On the last day prior to the mid-year exams, the school's administration makes an announcement at the beginning of the day about the exemplary performance of the Venomous Agendas on the AMC12, as well as the other participants at this competition that were not part of the math team. And there were a lot of them.
"Good morning, today the results achieved by our own on the AMC-twelve are released and, in the face of a record participation, it happens to be the year where several school records are broken. First, the individual record, previously set last year, is now one hundred thirty-three point five. And the team record has been beaten, with three hundred and eighty-one points for our best three participants! We also set a new record for the largest number of AIME qualifiers, with ten students qualified for the second phase of the competition. Also, the math team organizes its Christmas dinner on December twenty-fourth, with tickets sold for twenty dollars" the principal makes his announcement.
"Ten?" Cory wonders, surprised to see someone external to the team qualify for it, or wasn't part of the great team that scored all the points in the Math Madness.
"If you want my opinion, the difference is too big between the math team and the others" Marcia adds.
"The objective, to qualify for the USAMO is therefore, in my case, to score at least eleven points. This also means a chance to qualify for the EGMO" Gen states her goal.
"Bizarre: the parish newspaper mentioned it, but you never alluded to it. You already have your place among the legends of Venomous Agendas' history and remember Éliane last year..." Marcia points out.
" She never talked about the EGMO either. But suppose that you score the eleven points you aim for. Do you have any idea what that means?" Randy asks both girls.
"Last year it would have allowed me to qualify for the USAMO, and probably this year also. I think it's possible for me to get there with even ten points considering what I achieved on the AMC-twelve"
"This is not what I'm talking about. My point being that we had two female mathletes among the top forty nationwide last year, Éliane and you. Also, who's the lucky one on the football team that qualified for the AIME?" Randy asks.
"Enough of our mathletic roadmap. We may not need to worry about our grades, we still need to study a bit" Marcia then leaves the scene.
"When you met me for the first time, you were lost in the multi-variable material. Now you can find way through. You have grown mathematically!"
"Thank you, Gen..." Cory begins before kissing her.
Vontae and Cory should find the material of single-variable calculus largely feasible by now. People return to their respective books, but obviously the confidence the three girls might have towards AP Stats as with AP Physics draw their origins from their immense mathematical skills (at least in the context of these courses) which allow them to focus on their other courses.
On the evening of December 24, some people are surprised when some guests to the Venomous Agendas' Christmas dinner come from outside their parish, and not just from the neighboring parish, of female mathletes coming in from elsewhere in the state, alongside their parents.
"First activity of the night: the skills contest of the public against the players! Whoever can answer these questions faster than our mathletes can win an Amazon gift card worth a hundred dollars! The public may answer first. First question, Cory:" Trent reads the question.
First question, Cory:" Trent reads the question [https://img.wattpad.com/13da60037d24f21ec3fd44a20115bb1509f56932/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f4877346469465778756d742d33513d3d2d313239323033353134352e3137326436623336656232663130633333393030363033353039322e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
"THE LIMIT DOES NOT EXIST!" Curtis screams.
"Calm down, Curtis, but you're the first entry for the gift card"
The wide receiver just won against Cory, to the public's disappointment that expected a lightning answer from their favorites. Yet, for the skills contest, Cory and Vontae are in the foreground while the three girls are not called upon to answer the questions at the onset. Both boys trade question answering rights:
"Second question, Vontae:"
"Curtis, I'm surprised like it's not possible" Florence whispers in his ear [https://img.wattpad.com/0ae191f21dd38786537c84ded21c32fd4b3ed247/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f6465613078346d5a65346a7358773d3d2d313239323033353134352e313732643662333939333336393666633135353233373236323335322e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
"Curtis, I'm surprised like it's not possible" Florence whispers in his ear. "I wonder what you did to answer the previous question so rapidly..."
"My ex made me watch a film where this question appeared. I don't believe you would understand the previous question any more than I do, much less the next question" Curtis explains how he knew the answer to the first question.
"Who's your ex? If you feel comfortable talking about her, obviously" Florence asks Curtis.
"It will surprise you, but Éliane"
And so footballers making attempts to date female mathletes was happening since much longer than I imagined? The cornerback, the fullback and now the wide receiver who dated Éliane when she was still here? What's the meaning of this? Zack thinks, while he wonders how it would be like to date a high-level female mathlete, notwithstanding the stress that the resulting girlfriend would endure, and that he had a glimpse in late November, when he saw all three girls fight each other. Why can't I date another girl I know won't be an idiot? Looks are fine and dandy but looks are a dime a dozen! Brains are much more important in the long run!
In the meantime, the public is frustrated by its inability to answer even single-variable calculus questions, and the duet continues to solve single- and multi-variable derivatives and integrals because the public gets it wrong or gives up.
"By popular request, we have the panel discussion with our three girls! First question from the crowd, coming from Florence:" Trent starts the second part.
"Marcia, you started taking part in mathletic contests late, but I wonder how you discovered you had some mathematical talent?" Florence asks.
"At the height of the pandemic, there were lockdowns everywhere, so I took advantage of the summer before my first year of high school to take the geometry course online. My performance surprised me so very much and I arrived here in the second algebra course, same with Geneviève on my right, but back then the mathletic season was limited to the AMC-twelve. However, doing quiz bowl seemed more appropriate to me than the math team at the time. But it was with the Square Root of the Answer, now the Vans Math Contest, that I wanted to show that I could do advanced mathematics while I was in the shadow of my more accomplished teammate. Yet, as a mathlete, this season demonstrated that I was more of a sprinter"
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"Second question, coming from Tara"
"Did you, in your lives as mathletes, feel intimidated by the stereotype threat?" Tara asks.
"Let's say that I never became a mathlete without my friend here. She might be a little obsessed about mathletic competitions, but she feels it gives her satisfaction courses don't give her" Marcia answers first.
"Early in high school, yes, but it's last year that I blossomed as a mathlete. Nevertheless, I did everything in my power to show that I could perform as well as boys, in class and in competition" Gen adds.
"No. My old school has virtually no expectations regarding mathematics and having math talent at any level whatsoever was socially problematic there, but what made mathematical talent socially problematic was ungendered" Krista answers after the other two.
"Krista, you said that having mathematical talent created social problems. Yet here, female mathletes are treated like romantic trophies that so many seek to date. Including my own football teammates, past and present. How did you live the social difference between your old school and here?" Zack asks Krista, while he begrudges himself.
"Zack? Can you elaborate?" Krista asks. "On how can female mathletes constitute romantic trophies?"
"Last year, when we started to be good mathletically, we had Curtis, the wide receiver, dating Éliane, and Dylan, a tight end of the time, who tried dating Gen, but failed. He failed with Marcia as well, you see, but last year's Marcia is not like today's Marcia" Zack comments on female mathletes as romantic trophies.
"At my old school, I might have been the captain of a math team that had two girls and a couple other boys, I would have been called crazy if I talked about partial differential equations there. When I saw Gen solve for some in open air, and I must admit that I pushed her to do so that day, it was then that I told myself that I can live with my intellectual capabilities without any social complication here. The Math Madness playoffs were, for me, an experience of a lifetime. Now, Ted acts towards me as if my intellectual capabilities were unlimited, and it would be very tempting for pretty much everyone treating a female mathlete as a romantic trophy to act like this. But that's simply because he does not push me intellectually as Gen did" Krista answers the initial question.
Yes! Tara! Here's my chance to get to know her better! She looks like she has a head on her shoulders; she might not be as strong as even Marcia, but it's worth trying, Zack thinks while Tara doesn't suspect anything.
"Tara! You must be familiar with the world of mathletics from the way you talk about stereotype threat" Zack approaches her.
"Yes, but I do not attend your school. I think I saw you at a football game... From the way you talk about life at your school, it makes me wish I play there. And it would be a marked improvement over what I live right now. You seem to imply that romantic life is more pleasant to you if your girlfriend is of a high intellectual level" Tara then answers Zack.
"For whom do you play then?"
"The Majors. Even though the Venomous Agendas are our big direct rivals on an athletic level, and mathletic as well, your three female mathletes are sources of inspiration for us. And especially for me as a mathlete"
"These are exceptional girls to the eyes of everyone here. But if you are a mathlete, it's already good"
"Promise me you won't tell anyone. But the coach, Brian, lavishes me a lot of attention because the parish granted Title IX funding to the team for me for the VMC, and we have two girls at the VMC because we combined two schools in two different parishes to participate"
"Can you put your school loyalties aside with me if I make this promise?"
Is dating a girl from another school an acceptable price to pay to be able to date a girl I know has an immense amount of intellect? Maybe not a super-intelligent girl in Marcia's or Gen's mold, but if she takes part in the VMC I know what to expect on her part. For a lot of people on the football team, even a girl in calculus BC represents a very high intellectual level, regardless of her mathletic level; I wonder where the mania of trying to date the smartest girl possible at all costs comes from? Zack questions himself while Tara seems a little hesitant to answer his question.
"One last thing: the parish media alluded to a possible qualification at the EGMO several times these past few weeks for two of our three star players. Is it a realistic objective to you?" an attendee asks the two star mathletes.
"I acknowledge that Gen and I both belong in a very closed circle among the elite of the feminine mathletic circuit, but it's too big a leap for which none of us is prepared to make. For the girls that compete, this competition represents the peak of a mathletic career, or even the accomplishment of a lifetime, and requires several years of preparation" Krista answers the last question of the public.
"We can only be considered elite mathletes for less that a year. But the real reason why Marcia is not in the EGMO discussion is, even though she had a dream season at the Math Madness, her playstyle does not lend itself well to this competition. Marcia might be a girl capable of all the bursts of speed, but she excels at speed and memorization" Gen provides her own answer.
Gen and Krista, in a very closed circle among the elite of the feminine mathletic circuit? They both obtained the same 133.5 and, according to the gender distribution of the A version, both girls at 133.5 are Venomous Agendas! Two Venomous Agendas in the nationwide feminine top-15 on the AMC12...
What about the 114 of Marcia! The Venomous Agendas now hold the state's team record, and maybe even the fully feminine team record.
"And yet it didn't show" Cory's father points out. "My son is weaker than she is, and he still had a very good season! You must still know the material for these bursts of speed!"
"I must warn you against excessive glorification of certain aspects of mathematics competitions. Yes, we want to defend our national title at the VMC, but the VMC is a contest that has its flaws. To give you an idea, it amounts to take a final single-variable calculus final during the holidays, and this contest doesn't do anything more than push people to learn college-level material faster, especially for those who go to the final. At first it might appear interesting as a contest because for so many among you, single-variable calculus is beyond your abilities, and learning it twice as fast might seem impressive to your eyes but, in the milieu, we call this a curricular contest. The final amounts to taking a multi-variable calculus final exam" Gen warns the audience about the VMC.
"Gen, a good mathletic contest should push contestants to think and solve complex problems. The Math Madness, while having asked questions on the AMC-twelve and the AIME levels, doesn't even give four minutes per question. The pace is much faster than on the AIME. But few parents of mathletes, much less Venomous Agendas fans, will actually understand what a good mathletic contest is made of" Krista explains. "Despite this, it is likely that you hold the VMC in higher esteem than necessary because of the aura of its content"
"Even though we know the difference between a good and a bad math tournament, the public does not. In fact, you may have realized it, but the contests that have the public's favor don't always have the mathletes' best interests" Marcia adds.
Tara realizes it's a little strange that a football player from another school suddenly has an interest in her because, in her mind, never a footballer expressed such an ardent desire to date a mathlete.
"Yes" Tara answers Zack.
"It took you forever! You see, the mathletes of my school may have played the romantic inaccessibility card a little too much to my taste, especially Marcia..." Zack reacts to her answer.
"I promise I will put my school loyalties aside with you. For as strange as it could look, you seem to accept me as I am"
"Very well..."
Tara and Zack exchange their contact information as well as their social media information shortly thereafter. After the panel discussion with the three girls end, Cory and Ted hurry up and give another kiss to their respective girlfriends, but Marcia faces Randy.
"You will need to decide; everyone thinks we are dating" Randy points out to Marcia.
"Randy, I think I no longer have a choice. I must stop beating around the bush. It's a little earlier than I would like, but at the number of times you go to math team practices... I am forced to acknowledge that we are dating since much longer than I would have believed, without realizing it. It's worth a kiss" Marcia then retorts.
"I think there never was another player on the football team that qualified to the AIME before me. I barely qualified while Ted missed his qualification by a tiny point and a half"
"Bravo, Randy!"
"Don't forget that success on the AIME does not guarantee success on the VMC, and vice-versa, Randy whispers before Marcia gives him her first kiss in months"
Especially when one considers that AP Physics is advanced enough for single-variable derivatives and integrals to make it so that all three girls can focus on something other than the single-variable portion of the VMC.
Vontae must have realized that, as much as the math team girls constitute romantic trophies to the eyes of the student body, boys could get attention. That, even though the girls who came to the team's practices without being on it mostly kept quiet during practices.
But unlike the mathletes not entering the VMC, he didn't make his choice. I am sure there are one or two that still attend math team practices not because she needs help for homework, and that don't already date one of my teammates, Vontae thinks, while he attempts to remember the romantic status of the other girls present at the math team dinner, outside of the girls on the team.
"One last announcement: if you are not a senior and you qualify for the AIME, you're automatically invited to the math team tryouts next August" Trent makes his announcement.