Chapter 72 First place.
Mr. Arbex was visibly delighted. As the room buzzed with praise for Dandara, he nodded with patriarchal satisfaction. “Indeed, the girl has worked hard. This result is a reflection of her discipline,” he declared.
Daniel Lutz, realizing that it was time to reap the rewards of his stepdaughter's “perfection,” let out a discreet chuckle, feigning modesty. “Well, Nísia spends all day with Dandara. Being influenced by such brilliant company, she also ended up doing reasonably well this time.”
Daniel's statement turned everyone's attention to Nísia. Rosana, completing the rehearsed move, added sweetly: “Yes, these two progress together. It's beautiful to see them helping each other.”
Although some distant relatives exchanged incredulous glances—doubting that Nísia could surpass the “star” Dandara—curiosity outweighed skepticism. A distant uncle interrupted: “So, Nísia? What was your final score?”
Nísia, with her usual demure air and the phone firmly in her hand, smiled shyly. “Maybe I wasn't feeling very well on the day of the test... My score dropped a little compared to last time. I only got 696 points.”
The silence that followed lasted exactly three seconds. It was a stunning score. “Are you saying you got close to 700?” asked an elderly man, open-mouthed.
Dandara, maintaining her pose as an ally, intervened: “Nísia is brilliant, especially in math. She's usually the one who helps me with the harder revisions.”
“And what was your ranking, dear?” asked Rosana, her eyes shining with triumph.
Nísia parted her lips and replied cautiously: “First place.”
The room exploded with praise. Daniel Lutz savored every word of envy from the other parents. However, he couldn't resist raising the bar even higher: “Unfortunately, she performed below expectations in some areas. In the past, she was first in everything. This time, although she has the highest average, she came in second place in Math, Science, and Biology.”
“Daniel, you're never satisfied!” joked a family friend. “My son didn't even score 500!”
Daniel laughed, but his heart was heavy. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Katherine. She remained there, indifferent to the spectacle, listening to Heitor's stories. If she doesn't fit in, why did she come? Just to embarrass me with her mediocrity? he thought, with a cold gleam in his eyes.
“But Nísia,” someone asked, intrigued, “if you came second in Math and Science, who came first?”
“I'm not sure,” replied Nísia, shaking her head. “I thought it was Dandara.”
“Who knows who this isolated genius is?” someone laughed, suggesting that the top student in these subjects was some “nerd with no social life” who wasn't present.
Attention then turned to Octavio Arbex, the last of the main circle not to reveal his grade. Feeling cornered, Octavio tried to divert attention: “Cauan Laser hasn't said his yet!”
Cauan, direct as always, blurted out: “I got 409.”
For someone who rarely scored above 300, 409 was a miracle. “Dandara helped me,” he explained, which generated another round of praise for the girl.
But the elders did not give up on Octavio. With João Pedro as his brother, the expectations for him were overwhelming. Anastasia felt her face flush. “Ota's grades aren't good, don't expect too much... This boy avoids books.”
At that moment, a cousin who was browsing on his cell phone laughed loudly. “Someone just posted the complete official ranking on the school forum! Let's see who the mystery first place winner is!”
In a synchronized movement, all the young people and several adults picked up their cell phones. Silence returned to the room, but this time it was the silence of searching. The fate of that night was just a click away.
Nísia glanced furtively at the silent Katherine and, her heart racing, entered the forum to check the official ranking.
In the group of young people, someone announced Octavio's results: “Octavio scored 520 points! What a shameful score!” laughed one of the cousins.
“Shut up!” Octavio retorted, narrowing his eyes.
Despite the mockery, Anastasia was delighted. By Octavio's standards, this was the best result of his life. Katherine's strategic review had paid off. But the mood soon changed when the rudest boy in the group fixed his eyes on Katherine's score.
“Katherine... 450 points. Not bad, you didn't end up among the worst hundred. Everyone guessed wrong on the forum!” He laughed, surprised.
The elders were surprised by the celebration for such a low score. “What do you mean by ‘guess’?” asked one of them.
“It's just that 99% of the school bet she would be in last place after being transferred to the elite class. I was the only one who bet she would save herself,” explained the young man, laughing.
The elders let out a collective “Ah...” and deliberately turned their eyes to Daniel Lutz. Daniel's face, previously overflowing with pride, was now somber. Although Nísia was at the top, she was only the stepdaughter; the failure of his biological daughter with a mere 450 points was a stain on his reputation.
Sophia Ford didn't miss the chance to spew venom: “Well, some children just don't have a natural aptitude for books. We shouldn't take academic performance so seriously, should we, Anastasia?”
Anastasia barely had time to react when João Pedro, who had been completely silent, spoke up. He placed a carefully peeled orange in front of Katherine and declared, with a voice laden with unusual pride:
“You did very well.”
The room was perplexed. João Pedro, the perfect student, praising 450 points?
“João, have you forgotten how grades work?” an aunt said ironically. “The total score is 750. 450 points barely guarantees a pass, doesn't it, Nísia?”
Everyone looked at Nísia, but what they saw was a pale face and trembling hands. Rosana frowned, worried: “Nísia, what's wrong? Did you see something in the rankings?”
It was then that Octavio, devouring a slice of orange, dropped the bomb: “She only got 450 points because she only answered the questions worth 450 points.”
“What do you mean?” Another cousin checked the details and widened his eyes. “Katherine... Math: 150 (Maximum Score). Combined Sciences: 300 (Maximum Score). The rest... all zeros? Did you leave the other tests blank?”
Katherine calmly looked up and let out an indifferent “oh.” “That score was enough.”
The shock was paralyzing. She hadn't failed; she had aced the most difficult subjects on the curriculum and simply ignored the rest out of sheer boredom.
“Wow, Katherine has always been unique! She decides for herself how many points she wants to receive,” exclaimed Anastasia, taking Octavio's cell phone to analyze the ranking. “It's incredible! Absolute maximum score in Exact Sciences!”
“So, the one who beat Nísia in Math, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology was Katherine!” Patriarch Arbex let out a loud laugh, visibly happier than at any other moment that night.