Chapter 6: All Cards on the Table

I don’t know which word set the class president off.

He immediately sent me a 60-second voice message:

"I bought the drone from the official website, $600, brand new—not some secondhand thing. Jamie, if you took it, return it now. This is class property. Don’t test my limits. We’re classmates—don’t throw away your morals for a few hundred bucks."

I recorded the class president’s tirade on my tablet as I listened. Good thing I was quick—he deleted the message as soon as I finished. That little move made me smirk. In college, screenshots and audio clips are worth their weight in gold.

He rewrote his warning, this time more polite:

"Jamie, please return the class property promptly. If you keep refusing, we’ll have to involve a third party. After all, this is everyone’s property, and theft is a serious matter."

I typed back directly:

[Class president, why not just tell everyone the real story about the drone? I’m a kind person—I really don’t want to embarrass you.]

At that moment, the group chat buzzed with anticipation. I could feel the tension running through the whole class, everyone secretly hoping for a little bit of drama to spice up another gray campus afternoon. Maybe, for once, the real story would get out, and the truth would be as satisfying as it deserved to be.

I hit send. Now the whole class was watching, and for once, I held all the cards.