssroom, aware of the eyes tracking our movement. The whispers increased as we entered, some sympathetic, others malicious.

 “Your white knight’s arrived,” someone murmured as Orion Miller approached us, his expression earnest.

 “Jade,” he said, “I’ve contacted some of our high school ssmates. They’re going to help clear your name.”

 “I don’t need your help,” I replied tly.

 “But the rumors-”

 “Are just rumors.”

 Orion reached out to stop me, but Chase intercepted his hand midair. “She said she doesn’t need help. You deaf or

 something?”

 Tension crackled between them, neither backing down. Just as the situation threatened to escte, Sterling Huxley pushed through the doorway, eyes widening at the scene.

 “Whoa, what’s happening here?” Sterling quickly wedged himself between Orion and Chase, pulling Orion back.

 “Dude, chill out.”

 Orion shook him off. “I’m just trying to help.”

 Sterling led him toward the door, speaking in a low voice. “You know who rejected her when she was heavy, right? You thought she wasn’t good enough for you then. And now you’re rushing to her rescue?” He shook his head. “Besides, you see who she’s with? The Astors aren’t people like us, man. Don’t start trouble you can’t finish.”

 Inside the ssroom, I took my seat and pulled out myptop, Chase and his friends gathered around me, curious.

 “What are you doing?” Chase asked.

 8:16 Thu, Sep 25

 “Finding out who posted those threads.”

 The boys exchanged skeptical nces as I opened a terminal window and began typing rapidmands. Lines of code filled the screen, drawing gasps from Chase’s friends.

 “Holy shit,” one of them whispered. “You can actually code?”

 I ignored him, fingers flying across the keyboard as I traced the origin of the posts, bypassing the forum’s security and following digital breadcrumbs back to their source.

 “There,” I said after a few minutes, pointing to an IP address on the screen. “Computer Science building, male dormitory C, third floor, room 305.”

 97

 Chase’s face darkened with anger. “Someone from our own school? Those bastards.” He turned to his friends. “Come on, guys. Let’s pay this asshole a visit.”

 Badass in Disguise

 Chapter 175

17kNovel

Treatment 174