In the restaurant, Juniper arrived to find Qadir, J, Queenie, and Dolce all sitting obediently in their chairs. Neat stacks of score sheets and pens wereid out on the table. The air was thick with tension, and no one spoke.


    "Juniper." As she walked in, they all rose in unison.


    "So, how are your score estimates looking?" Juniper gave a slight nod, sat down, and began to carefully review the papers. The four sheets showed different scores. J''s total was 680; she''d been modest, underestimating her score by about ten points. Queenie had 660, a solid and realistic estimate. Dolce had 580, calcted strictly by the answer key. Qadir had 460.


    Seeing thest score, Juniper arched a delicate eyebrow and shot Qadir a wry, teasing look. “Aren''t you the prodigy?"


    The cutoff for most local science programs was 420st year. If he really scored a 460, he''d have no problem getting into a university in the city.


    “Of course,” Qadir said, puffing out his chest with pride. “I checked the answer key carefully. That''s my real score."


    His dad had been so thrilled he''d already promised him a new car. His exact words were: "We just had a great month on the farm, we''ve got money, pick whatever you want."


    “Alright,” Juniper said, flipping through their sheets. “Have you thought about which schools you want to apply to?"


    J and Queenie were shoo-ins for Era University. Dolce could get into a top- tier school, and Qadir''s score was good enough to scrape into a decent second-tier university.


    “Juniper, where are you thinking of going?" Queenie asked, her eyes fixed on her.


    Juniper propped her chin on her hand. She hadn''t really considered it. "Whichever school calls first, that''s where I''ll go,” she said casually.


    As long as it was in Era City, she didn''t care which one it was. After all, she was only doing this to fulfill her grandfather''sst wish.


    "With Juniper''s skills, I don''t think any school is good enough for her," Qadir eximed.


    If things went as expected, she would likely ace every subject again. The professors at Era University would probably think their eyes were deceiving them Not to mention the teachers and students at Aurora High School were practically bursting with anticipation, waiting for Juniper to bring glory to their school.


    Just as Qadir finished speaking, a harsh, coldugh cut through the air from nearby.


    All five of them turned in unison.


    It was Yelena, with Ynda in tow, staring at them with arrogant disdain.


    "What''s so funny?" Qadir demanded, annoyed.


    "I heard a joke, of course,” Yelena said, her eyebrows twitching with provocation. "Era University is a top-ranked global institution. You think it''s some run-of-the-mill private school like Aurora High?"


    She had been in the same exam hall and had seen Juniper''s performance clearly. Did she even score two hundred points? The idea of her getting into Era University was utterly insane.


    Juniper finished the fruit on her te and slowly rose to face Yelena and Ynda. She took a single step forward without saying a word.


    "Yelena!" Ynda''s face paled. She instinctively tugged on Yelena''s sleeve and whispered, "Don''t provoke her. When Juniper loses it, she actually gets violent." She''d been on the receiving end before, and Juniper didn''t hold back.


    Yelena was seething, but the thought that she would be able to deal with these two wretches soon


    cooled her temper, it wasn''t worth getting into a physical fight now and causing herself more trouble.


    "And remember, Jolene has been demanding to see you," Ynda reminded her. "If


    you don''t go, she might start running her mouth.”


    "Let''s go."


    Yelena shot them onest cold look before she and Ynda pushed the door open and left.