Kal didn't have much competition by way of academic challenges. It wasn't because her power was extreme intelligence or any contrivances such as those. She just worked hard. Day and night she studied music or school work. She'd lived her entire life on this island. She knew college was free and accessible to everyone, but that was no reason to be lazy to Kealani. She wanted a great resume when she got out of school. She wanted to prove her work ethic was nothing to scoff at. She had dreams, and she was going to fulfill them, even at the expense of having a social life.
All that said, Kal did like to set goals and mini-competitions in her head for herself to keep her sharp. In this particular class, that competition was a boy named Eli.
He sat not two rows from her, and his scores were nothing to scoff at. She'd never even really talked to him; she didn't need to because she wasn't one to goad or trash talk. She stared plenty though. Lost in her head. Sometimes wondering where she'd gone wrong. Sometimes wondering where he'd gone wrong.
