Answer:
C) premium that was paid for the contract
Step-by-step explanation:
One interesting feature of buying option is that you can only lose the premium.
For example: If i buy the call option for $5 with a strike price of $30. At the expiration date when the stock price is $22, i would have lost more than $5 by exercising the option. The reason is i am purchasing the stock in $30 which can be bought from market in $22. Here, it would not be the case because unlike futures, options can be left not exercised. So, in this condition i will not exercise the option, and buy the stock from market in $22. Maximum i would lose is the premium that i have paid for the option $5.