For the Dream of 5 Years: Chapter Eighteen: School and Motor Vehicle's Service Garage

Dan focused on his studies, waking up at 4 am every day and reading before leaving for school at seven. After school, he rushed to the garage and made some money. Rona didn't bother him or spend his money again. He rarely talked to girls in school because he didn't trust them. He played football, and this made school more bearable. He ate at the school canteen because he didn't like spending hard-earned money on fast food when he could eat good food at school. The two months went by pretty fast. He went home, shocked at how his room was in a mess, and sat for his exam. Boaz had given up searching for him; he believed he had dropped out of school. Therefore, when Dan returned to sit for his exams, Boaz was no longer looking for him. Dan kept a low profile until the exams were over and he returned to the city. One day at the Blue Valley Mall with his uncle, he spotted a jeep gladiator, just like the one he had seen on social media, that belonged to Michelle, and his heart sunk to his stomach. "Find me home, uncle; I don't feel too well," he said to his uncle and left for home. He did not want to think about Michelle because he didn't want to see her, at least not so soon. "Uncle, I would like to work at the garage full time as I wait for my results and decide about college," he said. "That's okay," Jeff replied. The stay in the city was engaging; he worked from 6 am to 6 pm to earn more on the overtime pay. He was accumulating a lot of money, sending a substantial portion to his mother and saving the rest. Christmas came, and the results were out. He was confident that he had done well, that his grade would earn him a ticket to college. He sent a message of his index number to the examination board and received his results. He had heard that with technology often came errors, which was why he did not believe the results sent to his cell. He asked his mother to physically go to school the following day and check the results pinned on the school notice board. "You can also check online, my son," said his mother. "I don't trust the message I received, and I would appreciate it if you checked my grade from the school, mom," he insisted. The following day, his mother went to school after feeding the cows. At school, he found the school principal in his office, and when he saw her, he started congratulating her for working magic on her son. Dan was good at school, above average, but he scored a score that no one in the school had ever achieved since the school was founded 50 years back. "What did he score?" Asked her mother puzzled, and ran towards the notice board. She almost collapsed to see his son leading on the list with a clean A. The school had an A-minus a few years back from a student who had transferred from another school but had never produced a clean A. She was excited, got so weak at her knees, sat on a stone by the pavement side, and cried while calling her husband to tell him the news. Dan could not believe he was good; he alternated between C and C+ all the years and never thought he could get anything beyond B-. He attributed his success to waking up at 4 AM and having no cows to feed before running to school. He was happy and wished there was a way he could tell Michelle he was an A student, a campus material, and a breaker of barriers, but there wasn't; Michelle had changed her number. He had to change all his plans. He would think of a better college, a prestigious university because he had the grade and had saved enough money to supplement his parents’ if he chose a suitable course from an expensive university. He would rethink his journalism course because he didn't have to settle; he would choose whatever course he wanted. After much consideration, he settled for a college near his uncle's place to continue working and accumulating money. He decided to do mechanical engineering. His parents were infuriated! His teachers protested his decision, and his classmate concluded he was bewitched. "Mom, how many graduates are jobless and miserable? I have decided to break the chain. I have uncle Jeff as my role model, a wealthy man living a comfortable life and owning his business. I will do what he is doing. I want a life like his, not a wishful one I haven't seen on anyone I know," he convinced his parents. His uncle was shocked by his decision but knew too well that the real world needed practical solutions. Dan enrolled in a technical college in the city and continued to work in the garage because he did not have classes. He didn't entertain girls; even when Rona looked for him several times, he said he had moved on with a girl from his college. He had a point to prove to a special person in five years when he would be twenty-five. Then, Michelle would not have any more excuses because he would be grown and rich. He would have his own garage business like his uncle Jeff. He would be muscular and bearded, and Michelle would not resist his charm. His was Michelle; nothing else mattered.