Chapter 493

Inside the coffee shop.

The admissions officers from Eclara University and Sundale University sat face-to- face with Yolanda.

The Eclara University officer, who had talked himself hoarse, realized he'd been speaking to the wrong person and was mortified. "You're not Juniper?"

"Then were you just joking when you told us you needed to think it over?" the Sundale officer chimed in, equally annoyed. He'd actually been hopeful when he heard "Juniper" was considering their offer. Turns out, it was all a sham. What a waste of time!

"Well," the Eclara officer said, done wasting his breath on Yolanda. He pulled out his phone and dialed Juniper's number.

A clear, crisp ringtone suddenly echoed through the coffee shop, drawing everyone's attention.

"The sound seems to be coming from..." The Eclara officer held up his phone, tilting his head toward the source.

He watched as Juniper, sitting at a nearby table, answered her phone and waved at him. "Hello?"

The officer's eyes widened, and he shot up from his seat, rushing over. "Are you Juniper Payne?" he asked, his voice cautious, terrified of making the same mistake twice.

"I am," Juniper replied with a faint smile, her voice unhurried.

"Juniper, hello, I'm the admissions officer for Eclara University's Genius Program..." The officer quickly composed himself. "My apologies, someone was falsely claiming to be you, which caused a bit of a delay."

"I can vouch for that," the Sundale University officer declared, seizing the opportunity as he hurried over. "The fact that they could mistake someone else for you shows how little they truly value you. Why don't you consider our university instead?"

Then he added with a sly grin. "Whatever you ask for, we'll make it happen."

The Eclara officer was furious. "It's because we were so excited and valued her so much that we made a mistake!" he shot back. "And you are just being passive- aggressive to poach a student. Have you no shame?"

"If it means getting Juniper to join us, I'd gladly give up my shame," the Sundale officer retorted with a dismissive laugh.

As the two continued to bicker, the reporters in the room quietly turned their cameras toward the unfolding drama. In an instant, the intemet exploded. t

[Eclara and Sundale are fighting over a student?]

[OMG, is this a sight I ever thought I'd see in my lifetime?]

[Which one will she pick? Which one?!]

[I say pick Sundale! Not for any reason other than I'm a Sundale student!]

[Hahaha, does anyone know what Yolanda's face looks like right now?] [Yolanda.jpg, Juniper.jpg — candid shots from someone on the scene.]

[Yolanda looks devastated. And Juniper... lol, two academic giants are about to come to blows and she's just calmly eating?]

[So pretty, so cute! Juniper, Juniper!]

While the internet was in an uproar, the scene in the coffee shop was just as chaotic.

The officer from Eclara University declared, "She's ours!"

But the Sundale University officer interrupted, retorted, "No, she's mine!"

Qadir, Queenie, Janet, and Dolce, who had never witnessed such a spectacle, stared at Juniper in disbelief.

"Juniper," Janet urged, "you need to say something before someone gets hurt."

Juniper, whose head was starting to

ache from the noise, finally set her

fork down. "Shouldn't you perhaps

ask the person

lved forher

opinion?" she asked coolly