The advisor's words dropped, and the whole classroom fell into an eerie silence.
It was a long moment before the murmuring started up again.
"I've been wanting to say this all along. I remembered the name of this year's top science scorer was Eugene Summers, but Cole cut me off."
"And Cole and his crew kept sneering 'Eugene, Eugene' like it was an insult. Turns out he's got the real goods. He's the top scorer in the whole state."
"Honestly, I think Cole and those guys went way too far. Eugene didn't do anything. Just because his name is Eugene, they mocked him and gave him a hard time. What a mess."
I didn't really care what Cole and the others had done.
Still, hearing what the other students said, I felt a good deal better.
It made sense, though. Jayton State University was the top school in the state.
Most of the students here were sharp, high-achieving kids from all over the country.
Compared with a bad apple like Cole, the students of decent character were the clear majority.
When my scores came out, both Harvard and MIT reached out, each of them eager to get me to enroll.
But nearly all of my family's businesses were in this state, and I was the only son. On top of my studies, I had to help run the family's holdings.
After weighing everything, I chose Jayton State University.
Looking at it now, both the students and the teachers seemed like good people.
I wasn't the only one who heard what the students said. Cole and his group heard it too.
Cole curled his lip, unwilling to back down.
"So what if he's the state's top scorer? He's Eugene, after all. Course he needs something to show off with. Good grades are the bare minimum, aren't they?"
"Otherwise, if he had no real ability at all, he'd be a total laughingstock."
The girl who had spoken up for me earlier couldn't hold back again.
"The bare minimum? You're calling the state's top score the bare minimum? Then how come you can't even hit that bare minimum yourself?"
"Quit standing here whining that the grapes are sour just because you can't reach them. It's disgusting to listen to."
Cole's voice climbed a lot higher, his eyes full of contempt as he looked at those girls.
"So what if his grades are good? He's just a bookworm. And now he's sitting in the same classroom as me anyway, isn't he?"
"Good grades mean you get to talk big, is that it? Says the Grand Harbor Hotel belongs to him. What a joke."
"You girls really get on my nerves. What, you're that into Eugene? Who ends up on top down the line is still anyone's guess."
The situation kept getting messier, and the advisor couldn't stand to hear any more.
"Cole! I've already cut you some slack. You still want to keep disrupting my class?"
"One more word out of line, and I'm reporting you straight to the dean's office."
"You don't want a disciplinary mark on your record on the first day of school, do you?"
At the word disciplinary, Cole finally learned to be afraid.
However tough his mouth was, he was still just an eighteen-year-old freshman.
Seeing that Cole had quieted down, the advisor went on with the rest of the agenda.
Not until the bell rang did the advisor gather up the materials on the podium.
"That's the end of the class meeting. Everyone go back and get some good rest."
"Tomorrow we officially begin college life. Make the most of the next four years."
The advisor had barely stepped out of the classroom when Cole came over to me with his little group.
"What's there to be so smug about? You're just the state's top scorer. A bookworm who can only study. What's there to strut around about?"
"Nothing but a small-town test-grinder. Ha, and you actually think you're the big man now?"
