The Doors I Keep Shut · Episode One

The Prom Night

The prom night that made the school look good, and the failed module that should have cost me everything.

By A. L. Said  |  14 November 2026  |  About 3 minutes to read

He told me you need not pay for the module you failed. And you need not pay for the upcoming module. It is given to you for free. Just move on.

When I was in uni, I was on a scholarship. There were about fifteen of us.

We had to meet the school management periodically. I had a good relationship with the Managing Director, and with the Chief Director, who was also his wife. She was very protective of her husband’s decisions. Whenever the scholarship students turned against him, she was upset. I supported her, rather than my own scholarship team.

I realised something the others did not. The scholarship came from the government agencies, but it was the school’s decision that would affect us. The school justified the decisions it took. The government agency did not take action against the school. But the management, the Managing Director and the other directors, were against those who complained.

I took their side. And I impressed them with other skills I had. So they made me a student leader in the school. I organised events. I made the school look good. I made the Managing Director look very good.

The best time was the year-end celebration. A prom night, the first time the school had a party like that. The Managing Director was a very strict man, but we invited him. We passed him a bouquet of flowers, and a bottle of wine, halal wine, for his wife. He gave the flowers to his wife. She gave the wine bottle to him. They were very happy. The party went on. The prom night was a great success.

One week later, I failed one of the modules. Not only me. Most of the scholarship students failed one of the modules too.

There was a meeting. They informed the government agency that we had failed. According to the scholarship, we were supposed to pay for the module. We had paid for the whole year. Now we had to retake it with our own money. It was going to be expensive.

The decision was given to the school. In the meeting, all of us who had failed were given a penalty. We had to pay. Then they said, please go down and make the arrangement for the payment. Everybody went.

But the Managing Director’s wife told me to stay.

The Managing Director said, my wife will settle for you. Then he left. I was puzzled. She looked at me and said, you are so lucky. My husband likes you a lot. He told me you need not pay for the module you failed. And you need not pay for the upcoming module. It is given to you for free. Just move on. The next time you fail, I cannot help you. Then she left.

When I came out, the news went to the other scholarship students. They went to complain to the government agency. The agency went back and asked the management why such a decision was made.

The management said, he was able to organise things for us. He made the students happy. He made the lecturers happy. He made everyone happy. This is the kind of student we want. The other students did not do anything. They just come, they study. They are supposed to help the school, but they do not. So we do not want to put pressure on him.

That is one of the reasons.