Large wings fell from the heavens… and against the backdrop of the setting sun and orange skies, it looked like a phoenix to the mere children on the ground.

Amidst the screams of the jet engines, the “The concords will transport you to the Capital! You will be briefed en route and your parents will be informed of your successes!”

Our successes? But we haven’t received our grades yet… Jade thought to herself, too afraid to pose the question to the invigilator. She looked around and saw many others whispering amongst themselves with the same thoughts. Nonetheless, she obeyed without comment or question, already more than grateful to have passed the X-Levels, and beyond grateful to be clean and dressed in grand clothing beyond her wildest dreams.

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And now, she had a free ride to the capital. Why would she say no?

Why would she reject this grand offer and be sent home in shame?

To have other mothers mock her?

Where their daughters left for the capital, and she did not?

It would be akin to winning a lottery in the past and tearing the winning ticket.

Of course, some did, when the Singapore Dollar became worthless.

But Jade had another reason. She did not want to go back to clam diving, nor did she want to return to dealing with her mother. She wanted something new. Something better.

The moment she walked up those stairs, and sat on the lavish chairs, her fate was sealed as tight as the Concorde’s doors. Little did she know that those with her shared the same sentiment. They did not want to return to their villages, for they too “had made it”.