Success was a strange thing. Sometimes, it felt like proof that you were on the right path. Other times, it felt like a mistake—like you had somehow fooled the world into believing you were capable when, deep down, you weren't.
That was how Akutu felt now.
Despite her new schedule, despite the progress she had made, self-doubt still found a way to creep in.
One evening, as she sat at her desk working on her latest writing submission for the internship, she stared at the words on the screen. They looked wrong. All of them.
The story she had been excited about yesterday now felt dull and meaningless.
"What if this isn't good enough?"
"What if they regret choosing me?"
"What if I'm just wasting my time?"
She sighed and closed her laptop. She needed a break.
Jenny found her sitting outside their hostel, staring at the night sky.
"You look like you're fighting with your own brain," Jenny said, sitting beside her.
Akutu let out a weak chuckle. "Something like that."
Jenny tilted her head. "Internship stuff?"
Akutu nodded. "I don't think I'm good enough for this. I keep second-guessing everything I write."
Jenny was quiet for a moment. Then she said, "Do you know how many times I've doubted myself in med school?"
Akutu raised an eyebrow. "You? The genius?"
Jenny smirked. "Yes, me. And do you know what I do when that happens?"
Akutu shook her head.
"I remind myself that I got here for a reason," Jenny said. "People saw potential in me. I just have to see it in myself too."
Akutu thought about that. Hadn't she worked for this? Hadn't she earned this opportunity?
Maybe the problem wasn't her writing. Maybe the problem was her fear of failing.
That night, she reopened her laptop.
The doubts were still there, but she wrote anyway. Not because she felt confident, but because she refused to let fear win.
And when she submitted her piece, she didn't wait for perfection. She just let it go.
Because self-doubt would always be there—but she could choose not to listen.
The pulleys of life had shifted once again.