Chapter 485
Norris didn’t even try to sugarcoat it. “I honestly don’t remember.” Fannie’s face fell, disappointment showing in every line. No surprise there. No matter how much effort Fannie put into getting in his line of sight, Norris only had eyes for math problems.
“Sorry to bother you, then.” Fannie managed to pull herself together quickly, switching gears and getting back to the formal questions.
Most of the interview attention, though, went straight to Claire. Can you blame them? She had the individual gold medal and was gorgeous on top of that. Not long ago, there were all sorts of rumors swirling around her, and she’d been right in the middle of them. Winning the gold was like the perfect comeback, shutting up all the people who had talked behind her back.
The doubters? Now they just looked lost, no idea how to react after watching her take the top prize.
Someone cut right to the chase. “Claire, do you have anything to say about the drama you’ve faced online recently?” a reporter asked bluntly.
Claire smiled, cool and calm. “Not much to say, really. My abilities speak for themselves. Turns out, all that talk was just noise p>
The students watching the interview called it the look of a real champ. Most of them were just straight-up amazed by her.
“She’s honestly incredible. That whole switched-at-birth thing didn’t shake her at all. She didn’t even care about the gossip online—she only had her sights on the competition p>
“You can tell she’s steady. Growing up in a rich family, her education really does make a difference p>
“Imagine being the real heiress and watching her walk away with the gold. That’s gotta sting p>
“To be fair, her adoptive family deserves some credit too. If Claire hadn’t grown up with the James family, would she be this awesome p>
At first, everyone was praising Claire and the team, hyping them up. But somehow the conversation drifted Maybe someone was purposefully steering things off track or maybe it
just hap naturally. Either way
since Claire was basically a nationalTM hero now, any negative talk disappeared pretty fast.
SO
Back at Silverpeak International College, they even put up banners in her honor, celebrating her gold medal and the team’s win Cindy? She saw those banners and upset, she couldn’t even eat lunch. Not that it mattered. Most people in school were genuinely happy for Claire.
After that, Claire and the others headed to Cabinda University. There, she sat down
with the administration and explained that she wasn’t going to take their guaranteed
early admission. She wanted to take the entrance exams herself instead.
Sammie, who was in charge, actually got it. “It’s completely understandable that you want to sit for the exams.” If Claire had the drive to go for it, they were fine letting her. “But are you totally sure you want to give up your spot? The entrance exams do come with risks. If you miss out on your dream school, you could still fall back on Cabinda’s
offer. There’s no need to decide so fast p>
Claire got straight to the point. “Honestly, it’s because I don’t actually want to major in math p>
“Oh, right. I remember you saying you want to study medicine, don’t you?” Sammie’s tone was gentle, more like a grandparent than a school official- understandable, since Claire was Melissa’s daughter.
“Yes, that’s what I want to pursue p>
“In that case, be brave and go for it. We’ll keep the guaranteed spot just in case, and after the exams, you can decide.” Sammie smiled. “No matter what, the math department’s doors are always open for you p>
That was enough for Norris too. He didn’t press the issue. As far as he was concerned, as long as Claire was happy, that was all that mattered. You didn’t have to dedicate your whole life to math just because you were talented. He wasn’t that inflexible.
Some of the other coaches probably thought it was a shame she wasn’t choosing math, but it was clear her mind was made up.
Later, Claire headed home with Norris to the Churchill family estate. Everyone was there, throwing a dinner to welcome them back. But let’s be real, it was mainly to celebrate Claire. Norris was just along for the ride.