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Chapter 1 : price of smile

Literature 12 hrs ago
  • User
    Queen Tessy
    12 hrs ago

     

    Growing up, Mirabel knew how to wear a smile like a dress—perfectly fitted to hide all the rips beneath. At school, she was the girl everyone wanted to sit with, laugh with, even borrow notes from. But behind those bright eyes was a quiet storm.

     

    Her father, Pa Jato, believed that hardship was a language every child must learn early. “Life no dey give soft bread,” he would say while serving watery soup with two slices of yam to feed a house of six.

     

    When Mirabel gained admission into Cross River State University, she thought things would change. They didn’t.

     

    Instead, the cost of living grew fatter while her wallet remained lean. She couldn't afford the wigs her friends wore or the perfumes that turned heads in lectures. She was barely affording herself. Yet her father’s response to every financial plea was the same: "You like enjoyment too much."

     

    So, she started working weekends at a POS stand, learned how to braid hair from YouTube, and walked instead of taking a bike—just to keep up.

     

    But now, there was a new worry.

     

    Course registration had opened, and each course cost ₦3,000. She had 10 courses. And on top of that, the student portal required a ₦4,000 activation. She needed ₦34,000 just to continue being a student.

     

    As she stared at the empty screen of her phone, dreading the text she had to send to her dad, one question looped in her mind: How do you ask for help from someone who thinks your survival is luxury?

     

     

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    Would you like me to conti

    nue with Chapter Two?

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