Academic Challenge

"Hi. We're here for the academic challenge", Claire greeted/informed the receptionist, "It's under 'Dunphy'". She turned to look at Alex, who was beside her and off-handedly commented, "Or it could be under 'returning champion'. Who knows how they file these things?".

[Commentary]

Claire

"Alex wins things, which is great", Claire stated, "But she puts so much pressure on herself. I know I shouldn't, but I almost wish she would lose this year. Plus, that way I actually get to go to the waterslide. It's got a corkscrew, a two-second freefall and a radar gun at the end to check how fast you were going".

[Commentary ends]

"I wouldn't get your hopes up too much this year?", Alex muttered.

"Huh? What do you mean?", Claire questioned.

"Hi!", Desiree greeted as she walked over to them, Zephyr in tow, "It's so great to see you".

"Desiree. Hey", Claire awkwardly greeted, "It's such a surprise to see you here".

"I know", Desiree nodded, "Zephyr wanted to come over to watch Alex, but I thought it'd be fun if they competed against each other instead. Isn't that exciting?".

"Fun. That's exactly what it'll be. Exciting and fun", Claire muttered, her competitiveness coming out on full display.

"Mom", Alex whispered, somewhat embarrassed by her mom's reaction.

"I can't wait to see you two compete against each other!", Desiree excitedly exclaimed.

"Neither can I", Claire, somewhat gloomily replied.

As Claire and Desiree began to discuss who they believed would win, Zephyr made his way over to Alex with an apologetic look on his face, "Sorry about them. I was honestly just planning to come over and watch you, but then Dad said he wanted to spend some time with Bella because he thinks she doesn't like him and then Desiree decided that it'd be a great idea for me to join and when she told me, she had already applied".

"It's fine", Alex said, understanding the pain Zephyr was going through, "Don't think that just because you're my boyfriend I will go easy on you".

"I'd be disappointed if you did", Zephyr replied, a smile gracing his lips. Pulling her in for a quick hug as they followed Desiree and Claire, Zephyr gave her a quick kiss on her forehead, "Have I told you how much I love you?".

"You have", Alex nodded, "But it's always nice to hear it again".

"In that case. I love you so much", Zephyr replied, tightening his hold on her as he said so.

"And I love you so much too", Alex replied, leaning on him as she walked forward, feeling comfortable in his embrace.

"Oy! Lovebirds!", Claire exclaimed, "Hurry up! The competition starts in less than half an hour and we need you to crush everyone so you face each other in the finals".

Despite being interrupted by Claire, the romantic mood persisted for a few seconds before having in under the competitiveness of Claire.

"Your Mom's really eager for you to win, huh?", Zephyr asked as Alex and Zephyr caught up with the group of four ahead of them.

"Yeah", Alex answered, rubbing her forehead in slight frustration, "She's always been like this. Uncle Mitch said that she inherited it from Grandpa Jay".

"That makes sense", Zephyr muttered after taking a brief moment to think about it. "So. Are you ready?", Zephyr questioned, curious to know if her mood was affected by her mother's actions.

"I've gotten used to her antics by now", Alex answered.

"You haven't answered the question though", Zephyr added, noticing that she was avoiding the question.

"I don't know", Alex sighed, "Sometimes, I feel like Mom tries to live herself through me like she's the one who's taking the challenge and not me".

"I think it's more to do with the fact that you're the only child she can really brag about", Zephyr said, expressing his thought, "Haley's not exactly book-smart, and Luke ... well, the less said about him the better. In a sense, it's because of how proud she is of you and because of how much she wants you to do really well that she gets competitive with you".

"I guess", Alex muttered, taking a deep breath.

Alex and Zephyr remained silent as they continued their journey to the auditorium where the challenge was about to take place. Just before entering, Alex called out, "Zephyr".

"Yeah?", Zephyr asked, looking at her in the eyes.

"Thanks", Alex softly said.

"No worries", Zephyr answered, "I'll always be here if you need a shoulder to cry on. Literally if need be".

Alex laughed slightly at his joke and gave him a quick peck on the lips, "Make sure you reach the finals. I don't want it to be too easy for me".

"Don't worry", Zephyr assured, "I'll stomp on these kids and make it to the final. I'll be sure to be waiting there for you".

"And I you", Alex muttered, walking away to her bracket while Zephyr walked in the opposite direction and towards his bracket.

[Time Skip]

"Helium has the lowest boiling point. What is the boiling point of Helium?", the -presented asked.

"The boiling point of Helium is -268.9 degrees Celsius or -451.9 degrees Fahrenheit".

"Correct", a member of the judging panel nodded.

After going through a bunch more questions, the presenter finally reached the penultimate question, "What is the heaviest stable monoisotopic element?".

Before any of the other contestants could answer, Zephyr pressed the buzzer, "Gold. The isotope Au-197 to be more precise".

"Correct", one of the judges said.

"Now. Since the exact mass of an object like a star that must ultimately become a black hole is a function of its radius, there isn't an exact mass above which that object must collapse to a black hole. Said another way, any object which collapses to the point where its radius is less than a certain limit must ultimately become a black hole. What is the name of this radius?", the judge asked.

"Schwarzschild radius which is given by the equation: Rs = 2MG/c^2", Zephyr pressed the buzzer and answered a split second after the question was announced.

"Indeed", the judge in the middle nodded her head. After flickering through a bunch of papers, she announced, "Despite it being evident, after tallying the results, the winner is Mr Zephyr Blake with a score of 240 out of 250. You will be facing contestant Alex Dunphy in the final".

Once she was done, the crowd erupted into cheers, with a particular big-chested blond being incredibly vocal.

The judge raised her hand and the audience quietened down, "Contestant Blake, you will have an hour's rest after which, you shall convene here alongside contestant Dunphy. If you fail to arrive on time, you shall be disqualified".

Zephyr nodded his head and quickly walked off the stage. Before he could take another step, Zephyr rushed to him and enveloped him in a crushing hug. "I knew you could do it!", Desiree exclaimed, "I'm so proud of you. I took pictures and recorded some parts of it. I'll make sure to show Matt when we get back".

[Time Skip]

"No hard feelings?", Zephyr asked as he walked beside Alex.

"It's fine", Alex answered with a small smile on her face, "I'm a bit upset I didn't win, but you were amazing out there. I'm happy you won".

"Hey!", Zephyr exclaimed, bumping Alex lightly with his shoulder, "You were great out there. You made me work for the trophy so you should be proud of yourself".

"When you put it like that, it does make me feel better", Alex remarked, "Now hurry up. Mom's looking for Luke and we need to help her".