Chapter 106 Bragging? Of Course Not
At that moment, Betty suddenly chimed in, "If it's a combined bachelor's, master's, and PhD program, then Harmony College has a few majors that fit the bill, but the bar's pretty high. Camilla, what was your undergrad in?"
Camilla said, "Bioinformatics."
"Life Sciences Institute?" Betty glanced at Darren. "You'd know more about this. Does bioinformatics have a combined program?"
All eyes turned to Darren, including Doris's.
Darren thought for a sec. "Technically, this major doesn't have a combined program."
Doris shot up, glaring at Camilla. "Now what do you have to say?"
But Betty caught Darren's wording. "Darren, what does 'technically' mean? Any exceptions?"
Darren nodded. "Yeah. Every year, the Life Sciences Institute has 1 or 2 'conditional admission slots' for students who snag gold medals in international competitions."
"What's 'conditional admission slots' mean?"
"Basically, students who meet the gold medal criteria and other qualifications can negotiate with the institute, like full scholarships, guaranteed grad school admission, etc. If you ask, they'll consider it, but agreeing is another story."
Betty asked, "So, this condition could also mean direct PhD admission?"
Darren replied, "In theory, yeah, but it's super tough. Everyone wants direct PhD admission, but few have the clout to ask and get accepted."
"From what I know, in the past ten, maybe twenty years, the Life Sciences Institute has only given out two direct PhD admissions."
"One was Ignatius Cross, a student of Calliope, and the other was a student of Aurora, but I don't know the name."
"I just know it was a girl who won gold medals in physics, chemistry, biology, and informatics that year. She basically hit a grand slam. The institute granted her direct admission, but she didn't take it. She still got into our school on her own merits."
"Such an outstanding student, not to mention direct PhD admission, I bet even if she asked to stay as a postdoc, the institute would agree."
With that, the scope immediately narrowed.
Doris thought, 'Ignatius is a guy, so Camilla could only be the student from Aurora. But is it possible? Gold medals in four subjects, top scorer in the college entrance exam, combined bachelor's, master's, and PhD program, the institute and school's darling, any one of these identities alone couldn't possibly belong to Camilla.'
Doris snorted, looking at Camilla. "Now, do you have anything to say?"
Camilla was speechless.
At that moment, Sebastian put down his utensils and spoke calmly, "Camilla is the student of Aurora."
The room went dead silent.
Darren swallowed. "No way." He looked at Camilla. "Are you really that student of Aurora?"
Camilla sighed. "Do I need to call her right now to prove it?"
"No!" Darren quickly waved his hand. "It's not that I don't believe you, I'm just too shocked! I didn't expect the legendary genius girl to be right next to me."
Betty's eyes lit up, grabbing Camilla's hand excitedly. "Tell me, how did you manage to win gold medals in all four subjects? My son is already struggling with just math ."
Camilla blushed a bit. "I dunno, I just did a ton of problems and got 'em right."
Hector was floored. "So you're the student Professor Garcia always talks about! Didn't see that coming. Who's your grad advisor this year?"
"Aurora," Camilla replied.
Hector clapped his hands. "Bet she's over the moon."
Doris, still standing, went from smug to totally embarrassed, frozen in place.
Luckily, Darren jumped in to break the tension. "Doris, sit down. What do you want to eat? I'll grab it for you. The veggie stuff's all over here."
"Thanks." Doris finally sat down.
Darren looked at Camilla, eyes full of apology. "Sorry, Camilla. This is Doris. She can be intense, but she means well. You'll get it once you know her."
Camilla thought, 'Means well?' She raised an eyebrow, hoping that was true.
Darren said, "I apologize on her behalf. Don't take it personally."
"Who asked you to apologize for me?" Doris hissed, stomping on his foot under the table.
Darren almost yelped but held it in, his face turning red.
Betty gave him a sympathetic look.
Camilla said calmly, "I won't take it to heart."
Darren nodded. "Good. By the way, why'd you give up the guaranteed admission and take the college entrance exam? You ended up at Harmony College anyway. Why not take the easier route?"
Camilla replied, "Maybe I wanted to test my exam skills."
"That's it?"
"Do I need another reason?"
Darren fell silent. 'Alright, she took the exam for fun,' he thought.
Once the misunderstanding was cleared up, the vibe got way better. Everyone chatted and laughed while eating.
Hector even noticed Sebastian smiling. He realized Sebastian wasn't indifferent; he knew Camilla could handle it.
Doris had no appetite. Seeing everyone chatting with Camilla, she pursed her lips tightly.
Just as she was about to say something, Betty subtly patted her hand. "Alright, let's not dwell on it. Don't waste Darren's good intentions."
After dinner, it was already dark.
Sebastian checked the time. "It's late, we all have work tomorrow. Let's head back."
Darren and Doris were going the same way and had a bit of beer, so they weren't fit to drive.
Darren said, "I I ordered a car, it should be here soon. Doris is on my way, I'll take her home. What about you, Betty?"
Betty waved her hand. "Don't worry about me. I called my husband earlier, he's picking me up."
Hector said, "I live nearby, just a ten-minute walk."
Sebastian nodded. "Alright, then send a message when you get home."
"Don't worry, we all know the drill." Hector smiled.
After making arrangements, the valet brought Sebastian's car from the underground garage.
Sebastian took the keys and turned to Camilla, saying naturally, "Get in the car."
They lived close by, and Sebastian often gave Camilla a ride.
Camilla was used to hitching a ride, so she didn't think much of it and opened the passenger door. Soon, the car drove off and merged into the main road.
The remaining people were left dumbfounded.
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