After all, Nora decided not to give up. Surprisingly, Battol changed her mind and stayed too.
"Good morning girls, did you sleep well?" Asked Maha.
"I hardly slept at all" Answered Nora with a sigh.
"I could not sleep at all, I can't believe you convinced me to stay!" Exclaimed Battol.
"You're the one who told me I should stay! "Said Nora.
"Don't worry girls, I'm sure you got this" Maha said with a gentle smile.
"Can you please tell us how you managed to get through the first year?"asked Nora.
Maha took a deep breath them she she said "You know I can't tell you what exactly I did because it would reveal too much about the courses, but I can give you a piece of advice.Don't think of these courses as a burden or a punishment.They only accept the brightest and most intelligent people in this university, but being smart isn't everything."
Nora nodded and said "I see"
"Wow! That was deep" said Battol.
Maha smiled and said "I hope what I just said could help you"
Nora smiled back and said "it was very helpful"
Battol got up and said "Anyway, can you please show us the way to our classes?"
"She needs to get to her classes too you know"said Nora.
Maha got up as well and said gently"It's ok my first class starts in an hour I have more than enough time to take you to your classes , and I don't mind at all"
"Alright, lets go!" Battol cheerfully said.
Maha lead them to their class, when they arrived she stopped and said "This is room A15 where you will be having your morning english class, I wish you the best of luck"
Nora smiled and thanked Maha.
"After this we have a break, then we must head to the gym to sign up for the sport in which we are supposed to win a trophy at " said Battol.
Before she enters the class she looked back at Maha and asked "If we need anything today is it ok to ask you for help?"
Maha smiled and said "Of course, just give me a call and I will be right over"
"Can you please give me your phone number then?"asked Nora.
"Ok, I forgot to give it to you, here my number is **********" said Maha.
"Got it, I will call you so you could save my phone number too "Said Nora.
"Ok, girls your class is about to start, go in I will see you later" said Maha.
"Ok, see you later" said Battol with a wide smile.
The girls shook off the negativity in the atmosphere and went into their first class, after a few minutes the lecturer came.
"Good morning, my precious students!" Exclaimed the Professor.
She was a short middle aged women, she was wearing a blue suit and high heels, she had an evile grin on her face as she said "I'm sure everyone is extra motivated to receive some elite education, especially after yesterday's ceremony"
"Was that a witty statement ?"Battol wishpered to Nora.
"My dear elite students of the world tell me, how disappointed were you yesterday?"asked the professor with a grin.
Nora sighed and said "Yep, she is making fun of us"
"Haha, it's hilarious I love attending the welcoming ceremony just to get a close view of the student's reaction once they find out about the courses.
Yesterday I picked the perfect spot to get a better view, there was this one guy who was drinking water, and when the dean said that the first course is about learning 4 languages he spit the water on the people sitting in front of him!" The professor kept rambling about the opening ceremony till one of the students interpreted her and said "Excuse me, are you going to at least introduce yourself or tell us something about this course?"
"Oh don't take this personally dear, whether you're serious about this or not there is no difference." The professor calmly said.
She walked around the class as she said "My philosophy in life is to laugh and enjoy all details in life even the ugly ones.
Anyway, don't worry you don't have to bear witb my bad jokes anymore I'm going to go ahead and start the lecture.The 4 languages you need to learn are English Spanish Arabic and Mandarin. The reason why the graduates of this institute must speak these languages is simply that it's the languages our sponsors speak. Now that is all I'm willing to tell you, fill the rest of the puzzle yourself, I already gave you a few pieces."
"Wow! Now a lot of things make sense, I can't believe I got accepted into such a university!" Said Battol in awe.
"In short, this institute is supported by the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world, to qualify elite specialists in all fields of knowledge." said Nora.
"Now I'm sure you all thought I was a humble English teacher, but the truth is I'm fluent in 9 languages.I will be teaching you all 4 languages and supervising your progress and I have the Dean's permission to use all the means I see necessary.Get ready foolish brats, I love my job, and I'm planning to enjoy it this year." Said Professor warda with a little grin.
"Am I the only one scared of this woman?"asked Battol with a worried face.
Nora sighed and said "I'm scared a little bit too"
After their first class ended the girls took a walk around campus to compose their thoughts and relax before their next class.
"So are you going to practice table tennis or chess?"Battol asked Nora.
"Probably table tennis, chess is very tricky its easier for me to win a trophy in table tennis." Answered Nora.
"What about you?"Nora asked.
"I still don't know, but probably something that does not include a lot of running like chess or mind games."said Battol with a sigh.
"Are you good at these?"asked Nora.
"You see, I come from a small town. in comparison with the people I played against in my town yes I'm very good, but in comparison with people who participate in international competitions, I don't know." Battol said with a troubled expression.
While the girls were chatting a guy approached them.
"Excuse me, can you please tell me how to get to the gym? I'm kinda lost"
He said while looking around, he was a tall blonde guy, at first glance you can tell how well off he is from his watch and his outfit.
"We're about to go there too, you can walk with us" said Battol.
The guy smiled in gratitude and said
"Ok, thank, I'm Kareem by the way, I'm a freshman and I'm so delighted to meet you."
Kareem extended his hand for Battol to shake but she didn't take it, she looked at him carefully and said
"I'm not sure whether he's being nice or making fun of us"
"Probably both" said Nora in boredom.
Kareem sighed in disappointment and said "Come on don't judge me already! you guys are the first people I talk to since I arrived"
"We have not met many people either, it's only our first day"
Said Battol.
Kareem sighed and said.
"You have a point, anyway what are your majors?"
"Both of us got accepted into the IT faculty"Said Nora.
"Wow! That's impressive" exclaimed Kareem.
"What about you?"asked Nora.
"Well, I have no idea how it happened but somehow I got accepted into med school"Said Kareem with a proud smile.
"Really?"asked Battol in shock.
"I know it does not suit me right?
Even someone I just met can see that.
Yet, here I am, as crazy as this college is I can't drop out or change my major.
because it has the best reputation among the prestigious universities.
And that is all my family cares about"
"Yeah, I kinda relate to that"
Said Nora in a low voice, Kareem heard her but he wasn't sure of what he heard so he didn't say anything.
The three of them arrived at the gym, they looked around to see where to sign up for the sports they want to practice.
"Have you decided what kind of sport you want to practice?"asked Nora
Kareem looked around and got lost in his thoughts for a few seconds, then he said
"Well, I played a lot of sports in school, basketball, tennis, swimming, and golf.
winning a trophy would be challenging in a team sport and it's not guaranteed even if you're the best, that's why I'm going for an individual sport"
Nora nodded her head and said "I see, good luck for you"
Kareem smiled and said "thanks, good luck to you as well"
"Both of you got actual chances to pass this course, while I have not even decided what to practice" said Battol in frustration.
Nora sighed and said "maybe you should just give up after all"
Battol got mad at her and said " what kind of support is that!"
Kareem smiled akwardly and said "Miss Nora, you should be more careful with words if you want to make good friends"
"I'm not being rude, I'm simply giving her my opinion" said Nora in a serious tone, she carried on and said
"if you're going to carry on with this in such a hesitant state then it's better to just give from the beginning.
I don't know your potential, after all, we just met, but I know that no one can achieve anything without strong will"
Battol sighed and said "I see ,you're right I should hurry up and make my decision"
"go for something that will take the least amount of hours to professionally learn.
You got accepted into this elite institution for a reason, I don't believe that you have no special skills or talents." Said Kareem.
Battol stayed silent for a few minutes, she was lost in her thoughts, she wanted to choose a sport that she knows for sure that it's possible for her to win a medal for that sport if she worked hard enough for it.
After a few seconds she suddenly exclaimed "Chess!
I'm going to choose chess!"
Each of them signed up to the clubs of the sports they chose.
Nora signed up for table tennis, Battol signed up for chess and Karim signed up for Olympic swimming .
Nora went to practice table tennis with her club, she already won a few trophies in high school, and her level was above average, yet she is determined to practice daily to make sure she wins a golden or silver medal.
"Alright, I want to examine each of you individually, so I'm going to have a short match against each player"
Said the coach.
He arguably looked young for a coach, yet he was said to be one of the best coaches in the area and he already trained many professional Athletes before.
He was of average height, brown hair and brown eyes.
A girl stepped forward to start her match against the coach, she took a deep breath, then she got ready to play, she looked confident as she said "Please don't go easy on me , I play for passion, even though that does not necessarily mean that I'm good"
The coach smiled and said
"It's ok, passion alone won't get you trophies but it's one of the keys"
After playing a few matches the coach had an idea of the percentage of students that will pass this course this year.
non of them was perfect but he was determined to do his best to help most of them.
The coach was impressed by Nora's skills, she went toe to toe against him and could almost defeat him but it turned out that he wasn't being serious.
"That was impressive Miss Nora, but you still have a long way to go" said the coach to Nora at the end of their match.
"one of the things you need to work on is your mentality.
at the beginning of the game you were calm but by the end of the game you turned into a nervous mess."
Nora didn't say anything, she just nodded her head and walked back to drink water and rest.
After he finished examining them the coach stook before his students and said
"Ok, now I have a good picture of my students' level this year.
You guys are neither bad nor professionals, honestly, there is no guarantee that any of you would win a trophy for sure.
I know it's stressing, practicing every day, doing your best because it is all or nothing, you either win a trophy or lose your place here.
Sport is about fun, however, in this situation, you don't have that luxury.
But, I still want you to have fun.
After you graduate from this place you will work in the top companies and institutions in the world.
I don't believe the world needs more depressed and toxic leaders"
After the practice ended Nora went back to her room in the dorm to rest.
Menwhile Battol was suffering in the chess club .
"I can't believe only 4 students signed up for the chess club this year, and out of the 4 only you remain"
Said the chess coach in disappointment.
"They ran after a few seconds of your lecture because you scared them away!" Said Battol in a depressed tone.
"Then why didn't you run too?" Asked the coach.
"I'm not a coward, I don't have many options either, it's not going to be easier for me in any other club since I'm not good at any sport" answered Battol.
The coach looked her up and down then she said
"So you're one of those students who pick chess simply because they are bad at sports?"
"No, don't get me wrong I could have tried practicing a sport, but I chose chess because I believe I can win a trophy in chess" said Battol confidently.
The coach smiled, for one she was very interested in one of her students, she fixed her glasses and said "is that so?
In that case, be ready, I will not go easy on you, I can't let people say that I only had one student yet I couldn't help her win a trophy"