He imagined the crisp, boxed answers: 1. 4x² - 2x + 2. 2. -2m² + 6m + 1. The certainty of it. No more eraser shavings on his jeans. No more gnawing doubt.
Now, during the last five minutes of class, Ms. Kellar had stepped into the hall to take a call. The answer key was right there. One quick flip. A single glance. He imagined the crisp, boxed answers: 1
The next morning, she returned the graded practice. Red checkmarks on 1, 3, 4, 5, 6… and a small, perfect check on #7. He imagined the crisp
Leo smiled. The real answer key wasn’t on a separate sheet of paper. It was in the careful, error-by-error process of building his own. 6… and a small