Life at ECWA Secondary School continued, but something had already changed.
Nancy and I barely spoke anymore.
We were still in the same classroom, but it felt like we lived in two different worlds.
Sometimes I would look at her from across the room and feel a strange regret in my chest.
But pride is a powerful thing, especially in young boys.
Instead of apologizing again, I stayed quiet.
And life moved on.
Not long after that, something strange began happening to my skin.
At first, it was small.
Just tiny patches that looked like dry skin.
I ignored them.
But within weeks, the patches became larger.
They spread across parts of my body, forming reddish scales that were painful and itchy.
I didn't understand what was happening.
Neither did my classmates.
Some of them started asking questions.
"Light, what happened to your skin?"
Others simply stared.
Children can be curious… but sometimes their curiosity becomes cruelty.
Soon whispers started moving around the classroom.
"Is it contagious?"
"Maybe it's an infection."
"Maybe his skin is rotting."
Those words hurt more than the illness itself.
The condition became worse during the third term of JSS1.
One morning, I looked at myself in the mirror and felt fear for the first time.
My skin looked different.
Not normal.
Not healthy.
Just… different.
When I went to school that day, I noticed something else.
Some students had started keeping their distance from me.
During break time, fewer people sat close to me.
Some even avoided touching me.
At that age, I didn't fully understand what was happening.
But I could feel the isolation.
And loneliness can be heavy for a young boy.
When my parents saw how serious the condition had become, they became worried.
My mother tried several treatments.
My father spoke to different people looking for advice.
Finally, they made a decision.
I would have to leave ECWA Secondary School.
I was transferred to another school.
At the time, I didn't know it yet, but that decision would quietly change the direction of my life.
Because the next school would introduce me to new friends…
New teachers…
And new competition.
The name of the school was ERCC Secondary School.
And that was where a new chapter of my life truly began.