Chapter 1: Just Another Girl
The morning sun pierced through the threadbare curtain like a reminder — that she couldn’t afford to be late. Again.
Ella shoved her phone into her bag, zipped it up, and pulled her long braids into a loose knot. Her jeans were still damp near the waistband, but she wore them anyway. They were the only clean pair she had left.
Campus was a forty-minute matatu ride from her neighborhood, longer if traffic acted up — and it always did. But she didn’t mind the ride so much. She was used to being crammed between sweaty strangers, earphones plugged in, zoning out the city chaos. What bothered her more was arriving on campus and seeing what she didn’t have.
The sleek cars. The iPhones. The spotless sneakers.
Her life was about stretch marks, side hustles, and borrowed data bundles.
But at least she wasn’t alone.
“Ella, you late again?” her boyfriend teased, waving from under their usual tree near the Social Sciences building.
Brian wore his old hoodie like a badge of pride — faded, but clean. Just like him. They had met in their first year during an orientation game and clicked instantly. He wasn’t flashy, but he listened, and he had a smile that made you forget the mess around you.
“I overslept,” she said, kissing his cheek as she flopped down beside him. “And the kettle broke. Again.”
Brian sighed. “We need a new one.”
“We need a new everything.”
They laughed, and for a moment, things felt normal.
Leila showed up minutes later, makeup flawless, bag slung over her shoulder like it cost more than Ella’s rent. She didn’t mean to show off — she just existed in a different world. One where problems came in the form of Wi-Fi glitches or broken nails, not empty wallets.
“Guys, my uncle’s picking me up today. He just flew back from Mombasa,” she said with a grin. “He might even give me a ride to class. If you see a black Audi, pretend to know me.”
Ella rolled her eyes. “Tell him I need a scholarship.”
“You need a sugar daddy,” Leila joked.
Brian raised an eyebrow. “Don’t give her ideas.”
But Ella only laughed. She wasn’t interested in rich men with secrets. She had a boyfriend who understood her world. That was enough.
Or so she thought.
