Chapter 1

My roommate Russell saw my sister Marta give me a $20,000 membership card to the ice skating club.

She immediately came over and said, "We just finished exams. Let's go relax together."

I replied, "I don't have time recently. I need to prepare for my graduate school applications."

She pursed her lips and said:

"You just don't know how to enjoy yourself. If you're not going, I'm definitely going to have some fun."

I was a bit confused. A single visit to the ice skating club cost at least $500. She usually wouldn't even buy a $5 makeup sponge. Would she really spend money to go to the club?

She wouldn't try to use mine, would she?

Sure enough, she used my identity and brought her childhood friend and two other friends into the club.

They chose the most expensive coach in the venue, used the top-tier equipment, and had a blast all day.

However, when it came time to pay, she completely froze!

Right after turning in the last exam before break, Russell blocked the classroom door.

"Lester!" She grabbed my arm.

"Do you have any plans this weekend?"

I pulled my arm away. "I need to prepare for grad school applications. I'm busy and don't have time."

"What? Studying during break?" Russell's smile froze for a second.

"But you can't just study all day, right? Ever heard of work-life balance? Let's go to that ice skating club and have some fun—the one we went to last time!"

I glanced at her and didn't respond.

She continued, "Just one day, that's all. After relaxing, you'll study way more efficiently. Really!"

"I really don't have time. You can ask someone else to go with you."

I finished speaking and headed toward the dorm.

Russell followed, pursing her lips.

"Ask someone else? Ask who? Bonnie and Ruth are planning to go back home, Maya's going to her boyfriend's place."

"Only Mira's left, and she's so stingy. If I bring her along, what good would it do me?"

Seeing me walking fast, she caught up again and said:

"You just don't know how to enjoy yourself. If you're not going, I'm definitely going to have some fun."

She especially liked ranking classmates by their family backgrounds and only hung out with those from wealthy families.

I thought it over carefully. Something felt off.

Bringing Mira wouldn't do her any good?

But bringing me would benefit her greatly!

Did she really think I was an idiot?

Last month when buying books, $102, she had Maya pay upfront and still hasn't paid her back.

At the cafeteria, she always arrived three minutes late, coming over with her empty tray, looking embarrassed, saying she forgot to bring money, and mooching a meal.

My mind quickly flashed back to a scene from a month ago.

My sister Marta came to our city on a business trip and specially took a day to visit me.

To help me get along with my roommates, Marta treated all six of us in the dorm to the most expensive Western restaurant in the shopping district—over $400 per person.

After dinner, Marta took us to that high-end ice skating club downtown.

She got me a membership card right there and loaded $20,000 onto it.

Marta patted my shoulder and said, "When you're tired from studying, come skate a couple rounds and clear your head."

Everyone in the dorm had a great time that day.

Coming here cost at least $1,000, which I could never afford on my own.

Last time, I saw her at a street vendor stall near campus with a $5 makeup sponge.

She picked it up, touched it, put it down, and eventually walked away.

She often said she was rich.

Her family lived in a mansion, huge and spacious, with several cars.

But when school started, I clearly saw her dad carrying a worn cloth bag with her luggage, wearing old green sneakers with the rubber sole coming apart.

Whenever she called home, she'd borrow a roommate's phone and run far away to make the call.

A $1,000 ice skating trip—did she really have that much money? Unless she was using my card.

Last time at the ice skating club, she stared at Marta the whole time, her eyes practically glued to her.

Later, she slipped away to the front desk by herself.

I didn't pay attention at the time.

But Bonnie noticed and told me when we got back:

"Russell went to the front desk and asked a bunch of questions—whether the card was registered to a specific person, if someone else could use it, whether there'd be a notification on the phone after using it..."

When she came back, Bonnie joked, "Are you planning to get one too?"

Russell flipped her hair back then, looking disdainful: "If I wanted a card, wouldn't that be easy? One call to my dad and the money would be transferred immediately."

Later, she once asked me in a roundabout way:

"Lester, with your ice skating card, can you see the transaction details on your phone afterward? Do you get text messages?"

I said, "That's too much hassle. I never look at text messages."

Her eyes shifted, and she smiled at me really happily.

The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt.

I'm not a particularly stingy person, but having someone secretly eyeing my money made me feel uncomfortable.

Walking through an empty school corridor, I pulled out my phone and called the ice skating club's front desk.