Chapter 285

The flights were already set, and there was no way to change their departure time. Cabinda was a place where none of them really knew their way around. If anything unexpected happened, they’d be in trouble. They needed to give themselves plenty of time to get to the airport.

“Your uncle wants you to wait for him at school, so just stay on campus, okay? Don’t go wandering off.” Adolph’s worry showed in his voice.

Claire knew why. She was used to getting attention, but standing by the school gate, she could feel people’s eyes on her as they came and went. It made sense for Adolph to be cautious.

“Alright, Adolph. You guys should get going. It’d be a disaster if you missed your flight p>

“Okay.” Adolph gave her a quick nod before leaving with the rest of the group.

Claire lingered by the entrance, pacing a little, when she happened to spot Sammie. He caught her eye and waved with a big smile.

“Hi, Sammie.” Claire walked over, feeling instantly at ease.

“Have you had breakfast yet?” Sammie’s voice was warm and friendly.

“I have, thanks.” Claire smiled back. She’d always liked Sammie. He was one of those respected elders who never acted superior, but when it came to work, he was all business.

Sammie had liked Claire from the start, and when he found out she was Melissa’s daughter, he liked her even more.

“Are you waiting for Norris? I heard your team from Apex is heading home today. Aren’t you going with them p>

Claire shook her head. “I’m heading back with my uncle p>

Sammie looked a bit surprised. “Your uncle… is he your dad Agassi’s brother p>

“No, he’s my dad’s cousin,” Claire explained.

Sammie smiled. “That’s good. You’re still young, it’s much safer to travel with family. Want to come sit in my office for a while p>

Since he was being so friendly, Claire felt like she couldn’t say no. She followed him to his office, even though she figured he’d probably just hand her a pile of books to read.

Sammie sat down and looked at her thoughtfully. “You know, you really have a knack for math. Have you ever thought about doing your graduate studies with me p>

He meant it, too. Sammie always valued talented students, and since Claire was basically his academic grandchild, he wanted to guide her even more. He hoped she’d stick around and do research under his wing if she stayed in academia, she’d be safe, or at least safer than her mother had been.

Claire hesitated, searching for the right words. “Honestly… math isn’t really where my heart is p>

Sammie looked baffled. “But you’re so gifted. Wouldn’t it be a waste not to use that talent p>

Claire smiled, a little apologetic. “Math is interesting, sure, but I don’t love it.” Sammie couldn’t help but think how many people would kill for her kind of talent, and here she was, saying she didn’t really care for it.

“So, what do you like then?” He was genuinely curious. Was there really something more exciting than math?

“I want to study medicine,” Claire said.

Sammie stared at her, completely taken aback. “Are you sure? Medicine’s no joke.

It’s way tougher than math. People always say you should never encourage anyone to go to med school p>

Claire laughed. “I really do love

medicine. I’ve actually been learning

about it since I was a kid. Everyone

has their own thing, right? My

mom

loved math, and maybe I got her

talent, but I didn’t get her passion.

Maybe because I didn’t grow up with her, so I wasn’t influenced the same way p>

Sammie took a moment, then nodded. He understood. “If you want to study medicine, that’s up to your won’t try to talk you out of it. But if you end up with a guaranteed spot from this competition, it’ll only be for the math department p>

He was sure of one thing, though. With Claire’s performance so far, making the top

six and representing the country at the international competition was almost a given.