Chapter <b>90 </b>


    Emmitt, weary of the exaggerated tales that seemed to flow endlessly from his mother’s lips<b>. </b>casually shifted the conversation. “Didn’t Mirabe join the BrainSpark Nationals? How did the prelims go?”


    He paused briefly, ncing at Mirabe, but before she could respond, he continued, “Summer’s been in thatpetition too. Scored pretty well, got a high ranking.” He deliberately omitted that Summer had ced sixth, out of consideration for Mirabe’s pride.


    Mirabe’s eyebrows twitched slightly, but she remained silent.


    Delh and Shawn, standing nearby, <b>didn’t </b>seem the slightest bit surprised. Instead-


    “Oh. Summer’s score is decent enough,” Delh said nonchntly with a nod<b>. </b>


    Shawn, equallyposed, added, “Summer’s always been a strong student. Her being near the top isn’t surprising.”


    But no matter how good Summer was, she wasn’t a match for their daughter. After all, their girl had aced it, clinching the top spot with a perfect score.


    Noticing their tepid reactions, Emmitt looked up. puzzled. Summer had been their cherished foster daughter for over a decade. Even if they


    weren’t thrilled for her, their response seemed off. Could it be because Mirabe had done poorly, and they were being considerate of her feelings?


    Emmitt chuckled at the thought, but before he could dwell on it, Shawn’s voice filled the air again. “Our Mira’s a different story. Fresh from a small–town high school and hardly settled into the big city’s teaching methods, she went straight for the jackpot–a perfect score. She’s really done the Davis family proud!”


    Shawn finished speaking with a smugness so exaggerated, it was as if he wanted to tattoo ‘World’s Smartest Daughter‘ across his forehead.


    “And rightly so. She’s the national number one.” Delh chimed in, her tone shifting to one of unbridled pride, her chin lifted high.


    Emmitt’s face registered shock as he turned to them. “Perfect score? First ce?”


    Sensing Emmitt’s disbelief, Delh blinked innocently. “Huh, <b>didn’t </b>I tell you?”


    “You might’ve forgotten.” Shawn chimed in, feigning seriousness.


    “How could she…” Emmitt blurted out impulsively, “Her grades were not great, were they?”


    Delh’s eyebrows arched as she nced at her eldest son. “Who told you that?” She seemed to have erased from her memory the fact that she too had once believed her daughter’s academic performance wascking.


    Emmitt was taken aback.


    “If you don’t believe it, go check the rankings online for yourself,” Delh <b>huffed</b><b>, </b>clearly disappointed by Emmitt’s distrust.


    Emmitt’s expression stiffened, his grip on his fork faltering. He didn’t reach for his phone to check the rankings. He knew his parents wouldn’t joke about such matters. Mixed emotions churned within Emmitt as he turned to look at Mirabe, who sat quietly enjoying her meal.


    For so long, he had always thought that his sister had poor academic performance, and he even believed that the eptance letter to Parkside High School was obtained through improper


    means.


    After learning she had entered the BrainSpark Nationals, he prejudged her actions as frivolous. Ironically, he had thought himself kind, even offering to hire her a tutor–an offer she had declined, leading him to believe she was reaching beyond her grasp.