She didn’t expect a proposal on Valentine’s Day but fortunately, she got one. It all rang back to our days in secondary school. I used to live in Ogun state. I was in SS1 science class. We just resumed a new session. Our first-class was physics and we were treating Fundamental and Derived Quantities. The principal walked in with a father and a daughter. He said the girl would be joining us till we write WAEC. When I saw her face I was swept off my feet. The principal and her father left. So my physics teacher said we should all introduce ourselves starting from the girl. “My name is Ewatomi”, she said. The girl next to her also said, “my name is Tolani”. It got to my turn, I stood up and said “My name is Caleb”. The class went on as expected but not for me because my eyes were fixed on her. She had a seat in the front row, while I sat at the back. During break time I went to the toilet to regain my awareness because I couldn’t concentrate anymore. I was so confused because I had never had such feelings before. I decided I won’t be distracted because I missed a lot in the classes we had that morning. After the break, we had Biology class. Whenever the teacher asked questions, I made sure to answer most of the questions. Everyone was amazed because it was our first Biology class. Well, it was normal form because I had already read the topic in the library due to my love and curiosity of science. I answered the teacher’s questions also to get Ewatomi’s attention because she kept looking at me while I answered the questions. This was a drive for me to study more to answer more questions and maintain Ewatomi’s attention. Things continued like that for some days and she made friends quickly. I overheard her having a conversation with Tolani. “Who is the best in the class?” She asked. “Caleb is the best student”, Tolani replied, pointing towards my direction. “Wow, okay”, she replied. On this faithful day during break time, Ewatomi and her friend came to my table. I was reading my Biology textbook when I heard a voice. “Hey, Caleb, what’s up?” Tolani asked. “I dey”, I replied, still reading. Ewatomi showed up then. “Hi Caleb”, she greeted, a smile on her face. My heart skipped a beat. I could feel my pulse moving faster. I couldn’t help but smile back. “What’s up Ewatomi?” I replied. “I’m fine,” she said. “I could see you’re reading, what are you reading about ?”. She asked. I told her I was reading about classifications of living things. I asked if she’d like to join me. She agreed, so we read it together during break. We had Biology class the next day. Thankfully we were both active in class. “This is wonderful”, I said to myself. So I decided that during break time I’d spend some minutes in the library in preparation for the next class. I felt I could get closer to her through this. Though I hadn’t known much about her. We got more acquainted with ourselves academically. It was nothing beyond studies but I wished it was more than that. There was this particular break she suggested we should go get something to eat instead of going to the library. I tried to turn her down cause I felt so bad, I didn’t have any money on me. I rarely visited the school canteen. I came from an indigent home. My parents were illiterate but wanted something good for me so they sent me to a private school with their hard-earned money. My father was a farmer who cultivated plantain and vegetables on the farm. My mother was a trader who sold some of the farm produce in the market. I was the only child of my parents. Whenever I came back from school I’d join my mum in the market and help with the selling of the farm produce till 7:00 pm, then we retire to the house. “Please let’s get something to eat,” Ewatomi asked, “okay”, I replied reluctantly. We walked to the Mini Mart. She asked what I wanted, “I’m okay”, I said. “Come on, I can’t eat alone, it’s not nice “. “Fine, I’ll have Fanta and a sausage”, I replied. “So how much is everything”, I asked. “Don’t worry, I’ll pay, I brought you here”, she replied. We walked to a relaxation spot meters away from the canteen. “So tell me about yourself”, she asked while eating. I wasn’t sure what to say, I felt she wouldn’t talk to me if I let her know I’m from an indigent home and I wasn’t good at lying. Fortunately, the bell was rung so we returned to class. On a Monday morning after the assembly, the principal came to the class and asked me to see him in his office during the break. That was the first time the principal called me into his office. During the break, I went to the principal’s office. ” You’ve had a very wonderful performance so far in this school”, the principal said, handing a paper to me. “That is your BECE result”, he said. ” Thank you sir”, I replied with a smile on my face. “So what are your plans for the future ?” he asked. “I want to be a medical doctor sir”, I replied. Then he told me to come along with my parents tomorrow. “Do you remember the new girl that joined your class “, he asked. “Yes sir, Ewatomi, I remembered sir”, I replied. “She’s the daughter of my very close friend from secondary school, I want you to be of little assistance to her with studies. I saw you and her at the library some days ago. I want it to be strictly academics, she lost her mother so it has been hard