The university gates were taller than anything Smile had ever stood beneath—ornate, iron-wrought, and heavy with dreams not meant for people like him. Yet he stepped through them, his worn shoes dragging the dust of a life far removed from privilege, his bag holding nothing but borrowed pens, notebooks filled with faded ink, and a heart still learning how to beat.
No one knew who he was.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MXQB2rx4M
And that, for once, was a blessing.
He walked the halls like a shadow—silent, unnoticed, existing somewhere between presence and absence. Most students laughed in groups, shared food, spoke of family vacations and weekend plans. Smile kept his distance. Not because he wanted to—but because it had become his instinct. People meant pain. Distance meant safety.
But fate doesn’t always knock.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6jclxtaai
Sometimes, it collides.
It happened in a quiet moment—he dropped a book in the library, and a hand reached down at the same time. Their fingers brushed. He looked up, startled.
Harbon.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGsImQfqtw
Tall. Loud. The kind of boy who smiled with his entire face.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLLW4lYj4X2
He laughed and said, “Hey, don’t look so scared. You act like I’m going to bite.”
That was the beginning.
A few days later, another face joined them—Fredge.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJMFozmmqx7
Calm. Curious. A boy who asked deep questions with quiet eyes.
Unlike the rest, they didn’t ask Smile about his past. They didn’t mock his silence or his second-hand clothes. They simply sat beside him. Shared notes. Cracked jokes. Offered a seat at the cafeteria table without a word of judgment.
At first, Smile resisted.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI5kJ6WosRR
He didn’t know how to receive warmth. It scared him more than cruelty.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM59eKZ8tzA
But Harbon’s noise and Fredge’s stillness created a space where even silence felt welcome.
And slowly, the wall began to crack.
One late evening, as the three sat under a tree on campus, Harbon said, “You ever think about starting something? Like… something big?” Fredge added, “We’ve all got brains and time. What if we use them?”
Smile didn’t answer. But something inside him stirred. A distant echo.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5o6j8cSB8c
What if?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8lQKEiXzs
What if his pain could become purpose?
And so, beneath a dying tree and a rising moon, an idea was born.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYbaRmgPs9
A startup. A dream.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRhD5Ko0jgC
Not just for money, but for legacy.
They would build it from scratch.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ux8Vr23kT
With empty pockets. Full hearts.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Eqs4jKNiI
And one name carved in memory:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNAUV3fmvr2
Sarah Joseph Conglomerate.
A tribute to the mother who gave him life and the father who loved her.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEdE4vZCL7
Smile never told them what the name meant.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpX4CXq5V5o
He simply whispered to the night:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvanP8h9t5E
“This is for you, Ma. For you, Pa. I’ll build something the world can’t ignore.”
And for the first time in a long time,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHdtJND7xL
Smile felt something warm beneath his ribs.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMttxa1MLOs
It wasn’t joy. Not yet.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSTX95XyGm
But it was close enough to hope.
