I ate my pinky finger for the third time as I fidgeted.

"You can do this, Fred, you can do this," I said to myself, collecting the presentation document from him.

I reached the podium and took my steps one after the other with so much trepidation.

The crunching sounds of empty leather and less stomping of feet with trembling legs were what my feet made.

I took a deep breath, looked up at the crowd and the so many goggling eyes on me made my legs fail as I trembled.

My eyes became teary and I was ready to explode, fear dawned on me and just like the days of my circumcision the pain pierced my heart, crushed against my ribs, and bled.

"I can't do this, I can't do this," I said in tears running out of the hall.

"The last step to your success lies only in this presentation. Your dream of bringing your project of four years to life, and becoming one of the top 100 young activists in Nigeria..." A gentle touch of Hannah on my shoulders waved off a little pressure.

"It's not about my dreams... It's about them. What if they don't like the idea? What if they say I'm too young? What if I go there only to be disgraced?" Like a flowing river, my tears increased.

THE PREVIOUS WEEK:

My dreams came to life in the form of intricate machines and ingenious contraptions that cluttered my room.

My latest creation, a gleaming brass and glass apparatus, hummed with promise on my cluttered workbench.

"Mum, Dad, Uncle Charles, Pelumi. Can I have five minutes of your time," I tinkered with my invention, I couldn't contain my excitement, "Sorry guys, you can continue your game later. Just five minutes, I promise!"

"Wow, this is a blend of art and engineering," my mum uttered as she googled at the center of my room.

A mesmerizing machine - The heart of the machine was a complex, interlocking network of gears and cogs, all meticulously crafted from polished brass. They whirred and rotated with a rhythmic precision that was both mesmerizing and perplexing.

"Son! You built this?" My dad asked in awe as he walked to touch the core, encased in a transparent glass chamber, and a shimmering, miniature sun within.

"Let me show you how it works," I pressed the miniature sun. It emitted a soft, ethereal glow, casting intricate patterns of light and shadow on the walls. This radiant sphere was the source of my groundbreaking invention—a revolutionary clean energy generator.

"I know you create amazing machines but this is epic... 700,000 volts power capable of powering the whole community..." Pelumi read from conductive filaments arched gracefully from the central chamber, "That means, darkness wouldn't comprehend the community anymore..."

"How did you come up with this?" My uncle beckoned in a cracking voice.

"Well, I was going through some of grandpa's stuff and I found the conglomerate's book which is the foundation of this machine..."

"The conglomerates? Max, you would have to destroy this machine..." The tone of his voice brought questionable thoughts to me.

"But why? This is my sweat, I invested months into this machine... From sleepless nights to hunger strike and even missing school,"

"The conglomerates aren't people to deal with, Max. They killed your grandfather because of something like this... They have been in control of the power supply in this community for the past ten years now! I can't let them end you," my mum tried to catch her breath as fear and tears took over her face.

"Mum, Dad, Uncle Charles, and Pelumi. If there is any time I need your help, it would be now. I can't let my hard work be thrown into the dust for no good reason..."

"It's only a stubborn fly that follows the corpse to the grave..." My dad said exiting the room with the rest following, showing they weren't on my side.

I visited Hannah, who had always had my back right from childhood. As a graphic designer, she helped me with flyers for the project presentation to the whole community inviting the underground inventors.

On reaching home, what beheld my eyes couldn't prevent the prisoned tears from breaking free from the gates of my eyelids.

My sleepless days, weeks, months and years of hard work shattered into tiny pieces like atoms on my tiled bedroom floor. The presence of my father in drenched sweats, rolled up sleeves, heavy breath, and a cricket bat firmly gripped by his right arm shattered me. The brilliant innovation of mine wasted within the twinkle of an eye.

Why? Was the only word I could muffled out of my lips as I wept for nights, causing my eye muscles to give up their strengths completely. All hope, gone and lost.

"I can't let my first seed be wasted by the evil ones," he said, slamming my door on the wall.

Thank God for friendship; I crafted my work but nothing compared to the first invention as it was a total crash to me.

Now,

She touched me again, like a soft jelly, she held my hands bringing back our young memories, "Take a deep breath... I have always been proud of you and will continue to be. It's okay to fear, it's part of success and the only way to achieve that success is to overcome fear. Think of the stress you've gone through for the past four years, you've waited for this day earnestly and it is finally here. If you don't do this, you will never forgive yourself and the pain will grip you more than the pain of failing. If they don't buy your idea, it's at their loss. Someone who sees the greatness in you will. Don't give up, the fear is there to sharpen you for the greatest..."

Just like our childhood days, our hearts beat in sync, and the innocent jokes, and laughter we made out of little things that represent strength, could be seen in her eyes as she cleaned my tears.

Her words, touch, and presence dissolved every atom of fear in me. As calm as a dove I became, the pressure was replaced with confidence, my cheeks were free from the wetness, my eyes gained back their muscles and my feet firmed like a rock.

And just like a rekindled fire, I got up and grabbed the bull by the horn.

I unbelievably faced the whole crowd with confidence and the strength I had was unexplainable. With just a little push, self-belief, and a deep breath my dreams came to reality.

My REWARD came, and I shed tears because the sounds of rain in the form of claps and the millions of people standing for me weakened my teary eyes.

"You did it!" I read Hannah's lips.

YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU CAN DO UNLESS YOU TRY!