Why are we here, What are we striving for?

She knew she shouldn’t look. The answers were a crutch. But question seven was burning a hole in her brain. She opened the Soluzioni .

Elena sighed, pushing her textbook across the library table. On the cover, a raven-haired boy in ragged clothes held out a bowl. Oliver Twist – Green Apple (Step 1) . The words blurred. She had read chapter three twice but still couldn’t answer question seven: Why does Mr. Bumble name the children alphabetically?

Her friend Marco slid into the chair opposite her. “You’re still stuck on that?” He placed a worn, spiral-bound booklet on the table. The title was handwritten in faded blue ink: .

Elena blinked. The answer was right, of course. But it felt… cold. Mechanical. She closed the answer key.

That afternoon, Elena walked to the canal behind the school. She took the photocopied Soluzioni and let the pages flutter into the water, one by one. They floated like pale, empty bowls.

A week later, the teacher returned the papers. Marco had a checkmark, but a small note: Correct, but whose voice is this?