Daniel turned toward me.
I did not look away.
His lips formed two silent words.
My sons?
I gave him no answer.
The professor continued speaking.
“These two young men achieved something extraordinarily rare.
Not only did they finish with identical perfect scores, but their final collaborative prototype received the highest technical evaluation of any project submitted in the last eight years.”
Another wave of applause filled the auditorium.
Mason sat rigidly beside Vanessa.
His expression was complicated.
Disappointment, certainly.
But something else too.
Recognition.
He was staring at Eli and Owen with the stunned concentration of someone discovering that the world was larger than the version adults had constructed for him.
The professor lifted one hand.
“And there is one additional announcement.”
The room quieted.
“Because of the exceptional quality of this year’s finalist submissions, the Whitmore Institute for Applied Engineering has authorized two full four-year undergraduate scholarships, including tuition, housing, research stipends, and summer laboratory placements.”
My fingers went numb.
I knew nothing about this.
Neither did the boys.
Owen looked toward Eli.
Eli looked toward the professor.
The professor smiled.
“Both scholarships are being awarded to Eli and Owen Carter.”
Owen actually staggered half a step backward.
Eli grabbed his arm.
The audience erupted.
This time I cried.
Not elegantly.
Not the silent single tear women somehow managed in movies.
I bent forward and pressed both hands to my face while the mother sitting beside me wrapped an arm around my shoulders even though we had never met.
“They did it,” she said.
I laughed through my tears.
