When Tony Snow turned his phone back on, a barrage of notifications flooded the screen.
Among the many messages, Tony spotted one from his bank: the $10,000 research reward from the university had arrived.
Grinning, Tony turned his screen toward Clara Quinn, letting her see the message.
"Is this from that academic reward policy the school just announced on Wednesday?" Clara asked in surprise.
"That's right. I didn't expect it to hit the account so soon," Tony said, eyes twinkling. "Let me get you that new phone."
"No need. I already told you last week not to keep buying me things," Clara quickly replied, frowning slightly. "You even went behind my back and asked my roommate what I liked. Please don't do that again. That reward money was hard-earned."
Tony stopped pushing. Clara came from a modest background. Even though their relationship had grown closer recently, she was uncomfortable receiving gifts she couldn't reciprocate. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate them—it was the imbalance that made her uneasy.
The last time Tony bought her something, she only accepted it after he spent a long time convincing her.
Realizing how she felt, Tony respected her wishes this time and changed the subject.
"Oh, right. Did you know the fourth issue of Mathematical Advances was published today? My paper's in it. That's probably why some people were asking for autographs and pictures in the library earlier."
"Really? That explains the reward," Clara said warmly, clearly happy for him.
It was early April, and the weather in Halewick was just right—mild, breezy, and pleasant.
Tony loved this kind of weather. It wasn't stifling like summer or bone-chilling like winter. As they strolled through the tree-lined campus path, a soft breeze brushed against their cheeks like a grandmother's gentle hand. Their steps gradually slowed.
"Clara," Tony said after a pause, "can I call you just 'Clara' from now on?"
She blinked, then gave a small smile and nodded.
"Clara, in a few months I'll be heading off for graduate studies. I probably won't stay here in Halewick—maybe not even in this country. We'll likely be seeing each other less."
"A few months?" Clara asked softly, surprised. Then she gave a thoughtful look. "Well, it makes sense. Your paper just came out in Mathematical Advances, and the cell biology paper you submitted to Cell will probably make waves too. With credentials like that, you could skip straight into a master's or Ph.D. program."
"You're not going to Halewick Institute or Westport University? Have you already decided where you're headed?" she asked again.
"I've narrowed it down to a few options. It'll depend on the resources and research support they offer," Tony replied, his voice calm, but with a tinge of uncertainty.
They reached the entrance to the girls' dorm. Clara gave him a final glance before heading inside.
Tony stood still, watching her disappear into the building. He looked up at the cloud-strewn, starless sky before turning away and heading back to his own dorm.
As soon as he walked in, his three roommates pounced.
"Tony! Let's get another group photo—quick!"
They crowded around, snapping selfies like proud family members at a graduation. It was clear they had spent the whole day bragging on their social media feeds.
Tony, drained by the day's emails, calls, and texts, humored them briefly before retreating to the shower and then bed.
Lying on his bunk, he scrolled through his social feed. Suddenly, it made sense—his classmates who usually posted maybe once a week were flooding their timelines today.
And almost every post was about him.
"My roommate—under my wise supervision—published a paper in Inventiones Mathematicae."
This was from his classmate Zack Larson, complete with multiple photos: a group photo with Tony, a solo glamour shot of Zack himself, a random starry sky picture, and a screenshot of the Mathematical Advances journal cover.
He even explained what the journal was in English, clearly trying to impress any non-academic friends who might be reading.
No wonder Zack had insisted on the photo earlier. He'd had the post planned all along.
Tony chuckled at Zack's shameless embellishment.
Other roommates—Liam West and Tyler Ray—posted similarly dramatic updates with captions like:
"Proud to share a room with a real genius."
To Tony's surprise, even President Sharp posted something. It was a simple photo of the journal, captioned:
"Today's students far surpass our generation. Exceptional work."
Though Tony hadn't said much when he returned to the dorm, after scrolling through his feed and seeing how many people were genuinely excited for him, his earlier fatigue and mild loneliness began to fade.
The stress of being overwhelmed by attention and the anxiety about soon leaving Clara and his roommates behind... was momentarily eased by this shared pride.