Chapter 161 Counterattack
Even Thomas was caught off guard by Abigail's comment.
"Abigail, are you sure? Jessica might've had some rough patches, but her graduation project was top-notch," Thomas said, clearly surprised.
Abigail fired up her laptop and opened her drawing software.
She had this habit of saving her design drafts regularly.
The software showed all the timestamps and saved drafts.
Starting from a week ago, there were updates almost daily, with detailed tweaks here and there.
This was solid proof.
Seeing this, Thomas went quiet, and the other classmates turned to Jessica. "Abigail's got receipts. Where's yours?"
Jessica started to freak out the moment Abigail opened her laptop.
What draft did she have?
The design was originally swiped from Abigail by a servant she bribed at Maple Residence.
But the servant didn't know squat about the drawing software. Jessica had her steal Abigail's draft and then reset the computer without leaving a trace, and she did just that.
With everyone staring at her, Jessica clenched her fists under the desk.
"Jessica, answer my question directly," Abigail said, a hint of mockery in her eyes.
When Jessica showed a design identical to hers, Abigail did panic for a second.
But she wasn't one to back down. Whether it was Jessica's idea or the work of David and Kayla, anyone who messed with her would pay!
Jessica swallowed hard and tried to stay calm. "Your evidence only proves you drew it, not that you didn't copy mine."
Abigail laughed. "Alright, then show your draft. If you drew it, there'll be traces. If your timestamps are earlier than mine, I'll apologize right here."
How could Jessica show the draft?
"My computer broke yesterday and it's at the repair shop," she said stubbornly.
"So, you can't provide any evidence?" Abigail asked.
Jessica nodded. "I don't know when it'll be fixed. Sis, you're not accusing me of plagiarism just because of this, are you?"
Some classmates thought she had a point. After all, Abigail and Jessica were sisters, and a broken computer wasn't a secret.
Abigail stayed calm. "Alright, let me explain my design inspiration and concept."
Hearing this, Jessica relaxed a bit and felt more confident.
As long as she stuck to her story about the broken computer, what could Abigail do?
No matter what Abigail said next, Jessica was ready to crush her, leaving her no way out!
Thinking this, Jessica felt a surge of excitement.
She couldn't wait to see Abigail get publicly shamed!
Abigail spoke slowly and calmly, "Jessica said the design concept is a romantic love story, but mine is totally different."
Abigail's words immediately grabbed everyone's attention.
Some people looked at her skeptically. The dress was full of charm, with lots of romantic elements. It clearly reflected a love story, right?
Someone sneered, "Even if you're the campus queen, you can't just say anything you want."
Abigail kept her cool, a smile still on her lips. "They say mermaid tears turn into pearls, and humans, driven by greed, started hunting them."
Her voice was soft and clear, painting a vivid picture in everyone's mind.
At first, it seemed like a sweet love story, but as it went on, it was hard not to picture the heartbroken mermaid, deceived by humans and sinking to the ocean floor after taking her own life.
Some of the more sensitive girls even started tearing up.
"This piece is called 'Tears of a Mermaid.'"
When she finished, Abigail looked at Thomas, waiting for his take.
Thomas snapped out of his daydream and adjusted his glasses. "Abigail's story is beautiful and moving, but it's still not enough proof."
Even though he was leaning towards believing Abigail was the real designer, he knew he couldn't jump to conclusions.
As a teacher, he had to be fair.
Abigail smiled, showing she understood, and pointed to a spot on the dress in the picture. "Here's my final point. Every designer has their unique touch. In all my previous works, I've always hidden a letter 'H' somewhere."
Thomas leaned in and, sure enough, found the letter "A."
He pulled out his phone and checked Abigail's past works, and there it was—the "A" mark in different spots.
The size of the letters varied, but the style was unmistakably hers.
And Jessica's work had an "A" too.
Now, Jessica was completely speechless.
Seeing everyone looking at her with disdain and ridicule, she panicked. "No, it's not like that. Abigail's the real plagiarist! Don't believe her! Abigail, just admit it. You stole my design!"
Looking at the almost hysterical Jessica, Abigail gently shook her head. "You really went all out to frame me, even buying trending topics. That must've cost you a lot, huh?"
That hit Jessica right where it hurt.
Even though she didn't buy the trending topics, ever since David got kicked out by Abigail, she was almost out of money.
In a few days, it would be the shareholders' meeting of the DM Group. David was worried Abigail would cause trouble, so he wanted to use this chance to show all the shareholders that Abigail had a terrible character and wasn't fit to join the company.
Who would've thought Abigail had a backup plan, marking the design draft?
No matter how loudly she shouted, no one would believe her anymore.
Thomas's face turned serious. "I can tolerate poor work, but I will never tolerate plagiarism. Jessica, not only did you plagiarize, but you also tried to dodge responsibility and almost wronged Abigail. Your character is utterly corrupt and beyond redemption!"
He picked up his phone and called the principal.
The principal was furious when he got the news.
How did he not see that Jessica could be so extreme? She even bought trending topics!
Now, people online were still in the dark about the truth, and everyone was accusing Aramore University of covering up for Abigail.
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