"I'll be a doctor soon, too. Well, I'll be Dr. Sheldon Lee Cooper."
Young Sheldon felt a little angry for some reason.
This was even more difficult than facing his other formidable rival, the talented young woman Paige.
At least, like him, Paige wasn't a doctor yet!
Seeing Chuck ignore him, young Sheldon added, "I'm only 11! When I'm your age—no, I don't need to be your age—I'll be better than you!"
"Are you sure?"
Chuck glanced at him.
"..."
Young Sheldon choked again at the look.
His eidetic memory instantly brought him back to the moment two months ago when Ray had asked him the same question in the same tone.
He had been full of confidence then, but Chuck's words had refuted his claims.
Even though Ray had only given him a lesson and didn't actually impose a massive tax fine on the Cooper family, as Chuck's audit had predicted, the incident still left a deep psychological scar on him.
"You're the one who made Sheldon burst into tears and wet himself with just one sentence. So cool!"
Twin sister Missy's eyes lit up as she watched Chuck silence her always-cocky brother Sheldon with just one sentence.
"Three sentences,"
Chuck corrected.
Young Sheldon's eyes and mouth began to twitch slightly.
"Missy!"
Sheldon's mother, Mary, felt so distressed at seeing her precious son so wronged. Unable to say anything to Chuck, she could only yell at her daughter, her eyes filled with warnings and threats.
"I didn't mean anything by it. I'm just happy for Sheldon,"
Missy shrugged.
"Why?"
Mary glared at her.
"Sheldon always says he's too smart and that no one on earth is worthy of being his friend. And Paige isn't a boy, so that doesn't count either."
Missy said with great emotional intelligence, "Now it seems Sheldon can still have friends. As a little sister, I'm so happy."
"..."
Mary was speechless.
Although she knew her daughter Missy's serious nonsense was all veiled mockery of Sheldon under the guise of a high-sounding excuse, she couldn't afford to lose her temper in public.
"It's almost time, I have to go,"
Chuck glanced at his watch and said goodbye to Ray and the others.
"I'll see you the first chance I get when we get to Washington, D.C."
Hayley looked up at him.
"Make an appointment with Helen in advance."
Chuck shook his head.
He didn't want to be his sister's babysitter.
"Even I have to make an appointment?"
Hayley was suddenly frustrated.
In the month or so they'd been together, she'd learned a lot about Chuck. She knew Helen was his secretary, handling some of his more routine tasks.
And it was clear that she was one of those tasks.
"Everyone has to make an appointment,"
Chuck said, nodding to the crowd and heading for the priority boarding lane.
As the saying goes, there's only one disease in this world: poverty.
First class naturally comes with first-class perks. For the reserved Chuck, this was a vivid demonstration of how money makes the world more accommodating.
Everyone watched Chuck leave.
"That's just his personality. You should understand it best, right?"
Ray glanced away, catching sight of the visibly unhappy young Sheldon. Recalling his earlier arrogance and boastfulness, he couldn't help but tease, "Maybe you'll be classmates in a few days."
"I understand. I'm looking forward to it,"
young Sheldon said, but his expression remained anything but cheerful.
He found Chuck somewhat irritating, and being classmates with someone like him wasn't exactly a pleasant prospect. But at the same time, he did look forward to the chance to meet him again, to show his true abilities before Chuck.
His previous actions were clearly mistakes, the result of his youth, lack of experience, and thoughtlessness, not his inferior intelligence to Chuck's.
Yeah.
That must be it!
Thinking of this, he nodded slightly, a confident smile returning to his features.
The plane took off quickly.
Since it wasn't a long flight, it landed quickly.
Outside the airport,
two people, one large and one small, stood waiting at the exit.
"Why isn't he here yet?"
young Leonard muttered, pouting.
"It's not time yet, so of course he won't be here."
A middle-aged woman raised her hand to check the time, then adjusted her glasses and replied to her son calmly.
"..."
Young Leonard watched his mother continue to stare at the exit, not even glancing at him, his mouth almost pouting.
While it wasn't a good thought, his gloomy mood caused his mind to drift from superhero to supervillain.
If only he had superpowers, he could just crash the plane.
Of course, this dark thought was fleeting, quickly transformed into a positive fantasy: after the plane crashed, he'd transform into Superman, soar into the sky, reach out and catch the wrecked plane, saving everyone and earning everyone's cheers. Ideally, even his mother's approval.
That's right!
Even if he fantasized about becoming Superman, or more accurately, someone like Homelander, he still wasn't 100% confident he could ever earn his mother, Beverly's, approval.
Unless the Superman he embodied had a truly super-brain, then his neuroscientist mother, Beverly, would likely be far more interested in studying it than in Sheldon, whose IQ was 187.
"Oh!"
Just as young Leonard was still wallowing in self-pity in his fantasy, he suddenly saw a familiar tall figure emerge from the airport, prompting him to exclaim in surprise, "Dr. Wolfe!"
"Is that the genius you were talking about who crushed Sheldon?"
Beverly frowned at her son, then, remembering the person he'd been talking about since returning from his cousin's house, she followed his gaze and couldn't help but let out a "My!"
Young Leonard glanced sideways.
"What are you looking at? It's a normal physiological reaction,"
Beverly said calmly, noticing her son's gaze.
Young Leonard immediately looked away with a bitter expression.
As a boy over-educated in scientific matters, and living in the world of American academia, he understood far more than his age should.
His mother might not hesitate to explain to him in detail the scientific principle behind this reaction, but as a son, he really didn't want to hear any more.
"Leonard."
Chuck came over when he saw him wave hello.
"Dr. Beverly Hofstadter."
Beverly took the initiative to extend her hand to Chuck: "Sheldon Cooper is staying at my house while studying at Princeton University."
"..."
Leonard was stunned, his heart sinking.
He was right here, and he was the person Chuck had greeted, but his mother didn't introduce herself simply and clearly by saying that she was his mother. Instead, she went around the long way and introduced herself by talking about her relationship with Sheldon.
He hated that arrogant Sheldon!
(End of this chapter)
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