Between school and dreams

The alarm rang for the third time. I opened one eye, stared at my phone, and immediately wished I hadn't. 6:42 a.m. “I'm finished.” I jumped out of bed so quickly that my blanket fell to the floor. “Why didn't I wake up earlier?” I rushed into the bathroom, brushing my teeth with one hand while trying to fix my hair with the other. My school uniform was already hanging on the door, but somehow, finding my socks felt like the biggest challenge in the world. “Where is the other one?” I searched under my bed. Nothing. I checked beside my desk. Nothing. Finally, I found it inside my school bag. Don't ask me how it got there. By 7:05, I was running down the stairs with my bag hanging from one shoulder and a piece of toast in my mouth. My mother looked at me and shook her head. “Again?” I stopped. “Good morning, Mum.” “Good morning. And you're late again.” “I know.” She smiled slightly and handed me a bottle of water. “Go before you miss your bus.” I grabbed it. “Love you!” “Love you too. And remember what we talked about yesterday.” I paused at the door. My dream. That was what she meant. I nodded. “I won't forget.” Then I ran. --- School was already noisy when I arrived. Students filled the corridors, talking, laughing, shouting greetings across the hallway. Someone was complaining about a mathematics test, while another person was trying to finish an assignment five minutes before class. Basically, a normal Monday. I walked into my classroom and immediately saw my best friend, Maya, waving at me. “You're late!” “I know.” “You said you'd wake up early.” “I tried.” “You clearly didn't try hard enough.” I dropped my bag onto my chair. “Can we talk about something else?” Maya laughed. Before she could answer, our teacher walked in. Everyone rushed to their seats. “Good morning, class.” “Good morning, ma!” She placed her books on the desk and looked around the room. “Before we begin today's lesson, I have an announcement.” Everyone became quiet. “There will be a school-wide career and future-planning presentation next Friday.” A few students groaned. Our teacher smiled. “And each student will be required to write down what they want to become in the future.” Maya leaned toward me. “Easy. I'm becoming rich.” I covered my mouth to stop myself from laughing. The teacher continued. “You'll also be asked to explain why you chose that career.” My smile disappeared. Why? That was the difficult part. I knew what I wanted. I had known for years. But saying it out loud always felt different. --- During lunch, Maya and I sat underneath our usual tree. She opened her lunchbox. “So,” she said, “what are you writing for the career presentation?” I looked at her. “CEO.” She nearly dropped her spoon. “CEO?” “Yes.” “Of what?” I shrugged. “I don't know yet.” Maya stared at me for a second before smiling. “I like it.” “Really?” “Of course. You always talk about starting businesses and creating things. You'd actually be good at it.” I smiled. There was something about hearing someone else believe in your dream that made it feel a little more real. I reached into my bag and pulled out my notebook. It wasn't my school notebook. It was the notebook I kept hidden between my textbooks. The cover was plain, but inside were pages filled with ideas. Business names. Clothing designs. Accessory ideas. Things I wanted to create. Places I wanted to visit. Goals I wanted to achieve. And, on the first page, written in large letters, were five words: I WILL BUILD MY OWN FUTURE. Maya read it and smiled. “You're serious about this.” “I am.” I closed the notebook. “One day, I'm going to look back at this page and laugh.” “Why?” “Because everything I'm dreaming about now will already be real.” Maya raised her hand. “To future CEO.” I laughed and tapped her hand. “To future CEO.” For a moment, everything felt possible. Then the school bell rang. And reality came rushing back. There were still classes. Homework. Tests. Exams. Expectations. And a future that seemed much farther away than I wanted it to be. I looked at my notebook before putting it back into my bag. Maybe dreams weren't supposed to happen all at once. Maybe they started with one small decision. One page. One idea. One ordinary school day. And this was mine. I just didn't know yet how much my life was about to change.