Chapter 6: The Name on the Transfer
Nobody moved.
The entire pool deck felt frozen.
Mr. Carter stared at his phone like the screen had just shown him something impossible.
Naomi watched his face carefully.
She had learned something about people during the past few weeks.
Words could lie.
Expressions usually couldn’t.
And Mr. Carter looked terrified.
Not guilty.
Terrified.
Coach Daniels stepped forward.
“Whose name is on the transfer?””
Mr. Carter didn’t answer.
The silence made everyone more nervous.
“Mister Carter,” Coach Daniels said firmly.
“Now.””
He slowly lifted his eyes.
“The account request came from…”
He stopped.
Naomi felt her heartbeat grow louder.
“From who?””
Mr. Carter looked across the pool deck.
His eyes landed on Ethan.
Then moved away.
That tiny movement told Naomi everything.
“It came from my account,” Mr. Carter whispered.
The words hit like a wave.
Mason immediately looked at Naomi.
“Wait.””
Tyler frowned.
“His account?””
Callie’s face changed.
“No.””
Mr. Carter shook his head.
“No. Someone used my account.””
Coach Daniels stared.
“Then how?””
“I don’t know.””
Ethan crossed his arms.
“Convenient.””
Everyone turned toward him.
Mr. Carter looked angry.
“You think I did this?””
Ethan shrugged.
“I think everyone has secrets.””
Naomi watched them.
Something felt wrong.
They were fighting, but not like enemies.
Like two people who knew exactly where the other person was vulnerable.
That meant one thing.
This had been going on longer than anyone knew.
Coach Daniels looked at Ethan.
“You knew about the transfer?””
Ethan didn’t answer immediately.
A mistake.
A tiny one.
But Naomi saw it.
“You knew.””
Ethan looked at her.
“I suspected.””
“No.””
She shook her head.
“You knew.””
Ethan sighed.
“You’re very determined to make everything about me.””
Naomi almost smiled.
“Because every path keeps leading back to you.””
The room went quiet.
Ethan stepped closer.
“You think you understand everything now.””
“I understand enough.””
“Do you?””
His voice lowered.
“Because you still don’t know why I chose you.””
Naomi stared at him.
“I already know.””
“You think I chose you because you were quiet.””
“You did.””
“No.””
Ethan looked around.
“I chose you because you were predictable.””
The words stung.
But Naomi didn’t react.
Ethan continued.
“You always did the same thing.””
“What?””
“You noticed problems. You tried to fix them. You trusted adults to do the right thing.””
He smiled slightly.
“That made you easy.””
Naomi felt anger rise.
Not because he insulted her.
Because he was describing something she had always believed was good.
Helping.
Caring.
Trying.
And he had turned those things into weaknesses.
“You’re wrong.””
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
“About what?””
“You think being predictable means being powerless.””
She stepped forward.
“It doesn’t.””
A strange look crossed his face.
“You still don’t understand.””
“No.””
Naomi looked at everyone.
“You don’t understand.””
She pointed toward the phone in Mr. Carter’s hand.
“You created all of this because you thought people would only see what was easiest.””
Ethan didn’t respond.
“So you made me look guilty.””
She looked at Callie.
“You made them believe they were protecting themselves.””
Then she looked at Mr. Carter.
“You made him afraid of what you knew.””
Her eyes returned to Ethan.
“But you made one mistake.””
Ethan stared at her.
“What?””
“You assumed nobody would compare the stories.””
For the first time, Ethan looked uncertain.
Naomi turned toward Coach Daniels.
“The fundraiser money disappeared after Ethan entered the storage room.””
Coach Daniels nodded.
“Yes.””
“And the scholarship transfer happened after he realized I was investigating.””
Another nod.
Naomi continued.
“He needed a distraction.””
Mason frowned.
“Meaning?””
Naomi looked at the footage.
“The fundraiser theft was never the main crime.””
Nobody spoke.
“It was a cover.””
The realization spread across their faces.
Callie whispered:
“So he stole from two accounts?””
Ethan laughed.
“You’re still guessing.””
Naomi looked at him.
“Then correct me.””
He smiled.
“You think you’ve trapped me.””
“No.””
She shook her head.
“I think you’re scared.””
The smile vanished.
Just slightly.
But it vanished.
That was enough.
Naomi saw it.
Coach Daniels saw it too.
“You’re afraid of something.””
Ethan looked away.
“No.””
“Yes,” Naomi said.
“You don’t care about the videos.””
Ethan looked back.
“You don’t care about the accusations.””
She stepped closer.
“You care about what happens if someone finds the original records.””
The silence became unbearable.
Mr. Carter looked at Ethan.
“What records?””
Ethan said nothing.
Naomi answered.
“The ones he deleted.””
Everyone looked at her.
She reached into her backpack.
Then pulled out a small notebook.
Mason stared.
“You had that the whole time?””
Naomi nodded.
“I made copies.””
Ethan’s expression changed.
“You shouldn’t have been able to access those.””
Naomi looked at him.
There it was.
The confirmation.
Everyone heard it.
Coach Daniels stepped closer.
“How would you know what she accessed?””
Ethan didn’t answer.
Naomi opened the notebook.
“I found something strange in the fundraiser spreadsheet.””
She flipped through pages.
“Every time someone edited a number, the system created a backup file.””
Mr. Carter looked surprised.
“You found the archive?””
“Yes.””
Naomi looked at Ethan.
“And someone tried to erase it.””
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
Coach Daniels asked:
“Who had access?””
Naomi looked at Mr. Carter.
“Administrators.””
Then at Ethan.
“And student council officers.””
Everyone went silent.
Mason whispered:
“Ethan.””
Ethan shook his head.
“You don’t have proof.””
Naomi looked at him.
“Actually…”
She pulled out her phone.
“I do.””
The pool deck went completely quiet.
Ethan’s eyes narrowed.
“What is that?””
“The backup file.””
“How?””
“Because I sent it to myself before I entered the storage room.””
Naomi looked at him.
“You taught me something.””
Ethan frowned.
“What?””
“Never trust one copy.””
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Ethan laughed.
Not a nervous laugh.
Not a fake one.
A real one.
And that scared Naomi more.
Because he wasn’t reacting like someone caught.
He was reacting like someone who still had a move.
“You really think that’s enough?””
Coach Daniels stepped forward.
“Ethan, you’re done.””
“No.””
He looked at Naomi.
“I’m not.””
He reached into his jacket pocket.
Everyone tensed.
But he didn’t pull out a weapon.
He pulled out a folded piece of paper.
And placed it on the bench.
Naomi stared.
“What is that?””
Ethan looked at Mr. Carter.
“Ask him.””
Mr. Carter’s face changed.
“No.””
Naomi noticed immediately.
“What is it?””
Mr. Carter didn’t move.
Ethan smiled.
“The document that proves Naomi wasn’t investigating the money.””
Naomi looked confused.
“Then what was I investigating?””
Ethan pushed the paper toward her.
“Read it.””
She picked it up.
The paper was old.
Official.
A school document.
Her eyes moved across the first line.
Then the second.
Then the third.
And suddenly, everything she thought she understood began falling apart.
Because the document wasn’t about the fundraiser.
It wasn’t about the scholarship money.
It wasn’t even about Ethan.
It was about Naomi’s own family.
Her hands went cold.
“What is this?””
Nobody answered.
Ethan looked at her.
“You wanted the truth.””
He paused.
“Now you’re finally going to get it.””
Naomi stared at the paper.
At the signature at the bottom.
A signature she recognized.
A name she never expected to see connected to the school’s biggest secret.
May you like
And then Ethan said the words that changed everything:
“Your father knew about the missing money before anyone else.””
