Gaming made the hour fly by for Cameron and Elijah, while William and Tiana just sat there, enduring each minute.


    An hour passed in the blink of an eye. At 11:59 p.m., William practically lunged at hisputer, the score portal already loaded, "Come on," he called out to


    Cameron and Elijah."


    Cameron didn''t nce up from her phone. "Go ahead and check, Mr. Drake. I''l finish this round first."


    William stared at her, speechless for a moment.


    Tiana chuckled, "Cameron, you have suchposure. If only Xander had absorbed even 10% of your calm during your tutoring sessions. He''s still as impulsive as ever."


    Tiana had also heard that Xander had been apparently heartbroken. Logan and Gwen were beside themselves. Tiana was curious about whether Xander, who had always been proud, could pine like somemon teenager.


    "I''m ttered," Cameron murmured, fingers still''dancing across her screen.


    Elijah''s character died just then. He hesitated, wondering whether he should offer


    to check his scores first to ease the tension.


    "Alright, Cameron. Give me your ID number." William turned to Cameron.


    Cameron rattled it off without breaking gamey.


    "And your registration number," William said.


    Cameron gave that to him.


    William inhaled sharply, held it, and exhaled three times before hovering his finger over the enter key, but he couldn''t bring himself to press it.


    "Mr. Drake," Tiana reminded him. "The time hase."


    "I know." Another dramatic breath. William squeezed his eyes shut and mmed the key. And even then, he didn''t open his eyes.


    Tiana was nervous too, but she was nowhere near as bad as William, "Mr. Drake." Her voice carried awkward amusement.


    "Just tell me the total score. Is Cameron number one?" William''s entire body trembled, eyes still screwed shut.


    Tiana cleared her throat. "Uh, Mr. Drake... The system says the ID number is incorrect."


    "What?" William''s eyes flew open. The screen showed an error message for the ID number.


    Just like that, the tension that had built up inside him vanished in an instant. He turned to Cameron. "Did you give me the wrong ID number?"


    Cameron looked up at him. She suddenly remembered that her ID number had changed. The second-tost digit had been odd when she was registered as male, but now even for female. She then recited the corrected number.


    All tension drained from William now. He entered the digits and pressed the key without hesitation. A new page instantly popped up on the screen.


    Tiana gasped behind her hand. "The first ce! William, Cameron is the state''s top scorer. Our school finally ims the title!"


    William stared at the screen, unblinking: [The Reading and Writing section: 788. The Math section: 800. Total: 1588. State ranking: 1]


    The numbers William had dreamed of for years burned into his retinas. His body remained frozen in the chair, but a smile slowly spread across his face. His eyes grew shiny.


    He thought, ''In a hundred years since the school''s founding, this is Langford Academy''s first time having the state''s top scorer. For years, Langford


    Academy had been overshadowed by Horizon Academy, and that was why Charles had always been so arrogant:


    William kept staring at the numbers, touching the screen with trembling fingers. "First ce... First ce... Cameron, you did it. You really did it."


    Cameron had just finished her game. She strolled over, stood behind William, and rested her chin on her hand as she studied the scores. "Hmm, I won first ce." The result was as she expected, so her reaction was utterlyposed.


    William shot up,ughing, "Thank you, Cameron. Thank you!" He reached to hug her but remembered her gender at thest second. Instead, he grabbed both of her hands tightly. "Thank you!"


    "Calm down, Mr. Drake," Cameron smiled. "At your age, being too excited will affect your health. I just did what I should." No matter how lowly she had been in her past life, this life would shine brighter than ever before.


    William nodded. "Alright. Cameron, your scores are out. Go home and get some rest. I have something else to do. See youter." He couldn''t wait to celebrate.


    With a warm pat on her shoulder, he turned and walked toward the door, beaming.


    "Mr. Drake," Tiana called. "You haven''t checked Elijah''s scores."


    "You handle it," William replied without even turning around, his happiness radiating from his bouncing stride.


    Tiana smiled awkwardly, "Elijah, I''ll help you check your scores. Mr. Drake had somethinge up."


    Elijah shook his head with a smile. "Thanks, but I can do it myself." He didn''t begrudge William''s partiality. Cameron deserved every bit of that attention.


    “Sure.” Tiana stepped aside and offered Elijah the seat.


    Cameron stood with arms crossed, observing intently as Elijah swiftly keyed in his details and pressed enter.


    Elijah''s scores shed across the screen. [The Reading and Writing section: 760. The Math section: 774. Total: 1534. State ranking: 2]


    Tiana practically jumped for joy. "Yes! Elijah, you genius! State runner-up." Langford Academy had achieved the unimaginable-iming both first and second ce in the state.


    Tiana immediately dialed William. "Mr. Drake, Elijah secured second ce. Two of the top three spots belong to our students. Congrattions!"


    William''s voice carried undisguised delight. "The honor is ours to share, vice principal."


    Tiana froze. "William... What did you just call me?"


    Williamughed, "You heard right. Ms. Murphy, your promotion is effective immediately, From now on, you''re the vice principal of Langford Academy."


    "Thank you for this recognition!" Tears of joy welled in Tiana''s eyes. Hanging up, she turned to Cameron and Elijah with gratitude. "Thanks. This triumph belongs to you both."


    Cameron offered a respectful nod. "Congrattions, Ms. Murphy."


    Elijah smiled, "Congrattions."


    Cameron and Elijah left the office. They declined Tiana''s offer for a ride, choosing instead to walk down the moonlit avenue, where the evening breeze carried the faint fragrance of flowers.


    Elijah studied Cameron''s profile, his voice full of admiration. "Who could''ve predicted that the ''academic liability'' from three months ago would be the SAT champion?"


    A mischievous smile yed on Cameron''s lips. "Apologies for usurping your throne."


    Elijah chuckled, "On your very first day in the dorm, you told me that you''d take my first ce. I watched you prove it step by step. Your victory is unquestionable. I yield dly."


    "Don''t underestimate yourself," Cameron smiled. "A natural-born genius over here."


    Elijah''s brilliance came effortlessly, and Cameron''s triumph was carved through relentless effort.


    They left school together. It was already half past midnight. Cameron wanted a cup of milkshake, but the shops outside were all student oriented, so every stand


    and snack shop had shut their windows.


    They rode their bikes back to Noble Vista.


    "Late enough already. Get some rest,” Elijah said as they reached the building where Cameron lived.


    Cameron nodded. "You too."


    Just as Elijah turned to leave, Cameron called out from behind him. "Oh, wait."


    Elijah pivoted back, dim light catching the questioning tilt of his head. Cameron smiled, "I almost forgot to say congrattions. Second in the state. Elijah, it''s really impressive."


    With that score, Elijah could get into any university in the country.


    Elijah smiled gently, "Congrattions, champion."


    He thought, ''Cameron is really something special. He''s brilliant, hardworking, and


    kind-hearted. Of course, I''d fall for him.''


    A yawn overtook Cameron as she waved him off.


    The parcel by her doorstep almost went unnoticed. Cameron scooped it up,


    squinting at thebel before carrying it inside.


    She opened the box and saw her new ID card. She stared at the word "Female"


    and traced the embossed letters with her thumb, beaming with pleasure. She had officially begun a new life.


    At Murphy Manor, Logan and Gwen dragged Xander to theputer.


    "What''s the point?" Xander grumbled, slouching in his chair. "The scores won''t


    change."


    "Just check," Gwen coaxed, her voice gentle.


    With a sigh, Xander typed his information.


    "1120!" Logan''s eyes widened. For Xander, a student-athlete, scoring over 1,000


    was impressive. Logan and Gwen had just hoped Xander could make it past the undergraduate cutoff line, but this score couldnd him to a good university. "Xan, you did amazing!" Gwen beamed with pride


    Loganughed, "It''s all Cam''s credit. Those tutoring sessions paid off."


    Gwen nodded. "That''s true. We should invite Cam over to properly thank him."


    Xander, who''d been slumped in disinterest, suddenly perked up. "Yeah. All credit to Cameron."


    Gwen ruffled his hair affectionately. "You worked hard too, sweetheart. Xan, invite Cam for dinner tomorrow. We have to express our gratitude."


    Xander shook his head. "Mom, to show respect, you should call Cam yourselves."


    Xander know that Cameron wouldn''te, but his parents'' invitation. would probably carry enough weight.


    "Fine," Gwen chuckled. "I''ll call him tomorrow morning. He must''ve aced his exams."


    Logan grinned, feeling proud. "No doubt. How else could he turn this cker into


    a good university student?"


    Xander smiled, a hint of pride in his voice. "You guys really like Cameron, huh?”


    "Who wouldn''t?" Logan nodded. "That kid is excellent."


    Xander chuckled, "Mom, you have to make sure hees."


    Gwen patted his shoulder. "Don''t worry, I''ll get him here."


    The gloom that had clouded Xander''s heart these past days finally lifted.


    "Xan," Logan reminded. "The graduation ceremony is tomorrow. Get some rest.”


    Xander smiled, "Alright."


    He thought, ''I almost forgot about it. I''ll see Cameron tomorrow afternoon. Oh, right, I should ask her about her scores. It isn''t harassment, right?"


    Back in his room, he pulled out his phone and sent Cameron a


    message.


    Cameron emerged from her shower to find a WhatsApp message from Xander


    half an hour ago.


    Xander: [SAT scores are out. I got 1120. How about you?]


    Cameron: [1588.]


    Xander''s response came instantly: [Awesome!]


    He had been glued to his phone ever since sending that message, waiting for a


    reply. He resisted the urge to send her messages because he knew well that doing so would only push her away.


    Every passing minute had stretched into eternity as Xander imagined countless results. When her reply finally appeared, the numbers hit him like a physical blow. Xander''s eyes widened in shock. He thought, ''1588? The total score is 1600. So she only lost 12 points? Amazing!''


    Xander: [You''re the state top scorer, right?]


    Cameron: [Yeah.]


    Xander: [Congrattions. You did it.]


    Cameron: [Thanks. It''ste. Goodnight.]


    The abrupt dismissal stung. Xander stared at the screen. He thought, ''She''s so


    cold with me now. Why? Is this her way of rejecting me after knowing my feelings


    for her?''


    Still holding his phone, Xander stared at his darkened screen. The earlier


    euphoria was crumbling into the abyss at this moment.


    He didn''t understand what was wrong with him and why Cameron didn''t like him.


    He gazed out the window at the dark night sky. He let out a low groan and buried


    his face in the pillow.


    In the morning, Cameron woke up to a message from Bradley.


    Bradley: [Congrattions, this year''s top scorer.]


    William had been absolutely over the moon after learning Cameron''s results. He


    immediately announced that she was this year''s top scorer.


    Bradley saw this news in the morning and sent Cameron a message.


    Cameron: [Thanks, Brad. You aced it too?]


    Bradley: [Yeah.]


    His scores guaranteed admission to his dream university.


    Cameron: [I just got the news that I won the three-million-dor SAT schrship.


    I nned to repay you first, but with my startup''s current experises, might not be


    able to repay you anytime soon.]


    Bradley: [Keep it. When The Starry collectionunches, profits will dwarf that.] Cameron: [Thank you, Brad.]


    Gratitude warmed her chest. Bradley had negotiated her 70% royalty cut for The Starry design series.


    Bradley: [It was nothing. Are you avable around lunchtime today? Let''s have dinner and then go to the graduation ceremony together.]


    Cameron: [Sure.]


    Just as she finished replying to Bradley, the doorbell rang. She set her phone


    down and went to the door. Through the peephole, she saw an unexpected figure waiting outside.


    AD


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