Page 40 of You Had Me at Hello World
I nod. I don’t mention emailing Edvin Nilsen. Now that the adrenaline has faded, I feel ridiculous for doing that. Why would this tech billionaire help me with my summer camp project? Sure, it’s a summer camp he started. But he’s more of a figurehead than actually involved. He hasn’t visited even once.
When I go up to refill my water glass, somebody taps me on the shoulder. It’s Haru. “Oregon,” he mumbles.
“Okay, can we come up with a different nickname for me?”
He shrugs, because Haru’s entire existence is one big shrug.“Something with Khoi. They were talking to me about it. Showed me some article.”
“Who is they?” Is? Are? Grammar is weird.
“Dunno. Kid with the dumb hat. Wears it to cover his bald spot.”
I thank Haru and head straight to Lucas’s table.
He’s sitting with a few guys whose names I don’t know for sure—I think one of them is Aiden or Jayden or Okayden. Stella isn’t around.
They’re talking loud and brash. Somebody should’ve taught them the concept of “inside voices.” I’m ten feet away when I hear them say the nameKhoi.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
Lucas exchanges a smirk with another boy. “Haven’t you heard? Your boyfriend’s dad is a grifter. Guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“He’s not my boyfriend. And what the hell are you talking about?”
With too much glee, someone hands me their phone, which is open to an old article fromThe New York Times.
QUANG ANH SENTENCED TO EIGHT YEARS IN PRISON
Quang Anh was sentenced on Friday to eight years in prison. The disgraced founder of Pegasus Cryptocurrency who was convicted of stealingmillions of dollars from customers, Anh was found guilty of fraud and money laundering last month.
Mr. Anh remained stoic as the sentence was read. His wife, Linda, burst into tears as his eleven-year-old son, Khoi, stared at the floor.
I drop the phone onto the table. “What’s the point of showing me this?”
Sure, I’ve wondered why Khoi lives with his aunt and uncle. But I never asked. I mean, I get what it’s like to have a complicated family that you can’t explain.
“When the test results got posted, I saw that his legal name is Khoi Anh, so I decided to do some googling. It seems kind of sus that he’s trying to hide his identity.”
“By using a different last name? If he wants to distance himself from his past, fine. Why are you dredging all of this up now?”
“Char? Everything good?” Khoi is at my shoulder. Ugh, did Haru talk to him too?
“Yeah, fine.” I want to protect him. I don’t want him to see any of this. Maybe it’s not too late to—
“So, Astor, how’d you cheat on the exam?” Lucas drawls. “Or should I sayAnh?”
Khoi’s gaze falls on the unlocked phone screen, which still has the article open. His face clouds over. Silently, he pivots on his heel and walks away.
“That video game he made,Imposter Syndrome,” somebodysays. “You think he used his daddy’s money for that?”
Lucas leans back, hands behind his head. “These types always have offshore bank accounts. They probably have millions’ worth of Bitcoin stowed away somewhere in the Cayman Islands.”
My blood boils. “You’re pathetic,” I spit out. “What, you couldn’t beat him on the test so you decide to bully him to make yourself feel better? Guess what! He’s still number one.”
They’re all silent until Lucas says, “Get off your moral high horse. You sucked him off so he’d team up with you?”
“Excuse me?” Not that it’s any of their business, but my expertise in that department is purely theoretical, with no real-world experience.
“You don’t think the rest of us noticed you going into his dorm room every day after class?”
