I initially assumed she was all presentation and no brains. Typically, that would’ve made the most sense. Then I reviewed her exam scores. Higher-end percentile across every major subject. Near-perfect pattern recognition. Exceptional memory retention.

You know what’s funny? People think being second place is impressive. Teachers praise you. Adults tell you to ‘be proud’ because you’re so close to the top. But close doesn’t matter. Nobody remembers second place. Not when my brother exists. …Do you have any idea what that does to someone after a while?

I, for one, think she was a bad influence. She loved hearing herself talk, like you could just tell she was vain… Like a stereotypical Queen Bee… still, her grades were surprisingly good. So, I guess there was a mind in there after all.