Willa faces her first mock exam in the capital. Her mother cooks to encourage her while classmates tease her countryside schooling; Yasmin defends her and offers food. Nervous and cramming vocabulary at the last minute, Willa endures jibes about low scores and a remark about a classmate's crush. Pressured but determined, she vows to take the test seriously. When the exam begins she shifts from panicked memorizing to focused resolve, even declaring, "I'm the kind of top student...who can...score 650." The paper is underway and Willa's bold claim now hangs on the answers she fills.