Everyone knew the rankings before the list was even posted. The hallway buzzed with guesses, laughter, and nervous jokes, but Mira Valdez sat by the window, counting the squares of sunlight on her notebook. She always sat there—third row, right side—because the light helped her think.
Being a student had rules. Being a top student had expectations. Mira tried to keep neither too loud in her head.
When the bell rang, the room snapped into attention. Mr. Hale walked in with the white envelope that decided a semester's worth of whispers. He didn't smile. He never did on ranking day.
"Mira Valdez," he read first.
The room went quiet.
Top One.
Not for the first time. But this time, something felt different.
Chapter 2: The Weight of Gold
Gold medals are heavier than they look.
Mira learned this during the awarding ceremony when the ribbon pressed against her neck and the applause filled the gym like a storm. People smiled at her—some warm, some sharp. Her parents sat in the front row, eyes shining. Her teachers nodded with pride.
Everyone saw the medal.
No one saw the nights Mira stayed awake solving problems until numbers blurred into shapes. No one heard the quiet fear that asked, What if I fail next time?
Top One wasn't just a title. It was a promise people expected her to keep.
Chapter 3: Cracks in the Perfect Score
The cracks came quietly.
It started with a quiz in Physics. Just one question. One misread variable. One minus sign that changed everything.
The red ink stared at her like an accusation.
Mira folded the paper carefully, but inside her chest something folded too. She wasn't angry. She was scared. Because for the first time, she wondered if being number one meant she wasn't allowed to be human.
That afternoon, she didn't sit by the window. She sat on the stairs behind the library and let herself breathe.