Chapter 9

"Why should I apologize to you? "Given the situation earlier, it was only normal for me to suspect you for stealing the necklace. Do you think anyone believed in you earlier on?" Zora yelled angrily. She was a wealthy lady, so it would completely destroy her ego if she publicly apologized! "Since there wasn't evidence just now, I didn't suspect her," Harvey replied. After hearing that, Zora fell silent, and the expression on her face turned serious. Her daughter was in First Academy, and Harvey was now speaking up for Yolanda. If Zora continued behaving like this, Harvey wouldn't have a good impression of her. Her daughter might be affected, too, if Harvey disliked her. The only reason Zora and her husband were on good terms was because of her daughter. If her husband found out that she affected their daughter's future, she would be doomed! Once she considered the consequences of her actions, Zora gritted her teeth and told Yolanda, "I was wrong. I'm sorry!" In the meantime, Diana felt very pleased when she saw Zora apologizing. But before she could say anything, Harvey looked at her coldly. "You're her mother. You accused your own daughter of stealing the necklace even before there was any evidence to prove that. Is she your biological daughter?" "I…" Diana tried to explain the situation. Yet, once she saw Harvey's stern expression, she didn't dare to speak again. Meanwhile, Yolanda observed Diana and Zora coldly. She didn't want to remain in the shop any longer. "You can continue shopping. I'm going home." Yolanda quickly left the jewelry shop. When she reached the bus stop, a car suddenly stopped in front of her. After the car windows were rolled down, Yolanda realized Harvey was inside the car. "Where are you headed to? Let me take you there," he said. Yolanda immediately opened the car door. "I'm going to Southly Drive, Pollen Street Apartment 55." She knew that Harvey had his reasons for meeting her. As expected, once she boarded the car, Harvey asked, "Are you willing to study at First Academy?" "I doubt that First Academy will accept students who have been in juvenile detention centers before." After hearing that, Harvey paused. He didn't know that Yolanda had entered a juvenile detention center previously. However, First Academy was the best school in Riverdale. Many people tried to use their connections to beg him for a spot there. Yet, Yolanda was different. Though Harvey had already offered her a spot there, she told him that she had been in a juvenile detention center before, and made no efforts to conceal her past. At first, Harvey was impressed with her hacking skills, but he admired her personality later on as well. "To be honest, if I hadn't seen your skills just now, I wouldn't have offered you a spot in First Academy even if Mrs. Henderson begged me to. "But, after seeing what you did in the jewelry shop, I think I can make an exception for you," Harvey offered. Though he didn't know why Yolanda was in a juvenile detention center previously, he admired talented people. So, if Yolanda behaved herself in First Academy, he would disregard her past. Yet, Yolanda remained emotionless when she heard that. "The tests in First Academy aren't related to Computer Science, right?" "That's right. However, we would allow you to study at Creybia University as a Computer Science student. If you study at First Academy, I'll give you a spot in that university." Harvey thanked his lucky stars that he went into the jewelry shop that day. Once Yolanda's hacking skills were revealed, other institutions in Riverdale would certainly fight to accept her. After all, every institution had a list of recommendations for Creybia University, but not all recommended students would be accepted by it. "Creybia University?" Yolanda thought about it. Either way, she had to return to Creybia. In her past life, she studied in schools owned by her family at a young age and had never studied in a public school before. It would be interesting to experience a different life, so she nodded immediately. "Alright." "I'll give you the admission notice letter now."Harvey hurriedly took out an admission notice letter from his bag and wrote down Yolanda's name on it. Then, he stamped on it and said, "School will start in a few days. Report to First Academy with this letter when the time comes. I'll help you with your admission then." … The next day, Diana, Yolanda, and Yvonne arrived at a five-star hotel in Dowonair. The art exhibit was held in the banquet hall on the first floor of the hotel. Since Yvonne and Diana cared deeply about the art exhibit, they dressed up magnificently for the event. Diana thought long and hard about bringing Yolanda to the event. In the end, she made up her mind after Zora called her. Diana knew that the latter gossiped a lot, so if she didn't bring Yolanda to the exhibit, she wouldn't be able to secure her position in her social circle. As she was afraid that Yolanda would humiliate her, she bought a dress worth thousands of dollars for her. Even before they headed to the event, Diana kept reminding Yolanda not to get the dress dirty. At the same time, Yvonne looked around and whispered to Diana, "Mom, the person over there is a famous traditional painter, Charlie Sullivan. Apparently, he's Mr. Carter's favorite student. "Let's say hi to him!" Naturally, Diana couldn't miss this opportunity, so she approached him with Yvonne and Yolanda. Before they met Charlie, Diana told Yolanda, "Just stand beside me later on and don't talk too much!" She didn't want the latter to embarrass her. "Are you Mr. Sullivan?" Yvonne introduced herself to Charlie. "I'm from First Academy, and my name is Yvonne Henderson. "I bought your paintings before, and I respect you a lot. I really admire your line-drawing skills, and I think you rendered pansies really well. I'd like to learn from you if I have the chance to do so." Charlie was admiring an artwork when he heard Yvonne's voice. He then turned his attention to her and nodded approvingly. "I didn't expect you to be so knowledgeable about traditional painting despite your young age," Charlie said. "This is my mother. My older sister is standing beside her." Yvonne smiled and introduced Charlie to Diana and Yolanda. In the meantime, Diana approached him and blocked Yolanda from his sight. "Hello, Mr. Sullivan! I've heard my daughter talking about you before. She said that you're the artist whom she respects the most. It's a great honor to meet you in this exhibition today," Diana praised. Charlie smiled and shook his head. "You flatter me." Though his words seemed humble, he looked a little smug. It seemed that he enjoyed the praises from Diana and Yvonne. On the other hand, Yolanda had been blocked by her family members. However, she didn't care—she wasn't interested in getting to know Charlie. As such, she turned around and observed other art pieces around her. "Mr. Sullivan, can I observe the exhibition with you?" Yvonne asked Charlie. "Yes. Let us walk together." After that, Charlie approached the next painting. Yvonne followed him and made some comments about the art pieces from time to time. She prepared in advance for this and even researched information about the exhibition's artworks. In fact, she even memorized them. It left her a good impression on Charlie because she knew what to say about the art pieces. After looking at some paintings, Charlie suddenly asked, "Will you be interested in entering the Traditional Painting major at Creybia University after you take the art exam?"