Livestreaming the Low-Budget Life Chapter 06
By the time I landed in Delvoria, my last exam was almost over. I opened the live stream link and, sure enough, Mom and Dad were livestreaming at the school gate with Ruby.
The screen was split into two views, just like before-one focused on the school gate, the other on them.
“Aria’s about to finish! Everyone, send in your donations!”
They were cheering everyone on to donate even more, celebrating the end of my exam and our long-awaited family reunion.
They waited while the other students trickled out of the school, staying until only a few stragglers lingered at the gate. And still, I hadn’t appeared.
The viewers, eager for the show, couldn’t stay quiet and started bombarding the comments with complaints.
“Why isn’t Aria coming out yet? Are you guys messing with us?”
“Exactly! I’ve donated so much already!”
Dad rushed to calm everyone down. “Don’t worry, she’s probably just busy. Maybe she’s in the restroom.”
So they waited for another 30 minutes, until the security guard was about to close the school gates.
My parents hurried over. “Excuse me, is any student still in there?”
“Everyone left ages ago. Are you sure you’ve got the right school?”
Dad muttered, “Aria told me this was the right school. I even double-checked several times.”
Just then, Ms. Langley happened to walk out of the school gate. Dad recognized her and hurried over, grabbing her
arm.
“You’re Aria Stone’s homeroom teacher, right?” he asked.
Ms. Langley looked him over. “Are you Aria’s father?”
“Yes! Yes, that’s me. Aria’s taking her exam here, right? Why hasn’t she come out yet? We’ve been waiting at the gate this whole time and haven’t seen her.”
Ms. Langley couldn’t help but laugh. “Aria didn’t take this exam.”
Mom, Dad, and Ruby froze. “She didn’t?”
“The school arranged for her to study abroad. She wouldn’t have to take the exam,” Ms. Langley explained.
“Study abroad?”
Seeing how confused my parents looked, Ms. Langley shook her head and sighed. “Mr. Stone, I’ve called you so many times, but you never answer. No matter how busy you are, you should at least care about Aria.
“How can you call yourselves her parents? You skipped every parent teacher conference, and now you didn’t even know she’s going abroad?”
I watched the live stream as my parents’ expressions turned to sheer disbelief. Honestly, it was both hilarious and satisfying.
Now they knew what it felt like to be played. Didn’t feel so great, did it?
The comments suddenly came alive.
“LOL. We didn’t get to see what we wanted, but this ending is hilarious.”
“Aria’s so smart. She probably figured this out ages ago.”
“Interesting! What a plot twist. They thought Aria was being played, but it turns out they were the ones fooled!”
It was only then that Dad thought to call me, but my phone had already been deactivated. I’d blocked him on WhatsApp too.
Even all the way in Delvoria, seeing my parents’ sour faces made me laugh out loud. Ruby, standing next to them, couldn’t help sneaking a smile.
She was probably relieved I’d tricked them and left. Now, she could have them all to herself. Hadn’t she wanted me to stay away all along?
Ruby quickly tried to comfort them. “Mom, Dad, if Aria doesn’t want to come home, just let her be.”
Before they could even react, a group of menacing men approached Dad.
