"You actually knew that?" Carver asked, a little stunned. The Aurelia team was always so full of themselves, never bothering to find out what their competition was like. But Solenia? They were thorough. They knew how every country stacked up, right down to the coaches. Solenia had always been top-tier, and Aurelia was their main rival. Who did they think they were looking down on?
Norris spoke up, voice casual but cutting. "When you did the IMO back in the day, Aurelia came in third overall. Not bad."
Carver straightened up, proud of his record, but Norris wasn't done. "Although, I heard if it weren't for two weak links on your team, Aurelia could have knocked out Cascadia for second place. Too bad our country took first that year."
Carver's face darkened. Even if he liked to act superior, he had to admit that no one could match Solenia's skills in math.
"It was just luck," Carver snapped, refusing to back down. "This year our team is solid. You won't be so lucky again."
"Well, then, here's an early congratulations to Aurelia for taking first place," Norris quipped, sarcasm thick in the air.
Claire jumped right in. "Yeah, congrats to Aurelia on your win! Go get that trophy!" Her tone was all sweet, but everyone caught the meaning.
With Claire leading, the rest of the students started chiming in, their voices rising in a chorus of mock encouragement. They didn't bother to be discreet, and with their fluent English, they drew more than a few curious glances from people nearby.
Just then, the Cascadia team showed up. When they heard the line about Aurelia claiming first place, their faces fell.
"Aurelia wants to get first? Please, keep dreaming," one of the Cascadia boys sneered. He even threw Aurelia a thumbs-down, his attitude clear as day.
That only made Claire laugh harder. The boy, catching Claire's eye, seemed to get flustered and quickly turned away.
"What is it, Elvis?" his teammate asked, catching the look on his face.
Elvis tried another quick glance at Claire. "You see that girl? Is she with Aurelia? She's gorgeous."
"I don't think so. I heard them rooting for Aurelia winning first. She's probably from Solenia or Sundara," his friend replied.
"The girls from Sundara are usually pretty short. She's gotta be from Solenia," another guessed.
Elvis groaned. "So, we're born rivals, huh?"
His teammate just snickered. "Does it matter? What, you planning to flirt with her or something? Don't forget Elvis, you ve got Julia obsessed with you back home. And believe me, with her temper, I'm not sure this girl could handle it."
Elvis instantly looked deflated. "Julia's crazy."
"You better watch it. If you say that, she'll track you down even here at Altair," someone warned.
Elvis didn't reply. He looked like he was already dreading it.
Meanwhile, Aurelia's group was fuming over Elvis's petty thumbs-down, but nobody dared step up to fight with Cascadia. Even Carver dropped the tough act. He shot the Solenia team one last dirty look then marched straight out of the airport.
Claire just smiled, and her teammates couldn't help smiling back. Norris glanced her way, thinking how quick-witted she was. No one could do subtle digs like Claire.
With all the teams finally together, the organizers herded them onto a bus and drove them to the hotel. Coincidentally Aurelia and Solenia ended up with rooms on the same floor. It was hard to tell if that was by chance
Chance or some clever_setup.
"Put your stuff away and get ready," their guide told them. "We'll head out for dinner
in a bit. You can do what you want tonight, but tomorrow you've got to be at the competition venue."