Ungifted

The robotics team has transformed the gym into a replica of the Dutchess Auditorium, site of the upcoming competition. Driving Tin Man is the most comfortable Donovan has ever felt with a joystick. He sees the robot as “an extension of [his] will” (122). Donovan drives Tin Man through the course while Mr. Osborne times him. When Tin Man completes his final move, Mr. Osborne calls out the time, informing the class it is their best yet. The team toasts one another with YoukilAid, Noah’s improved version of Gatorade, and Chloe’s brownies. Donovan teaches them how to trash talk. Mr. Osborne suggests a victory celebration is premature.

Donovan’s experience on the robotics team is his “first taste” of being part of a competitive team (123). He cannot “design, build, or program a robot,” but as the driver, he is an indispensable member of the team (123). For the first time since arriving at ASD, he feels he belongs. At that moment, Dr. Shultz storms into the gym “nothing less than an avenging angel” and informs Donovan that his parents are on the way (123). Mistakenly thinking Donovan is being removed for not being gifted, Chloe argues that Donovan is “the heart and soul of our team” and “our class” (123). Dr. Shultz leads Donovan out of the gym to a chorus of protests from his classmates.

Donovan’s punishments are twenty hours of community service, part of which he spends polishing Atlas’s globe in the administration building’s basement, and expulsion from ASD. His parents will not be responsible for the damages since the rusty bolt was at fault. Donovan’s expulsion causes his mother to cry, but his father is unperturbed. He wonders whether turpentine will remove the bumper sticker he put on his car. Donovan asks his father if he always suspected Donovan was not gifted. His father replies that no geniuses lay in their family ancestry. The only thing he really cares about is that Donovan is happy, but Donovan is not happy. He feels he is letting down the robotics team. Even worse, Katie decides to quit Human Growth and Development in solidarity with him, despite his encouraging her to stick with it.

Back at Hardcastle, Donovan notices its unkempt, decrepit state as compared to ASD’s outstanding facilities and maintenance. Teachers do not give students the benefit of the doubt as they do at ASD. On his first day back, the Daniels present Donovan with a toilet stolen from a school bathroom, calling it “the 2012 Moron of the Year Award” (127). Donovan whacks Daniel Nussbaum with it. He is happy Chloe is not on hand to witness his disgrace, though he believes it would cure her of “her longing to be ‘normal’” (128). In his classes, Donovan feels more confident, even raising his hand in math, until Daniel Sanderson reminds him that he is not at ASD. At the end of the day, Donovan and the Daniels pass the remains of the Atlas statue, and Donovan is overwhelmed with remorse. The Daniels reminisce about the destruction, leading Donovan to tell them they are the toilet award’s true recipients. They tell him it is good to have him back where he belongs. Donovan is “deeply bummed” that they are probably right (130).

Ms. Bevelaqua asks Abigail if she helped Donovan cheat. Abigail proclaims herself “the last person who would help that guy” since “his presence lowered Academy standards” for the rest of the students (130). Ms. Bevelaqua persists, saying she knows how important the robotics meet is to Abigail for her future college prospects. Abigail asks Ms. Bevelaqua why she would “risk getting busted for cheating” for someone she “can’t even stand” (130).

Chloe misses Donovan. Mr. Osborne admits that he misses him too, but Donovan can never return to ASD. Chloe horrifies Mr. Osborne by saying she is unsure whether she wants to remain at the school. She is so upset that she cuts school that afternoon and takes a bus across town, in order to find Donovan at Hardcastle. She arrives during dismissal and is overwhelmed by the massive crowds. She asks random students if Donovan is around, but many know him only by name and are not inclined to help Chloe. She realizes how easy it is to get lost in a school with hundreds of students per grade, something that would never happen at ASD.

As the crowd thins, Chloe despairs of finding Donovan. At that moment, she hears a voice behind her asking if that is “the plaid chick” (133). She turns around to find the Daniels. She is happy to see them, but they tease her. Donovan was not in school that afternoon because Dr. Shultz took him to the insurance company to give a statement about the Atlas accident. When they tell her the full story of how the statue was damaged, she at first does not believe them but then decides it is “totally Donovan” and exemplifies why he was so needed at ASD (134). ASD students overthink and over-plan; Donovan acts (134).

Chloe asks the Daniels for Donovan’s phone number and they refuse, saying he is miserable enough without ASD’s “brainiacs” making him feel stupid (134). Crying, she protests that she wants to apologize to Donovan for the fact that he will not be with them at the robotics meet. One of the boys hands her a tissue from his pocket and asks her when the robotics meet is.

Ms. Bevelaqua tells Noah he may not film their interview as she has “made enough appearances” on his YouTube channel (136). She asks him if he took control of Donovan’s computer during his retest. Noah says he thought of doing it but was “busy shooting a video” and forgot (136). Ms. Bevelaqua cannot believe how “casual” Noah is being about committing a serious offense. She tells him he could be expelled for cheating, and he asks, “Really?” (136).

Donovan provides the school’s insurance company with testimony concerning his actions against the Atlas statue. Dr. Shultz drives him, and when he drops Donovan off at home, Beatrice climbs into Dr. Shultz’s car and pees on his floor mat. Donovan refers to the dog as his soulmate, as she mirrors his moping with hers. Katie also misses the “geniuses” (137). Her stomach has not been on YouTube for a week, and Brad’s unit in Afghanistan is getting “restless” (137).

The worst for Donovan is school. His intense studying at ASD has made Hardcastle’s work “just too easy” (137). Donovan is earning straight As and feels trapped between two worlds. The Daniels’ version of trying to cheer him up involves Donovan getting “into trouble for their entertainment” (137). They encourage him to pull one prank after another, and he repeatedly refuses, feeling “the presence of that bent-over Atlas” (138). About a week after his return to school, the Daniels approach Donovan, tell him he needs “a mental health day off from school,” and push him out of the doors (138). He resists, until he sees Katie waiting in the parking lot. They are taking Donovan on a road trip to see the robotics competition.

The enormous competition site, Duchess Auditorium, makes an impression on the Daniels. Donovan spots ASD’s pit, and he feels “the pride of ownership” (140). As he makes his way through the crowd to greet his former classmates, he passes the ostentatious pit and robot of Cold Spring Harbor, defending champions and ASD’s biggest competitor. He dubs their robot Pot-zilla. Donovan smiles as he catches sight of his classmates then abruptly turns back as he notices Dr. Shultz standing with the group. Donovan fears the consequences of being caught cutting school.

The state robotics competition is usually Mr. Osborne’s favorite day of the year because it provides “healthy competition” for gifted students (143). This year, however, his team is “distracted and dispirited,” and so is Mr. Osborne (143). Donovan should be with them. Though his team is “unmatched in ability,” Donovan brought them together (143). He should be furious with Donovan for having used ASD “to hide from the consequences of his actions,” but Mr. Osborne misses him as much as the kids do, maybe more (143). Mr. Osborne keeps thinking he sees Donovan in the auditorium. 

ASD performs well in the first phase of the competition and heads into phase two with a 10-point lead. During the break between phases, Noah returns from the bathroom with “black thumbprints on the lenses of his glasses,” courtesy of Cold Spring Harbor students who ambushed Noah in the bathroom (144). Abigail wants to complain to the judges, but Mr. Osborne tells the team to “let Tin Man do our talking” (145). As the competition progresses, however, “the human element” becomes a factor (145). Abigail’s driving is strong but not as effective as Donovan’s. ASD falls in the rankings and is in danger of not qualifying for the final round. Abigail seems rattled, but ASD makes it to the final round.

Donovan cheers for Tin Man, joined by Katie and the Daniels, who analyze the matchup as if it were “game seven of the World Series” (147). They had come to make fun of the competition but get caught up in the excitement. The final four robots line up for the last event. Tin Man takes an early advantage, with Pot-zilla close behind. A few legs into the final, Pot-zilla knocks against Tin Man, causing him to drop the ring he is meant to place in a target. Mr. Osborne shouts at the judges, but they wave him off. Donovan leaps out of his seat and yells, “That was on purpose!” (149). Katie warns him, but he is already running to the competition floor. The team members’ faces light up when they see Donovan. Abigail looks at him desperately, and he begins shouting instructions at her. She thrusts the joystick at him. He takes control, guiding Tin Man smoothly, but it’s too late. Pot-zilla is on his way to victory.

Donovan is furious that Cold Spring Harbor will win by sabotaging ASD. He drives Tin Man into the Pot-zilla‘s path. Mr. Osborne yells at him to stop, but Donovan uses Tin Man’s lift mechanism to hoist Pot-zilla into the air. Chaos breaks out. Both teams scream at each other. The head judge blows his whistle but cannot be heard “over the general din” (150). Cold Spring Harbor’s driver attempts to free Pot-zilla, but Donovan maneuvers Tin Man to charge the scorer’s table. Mr. Osborne continues screaming at Donovan, who slams Pot-zilla into the judges’ table. Noah jumps into the fray. He grabs a judge’s chair and repeatedly smashes Pot-zilla with it until the robot is destroyed. The auditorium falls silent. Donovan sees Dr. Shultz storming through the crowd toward Donovan, “his face a thundercloud” (151). At that moment, Katie cries out, “It’s time!” (151). Donovan is confused until Chloe exclaims, “Katie’s having the baby!” (151).