The Test Paper

Nina studied hard, but mathematics frightened her. During an exam she glanced sideways and saw the answers on her friend's paper. Her mind whispered, "Just this once."

Her hand tightened around the pen. She imagined the relief of good marks, the smile from her parents, the praise from her teacher. Then she imagined something else: having marks she did not earn.

She looked back at her own paper and finished honestly, though not confidently. When the results came, she had scored only average marks. Her friend scored much higher.

Nina felt disappointed, but she also felt clean inside. A week later the teacher announced a surprise oral test. Many students who had copied in the written exam stumbled badly. Nina answered carefully, step by step, because what she knew was real.

After class the teacher told her, "Marks matter, but truth matters more. What is truly yours cannot be taken away."