Chapter 6
A case of plagiarism was posted on the Internet. The people involved were Rosa and Ana, who had just organized an art exhibition that day. Looking at the comparisons made by the public on the mobile phone, the two paintings, from the content to the composition and colors, were identical. Soon, the topic #TheNewPainterRosaSuspectedOfPlagiarism# became a trend, generating a wide debate. Several friends surrounded her, agitated like ants on a hot pan. “How could Rosa be responsible for plagiarism? That school uniform in the painting is our high school uniform, are they blind?” “Exactly, that girl in the painting is the same Rosa, all of us can testify to that.” “It is evident that the one who plagiarized was Ana, her plagiarism is blatant.” Rosa, maintaining her basic sanity, ran home, wanting to take out the draft to prove her innocence. On the way, her mind was in disarray, recalling the scene when she originally painted. That year, she was eighteen years old, and Hugo no longer picked her up from school. She had the test in which she had obtained the first place in her grade with her and went straight to the study to show it to him and make him happy. The room was silent. Hugo was asleep on the desk, she approached with soft steps. The last rays of the sun illuminated his eyebrows and eyes, under the golden glow he looked like an untouchable god. Rosa, stubborn, wanted to be the one to knock him off his pedestal. So she took the test and covered it on his face, giving it a soft kiss. Hugo woke up startled and then scolded her. She didn’t take his scolding seriously and simply painted that scene, carefully keeping it for years. Today she had already left Hugo behind, and urged by money, she included that painting in the exhibition. Without thinking, it became a stain on her. Arriving home, Rosa searched in all possible places, but she couldn’t find the draft. She began to panic, trying to remember where else she could look. The mobile rang, a friend had sent her a link, urging her to see it soon. Tapping lightly, Ana’s face appeared on the screen. Watching the press conference behind her, her heart sank. In the live broadcast, Ana, with a serious expression, discussed the issue of plagiarism, describing the entire painting process in detail. Then, she took out a draft and showed it to the numerous reporters and cameras. “I know the young painter Rosa involved in the plagiarism incident, she is young and I think it was not intentional, just a momentary mistake, I do not blame her.” With the opening of this conference, public opinion on the Internet instantly leaned towards her. Many users flooded Rosa’s account with insults, and the comments quickly surpassed one hundred thousand. At the same time, another topic slowly began to gain ground. #Miss Garcia of the family and the president of GrupoTorres kiss sweetly,#good news is suspected soon# Below the topic, the video started playing automatically. Hugo arrived in his sports car at the conference venue, Ana ran up to him and threw herself into his arms. The couple hugged each other and got into the back seat, before the panel rose, the camera caught a moment of them passionately kissing. Their relationship had already been revealed long before, attracting a large number of followers, who were frantically commenting under this video. “So sweet! I’m so happy.” “Why did you upload the panel? Is there anything we, your followers, can’t see?” “I heard that Hugo is Rosa’s younger uncle, now that Rosa and Ana are caught in the plagiarism scandal, and Hugo was the first to defend Ana, doesn’t that further prove that Rosa was the one who plagiarized?” Rosa, with a sleepy expression, logged out, watching the comment reminders rapidly increase, she clicked to view them, finding that they were all insulting her. Some people insulted her for not having learned well since she was little, others for lacking integrity, others for her low level. There were even those who, taking it further, also insulted her family, saying that she had no education and no relatives. Her finger stopped at this comment, and she began to tremble all over. Tears fell one by one on the screen, blurring the letters but not the pain in her heart. She called Hugo.
