hapter 14: The Overachiever?
In the classroom of the 2nd Science Class, Senior Year.
On the blackboard, a difficult physics problem was written.
Mr. Qi stood at the podium, talking enthusiastically.
"This class only has this one problem. Try to solve it. You have half an hour. You can discuss it, but keep your voices down," he said, holding a chair in one hand and a thermos in the other, leisurely sitting at the door of the classroom.
Midlife requires sacrifices—his thermos was filled with goji berries.
At just over fifty years old, he sipped from it, then mumbled to himself, "Are there enough goji berries in here? Hmm, not enough!!!"
Romy, sitting in the back, rummaged through her desk drawer. Soon, she pulled out a romance novel.
Nia focused on the blackboard, trying to solve the problem on a piece of scrap paper.
Her quiet and sweet demeanor made her a beautiful sight in the classroom.
Many of the boys couldn't help but glance at her repeatedly.
Not long after, a look of frustration appeared on her face.
No matter what method she tried, she could only get halfway through the problem, then there was no progress.
The top students sitting in the front row were also quietly discussing it.
"How do we solve this?"
"Seriously, this is a Senior Year problem?"
"Is Mr. Qi trying to make things difficult for us? I've tried so many methods, and I still can't solve it!"
Their voices were full of helplessness.
Evan casually propped his chin in his hand, tilting his head as he watched Nia from behind, smiling.
Solving the problem? Too boring!!!
Besides, this problem wasn't challenging for Evan at all. He couldn't bring himself to care.
Rather than waste time, it was better to keep an eye on Nia.
Evan was more focused on how to get closer to Nia.
Although Nia seemed approachable, Evan knew she was cautious, especially around the opposite sex.
Confessing? Too cliché!
And it was still too early—Nia only saw him as the new guy. It might even have the opposite effect…
Nia put down her pen with a sigh. After considering for a while, she decided to ask Evan for help.
Yesterday, Evan had shown the most impressive physics skills she'd seen among her peers.
Taking a deep breath, she slowly turned around.
She met Evan's gaze—his deep eyes like an endless abyss, captivating her.
Is he looking at me???
When Nia realized this, her face flushed slightly.
To be honest, Nia had a very good impression of Evan.
Although they had only known each other for a day, his calm and steady demeanor, and the clear look in his eyes when he looked at her, made her feel no discomfort. She didn't know why, but she felt strangely familiar with Evan, as though she had seen him somewhere before.
Trying to suppress her shyness, she asked softly, "Evan, could you help me with this problem? I can't solve it."
"Of course."
Evan snapped out of his daydream and smiled knowingly.
He had been wondering how to get closer to Nia, and now the opportunity had come to him.
He owed Mr. Qi a thank-you for this, and hoped there would be more problems like this in the future…
"Thank you."
Nia nodded, holding the scrap paper in her hand. She furrowed her brows slightly and asked her question, "Evan, Mr. Qi asked us to find the velocity of an object landing at point B, with the angle of the incline fixed. But why can't I solve it using the law of conservation of momentum?"
Her pale skin, low ponytail, and long, thick lashes framing her thoughtful eyes made it hard for anyone to look away.
Many boys, including the top students in the front row, noticed this moment, their feelings mixed with jealousy.
Why him?
He just transferred here yesterday, and now he's so familiar with Nia?
"Damn, Evan's got all the luck!"
"Is Nia going to fall for him?"
"Shut up! You're just jealous!"
These comments reached the ears of Dennis in the front row, causing his anger to flare up.
Not again, this guy.
He had seen everything that happened on the basketball court yesterday, and now, seeing Nia's behavior, he felt threatened.
Dennis was one of Nia's many admirers.
He had always acknowledged only one rival—Zack , who had embarrassed him yesterday.
But now another Evan had appeared, and that was unacceptable.
Determined, Dennis quietly moved to an empty seat beside Evan.
Looking at the girl he had admired for so long, a fiery passion flickered in his eyes.
"Nia, if you have any questions about physics, just ask me. After all, I was the top scorer on the last physics test. And asking Evan, well, he might not even know the answer!" Dennis's words were full of pride, arrogance, and subtle boasting.
Though it seemed like he was speaking to Nia, his real target was Evan.
Nia frowned slightly and said coldly, "Dennis, Evan's physics is really good."
She was a bit irritated by Dennis's actions but kept her politeness in check.
"Really?"
Dennis sneered, "Nia, I'm not bragging, but I'm the only one in the class who can solve this problem." He glanced at Evan, a mocking smile on his face. "Evan, he can't do it!"
Evan chuckled.
More rivals, one after another.
Sigh, what can you do?
Nia hadn't blossomed yet, but she already had the kind of beauty that captivated everyone. It was normal for these Senior Year boys to be drawn to her.
But to think they could take Nia away?
That's a laughable thought!
Evan looked at Dennis as if he were an idiot.
"So, you can solve this problem?"
These guys really had no brains.
They came up, tried to provoke him, then belittled others to make themselves look better.
Zack had done the same yesterday, and now Dennis was playing the same game.
Such low tactics.
But then again, what kind of depth could Senior Year students have?
"Of course!"
Dennis's eyes flickered with uncertainty, but on the surface, he put on an overly confident show.
In truth, he hadn't solved it yet, but there was no way he would admit that in front of Nia.
The problem on the blackboard was tough, but Dennis was confident in his physics abilities.
If only he were given more time, he was sure he could figure it out.
Evan raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?"
"Of course!"
Dennis sneered at Evan. "The world of the overachiever is beyond the reach of ordinary people, understand?"
"Overachiever?"
Evan smiled.
Well, he had a golden finger, so where did this guy's confidence come from?
Clueless!!!
Nia shot a cold glance at Dennis. "You're going too far, Dennis!"
"Damn, Nia, I—"
Dennis was about to explain, but was interrupted by Evan.
"Since you, Dennis, are so confident, let me give you a chance to show off."
Then Evan moved his chair and stood up, loudly calling out to Quinn Wei by the door, "Mr. Quinn, Dennis says he can solve this problem."
Everyone's gaze turned toward Dennis, making him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles.
Dennis's face darkened as he whispered, "What… are you doing?"
Evan's lips curled into a slight smile. "I just said I wanted to give Dennis a chance to show off!"
"You…"
Dennis's face turned pale.
"Oh?"
Mr. Qi walked into the classroom and, upon seeing Dennis, frowned slightly.
"Dennis, why are you sitting back there? Get back to your seat!"
"Yes, sir."
Being reprimanded in front of the whole class made Dennis feel embarrassed.
And all of this was thanks to Evan's words.
"You'll pay for this!"
Dennis muttered under his breath, storming back to his seat.
As he sat down, Quinn Wei spoke up, "Hold on. Didn't you say you could solve this problem?"
"Come up and solve it, and explain your solution to the class."
Dennis's face twisted, and he hesitated.
He had bragged in front of Nia, and now he had no choice but to try to solve the problem, even though he wasn't confident.
At the front of the class, he tried to solve it, but Quinn Wei raised his eyebrows.
When he saw Dennis's first step, he already lost all interest.
One mistake leads to another.
Dennis was wrong from the start, and Mr. Qi was very disappointed.
"Stop solving it."
"Sir, what's wrong?"
Dennis asked, confused, as he hadn't even made much progress yet.
Mr. Qi waved his hand dismissively. "You're wrong from the first step. There's no need to waste time on this."
"Since you're in such a hurry to show off, don't waste the class's time. Just sit down!"
All the students chuckled.
Dennis's face turned bright red, and he wished he could crawl into a hole.
He had failed miserably, but it didn't matter—Evan had achieved his goal.
"Let me solve it."
Evan casually got up and took the marker from Quinn Wei.
"Mr. Qi, you're getting old and frail. Let me show you how to do it!"
Then Evan quickly went to the blackboard and began to solve the problem at an astonishing speed.