NEW BEGINNINGS
627 Words
*Year 1 After. Month 8.*
154.5k turned into something.
Not overnight. Not with magic.
With 5am alarms and sore backs.
_Jimmy & Alex Riders Ltd._ had 3 bodas now.
Not new. But clean. With receipts. With insurance.
Jimmy managed the books. Alex managed the riders.
5 boys. All paid weekly. All given helmets.
_Beauty by Jessica_ had 4 chairs.
Jessica trained 2 girls from the village.
"Don’t let anyone owe you," she told them. "Cash first."
She laughed when she said it.
*The First Big Step: The Loan, Paid Back*
*Monday. Bank.*
Jimmy walked in with an envelope. 200k.
Plus 50k interest. The one Sula never asked for.
"Sir, we have loan products," the teller said.
"I’m not borrowing," Jimmy said. "I’m closing."
He paid Sula back in full. In cash. On camera.
Sula hugged him. "Proud of you, boy. Proud of you."
That night they ate chicken. For the first time in a year.
*The Second Step: Papers*
*Month 10.*
Hassan helped them get a lease. 2 years.
Their names on it. Not the landlord’s cousin.
Jimmy. Jessica. Alex.
They also got IDs updated. Addresses changed.
No more "Kireka squatter".
Now: "Bukoto Residents."
Jessica cried at the salon when the sign painter finished:
_BEAUTY BY JESSICA - EST. 2026_
*Month 12. One Year After 5:01pm.*
They threw a small party.
No Mr. Kato. No debt collectors.
Just them. Sula. Hassan. Officer Damian. The 5 riders. The 2 salon girls.
42 people in a sitting room.
Music from the new TV.
Soda. Chapati. Roast.
Hassan gave a speech. "A year ago these kids were 83k short and running.
Today they employ 7 people. They pay taxes. They sleep with doors locked."
Officer Damian raised his soda. "To the ones who didn’t run."
Jimmy stood last.
He looked at Jessica. At Alex. At the room.
"Day 1 we borrowed 200k because we were desperate.
Day 32 we almost died because of that debt.
Today we are free because we chose to fight instead of run."
He paused.
"Love is what survived the tragedy.
And now love is what we’re building on."
Everyone clapped.
*Year 2. Expansion.*
*Jimmy & Alex Riders* bought a 4th boda.
Then a small office. Painted blue.
"Book online. Ride safe."
*Beauty by Jessica* moved to a bigger room.
6 chairs. A pedicure station.
Jessica hired a manager so she could do bridal on weekends.
She started saving for her own shop.
They started a group savings. 50k every week.
For emergencies. For school. For "never again".
*The Visit*
*Year 2, Month 3.*
A letter came. Luzira Prison.
From Mr. Kato.
Jimmy didn’t open it for 3 days.
When he did, it was 2 lines:
`I was wrong. I hope you are well. -K`
Jimmy burned it.
"Closure doesn’t come from him," he told Jessica.
"It comes from us moving on."
*Year 3.*
They bought land.
Not in Kampala. In the village. 50x100.
"For retirement," Alex joked. "In 40 years."
They started paying school fees for 2 kids in Sula’s village.
"Because someone helped us," Jessica said.
Night deliveries? Gone.
Last boda comes in at 6pm.
Doors locked by 7pm.
Prayers at 8pm.
*Night. Year 3. Same House, Different Life.*
Jimmy, Jessica, and Alex still counted money on the floor.
But now it was on a table.
And there was a laptop next to it.
Weekly profit: 380k.
"Remember Day 1?" Alex asked. "200k loan."
"Remember Day 30?" Jessica asked. "83k short."
"Remember Day 32?" Jimmy asked. "5:01pm."
"Remember today?" Jimmy said. "We’re okay."
Jessica leaned on him. "What’s next?"
Jimmy smiled. "House. Marriage. Kids.
A life where the biggest problem is what to eat for dinner."
Outside, a boda passed.
One of theirs.
No one flinched.
The tragedy was over.
The building had begun.
- Writer
