Chapter Five #2
He grins. “D-U-X. It’s Latin for ‘leader,’ like Optima is Latin for ‘best.’ And all of the societies are named after Greco-Roman gods, except the Liliths, of course.”
“My mom was leader of the Liliths?”
He peers at me. “You didn’t know that.”
“I didn’t know anything about Westdale—or that I’m a Chamberlain—until yesterday.”
“Shit.” He runs a hand over his face, and when he speaks, it’s back to that more serious tone. “I’m going too fast, and I’m being flippant. Sorry. I didn’t know.”
I shrug. “I’d rather be thrown into the deep end than held back in the shallows.” I look up at him. “So how much does everyone know about me? About my mom?”
“We were all told you’re the daughter of Rosalyn Chamberlain. Most of us know who that is. Not a…uh…lot of Westdale students leave under, uh, those circumstances. Other than that, they wouldn’t have heard much.”
“But you were given more, because you’re vying for Westdale Optima, and you needed to know about potential competition.”
“Yep.”
“And that’s why I’m getting this tour. Assessing me as competition.”
One shoulder rises. “Mostly, yeah. But also, being perfectly honest, I saw you get out of that Jeep, and I wanted to introduce myself.”
My cheeks flush, and I’m flattered in spite of myself. I’m also impressed that he admitted he offered this tour to check out potential Optima competition.
I like that.
God help me, I like him.
I remind myself that Theo’s mom is an Oscar-winning actor, and this is probably all an act, but I’m not sure I care.
Mom always said that charisma is about authenticity. Not flattering or pandering. It’s treating people as if you really see them. Talking to them like you’re really listening. Seeming authentic, even if you’re acting.
What Theo has is charisma, and I can concede it’s probably an act, but I don’t care.
I am the person temporarily holding his full attention, and it’s glorious.
Oh, I know it’ll end, but I suspect being the focus of Theo Dubois’s long-term attention is more than I could handle.
Too much time in the sun when I burn easily.
“But if I’d be your competition, why would you want me to run?”
“Because the competition makes the prize worthwhile.” He braces one arm on the wall and leans toward me, his voice lowering.
“They say all Optimas are equal, but that’s bullshit.
Everyone knows which ones had to work their ass off and which glided by in an easy year.
This year’s competition is…underwhelming. ”
“How many are running?”
“Officially? No one. We don’t declare until March first. But everyone knows who plans to run: Me, Natalia, and Cosmo. And Cosmo is going to fold at the first sign of ungentlemanly play.”
“Dirty tactics?” I say.
“Cosmo expects a fair fight, which means he’s not going to survive, because Natalia is going to fight dirty, and her boyfriend, Jayden, will fight dirtier on her behalf. She’s a formidable opponent but not actual competition.”
“You’ll need to deal with her, but in a fair competition, you’d win.”
“Does that sound like bragging?” He shrugs. “Consider it a very healthy self-image. From your credentials, you’d easily beat her, too.”
“Which is why you want me to compete.”
This grin is a flash of teeth so sharp I swear I see fangs. “I do.”
“Because overcoming dirty tactics is fine, but the Optimas want someone who could also win on their own merits.” I pause. “So the Optimas choose the winner?”
“Yep. It’s based partly on grades, but the professors will also weigh in with personal assessments, and the students themselves will give their feedback in May, which is taken into consideration.
That’s why having allies is good. In May, the candidates will also be expected to write essays and be interviewed by the current Optimas. ”
“That’s more than the toughest college admission.”
“It is.” He shifts his weight on the wall. “Here’s my suggestion: You and I team up to raise the level of competition. Then, when it comes down to it, we go head-to-head. Whoever wins owes the other.”
My gaze lifts to his. “I just got here, Theo. You really think I’m going to believe you want to team up with a total stranger? There’s a catch. There must be.”
“If I see an opening, I don’t dribble around the court thinking it through. Yes, I’m moving fast, but you’ve walked in mid-game, and I am ready to go.”
When I don’t answer, he says, “The Optimas had a conference call last night, after they learned you were coming. My dad told my mom, who looped me in with your details. The Optimas have been bored this year. But with you here, they’re actually excited.
Compared to you, I’m a lapdog with sharp teeth.
I can want, but I don’t know what it means to need. ”
Do I know what it is to scrabble for scraps? Yes.
Do I want to scrabble right to the top of the heap? Hell, yes.
Theo moves close enough for me to smell his aftershave, and for an unsettling moment, that want and need twists into something deeper as I drink in the smell of him, bask in the heat of him.
I pull back abruptly. I have no time for that. I won’t until I get where I need to be.
“The Optimas want to see what the two of us can do,” he says.
“Boy versus girl. Art versus industry. Privilege versus sheer willpower. They’re wondering what happens when a Chamberlain doesn’t grow up with all the advantages of power and position.
Is there something innate that drives them to the top? ”
I look up at him. “In other words, if I can beat you, with all your advantages, they can tell themselves their privilege isn’t such an advantage.”
That sharp smile. “Which is what they all want, isn’t it? To think they deserve what they have. That they are naturally superior.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
“My first film got into Sundance. I had three Oscar winners in it. I was thirteen. You think that would’ve happened if I wasn’t Bernard Dubois and Trinity Nilsen’s son? If I didn’t have access to the best mentors and the best equipment?” He shakes his head. “You ever hear the term ‘nepo baby’?”
“Uh, yeah…”
“I am the ultimate nepo baby. But I’m not going to insist on making a film on a camera from RadioShack, starring kids from my drama class.
What would that prove? That I can make a good film based ‘only’ on a lifetime of living on sets and learning from the best?
That’s like assholes who call themselves self-starters when Mommy or Daddy bankrolled their first business. ”
“Okay,” I say.
“Okay…?”
“I’ll consider running for Westdale Optima.”
He pauses, cocks his head. “What convinced you? My nepo baby rant?”
“I appreciate people who understand what they are.”
He laughs loud enough to startle a cleaner slipping down the hall. “Oh, then you have come to the right place. Me, that is. Not this place.” He waves at the school. “Understanding where you fit in the world is rare here. Embracing it is even rarer.”
He puts out a hand, and I shake it.