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I wasn't the star student, and nobody was. We were just normal, striving for perfection in the things we could do and leaving what we couldn't do well to the people who were more blessed in that area.
We were all like this until a new student was introduced to us by our class teacher.
"She is your new classmate; please make her comfortable among you," said Mr. John.
He then asked her to introduce herself.
The new girl took her time to adjust her well-ironed skirt, adjusted her glasses, and blinked several times with a nice smile that spread to the other parts of her face. Then she spoke:
"My name is Ugouchi Alejandro. I am coming from Only Queens Junior Secondary School, where I was the senior prefect. I am excited about my new school, and I'm looking forward to learning with all of you."
"And what do you say?" asked our class teacher as he glared at us. It was obvious he was impressed by the girl's high-pitched phonetics.
"You're welcome, Ugouchi," we said, and the class teacher nodded with a big smile.
In my class, we were all part of tight-knit groups. My clique was the hardest to join because we had built our friendship since our first year in school. We were only open to students who were like us, and we could spot them right away.
The new girl tried to find her way into my group of friends. She wrote a letter and even gave out gifts. We all noticed, but no one really talked about it.
Ugouchi wasn't like us. Yes, she was smart, spoke well, and looked nice with her pink lipstick and mascara. She had her own style, and we admired that. But she had this pride that she tried to hide with smiles and fancy words. That's what bothered us. Because, even though we were popular and smart, we never looked down on others.
Ugouchi had a specific idea of who she wanted to be at her new school. She is a role model to her classmates, seniors, and juniors. And she did that by correcting people in a not-so-nice way and taking on tasks meant for the perfect in SS3. It wasn't funny because she ended up getting embarrassed a lot, and that freaked us out.
Things were going pretty well for Ugouchi until the day the principal announced our upcoming presentation. While most of us were feeling a bit worried, Ugouchi was super excited. She started sharing her successful debate stories and how great she was at public speaking.
A few days later, our English and biology teachers divided us into groups and gave us different research topics. My friends and I ended up in different groups with different topics: hard water, modern agriculture, gender equality, entrepreneurship, and I got assigned to research HIV/AIDS. Honestly, I wasn't too comfortable talking about such serious topics at just 13 years old. So when our teachers asked us to rehearse what we had done so far, I couldn't present anything.
Ugouchi, on the other hand, did an amazing job. She had this soft and eloquent way of speaking that captivated everyone. But there was still one thing that stood out鈥攈er pride. Even though it was just a rehearsal, she made it seem like she was in a full-on debate. She had everyone who passed by completely mesmerized. By the time she finished her speech, we all applauded, even before the teachers asked us to. She was definitely the star student that day.
I didn't feel intimidated, and neither did my classmates. We were never jealous of or envious of others. We were all just focused on doing our best and making our parents proud.
We were, however, proud that we had someone like that among us. It added to our class's reputation. The only thing we didn't appreciate was her pride and the way she looked down on those who weren't as smart. Respect wasn't in her dictionary.
While we all went back to research and practice our presentation, Ugouchi was already done with hers. She was satisfied with the compliments she received and felt like she had already won. She refused to practice with her group members, and that was the beginning of her downfall.
The D-dayfinally arrived, and we moved to the school's beautifully decorated long hall. It was adorned with flowers, ribbons, balloons, and fine linens. The school's musical group was already performing our school anthem and other recorded school songs. All the school clubs were present, and they took turns to perform.
The hall was packed with parents, students, and visitors from both near and far. I was awestruck because we weren't expecting it to be this grand. As someone who loves beautiful things, music, and a lively atmosphere, I was immediately captivated. My nervousness disappeared, and I became excited and happy.
When the time came, we were officially introduced by the HOD, and the panel of judges took their seats opposite us. They were intimidating, especiallyone of the visitors from California. He was a huge man with a mean expression on his face, which I later accepted to be his real face.
However, we took turns presenting according to the groupings, and when it was finally my turn, I surprised everyone. I went into detail about the causes and prevention of HIV/AIDS and the stigma faced by infected patients. The panel, teachers, and students bombarded me with questions, but I managed to answer most of them correctly. I wasn't exhausted until I saw nods, applause, and compliments coming from the California man and co., my principal, and my teachers.
But the funny experience is that, after I finished speaking, I suddenly felt this overwhelming urge to cry. My heart was heavy, and I couldn't catch my breath properly. All eyes were still on me.I had to practice deep breathing to calm myself down.
"I never knew you could be so composed!" said Clara, who was the first speaker in my group.
We couldn't help but burst into laughter. And my seatmate chimed in, mentioning how many times I said the word 'sex' and how embarrassed they felt just listening to me.I told them I didn't know what embarrassment was until after I finished speaking.
When it was Ugouchi's turn, she greeted everyone with a 'good afternoon' at 10 a.m. However, she started talking without introducing herself, which confused her group members. They signalled her to pause and start again. But then she began stammering and shifting her eyeglasses; she was obviously very nervous. Her voice wavered, cracked, and lacked the eloquence we all expected from her. We all heard her real voice for the first time ever since she joined us.
The hall fell silent, and all eyes were on Ugouchi, which made her even more uncomfortable. Instead of managing through, tears started streaming down her face, and she abruptly ran out of the hall.
At the end of the presentation, my group was announced as the winner, and we received our prizes. The guest speaker identified Ugouchi's problem as stage fright and shared ways to overcome it.
After this event, Ugouchi underwent a transformation. She became more humble, calm, and friendly. She apologised to her team members and accepted that she's not perfect. Well, she did blame witches and wizards at first, but eventually realised it wasn't their fault.
