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Maddy's pen scratches across her notebook at twice the speed of Alex's. She's already on Problem 8 while he's still wrestling with the algebra on Problem 5, and Jian finished Problem 9 ten minutes ago and is now reviewing his work with that infuriating color-coded precision. Alex can feel the frustration building in his chest, a familiar pressure behind his sternum. He doesn't say anything. He never does. It always bothered him how much smarter Jian was, how easily he and Maddy moved through the material together, trading insights and corrections while Alex slogged behind them like a wounded animal. "Done!" Maddy announces, slamming her notebook shut with a satisfaction that makes Alex want to flip the table. "Okay, I'm out. Late spin class before bed, and I need to sweat out this day."
"Have fun," Jian says, actually meaning it. "Don't let them cheat off you," she says to Alex, ruffling his hair as she passes. He forces a smile that feels like a grimace. Then she's gone, backpack swinging, coffee cup empty, and it's just the two of them under the fluorescent lights. Jian turns to Alex with that patient expression, the one that somehow manages to be supportive and condescending at the same time. "Let's finish these problems," Jian says. "Then we can talk."
Alex looks at his laptop. Seven out of ten problems done. The cursor blinks on Problem 8 like a heartbeat.