GEM TALENT

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When William pushed the heavy classroom door wide open to finally start his dream career, he immediately froze in his tracks, because he saw a massive, overwhelming amount of students packed tightly into the large room.

He had vividly imagined a quiet, peaceful space with only a few dedicated learners, but instead, the giant lecture hall was completely filled with hundreds of loud, chatting young adults.

Every single seat in the front and middle rows was already taken by eager students who had arrived much earlier, so William realized quickly that the only chance he had to sit down was by walking all the way up to the very back of the giant hall.

He carefully squeezed past groups of laughing classmates and finally found a tiny, uncomfortable wooden chair hidden in the far back corner, and as he sat down, he felt very far away from the bright chalkboard at the front.

When the busy professor finally walked into the loud room and started the introductory chemistry class, William tried his absolute best to listen carefully, but the huge distance and the constant whispering of the students around him made it extremely hard to hear anything.

He did not enjoy the introductory class at all, because the professor spoke very fast and used big, confusing science words that William simply could not understand from his distant seat. As he stared blankly at his empty notebook, a dark, heavy idea of quitting this complicated new path and running back to the grassy football pitch came rushing quickly into his tired head.

However, he ignored this negative thought instantly, tightly gripping his new blue pen and forcing his eyes to stay totally focused on the distant chalkboard, because he was deeply determined to succeed no matter how hard it was.

He spent the entire hour staring hard and trying to decode the lesson, but when the lecturer finally left which signal that the class had ended, William felt a heavy knot of disappointment in his stomach, because he realized sadly that he didn't get anything out of the long class.

After the confusing chemistry class finally ended and the massive crowd of students began to slowly pour out of the large lecture hall, William packed his blank notebook into his backpack and walked out into the bright, sunny campus courtyard.

He had previously arranged to meet his two best friends under a large, shady oak tree right in the center of the beautiful school grounds, so they could all happily discuss their very first experience in the busy university.

Even though the three boys all attended the exact same university to build their bright futures, they were all studying completely different courses, which meant this was their very first time catching up after their separate morning lectures.

When William finally reached the cool shade of the giant tree, he saw Adams and Stone already standing there with huge, excited smiles on their faces, and they quickly gave each other a warm, friendly handshake.

Adams was practically jumping up and down with pure joy, and he quickly started the lively conversation by proudly saying that he had absolutely enjoyed his first class to the fullest.

Adams excitedly explained that he truly felt that being a medical doctor was going to be a very interesting and deeply rewarding journey, because his new lecturer had taught them exactly what they needed to know very well and in a very clear manner.

He went on to describe how the smart professor had shown them amazing pictures of the human body and explained the brave, important duties of saving sick people's lives, which made Adams feel incredibly confident and happy about his big decision to study modern medicine.

As soon as Adams happily finished talking about his amazing medical class, Stone quickly jumped into the lively conversation to share his own wonderful morning experience with his friends. Stone proudly said the exact same positive thing about his chosen path of being an expert optician, loudly explaining how much he loved learning about the human eye and how to help people see the beautiful world perfectly clearly.

He told his attentive friends that his own friendly lecturer had also carefully explained to them exactly what it takes to succeed in that specific career, breaking down all the helpful tools and interesting books they would use throughout the long school year.

Hearing his two best friends speak with such bright passion and complete understanding made William feel a sharp, painful sting of jealousy and deep worry inside his chest, because his own morning had been a complete and total disaster.

When it was finally William's turn to talk about his introductory chemistry lecture, he did not want to ruin their happy mood or look like a foolish failure, so he forced a bright, fake smile onto his handsome face.

He simply looked at his joyful friends and calmly said that he thoroughly enjoyed the class as well, pretending that everything went perfectly smooth and exactly according to his grand plans, and also trying to use his own knowledge to explain what he knew about the career.

However, even as the positive words confidently left his lips, a heavy wave of sadness washed over him, because deep down inside his own heart, he knew perfectly well that he couldn't get anything out of the loud class and had completely failed to understand a single scientific concept.

After William told his little white lie and the boys finished discussing their new academic courses, the conversation quickly shifted to a much lighter and funnier topic, because Adams and Stone were always looking for a good reason to joke around and have fun.

They both noticed that the giant university campus was completely filled with many beautiful, smartly dressed young women walking to their classes, so they began trying to playfully tease William with wide, mischievous grins on their faces.

Adams nudged William playfully in the ribs and jokingly asked if he had already met a pretty girl in his crowded chemistry class that he would deeply love to be with, while Stone laughed loudly and added that a handsome former football star like William would surely have all the girls chasing him everywhere he went.

William then remembered after Stone mentioned footballer, that means, no one actually know him as a footballer in the school, unlike when he was still in his grade 12. But he ignored that totally and focus on the teasing of his friends.

However, William did not find the silly joke very funny at all, because his mind was still heavily burdened by his confusing lecture and his strict, unbreakable promise to his late father to become a great man.

He looked directly into his friends' laughing eyes and told them very seriously that he is absolutely not here for that, strongly explaining that his only mission was to study hard, pass his difficult exams, and successfully become a legendary chemist without any romantic distractions.

Seeing how deeply focused and incredibly serious William looked, Adams and Stone quickly stopped their teasing, but they still laughed warmly at his intense dedication, and after sharing a few more friendly pats on the back, they all finally said their goodbyes and happily left the campus to head for their respective homes.

While William was slowly walking home alone through the busy, noisy city streets, the warm afternoon sun beat down gently on his shoulders, but his busy mind was completely trapped inside the frustrating memory of the giant lecture hall.

He kept thinking very deeply about how he would properly be a partaker and an active learner in his next chemistry classes, because he absolutely refused to just sit quietly in the back corner and fail his chosen university course.

He carefully analyzed his bad morning and quickly realized that arriving right on time was simply not good enough in a massive school with so many eager students, so he firmly made up his mind that he will always go extra early from now on.

He promised himself that he would be the very first person to walk into that classroom tomorrow morning, ensuring that he could grab a good seat in the very front row where he could clearly see the chalkboard, easily hear the professor's voice, and truly understand the complex science lessons.

When that clever and highly practical thought finally died down and settled peacefully in his mind, the loud, familiar sounds of some neighborhood children kicking a small ball down the street suddenly reached his ears, and instantly, the old thought of being a famous footballer popped up brightly in his mind again.

The deep thrill of running on the green pitch briefly tried to pull his heart back to his old life, whispering that football would be much easier than struggling with confusing chemistry formulas.

But just as he had done in the crowded classroom earlier that day, William immediately tightened his jaw, gripped the heavy straps of his backpack tightly, and simply ignored the tempting thought once again, bravely continuing his long walk home with his eyes focused completely on his bright, scientific future.