"Is that so? Can you take me to meet your new friend then?" Paige sounded aggressive.
The girl knew the troubles of super geniuses like them; even with Mike's help, Paige herself hadn't made many friends at Columbia University.
Regina and Jessie could only be considered acquaintances, and perhaps only Collins, who was also a Columbia University student, could be called half a friend to the girl.
So Paige didn't believe that Sheldon, who was alone, could truly make friends at the University of Texas in half a semester.
"Go... I'll go, but Tom might not be in his dorm..." Sheldon, cornered by the conversation, bit the bullet and led the girl towards the adjacent dorm.
Actually, with his peculiar temper, how could he make new friends so quickly? Sheldon only knew the name of the chubby kid next door, Tom.
The reason was very likely because of the other party's unique physique.
"Is this your friend? A game-obsessed... geek?" After entering the adjacent dorm, Paige unleashed her sharp tongue.
However, she really couldn't find any suitable adjectives.
The "bloated" chubby kid in front of the computer had messy curly hair, and his plump little face, facing the computer, was still glistening with oil.
He seemed to be very engrossed in the computer game; Sheldon and Paige had been standing behind him for a long time, but he hadn't noticed them.
Only when Paige spoke did he realize that outsiders had entered the dorm.
"Sheldon, it's you!" Seemingly a bit shy, Tom didn't dare to look closely at Paige and continued, "Is this your friend, Sheldon?"
"No, this is Paige, not my friend. We should be considered enemies..." Sheldon quickly distanced himself from Paige.
Yes, in Sheldon's mind, he had always regarded the girl as an "enemy."
"Hehe... Um, do you want to play a game together?" Realizing the strained relationship between the two in front of him, Tom awkwardly smoothed things over.
It was clear that although this chubby kid was a bit introverted, he actually had a pretty good personality.
"The single-player game you're playing is too childish; you just need to write a simple auxiliary program to easily clear the game..." Paige, doing the bad deed to the end, walked up to the computer and casually created a "cheat" for the small game on the computer.
"That's how it is. After cracking the original password, this game is just a pile of data..." Then the girl used the temporary cheat she made to easily pass the level that Tom had failed to clear several times.
This was tantamount to slapping him in the face directly.
"You're that lecturer from earlier... I've read two of your online papers..." However, Tom wasn't angry; recognizing Paige, he seemed to even admire the girl a bit.
Even Paige hadn't expected this reversal.
But it was not difficult to understand; boys who liked computer games would naturally be interested in the internet.
Tom had previously attended Paige's lecture in the open lecture hall.
A genius like Paige, even revealing a little bit of her true ability, could greatly benefit ordinary people.
"Ahem, you must be a senior. You shouldn't be concerned with the internet or games now, but rather focus on studying to prepare for next year's graduation." One plan failing, Paige changed her approach and continued to find fault with this suspected friend of Sheldon.
She seemed to want to prove that Sheldon's friend wasn't good enough.
"Um... I'm actually only fifteen years old this year, and I'm a freshman..." Misunderstood by the girl, Tom was a bit hesitant to speak.
"Sorry, you do look a bit misleading." Forcing herself to be the villain, Paige was actually quite embarrassed.
Who would have thought that this boy was not even an adult yet?
A fifteen-year-old freshman at the University of Texas, it seemed the other party should also be a young genius.
"N-No problem..." Tom didn't dare to speak to the girl anymore, turned to Sheldon, and asked, "Sheldon, is there something you need me for?"
Although expressed very subtly, having been constantly criticized by the person Sheldon brought, Tom already had the intention of seeing them out.
"No, I just came to see you. I'm leaving now!" Coincidentally, seeing Tom's poor performance, Sheldon also didn't want to stay there any longer.
"So that was your friend? It seems you two aren't very close." After returning to Sheldon's dorm, Paige posed a soul-searching question.
In the situation just now, if the girl hadn't been intentionally picking faults, that fifteen-year-old Tom seemed to have more in common with her.
As for Sheldon, who was left out, he seemed more like a passerby.
"Alright, I admit he's not my friend..." Sheldon, completely humiliated, threw caution to the wind and said, "What exactly do you want?"
"Am I not obvious enough?" Paige's expression returned to calm, and she said seriously, "I don't want you to continue wasting your talent here; you should have a better place to go. The learning atmosphere and teaching resources here will affect your development..."
Paige, who had studied at the University of Texas for a period of time, understood very well that this university, compared to truly top-tier universities, was still far behind in nurturing talent.
Look at Sheldon, who had studied here for half a semester; he completely had the feeling of blending in with the crowd, especially when compared to Paige, who had independently published two professional papers.
In summary, Paige was actually trying to motivate Sheldon to strive forward. This could also be considered an unconventional mutual appreciation between super young geniuses.
"Go to a better school?" Sheldon fell silent.
Smart as he was, he naturally knew what was best for him. Therefore, he knew that what the girl said was not wrong.
Sheldon had chosen the University of Texas previously partly because it was close to home, and partly because Dr. Sturgis, an acquaintance, would be there.
As a result, Dr. Sturgis left the University of Texas before the new academic year began.
This was no small blow to Sheldon.
Moreover, after half a year of dormitory life, Sheldon had gradually gotten used to living independently without his mother by his side.
All these changes made it possible for Sheldon to look for a better school.
Just as Sheldon was considering the feasibility of the girl's suggestion, Connie, driving her antique car, arrived at the University of Texas dorms in a flurry.
"Paige, Grandma's little sweetheart, you've grown taller and become more beautiful!" Connie, entering the dorm, happily embraced Paige.
Although they hadn't seen each other for only half a year, Connie felt like a very long time had passed and began to ask the girl about her life in New York.
Yes, it was Connie herself who came to pick up Paige to Medford this time.
Paige would stay there for one night, and then return home tomorrow.
In the dorm, after Connie showered Paige with care and concern for a while, she finally seemed to notice her little grandson.
"Sheldon, Meemaw's Sheldon..." Connie smiled and waved, then continued, "I'm taking Paige home first. I'll come pick you up when you're off for the weekend."
Meanwhile, Paige, being pulled out by Connie, didn't forget to turn back and say as she left, "Sheldon, if you don't know where to go, I'll be waiting for you at Columbia University..."
After speaking, the girl and Connie left the dorm.
"I'll wait for you at Columbia University? What's so great about that..." Once they were far away, Sheldon first comically mimicked the girl's tone, then grumbled defiantly, "She just has a little more knowledge than me, I'll prove I'm better than you!"
Clearly, Sheldon's competitive nature had kicked in.
However, he himself might not have realized that in his heart, he had already tacitly agreed that if he wanted to become more excellent, he needed to seek better educational resources.
And it is this kind of thinking that can often change a person's life, after all, knowledge changes destiny.
At the same time, the chubby kid in the adjacent dorm, facing his computer, was also studying the auxiliary program Paige had left behind.
Undeniably, being able to live next door to Sheldon, he was also a genius.
...
"How is Mike doing now?" In the antique car on the way back to Medford, Connie found a topic.
"He's doing well. Besides going to school, he also started a company on Wall Street..." Paige recounted some of Mike's recent updates.
As the conversation progressed, the two ladies, who hadn't seen each other for half a year, still got along harmoniously, looking as if they were a family.