Chapter 43 - Punishment

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nThroughout the class, Linda was still curious about Anne's answer earlier this morning. She really didn't focus on the lesson given by the lecturer because she was still very wondering about the purpose and direction of Anne's previous conversation. Somehow she felt like Anne was hiding something big from her.

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"Look up front, Linda. Don't keep looking at me like that, I'm scared,

" said Anne quietly, as she pushed away Linda's hand that was holding her face and looked at Anne, who was sitting right next to Linda.

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"Answer my question first, what did you mean by what you said this morning?

" said Linda softly.

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"There's nothing strange, Linda, I'm just rambling. Let's focus on the lessons, you know the lecturer who is teaching us now,

" Anne quickly tried to change Linda's views so she wouldn't stare at Anne.

nSlam!

nSuddenly there was a sound of a table being pounded from the front, which turned out to be from Mrs. Martha, the most killer lecturer in fashion design major. The sound of the table being slammed suddenly made all the students shocked, including Anne and Linda, who immediately faced the front quickly.

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"Marianne!!!! Since earlier I've been trying to be patient but you continue to test my patience! Now leave my class right now or this whole class will get a D from me!!

" snapped Mrs. Martha in a rising voice.

nThump!

nAnne startled at the words of Mrs. Martha, all of her friends immediately turned towards her, full of anger. It was as if they were ordering Anne to leave the classroom, so that they all wouldn't get a D from Mrs. Martha.

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"Marianne ...

"

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"I understand, ma'am,

" replied Anne quickly as she tidied up her books and prepared to leave the classroom.

nLinda, who was sitting next to Anne, looked pale. She didn't think that Mrs. Marta would throw Anne out like that. In fact, this was her fault. Because she couldn't bear to see Anne left, she suddenly stood up with one hand up.

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"What are you doing, Belinda?

" asked Mrs. Martha in a rising tone.

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"This is not purely Anne's fault, I too ...

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"If you don't like my decision to kick Anne out of my class this time, don't be surprised if I'll make you repeat this course next year,

" said Mrs. Martha,quickly cutting Linda's words. She hated when students argued with her.

nHearing Mrs. Martha's threat, Linda's face became even paler than before. She couldn't possibly repeat this semester next year, because it would hinder her graduation on time. And Linda didn't want that to happen, because it would disappoint her family, especially her mother, who was strongly against her studying at UAL.

nAnne turned to Linda with a smile and shook her head slowly. She forbade Linda to get involved in the matter this time, because it would be useless. Linda immediately sat back into her chair, feeling guilty for Anne, because she had put Anne in big trouble this time.

nNot long after that, Anne had finished tidying her books back into her bag. She then got up from her chair and walked toward the door. When she arrived in front of Mrs. Martha, Anne paused to say goodbye to the lecturer.

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"Wait, Anne, I really won't let you join my class this time, but that doesn't mean you are free from assignments. You have to do the same paper as the last assignment I gave, but this time make five copies,

" said Mrs Martha loudly.

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"F-five copies?,

" shrieked Anne, startled.

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"Why? Do you mind? If you mind you don't have to do it, it's okay, as long as you're ready to accept a D, which means you'll repeat this course next year,

" said Mrs. Martha without guilt.

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"Yes, ma'am, I will definitely do it,

" replied Anne quickly.

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"Good, and don't forget to submit them tomorrow afternoon before five. Any later than that, I won't accept them,

" said Mrs. Martha again, warning Anne.

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"I understand ma'am, then if you'll excuse me,

" Anne stuttered. Mrs. Martha nodded her head slowly in response to Anne's words.

nAfter getting permission from the lecturer, Anne then immediately ran out of the classroom to her car to go to the bookstore. She had to find some fashion magazines that she would use as materials for this assignment. Moreover, she was currently assigned to make 5 different assignments and this meant that she needed a lot of magazines as reference materials for her assignment. When Anne ran to the parking area, Edward saw her.

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"Why did that kid leave? Isn't it still class hours?

" said Edward curiously.

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"Do I need to find out, sir?

" asked Edward's man, Bobby, quickly.

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"Ok, do it,

" replied Edward briefly without taking his eyes off Anne, who had driven her car out of the campus area.

nThe Ledbury

nAt a table in The Ledbury Restaurant, Aaron and Jack sat together, enjoying the best dishes from The Ledbury, one of the best restaurants in London.

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"I see your business is growing rapidly, Aaron,

" Jack said slowly, opening the conversation.

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"Yours too, Jack. Yesterday I saw on the news that you just received an award for bringing Muller Finance International to be the number one finance company in Europe for two months in a row,

" Aaron said quickly, trying to throw the ball at Jack.

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"It's just luck. It's because of my team's extraordinary work. It's not the result of my own hard work, Aaron. Oh yeah, how about your new project with the art college?

" Jack asked quietly as he grabbed the bottle of wine in front of him and poured it into his and Aaron's already empty glasses.

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"Oh, about the collaboration between my company and the UAL campus, it is a CSR program from the company with selected campuses, and we have done this program regularly every year with a different program. So this is not really a big news,

" Aaron replied at length, trying to be humble.

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"This is a great program for students, because with this they can have the opportunity to ...

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nJack couldn't finish his words, as he saw the girl he had been looking for in the last few months got out of a sedan and walked towards the bookstore in front of the restaurant where he was sitting. He suddenly got up from his chair and ran towards the bookstore, leaving Aaron looking confused.

nIt didn't take long for Jack to arrive at the bookstore across the street. He immediately entered the shop and looked for a girl with long hair carrying a black backpack. His steps stopped when he saw the figure he was looking for. Without thinking, Jack immediately reached out his hand to touch the girl's shoulder and called her name,

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"Anne.

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nTo be continued.

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