Explain Evidence & Reasoning: Short Fiction Practice Test

In a story about a family restaurant, the teenage narrator watches her aunt count the cash drawer after closing. The aunt sets aside a few crumpled bills and slips them into a jar labeled “Roof,” then wipes the counter until it shines. The narrator observes: “She scrubbed in small circles, like she could erase the day.” A student claims the aunt’s cleaning is portrayed as an attempt to manage anxiety about the family’s financial instability. Which option best explains how the bolded sentence supports the claim?

A short story describes a retired teacher, Ms. Velez, who refuses to throw away her old lesson plans. She keeps them stacked in labeled boxes, but on the day her apartment floods, she carries only one item upstairs: a single folder marked “Attendance—1997.” A student claims the story portrays Ms. Velez’s attachment to the past as selective and emotionally motivated rather than purely practical. Which choice best explains how the bolded detail supports that claim?