Nate fought to hold back the tears,
"I want to....."
His voice cracked and he dropped his cup and ran outside on the yacht, leaving more than 30 people staring at his retreat, puzzled by his action. He was just about to make a toast.
Dave, his best friend and brother runs after him to see him seated on the balcony of the private yacht. He walks up to him and places his hand on his right shoulder.
"It's okay, bro, I understand."
Nate looks up at him gratefully and they nod at each other in understanding.
"The guests must be wondering what happened."
Nate said regaining a bit of his composure.
"They will be fine, brother."
Dave takes his seat beside Nate and together, they stare into the night at the water, bonded by the experiences that molded them.
"You are never going to amount to anything, your mothers should have just aborted you both and saved us all the trouble."
Madam Hartley, the caregiver of "Hope Orphanage" yelled at Nate and Dave for using their ball to hit the television screen thereby breaking it.
"We are sorry."
They had both murmured feeling remorseful.
"If only sorry could fix everything, I would always have it handy as payment for whatever I purchase. Sorry won't fix the TV now, will it?"
Madam Hartley, the overweight, bloated, sore woman who ran the operations in the orphanage asked.
"We'll buy another one."
Nate murmured, looking down at his tattered clothes and worn-out slippers.
Madam Hartley burst out in laughter, clapping her fat palms in amusement.
Even Dave had a hard time concealing his smile, Nate must have gone bonkers, where would they get the money? They were only 12 and were orphans, dumped by their parents for whatever reason deadbeat parents dropped their children.
Everyone knew they were best friends and Nate was the ambitious one with blue eyes that was always alight and restless. Dave had peaceful, brown eyes that made him look adorable.
Nate was brilliant and he harbored dreams of being a big shot but no one ever took him seriously except for Dave.
Dave was brilliant too, but he would rather leave the dreaming to Nate, there was hardly anyone who turned 18 and left the home that amounted to anything.
They were all over town as meth heads and junkies. You can't blame them, the odds have been stacked against them from birth, and the world wouldn't even give them a chance.
"Now, how do you suppose you would get the money to buy a new TV?"
Madam Hartley had finally asked after laughing for many seconds.
"We'll buy a new one, maybe not now, but I promise, we will."
"If only wishes were horses, boy. No dinner for both of you, scamper off to bed".
She watched them leave and sighed, she often wondered why the government was wasting taxpayers' money to run the orphanage. She had watched most of them turn 18 and become thieves, prostitutes, and junkies after leaving the home. What was the point?
"I've about had enough of you, the very next time you have an idea like that, I suggest you keep it to yourself."
The building foreman shouted at Nate, turning round to walk away.
Nate ran after him,
"I'm just saying that if you took proper time to study the design, you would understand that the beams cannot support the building."
"Okay, that's it, you are fired. Go pack your shit and leave this site right now."
The foreman said, stamping his feet angrily.
"You can't fire me, I was hired for the duration of this project."
"I hired you and now, I'm firing you, who are you going to tell? I've been paying you under the table.
"It's okay, brother, you will get another job."
Dave consoled him when he returned home looking dejected.
It's been over 8 years since they turned 18 and left the orphanage home to strike out into the real world.
With no formal education, they had to rely on odds jobs to survive. They had both scrimped and saved to rent a dingy room in a rundown neighborhood.
Nate was talented with interpreting and bringing architectural plans and designs to life while Dave had a talent for drawing. He could picture anything in his mind and bring it to life on paper.
What was talent without education and the right connections?
"I can't let it slide, Dave, I have to do something."
Nate had told Dave the next morning while they were having a breakfast of stale bread and instant coffee. it was all they could afford at the moment.
"Do what exactly? You have been fired remember?"
"I know, but you can't expect me to sit back and risk people dying in that death trap. That project was commissioned for millions and the contractor would make lots of money from it, why use insufficient and substandard materials? It's just plain greediness and wickedness. People will die when that building opens up for business."
"You are right but what can we do? The foreman doesn't want to hear anything from you, and I'm fairly certain the contractor wouldn't even give you the time of the day. He's aware after all."
"The building was commissioned by the government, why don't we reach out and expose everything?"
"I'm down with you, Nate, how do we go about it?"
"I need your help, the building design was a flop to start with, that sort of building cannot sit in that type of area. The land is sloppy."
"I could tell too."
"You are going to help me draw a plan for a building that's going to be perfect for that location and point out the errors in the one currently getting built. I want both buildings to be side by side, so the message I'm trying to pass can be clear."
"You got it, brother, just tell me what you have in mind."
Together, they worked on a better building plan, highlighting the major points to note and pointing out why the building undergoing construction was a death trap.
They sent it anonymously to the ministry and weeks later, they were contacted. Nobody could stay anonymous from the government.
They were thanked by the minister and told that after careful evaluation of the said building, it would have truly collapsed even before it was completed. It was thanks to them that a major disaster and scandal had been avoided.
They were surprised when they were offered a new contract for the building to be demolished and rebuilt.
"Can you deliver?"
The minister had asked them seriously. He didn't care if they were educated or not, he saw raw, untapped potential in them.
And deliver they did, they worked together, Dave on the sketch and Nate on the building. The project was a hit and they received accolades from the government and everyone.
That was just the beginning, they began to get more jobs that paid many figures and soon became popular as the best duo when it comes to construction.
"I think you are at the wrong address."
A now older Madam Hartley shouted at the workers who were delivering dozens of the latest and biggest plasma televisions to the orphanage.
"We are at the right address, Madam. This is Hope Orphanage and I have a note for you right here."
The team leader says, handing a note to her.
She puts on her glasses on and squinted her eyes as she read,
"I just wanted to let you know that Dave and I amounted to much, so much more than you could ever imagine. I promised you we would buy a new television, the televisions getting delivered now is our way of fulfilling our promise. By the way, we've set up a scholarship fund for the kids in the orphanage to go to school and have a formal education. You can close your mouth now, Madam, yours sincerely, Nate."
Her mouth truly was wide open, and she still couldn't close it after reading the letter.
Nate had just bought his first yacht and had a few friends, colleagues, and associates on it for a celebration. He and Dave had built many houses, had many cars, and had numerous investments in and outside the country.
He was about to make a toast when his emotions got the better of him.
"I think it's time to go and make that toast now, brother."
Dave said, patting his back.
He nodded and stood up, together, they walked back in and Nate resumed from where he stopped.
"I apologize for my abrupt exit, people. Kindly raise your glasses and join me as I toast to the pains that made us without breaking us, and my brother from another mother, Dave, my ride or die for being there every step of the way.
"Hear, hear."
Everyone cheered and raised their glasses.
