Another week passed, and with the students' sustained enthusiasm for learning, the school's annual final exams arrived.
Then, after two days of somber final exams, smiles gradually returned to the students' faces.
After all, it would still take a few days for the school to compile the students' grades and send report cards to their homes after the final exams.
So, regardless of their final grades, at least the students would have a very comfortable first few days of vacation.
"Mike, you're truly amazing!" On the way home after the exam, a relaxed Georgie exclaimed admiringly, "The key points you marked for me almost all appeared on the test."
Knowing his grades weren't good, Georgie had sought help from Mike, a good student, before the final exams.
And Mike, who had experienced extensive practice and knew how to deal with exams, used his experience to mark the key points for each subject in advance.
The results looked very good; with Mike's intelligence, the overlap rate between the key points he marked for each subject and the actual test was over eighty percent.
This situation was equivalent to having the original questions laid out in front of Georgie.
So, if Georgie, who had received the exam "answers" in advance, hadn't been lazy during the more than a week of review time, passing this time would definitely not be a problem.
"Looking at you, you must have done well," Mike asked with a smile, "How about it? Can you guarantee passing grades in all subjects?"
It was clear that Mike was in a good mood, being able to help his friend.
"This…" Hearing the question, the expression on Georgie's face froze.
Evidently, for some struggling students, even if the original answers were laid out in front of them, they still wouldn't know how to solve them.
Georgie was probably in this situation now.
The key points Mike marked could only ensure that he felt familiar with many questions during the exam; as for the accuracy, that couldn't be guaranteed.
From the current situation, after receiving help, if Georgie could even scrape by with one or two passing grades, it would be a miracle.
Mike and Sheldon, who was following behind, looked at Georgie's reaction and knew that he had messed up his exams again.
"I knew it. If your foundation isn't solid, even giving you the answers is useless," Sheldon said with a serious expression.
Actually, before the final exams, Georgie had also asked him for help.
However, the method Sheldon suggested was to first solidify the basics and then fill in the gaps.
This method was a good suggestion for those who wanted to learn, but for Georgie, who didn't like to study, this method was too time and energy-consuming; it was tantamount to asking for his life.
So, upon hearing Sheldon's suggestion, Georgie dismissed it.
And now, seeing the person who had given an "unreliable" idea earlier actually daring to mock him, Georgie, out of embarrassment and anger, retorted, "Shut up! It's none of your business!"
Sheldon, seeing Georgie's unappreciative look, snorted and said no more.
In fact, Georgie was feeling very complex and a bit regretful; if he had known Mike's predictions were so accurate, he definitely would have reviewed diligently before.
Of course, anything said now was just hindsight.
Not wanting to dwell on the heavy and awkward topic, Georgie quickly changed the subject and said, "Mike, have you decided on a dance partner for the school's year-end ball tomorrow?"
Every year before the winter break, the school would hold a large year-end ball.
While allowing students to relax, the ball would also select the most popular boy and girl of the year.
This pair of boy and girl would be crowned with the titles of "King" and "Queen."
Similarly, these two would become the school's image representatives for the following year.
Although the "King" and "Queen" chosen by the school had no actual power, being the most popular people among the students was already a very high honor.
Therefore, students who had the chance to win this honor would try every means to campaign for themselves on the day of the ball.
And in Georgie's opinion, Mike, who had many shining moments this year, had a great chance to become the school's "King" for the year.
"Tomorrow I'm going with Ms. Sharon and the others to participate in the High School Math Olympiad League," Mike said. "As for the school ball, I probably won't have time to attend."
"Are you serious?" Georgie asked in surprise.
In his subconscious, the importance of that Math Olympiad League was completely incomparable to becoming "King."
However, seeing the serious expression on Mike's face, Georgie sighed and continued, "That's a real shame. If you could dance the first dance with Regina tomorrow, you'd definitely become 'King.'"
Regina was already a focal point in the school due to her strong charm.
Last year, she had already become "Queen" by a high margin of votes due to her beauty.
And from the situation this year, if nothing unexpected happened, Regina would surely continue to maintain her record.
As for Mike, he was definitely a prominent figure in the school this year. If he could have some more interaction with Regina tomorrow, becoming "King" would certainly be a sure thing.
Georgie couldn't even imagine such a good thing happening.
And Mike, who should have firmly secured this honor, was now giving it up because of that Math Olympiad competition.
This action naturally made Georgie feel very regretful.
While he was still lamenting Mike missing such a great opportunity to show off.
Sheldon, whose focus was different from ordinary people, his eyes lit up, and he asked, "Mike, can I go with you to the Math Olympiad competition tomorrow?"
The school's year-end ball didn't require students to attend, and marginalized students like Sheldon and Tam naturally had no interest in a social event like a ball.
Compared to the "boring" ball, Sheldon was clearly more interested in the Math Olympiad competition.
"No problem, you can come with me to the Math Olympiad competition tomorrow," Mike replied.
The regional Math Olympiad League also didn't restrict outsiders from visiting.
On the contrary, because Math Olympiad competitions were relatively dull, very few people other than the Math Olympiad team would go to watch them live.
Moreover, Sheldon was also considered an unofficial member of the Medford Math Olympiad team, so going to watch a Math Olympiad competition was no big deal at all.
Furthermore, Ms. Sharon, who was planning to recruit Sheldon into the Math Olympiad team next year, would surely be very happy if she saw his enthusiasm for the Math Olympiad competition.
"Then don't forget to call me tomorrow," Sheldon, still not at ease after getting permission, reminded him.
"OK," Mike replied again.
Next to them, Georgie, who got dizzy just thinking about math, shook his head speechlessly after hearing Mike and Sheldon's conversation.
He simply couldn't understand why anyone would refuse the school ball and be interested in that Math Olympiad competition.
...
The next morning, when Mike arrived at school in George's car, the campus was already filled with many "gorgeously" dressed students.
Clearly, students were very enthusiastic about the school's year-end grand gathering.
"Hi, Mike~" At the school gate, Regina, wearing a beautiful long dress and a small flower crown on her head, spotted Mike's arrival at a glance.
Beside her stood Karen and Gretchen, also in long dresses and with delicate makeup on their faces.
Not far from the three girls, Regina's mother, June, was holding a video camera, ready to shoot a documentary for her daughter.
The girls, who already knew Mike was going to the Math Olympiad competition today, had specifically waited for him at the school gate.
Clearly, they planned to take some memorable video footage with Mike on this relatively special day.
"Very good… a little closer… keep smiling… just hold that…"
After Mike arrived, June directed him and the girls to pose in various ways.
After one set of images was taken, Mike took some more duo photos with each of the girls, then saw off these girls who cared only about looking pretty, not the temperature.
"Mike, are you really not going to the ball?" After Mike had seen the three girls off, Georgie walked over.
He was still a bit unwilling to give up; although he couldn't become "King" himself, seeing his good friend become "King" was also something to be happy about.
"Alright, you should go in quickly too, don't freeze outside," Mike said unceremoniously.
Similarly, for the sake of appearances, Georgie had also specially worn the black suit he bought for Christmas today.
In the days when the winter snow hadn't melted, his outfit looked very cold.