It was a cloudy and gloomy day. Terry was sitting in the back corner of the classroom. He was sad. Ever since he became the bottom of the whole form in the exam last year, nothing seemed to be able to raise his spirit. He started to fail at all the tests and quizzes, and became the underdog of the class. It appeared that his life had reached rock bottom. Terry looked out of the windows and stared at the sky. “I’m destined to become a failure,” he thought. There would be an examination next week but Terry had already given up on himself.
After school, Terry was preparing to go home when suddenly, he heard someone shouting his name. “Terry!” Adam shouted. Adam was Terry’s best friend. He tried to cheer Terry up after last year’s examination but nothing really seemed to work. “Hi there, Terry. I’ve got something to give you.” Adam pulled Terry aside, pushed a small carton box into his hand, and whispered in his ear, “Smart drugs, take them, and sure win!”
“Smart drugs?” Terry opened the box and saw a lot of pills inside.
“Yes. Smart drugs. These little things can help you stay awake and focus better. It is very good for doing revision. You can definitely remember what you’ve revised while doing the exam paper. In short, they will help you gain an edge in the exam,” Adam replied.
“Could it be? Could it be my chance? Could it be the turning point of my life?” Terry thought with excitement.
“You don’t need to thank me. Even if you do, do it later. I need to get going.” Adam left before Terry could say anything.
Terry went back home with the box of pills. Adam was his best friend and had never lied to him before. Therefore, Terry was certain and confident that he would do well in the examination. The next few days, he studied very hard with the help of the pills. It seemed that the pills were really working.
Finally, it was the time for examination. Terry hadn’t been so confident before. With the help of the pills, he had nothing to worry. During the exam, he could remember what he had revised, just like what Adam had said. In the end, Terry scored a very high mark in the exam.
After getting the satisfying result, Terry went to find Adam. “Hey there, Adam. You didn’t lie at all. The pills work like a charm. Do you have more?”
Adam took out a box and took a pill out of it. “You mean this?” Adam asked. “Well, there’s something I need to tell you.” Adam turned the box around and on top of it, it said:
“Vitamin pill?” Terry asked. “What? How?”
“Yes. It’s indeed just vitamin pills,” Adam answered. Terry was so shocked that his jaw almost touched the ground. “Ever since last year’s exam, I’ve noticed that you’ve given up on yourself. You started to perform badly in school. You’ve completely lost the confidence you once had. How can you do well if you don’t even believe in yourself? So, I thought of a plan. These pills had brought you hope. They made you become more confident and made you believe that you would succeed and you became more confident. You didn’t succeed because of the pills; it is because you believed in yourself.”
Realizing what Adam had said, Terry thanked his good friend and they walked away together.