Chapter 56

Roger clenched his fists. His face was grim, as though he wished he could vanish into thin air. After another round of voting, Sarah was crowned champion, with Zoleen close behind. Roger placed third. He was the butt of the joke. Disqualification would have been less humiliating. "My daughter and I agree completely with the results. Congratulations. You and your daughter are amazing," praised Monica. Natalie replied humbly, "Your daughter's amazing as well. Sarah's just a first-grader. She'll have countless more competitions ahead, and she won't win every one of them. I just hope she does her best each time. At the end of the day, her health matters most." Monica said, "You're right. I still don't know your name." "My name's Natalie Cooper." "I'm Monica Morris. If you're free on weekends, we could take our kids on playdates." "Sounds fun." Recalling the incident on stage, Monica asked, "You didn't hurt your back, did you? I haven't thanked you for taking that beating for