Kirill felt an immediate wave of relief. He grabbed his pen and opened his workbook, ready to copy the answers line by line. It would take him less than five minutes, and then he could finally go play video games with his friends.
His eyes darted to his smartphone resting face down on the corner of the table. He knew exactly what to do. Everyone in his class did it. He picked up the phone, unlocked the screen, and opened his browser. His thumbs flew across the keyboard as he typed the magic words that every struggling Russian student knew by heart: smotret otvety russkogo 5 klassa avtor lvova nomer 412 . smotret otvety russkogo 5 klassa avtor lvova nomer
She looked at him, a small, knowing smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She placed a heavy, encouraging hand on his shoulder. Kirill felt an immediate wave of relief
Slowly, carefully, Kirill began to draw his own diagram. It wasn't as neat as the computer-generated one on the website, and he had to erase his work twice when he confused a direct object for a modifier. But as he worked through the second sentence, and then the third, something incredible happened. The confusion began to lift. The ancient code was breaking. He was actually doing it. His eyes darted to his smartphone resting face
Kirill smiled, keeping his eyes on his book. He knew he had made the right choice. He had discovered that the real answer wasn't found on a search engine, but in the effort he was willing to put into understanding his own language.
With a sudden burst of resolve that surprised even himself, Kirill flipped his phone face down once more. He pushed it to the far edge of the desk.