Page 11 of Break Points and Face Offs

“It’s pretty impressive, but not better than BC.”

He chuckles.

Ma’s voice pops up in the background. “Is that Will? Put him on speaker.”

I chat on speakerphone with my whole family for about an hour. When we finally hang up, I don’t feel as tired anymore.

PRIESTLEY

After seeing Will working at the coffee shop and seeing how easily distracted he was when I sat in front of him in the library, I’m confident when I walk into class that my name will be moving swiftly up the leaderboard.

Will is in his spot on the third row. Seeing as Professor Moreno didn’t enjoy looking at me in the front row last class, I take a seat next to Will instead.

He side-eyes me.

“How did you get on with your peer review?” I ask.

There’s that muscle ticking in his jaw again. I seem to bring out the worst in him. Good.

“Fine.”

“Aren’t you going to ask me?”

He takes a deep breath. “I’m sure you’re gonna tell me anyway.”

“I got on excellently, thank you for asking.”

He blows a laugh out through his nose. “Good, I’m glad.”

The classroom starts to fill up and Professor Moreno arrives, smiling coolly and carrying a stack of papers under her arm.

“I have your peer reviews here. And yes, I did print them all out. And yes, I do own a printer, and yes I did mark them all with an actual pen.”

She goes around the room, slamming them down in front of students like she’s handing out live grenades. My heart races, but it’s anticipation, not fear. I’m waiting for the moment when all the hard work pays off. When I see that ‘A’ or that ‘100%.’ It’s been a while since I saw my perfect scores on anything other than a computer screen, but if Professor Moreno wants to go old school, that’s her business. I’ll take my 100% any way she wants to give it to me.

She says my name and looks up from the stack of papers.

“You’ve moved,” she notes.

“Yes, Professor. Is that alright?”

She shrugs before dropping the peer review on the desk in front of me. She’s already moved on, saying, “Good job,” to someone while I stare at the 98% mark in the corner of my review.

No. There must be some mistake. I’m still trying to figure out if I’m hallucinating when I hear her slap something down beside me. “Excellent work, Will.”

I glance over at the paper she just put down in front of him, gape at the big 100% mark written in red marker in the top right-hand corner.

She walks away before I can say anything. For once, I don’t even know what I would say.

My gaze meets Will’s and I prepare myself for the gloating. Instead, he just shrugs and looks away.

He does not deserve to be number one.

I zone out for a moment, feeling like the floor has been removed, like I’m freefalling without a parachute.

Then Will’s voice pulls me back to reality. Professor Moreno has asked the class something, and Will answered.

“Good,” she says.