Chapter 33
“I’m looking forward to competing with you in the tournament, Miss!” said one of the students.
“If you end up ranking at the bottom, now that would be interesting.” The student with black–rimmed glasses
sneered.
“The ALI Math Competition allows participants from all backgrounds, so there are always plenty of blank submissions. Every year, the ranking board is littered with zeros.
“Plus, the competition publicly lists each participant’s name and background. You’d better be mentally prepared!”
Elara smiled, somewhat unbothered. “How about this–if rank higher than you, you wear a T–shirt that says, ‘I ranked lower than Elara Jones in the ALI Math Competition for a full week. Sounds fair?”
This was the ultimate insult for students used to the ivory tower of academia, He would have to walk around Capitol University with that shirt on display.
The student with black–rimmed glasses was provoked by Elara, and he rose to the challenge. “Fine! But let me tell you, I won’t even demand you rank higher than me–if you don’t make it into the top 200, you won’t be qualified to step foot in Dr. Snapp’s house to study with us!”
“Wayne, she solved three problems on the test in just an hour…” Another student tried to reason with him
“So what if she can solve problems? The competition requites answers in LaTeX format. Did she even learn that back in college?”
The others tried to calm Wayne Loughty down as he reluctantly took his seat, still grumbling, “A housewife entering a math competition? What a waste of resources.”
Elara tuned out the noise and focused on her test. Their scorn couldn’t shake her. She knew the road she was on was difficult, but she had once climbed to the top.
Now, she was simply returning to where she belonged!
Time slipped by unnoticed as she worked through another major problem, her heart swelling with satisfaction. Elara let out a deep breath and looked up, just in time to see Theodore carefully lifting a sleeping Bambi into his
arms
She was about to stand up when he mouthed, “I’ll take her inside.”
Elara then watched as Theodore carried Bambi into Tobias room. Tobias was already out of bed–he hadn’t been sick in the first place, so lying down all day had been unbearable for him.
Theodore, moving with gentle precision, laid Bambi down at the edge of the bed and draped a blanket over her. Tobias eyed Bambi’s peaceful sleeping face and was about to scold Theodore, but when he opened his mouth, the words twisted into something more sarcastic.
“You sure seem invested in this child. What’s the deal? Trying to be her dad or something?”
Theodore crouched beside Bambi and whispered near her ear, “Daddy is bad; Mr. Theodore is good. Daddy is bad; Mr. Theodore is good.”
The veins on Tobias’s temple bulged instantly. He grabbed his cane, ready to smack Theodore again.
At 9:00 pm, the Capitol University students bid Tobias farewell. Elara also told Tobias about her decision to
25 BONUS
Chapter 30
compete in the ALI Math Competition.
Tobias cast a glance at his son with his hands clasped behind his back.
A sharp huff escaped his nose. His voice came out as firm as ever as he said, “Since you were once my student, you’d better not embarrass me at the competition. Come here and work on problems for the next few days.”
A bright, starry joy flickered in Elara’s eyes.
“Thank you, Dr. Snapp,” she said while giving him a nod.
After she left, Tobias turned back, staring at Elara’s test paper for a long time. His eyes welled up with a heavy sigh.
Meanwhile, Theodore carried Bambi as he walked Elara to the gate.
“I’ll drive you home,” he said.
Holding her sleeping daughter, Elara hesitated–taking a taxi while carrying Bambi would be inconvenient. “There’s no need. My older brother is picking us up.”
Theodore paused for a second. Then, he saw a military–green off–road vehicle pulling up. The window rolled down, revealing a chiseled face with sharp, deep–set features.
Theodore’s expression turned cold.
It was Finnegan Lloyd–Elara’s foster brother.
