“CONGRATULATIONS, YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED.”The notification lit up John’s phone screen, and in that instant, every trace of fatigue vanished from his body. His lips broke into a radiant smile that stretched from ear to ear. The joy that surged through him was overwhelming. He leapt into the air, fists pumping in triumph, and for the first time in weeks, he felt like the world was finally aligning in his favour.Without a second thought, he ran back to where Anna was waiting, his heart pounding with excitement. He scooped her off her feet, twirling her in his arms while she shrieked and laughed, pleading for him to put her down.“John! Stop it! You’re going to drop me!” she said between laughs, but he wouldn’t listen. He was too elated, too lost in the high of this victory.At last, he set her gently on her feet, breathless, his face glowing with triumph.“What on earth has gotten into you?” Anna asked, brushing down her dress as she studied his overjoyed expression.“I got in,” John s

Confused by the sight before her, Rita felt her chest tighten. Her eyes widened as she struggled to process how John had made it back on stage. She was devastated. It was impossible. He had been tracked, cornered, and yet here he was, striding into the very place she had sworn he would never return to. Panic rippled through her mind, and one question haunted her relentlessly—who helped him?Her hands trembled as she fumbled for her phone. The screen lit up, mocking her with twenty missed calls and over thirty unread messages. Each notification was a warning she had ignored. They were all from her informants, frantically trying to reach her. The tracker had been discovered. Their operation was compromised. John was in trouble, not because of her plan, but because someone had betrayed their movements.The security team had been able to follow his trail easily since John’s mail was tracked live. Their location had almost been pinned down. Yet fortune favoured them in the smallest measure

John was still in shock about what had happened earlier in the day. His mind replayed the incident over and over, and he could not believe the outcome. The very person he had dreaded, the lecturer from hell, had been the one to save him from humiliation. It made no sense. He leaned back on the bench outside and shook his head in disbelief.“Anna and Collins will not believe me if I tell them what happened to me today,” John muttered. He pulled out his phone and tapped on the video call icon, eager to share the strange twist of fate with the two people closest to him.The call struggled to connect, flickered, and finally disconnected. He sighed, trying again. Once more, the screen froze, and then the call ended. His stomach growled loudly, reminding him of how long he had gone without food. He had nearly fainted earlier, and he was not about to repeat that mistake.He decided to stop at a nearby hotel to eat before trying to reach Anna and Collins again. The smell of roasted chicken an

While John was speaking to his friends, another notification blinked on his screen. It was yet another “Congratulations” mail. His heart skipped, but this time he chose not to open it immediately. He decided to wait until he got home, too drained to deal with more surprises tonight.Collins noticed the sudden change in John’s expression but chose to keep quiet. To him, John had every right to manage his personal matters the way he wanted. Constantly prying into them would only create distance.“Alright guys, I have heard,” John said, his voice low from exhaustion. “I’m driving in now, so let’s talk tomorrow at school.”Anna and Collins wished him goodnight before ending the call.The temptation to open the mail tugged at him like an itch beneath the skin, but his body was too worn out. Every muscle ached, his eyelids weighed like stones, and the only thing he craved was the comfort of his bed.Dragging himself into his room, he collapsed fully dressed onto the mattress. The moment his

The trio went to a very popular bar to celebrate John’s victory. Despite the challenges he had faced, qualifying for the aptitude test was no small feat, and it called for a toast.They ordered drinks, their laughter filling the room, and the night became one of careless joy. Glasses clinked, stories rolled off their tongues, and they drank until the tables seemed to sway beneath them.The only one still composed was Anna. She had a shoot the next day and couldn’t afford to look worn out, so when her driver arrived, she excused herself gracefully, leaving the two men to their revelry.Collins and John soon called for their drivers as well. Collins’s ride came first, and he stumbled into the backseat, waving goodbye with a silly grin. John’s driver pulled in a few minutes later and carefully helped him to the car.Just as John was about to sink into the seat, he caught sight of her—the lady from earlier. She looked dazzling in a short pink dress that seemed to shimmer under the streetl