Chapter 62: Securing her scholarship

Mia woke up with a heavy heart and a suffocating sensation in her chest due to what occurred the previous night. She didn’t feel the motivation to even leave her bed, but the realization of needing to attend school compelled her to rise. Uncertain if she still held her student status at Ivy Grove institution after the cafeteria incident, she had to go to school to confirm whether or not she had lost her scholarship.

Following her argument with Owen last night, Mia had retreated to her room and played her guitar until her fingertips turned numb. She deliberately avoided thinking about her best friend and his hurtful words, as well as the strange expression in his eyes while he forcefully grabbed her arm. It might be time for them to grow up and lead separate lives as she had granted him too much freedom to intrude on her personal affairs to the point where he viewed her as some possession he could control.

Mia had never meddled in Owen’s personal life. Since they were very young, she had refrained from questioning or insulting him for his actions. Even when he was falsely accused and arrested three times in a year for selling stolen goods, she had believed his claims of being framed and never said anything to hurt his feelings. However, yesterday, he went as far as calling her a whore...

Mia dismissed all the thoughts of Owen from her mind and began to prepare for school. She had more than one reason to go to school today; apart from checking if she was still a student in Ivy Grove, she also wanted to check on Mr. Bennett. After what had happened yesterday, she doubted if he would ever want to speak to her again. However, she wanted to make sure his forehead was alright. The wound looked pretty bad last night with so much blood ozzing out of it.

The fact that he had driven away without doing anything, made her even more nervous. She might not have known him for long, but she knew he had a terrifyingly bad temper. She had expected him to beat up Owen to near death yesterday, but he didn’t do that and had left instead.

Mia looked down at the gray shirt and trouser laying on her bed. The clothes he’d given her to wear yesterday. She picked them up realizing they still had his lingering expensive scent on them.

Apart from his gray eyes, she was starting to like his intoxicating scent as well. She held the clothes to her nose, inhaling the scent, a deep shade of red surged to her cheeks as the scent only made a scene of her waking up to find his head nestled against her breast flashed to her mind.

As if being burned, she hastily released the clothes and threw them back on her bed with an embarrassed cry. She hadn’t been able to dwell on that scene because of all the incidents last night, but remembering it now, she felt embarrassed to the extent she wanted to hide away from him forever!

That was so embarrassing! She was literally laying naked on his bed with his arm holding her waist in his sleep! How was she going to face him again after that? Of course she would have to face him again just like she had been composed through out their ride to Whispering way last night.

Though he had offered her the job of being his cook and cleaner, they hadn’t gotten the chance to even discuss about the days she would go to his place and start working. Speaking of the work, she didn’t know if he would still want her to work for him after what she had made him go through for the whole of yesterday.

Mia sighed in frustration. She should probably hurry to school before she blew up her own mind with so much thinking. She made a mental note to give his clothes for dry cleaning so she wouldn’t ruin the expensive fabric by washing it herself before returning them.

Mia quickly wore her comfortable t-shirt and jeans, she wasn’t going to wear a dress to school since she wasn’t sure of the exact situation in school. She tied her hair up into a ponytail and applied a little lipgloss to her lips. Grabbing her bag and phone, she hurried out of the room.

When Mia arrived at school, she was surprised to see that none of the students were giving her the dirty looks they were shooting her way yesterday, instead, they were looking at her with what seemed to look like an envy. She was even more surprised to still find her posters about the contest still hanging up on the school boards.

Before going to class, Mia decided to check up with the scholarship office to inquire about her scholarship status to be sure if it hadn’t been withdrawn by the Fosters who were the backbone of Ivy Grove.

Mia nervously approached the university’s scholarship office, a room tucked away in the administrative building. The door bore a small sign that read "Financial Aid and Scholarships."

Upon entering, she found a quiet waiting area with a few students engrossed in paperwork. Mia approached the reception desk where a friendly administrative assistant greeted her.

"Hi, I’m Mia Harrison. I wanted to check on the status of my scholarship. I heard there might be some issues." She lied so she could get the woman to check for her. She didn’t want to go to class and embarrass herself.

"Of course, Mia. Please have a seat, and I’ll see if someone is available to help you." Said the friendly assistant.

Mia waited anxiously, her mind swirling with nervous prayer. A few moments later, a scholarship advisor named Ms. Adams emerged from an adjacent office.

Ms. Adams looked at Mia with a faint smile, "Hello, Miss Harrison. How can I assist you today?"

"Um...I’ve been receiving a scholarship, and I heard there might be some changes. I wanted to make sure everything is okay."

"I understand. Let me pull up your information. Please provide me with your student ID."

Mia handed over her ID, and Ms. Adams diligently typed away on her computer. The suspense filled Mia until the woman looked up with a deep frown and said quietly.

"Miss Harrison, it seems there has been a few changes in your scholarship. Mr. Foster had requested for your scholarship to be withdrawn yesterday..."

Mia felt her heart sink. Of course, she had expected something like this to happen after what she had done to Diane yesterday. However, she had expected that Diane would be at least considerate enough not to involve her father into this considering she was the one to start the conflict in the cafeteria. But the girl proved her wrong.

And now she would have to return home and deliver the bad news to her mother, and...

"Don’t be sad, Miss Harrison. You are still a student of Ivy Grove. Your original scholarship had been withdrawn. However, you have a new sponsor for your tuition fees this morning. A gentleman named Xavier Galverra from Mirage mesa has graciously taken up the responsibility to fund your education until you graduate."

Mia’s eyes widened in surprise. She was shocked beyond words. "Xavier Galverra? I don’t even know him. Why would he do this?" She asked in disbelief. She had never even heard that name, so why would he secure her tuition fees?

Ms. Adams smiled as she noticed the disbelief in the young woman’s face. Though she didn’t know why Mr. Foster had called in to withdraw the girl’s scholarship, she could tell it was due to Diane’s matter. Ms. Adams had also grown up in a lower class family, she knew how a scholarship in an expensive school could meant so much to someone who couldn’t afford to pay their tuition fees. And the fact that Mr. Foster had requested to withdraw the girl’s scholarship for his daughter’s sake, had made her feel bad. However, Mia was fortunate enough to have caught Mr. Galverra’s attention somehow for him to help her this morning.

Ms. Adams then said,"Miss Harrison, you are lucky to get a second chance. Mr. Galverra is a well-known business man in Mirage mesa, and with him standing as a backing to your education, I believe you have nothing to worry about now. Not even Mr. Foster can withdraw your scholarship now." She assured.

Mia didn’t know weather to cry or laugh in relief. She would have lost her scholarship if it wasn’t for this generous man.

"I... I don’t know what to say. Please convey my heartfelt thanks to Mr. Galverra. This means the world to me."

Ms. Adams smiled, "I will certainly do that, Miss Harrison. If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to reach out. Congratulations on this opportunity, and best of luck with your studies."

Mia left the office, her worries replaced by a newfound appreciation for the generosity of this Xavier Galverra who had not only fixed the issue but had become an unexpected guardian of her educational dreams. She couldn’t help but wonder who the man was and why the name Xavier sounded awfully familiar to her somehow. How did he even know of her existence when he was from Mirage mesa?

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read