Neighbor Love

My name is Rayan Charles Baijuki, but everyone at home and school just calls me Raya. I'm an only child to my mother. My father passed away many years ago, so it's just my mom and me living together.

Our life isn't wealthy; we don't have a car or a fancy house, but I thank God we don't go hungry. We get what we need for basics.

My mother used to run a secondhand children’s clothing business when I was in Form 5 at a boarding school in Korogwe, Tanga. I was smart academically but mischievous; you could say I was a little over the top in mischief.

I remember one holiday at home, my mother invested all her capital in ordering ten bales of secondhand child clothes from China, hoping to make a big profit by selling quality clothes.

When the bales arrived and were opened, it was heartbreaking. The clothes were torn and worn out, so bad you couldn't even give them away for free. My mother’s entire investment disappeared.

At the same time, the holidays were ending, and I had to return to boarding school, which meant paying school fees and meeting many costs. My mother struggled a lot and ended up selling even our TV to pay my fees.

I left for school without any pocket money. The first week was bearable, but by the second I knew I couldn't survive with my problems. I had to ask a dorm teacher to let me borrow a phone to call my mom.

When she heard me asking for money, mom was harsh but then softened and said, "Things are very bad. I've sold even the fridge!"

I asked, "You sold the fridge? Has the business not picked up?"

She said, "No, it hasn't. I’m just starting over. If God opens a way, I will send you money."

I replied weakly, "Okay mom, don’t worry. I will just endure."

Days passed, and I continued struggling. In our dorm was a girl named Purity; she studied Physics, Chemistry, and Math. She was very smart but also very cunning.

Purity secretly sold forbidden things to students and made a lot of money. Watching my family’s struggles, I saw an opportunity.

One night after lights out, I approached Purity and asked if we could work together because my life at school and home was falling apart. She laughed and doubted me, but I insisted I could manage.

She agreed, telling me to keep it secret, and from that day we started our business.

Every day when others went to dinner, Purity and I would sneak out to buy snacks to sell secretly to students. We even charged secret phones for a fee, making good money.

Our business flourished; we made enough money to avoid school meals, living mostly on snacks and fried chicken.

When I went home for holidays, I started buying new trendy clothes and had enough airtime and data on my phone. My mother was suspicious and finally confronted me about where I got the money.

I told her I had my own savings and a friend who sometimes gave me money. She worried I had started seeing boys, but I told her I hadn’t thought about that yet.

She warned me to stop if I had, but I insisted I hadn’t and told her not to worry.

When we returned to school for a new term, our business got even better; we added more items to sell secretly. Everything was going well but suddenly...