Richard Alan Mercer said, "That case looks older than he is."
A soft, uncomfortable laugh traveled through two of the older students and died when Helena Marie Ashcroft did not join it. She walked closer, her heels making careful notes on the floor, and stopped at a polite distance from Ethan.
Helena Marie Ashcroft said, "You can watch today. There's no shame in waiting until you're ready."
Ethan felt the words land where they always landed, in the place behind his ribs where readiness lived like a held breath. He did not look at his father. He looked at the instructor's glasses and the honest concern behind them.
Ethan James Mercer said, "I am ready."
Richard Alan Mercer exhaled through his nose, the sound of a man who had paid for excellence and expected either proof or humiliation as the price of curiosity.
Richard Alan Mercer said, "This should be painful."