Sera slowly placed her chopsticks down and gave her younger sister the most pointed glare that she could possibly give. Her younger sister, Yura, ignored the venemous daggers coming out of her sister's eyes and continued to babble on and on.

"You're going to apply to that Jewel-Crown-Paegent-Contest thingie, right?" Yura demanded excitedly, hopping up and down in her seat and jabbing Sera with her index finger. Sera tried to avoid her and focused on her food.

"Seraaaaa!" her younger sister pleaded and whined. The older girl slowly turned her head to face her obnoxious sibling.

"What." 

"Are you going to apply?" Yura asked again. Sera could not help, but wonder why in the world her younger sister was so hyper and immature for a sixteen year old. It was like a six year old trapped in the body of a teenager. 

Sera exhaled slowly and picked up her chopsticks before replying. "I'm not sure yet, but probably not." 

Their mother, who was observing the girls' interaction, joined the conversation. "Why not?" she asked. Sera mumbled an "I don't know" as she took a bite of her noodles. 

She swallowed and spoke. "I just really don't see a point." Sera paused before elaborating, "It's highly unrealistic to harbor such hopes, and frankly, the competition is going to be a massive waste of my time. I should be spending my time, you know, studying and looking for internships."

Yura groaned. "Ugh, why are you such a loser? So negative. Does it kill you just to be just a little bit positive?" Sera felt a twinge of annoyance at her sister's words and rolled her eyes. What would an airhead sixteen year old know?

"Your sister's right," her mom said. Sera felt drop open just the slightest. She was in disbelief at her mom's words. Typically, her mom would side with her whenever Sera and Yura got into an argument. "I really think you should apply. It's about as much as an internship application."

"Do I really have to apply?" Sera attempted to convince her mom. 

Her mother gave her elder daughter a firm look. "It's not that difficult. Just spend a few hours putting the application together. It doesn't hurt to try." Sera rolled her eyes before scooping the last bit of rice onto her chopsticks and into . Her chair scraped back on the wooden floor as she headed towards the kitchen sink. 

"No thanks. I'd rather not," she said with finality.

From Sera's room, the sounds of frantic typing and groans of frustration floated out into the hallway. Her mother, concerned about the sounds she was hearing, knocked on Sera's door before entering.

"Everything okay?" she asked. Sera shook her head.

"Why is resume writing so painful? I don't think I have enough specs to get a job, and I still need to finish my project, so I can add it to my portfolio." 

Her mother placed her hand comfortingly on her daughter's back. 

"Hey, don't stress out too much about it. Do you want me to look over your resume? Maybe I can help." Sera's face brightened at the idea and immediately agreed. "Just send the file over, and I'll take a look."

"Thanks mom! You're the best." 

Two weeks passed by, and Sera never gave the Jewel of Distinction competition another thought since that discussion with her mother and sister. However, her classmates would not stop gossiping about the award. People were constantly trying to guess who would make it pass into the preliminary rounds. 

"Can't people find something new to discuss? Don't people have anything better to do?" Sera muttered under her breath. 

Hajong laughed, "Of course not. I mean, it is a pretty rare occasi