Emily and Sarah are high school students competing in a contest to design a playground. Emily knows that Sarah is getting help from her uncle, a landscape architect, but she cannot prove it. Emily is torn between cheating herself or losing the competition to someone who is cheating. In the end, she ends up decides to do her own best work. She loses the competition but maintains her values and self-respect.

Which choice describes the external conflict?

A. a contest between Emily and Sarah
B. a struggle between Sarah and her uncle
C. Emily's struggle to make a choice
D. Sarah's struggle to make a choice