The rest of the morning passed in a blur of congratulations and whispered speculation. Word of my improvised presentation had apparently spread through Ashwick’s gossip network with typical efficiency, and I found myself fielding compliments and questions between classes.
By lunch, I was exhausted from maintaining my modest scholarship student persona while accepting praise for academic brilliance that probably looked suspicious coming from someone who supposedly couldn’t afford decent clothes.
“You’re famous,” Nick said as we claimed our usual table in the dining hall. “Half the school is talking about your history presentation.”
“It wasn’t that impressive.”
“According to Ethan Voss, Professor Hargrove called it ‘graduate level analysis’ and asked if you were planning to study at Oxfo
