Chapter 2

My days went, as usual, home to school, then school to home. Nancy made my life colorful. She was a special angel sent by the gods. I applied for the entrance exam in the number one college in my city. New bane city, one of the largest and famous cities in my country. Well to add that Nancy insisted I apply there.

"Sometimes you have to make choices in your life. Your life may not be a bed of Roses. I may have fallen to a pit but when you look at every corner of that pit you may find a ladder that you can climb up and search for a miracle ". I wrote it in my diary. I had a habit of writing a diary. I used to write diaries when I was a little girl. I closed my diary and went to the kitchen to make dinner. Tomorrow is a big day where my entrance exam results will be published. I was looking forward to that day.

I spent many hours studying to get into that college. They also offered scholarships to students who get higher ranks. I hope I will make it to the top 10 students. 

I sighed.

"Scholarship is all I needed. At least my account will be happy that it is getting something other than spider webs " I smiled thinking about that.

The next day, after finishing my daily activities, I took my usual bus. This time, the driver didn't scold me because I was always running and shouting behind it. He looked so pleased with himself.

As I was walking through the hallway on the way to my class I saw miss Rachel talking with miss Samantha. They looked thrilled early in the morning. I wonder why?. At the next moment, they both came running towards me with excitement. Their eyes sparkled while looking at me.

"Congratulations Maria Drew. You made it " she said, smiling while hugging me.

I was dumbfounded and shocked. I even forgot to close my mouth.

" You got the first rank. I am so proud of you Maria, "Rachel continued.

I was crying tears of joy. She wiped my tears and hugged me again.

I was on cloud nine. Everything around me stopped.

"Yes. I did it. Finally, " First time in my life I was very proud of myself.

Yes, some more steps and I will be successful. I thanked God for hearing my prayers and thoughts.

I sighed a relief and rushed to my class to see whether or not Nancy had arrived. I found her sitting on the middle bench and scribbling something in her books. I told her everything. Her warm hug made my heart melt.

"I knew it. I told you-you are a smart girl. I always believed in you. We need to celebrate this. Oh yeah," she laughed.

"I never thought I will achieve this. First rank. Those efforts I put into my studies didn't go down. " I said to her.

" The world seems to be a better place now. I am so happy. "I added.

I need to get home and tell my parents about this news. It was their dream. They must be very proud of their daughter.

The teachers brought me a gift to congratulate me. I was the only student who got the chance to study in such a prestigious institution. They beautifully wrapped the gift inside a rainbow paper with blue ribbons. I was curious, so I asked miss Rachel.

"Open it, Maria," she said.

I was getting excited. So I opened my gift, which made my eyes widen. It was a smartphone with a wide range of extra features. I can tell it was very expensive. Of course the most expensive gift I got in my life.

"Miss .. but . it costs a lot of money. Do I deserve this ?" I told her.

She smiled.

"Not so expensive for our favorite student, "She said.

"You deserve more than this. "Other teachers said. I looked at them with my puppy eyes.

"I am so proud of you, "She added.

I wiped my tears and thanked them.

Nancy was so happy for me. I never owned a phone in my life. My first phone.

"Let's take a picture together. "

I said goodbye to her. I was in a hurry to get home.

"Mom, where is dad?" I asked her. She was stitching my skirt.

"He is sleeping. You look happy today. Did something happen in school today? " She asked me. She looked confused.

" Mom. I got a surprise for you "

She looked up. Then she stopped her work, got up, and walked towards me.

I told her everything that happened. She jumped with joy and hugged and kissed me several times. She looked so proud of me.

I have never seen my mom looked so happy in my life. I showed her my new phone.

"Look, mom. This is a gift from my teachers. I am like a star in my school."

"We can take lots of pictures. Oh, let's surprise dad tomorrow. He looks so tired today. So I don't want to disturb him. Let him sleep. "

The phone we got in our home was from the dinosaur era, so she was so surprised to see such an expensive-looking gadget. I taught her how to use all the features.

I told my dad the next day while having breakfast. He hugged me and advised me to keep going. I loved hearing advice from my dad. That's what made me keep going in my life.

After eating breakfast, I went to my room and looked at my new phone. I needed a new sim card. I jumped to the bed and hugged the pillow, smiling like a teenager in love. It was really silly. I took my diary and wrote about everything that happened. After finishing, I closed my diary and went to the bathroom to clean myself.

After cleaning myself self I put on my pajamas and went back to my bed.