'Well, if that's what his daughter wanted, he would let her be.'
"Well, in that case," he looked at Anya again, "should we discuss how you're going to get into Yale?"
"I'll work hard on it." Anya seemed reluctant to discuss the topic further. "I'll keep trying during the regular application period in the spring."
"It doesn't have to be so much trouble, my little bear," Sergey said. "I can have my assistant donate 20 million USD directly to Yale's board of trustees to build a new library named after Volkov. That way you can just get in directly—"
"Don't say it, Dad," Anya jerked her head up. "My classmates will laugh at me if you do that."
"Why?" Mr. Sergey asked, a little confused. "If this were in Moscow, people would respect you for being able to donate a whole building."
"I need to use the restroom," Anya sighed. "I'm sorry, please excuse me."
She pushed her plate aside and stood up. Her lips pressed into a tight line as she walked away from the table.
