Carl lived a quiet life too quiet for someone his age.
He rented a small room a few blocks from college, working part-time at a convenience store just to keep up with rent and food. The scholarship covered his studies, but nothing more.
At five-foot-nine and around eighty kilos, he wasn't exactly weak, but he carried a bit of weight a mix of muscle and tiredness. Most days, he moved through life like a shadow, silent and unnoticed.
In class, people talked around him, never to him. He could hear the whispers sometimes jokes about how he dressed, how he looked, how he never spoke. Even when seniors picked on him, he stayed quiet. No words, no reaction. Just a blank stare until they got bored and left.
No one really knew what was going on behind that calm face. Maybe not even Carl himself.
Carl was alive, but his heart wasn't. It had stopped feeling a long time ago beaten silent by the world around him. All it needed was a spark.
That morning was like every other. He dressed the same, walked the same road to college, and slipped quietly into his classroom. No one really noticed when he came in. He sat at his usual spot near the window, away from everyone's chatter.
A few minutes later, a boy across the room laughed for no reason. Everyone knew what it was about. The teacher looked up from his notes, his face tightening.
"You. Out."
The kid went silent and stepped outside. The teacher knew exactly who the joke was aimed at and he also knew Carl didn't deserve it. Carl was one of his best students, quiet but focused.
The class settled. The lecture began. Equations filled the board, voices faded, and Carl did what he always did listened in silence. But then, out of nowhere, the teacher called his name.
"Carl, can you answer this one?"
Carl froze. He hadn't expected that. His throat tightened, and his heart started racing. Speaking in front of everyone felt like standing under a spotlight he never wanted. Still, he stood up, eyes fixed on the board, and tried to speak.
His voice trembled. The first few words came out broken, stuttered. Laughter rippled through the room.
"Quiet!" the teacher's voice boomed. The laughter stopped instantly. "He's right," he said, turning back to Carl with a small nod. "Good work."
Carl sat down again, trying not to show how hard his hands were shaking.
From across the room, a girl one of the popular ones looked at him differently. Her eyes lingered for a moment, curious. Maybe for the first time, someone actually saw him.Class finally ended. The bell rang, chairs scraped, and laughter filled the halls. Carl packed his things slowly, waiting for everyone else to leave before he stepped out.
Outside, the campus was calm — a few students here and there, some rushing off, some hanging around. Carl walked to his usual spot, a quiet bench under an old tree near the corner of the yard. He sat down, pulled out his notes, and started reading.
It wasn't really about studying. It was just the only thing that made him feel at peace.
After a few minutes, a shadow fell across his notes. Carl looked up it was her, the girl from class. The same one who had looked at him earlier.
"Hey," she said softly. "You answered that question right today, didn't you? I didn't really get it… could you help me?"
Carl froze. His throat went dry again. Words wouldn't come out. For a few seconds, he just stared at her, his mind completely blank. But then, with all the courage he could gather, he nodded.
"Y-yeah… I c-can," he managed to say.
She smiled and sat beside him as he opened his notebook. He explained the problem slowly, his voice shaky at first, tripping over a few words. But she didn't laugh. She didn't interrupt. She listened, really listened, eyes focused on him the whole time.
When he finished, she grinned. "That actually makes sense now. You're really good at this. Thanks, Carl."
He didn't know what to say. No one had ever said something like that to him before. It wasn't much just a few kind words but it was enough to warm something inside him that had been cold for a long time.
For the first time in his life, Carl felt something real.
A spark.
Carl was happy a quiet kind of happy he hadn't felt in years.
After class, he went back to his small rented room, ate the usual simple meal, and studied for a while. Everything felt a little lighter that day. Even the silence in his room wasn't as heavy as before.
By evening, he headed out for his part-time job. It was just another shift at the local convenience store the kind of place where time felt slow and customers rarely smiled. But as he was arranging items on a shelf, a familiar voice spoke from behind.
"What a coincidence!"
He turned around it was her. The same girl from class. Carl froze again, heart beating faster than it should. Out of all people, she was the last one he expected to see here.
"Oh, h-hey," he said awkwardly. "Y-you live nearby?"
She nodded with a small smile. "Yeah, I come here often after classes."
He just nodded back, too nervous to say more. She didn't seem to mind the silence. After a short pause, she waved goodbye and walked out with a smile.
Carl stood there for a moment, still trying to process what just happened.
When he finally finished his shift and walked home, he was smiling without even realizing it. It wasn't a big moment for anyone else but for him, it meant something. Someone had noticed him twice in one day.
Back in his room, he sat down and noticed a book on the shelf that he'd never really paid attention to before "Financial Freedom." He picked it up out of curiosity and started reading. The pages spoke about independence, goals, and building a better life.
He didn't get far before sleep took over. The book slipped from his hands as his eyes closed, still thinking about her smile and the words he'd read.
When morning came, Carl lay staring at the ceiling, a strange thought echoing in his mind.
What can I do to get rich?