009 THE BASTARD STOLE MY FOOD
Dan's stomach twisted when he heard the teacher call him.
"What the hell should I do now?" he thought, forcing himself to stay calm.
The room seed to shrink around him, every gaze a weight pressing down. One wrong move, one suspiciously high reading… and everything could unravel.
Dan shuffled toward the machine, deliberately slow, each step calculated.
"Hurry up, you… tra—!" Miss Poney's voice cracked with anger, almost breaking into words no teacher should speak.
"Trash!!!"
Her fury wasn't just at Dan's slow pace—it was at his grades. Dan's poor performance dragged down the class average, tarnishing her record. Her career prospect depended on her class's average score.
She wanted Dan gone.
If he proved worthless in the Mock exam, she could push for his expulsion and restore her class's prestige.
"Hmmmm hemmmm"
The machine humd, ready to scan every inch of Dan's body and squeeze out all his secrets.
Dan's chest tightened.
"Damn it…there is no escape today", he thought, swallowing hard. "Co on… bring a savior," he prayed.
"A savior…"
A voice cut through the chaos all of a sudden. The savior was here.
"Dan, you bastard!"
The scanners froze. In the crowd, Beck Dark stord forward. Dan seized the mont and darted from the booth.
"Who dares interrupt my test?!" Miss Poney shrieked furiously.
Beck's glare cut through the hall. "Dan Dark, do you know my father is sick in the hospital? How dare you co to school and leave him there unattended!"
Dan's face twisted in feigned shock. "My uncle… he is in the hospital? What happened?"
"Dan Dark! Back to the test booth this instant!" Miss Poney bellowed.
Dan clutched his head, feigning anguish. "No, ma'am. My uncle is in the hospital. I can't concentrate… I can't take the test in this state."
"This will only take a few seconds! Get back on the booth now!" she scread. All her plans to rid Dan would go to waste if he wasn't tested today and failed miserably.
Inside, Dan's mind raced.
His uncle's hospitalization was a perfect excuse to skip the Mock test, but he was already at the booth. One step inside, and it would be over. His secret would be revealed.
On the other hand, Miss Poney wouldn't relent… Dan's refusal now to take the test could risk expulsion.
He had to tread carefully.
"Dan Dark, get on the booth now, or you'll be expelled," Miss Poney warned, her voice sharp as a whip.
"Damn it… there really is no escape," Dan thought, tension coiling in his chest.
Then his savior spoke again.
"I knew you wouldn't let him go… How dare you disrespect the heir of the city's heroes!" Beck yelled at Miss Poney, holding up two gleaming dals.
Dan's eyes widened.
He recognized them instantly. "Huh, I was wondering where that bastard Ralph kept these."
These were the posthumous awards given to his parents, long ago taken by Ralph and lody and the dals were purposefully hidden from him.
Heroes' dals were highly valued status symbols for ordinary citizens. They could demand favors from the authorities- including the school.
Ralph was afraid Dan would use these dals to gain favors from people who recognized them like his parent's friends maybe… and with their help break from their grasp and control.
They would lose the city's allowance that Dan was entitled to and also the salary from his work in the Aur mine. So, they kept the dals hidden from him.
Who would have thought Beck would wield them now, just to get him excused from taking care of his own father in hospital?
"Genius…the dals!! Beck, you thought of this?" Dan's mind raced with admiration.
"Heroes… or not, Dan Dark must take the mock test today!" Miss Poney scread.
The testing hall door swung open, and a commanding figure entered. It was Principal Dean.
"What's the commotion here?" he asked, surveying the crowd.
"This student refuses the mock test," Miss Poney snapped, pointing at Dan.
"Is that so? And why?" Principal Dean's gaze shifted to Dan.
Dan dropped to his knees, tears welling in his eyes. "My uncle is in the hospital! I can't take a test in this state! I must go see him!"
"He's the heir of the city's heroes! You can't stop him from visiting his uncle!" Beck shouted, stepping forward holding the dals.
Principal Dean's eyes fell on the dals. He walked to Beck, lifted them, and inspected the engravings. "Indeed… these are Heroes dals from the city."
Dan sprang forward and snatched the dals. "These are mine!" he said firmly, giving Beck a nod of sincere gratitude.
Then he turned to the principal. "Seeing my uncle on his deathbed is more important than any mock test."
The principal considered this briefly, then shrugged at Miss Poney. "It's just a mock test. Why make such a fuss over whether the student takes it or not?"
"But…", Miss Poney tried to protest. She couldn't tell the principal her true intentions.
Turning to Dan, he said, "I wasn't aware the heir of heroes attended this school. Go see your uncle now. And co to anyti if there's a problem."
Joy surged through Dan.
The principal's simple words shattered his predicant. Miss Poney could no longer override him, no matter her fury.
He wouldn't be expelled from school.
He bolted from the hall, Beck following close behind, both of them grinning as they left chaos and tension in their wake.
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Dan strode out of the school, glancing back at Beck, who was panting as he ran to catch up.
"Bye-bye," Dan called, waving his parents' Heroes dals with a grin.
"Hey, you bastard! Why didn't you go ho last night? … (panting) Now go to the hospital and care for my father!" Beck shouted, breathlessly.
"You care for him yourself. You are his bastard, not ," Dan shot back coolly.
Dan understood now the reason Beck ca to save him. His mother probably made him stay in the hospital to care for his father while she went out for her usual card gas.
Beck didn't want the chore and tried to make Dan do it.
"How dare you?!" Beck screeched, his eyes wide.
He froze, stunned by Dan's sudden boldness. The usually pliant boy, so obedient and cautious, was suddenly defiant.
Dan ignored the outburst. "Whose idea was it to bring these dals here?" he asked instead.
Beck's grin widened. "Ain't I a genius? I knew the school wouldn't let you leave on the day of your Mock test, so I brought the dals just in case. They had no choice but to let you go once they saw them."
"You really are a genius," Dan said before adding, "Your mother probably doesn't know you took the dals?"
"Of course they don't know, I took them from their hidden compartnts", he replied.
"Great… what would you do just to get off a chore… you really are my savior", Dan said, then nodding once before turning and vanishing into the streets.
Beck tried to chase him, but Dan was gone in an instant.
The chubby boy stopped, panting, his eyes wide opened. "How did he run so fast?" Then realization hit him. "That bastard… he must've stolen my share of food from the house!"
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