I starved for seven days straight.
Then came the rats. A swarm of them. I caught the plague and burned with fever.
Just when I thought I'd die in that filthy shed, Norma—Louise's older sister—appeared before me with a bowl of porridge.
"Duane, hold on. You can't die. You still have your dreams!"
To get me treatment, Norma cut ties with her own family. She carried me on her back all the way to the clinic in town.
I was too delirious to swallow medicine, so she fed it to me mouth to mouth.
Under her care, I clawed my way back from death's door.
Then Norma knelt before me and confessed her feelings.
"Duane, I've always loved you. I just couldn't say anything because of Louise."
"Will you marry me? Whatever Louise owes you—I'll make up for it."
I wept with gratitude.
My fiancée and my brother had both betrayed me, but I still had Norma, who loved me with everything she had.
We got married.
For three years after the wedding, Norma kept her promise. She wouldn't let me work odd jobs—she wanted me to focus entirely on studying for the exam.
I appreciated how hard she worked running the school, so I came to help out.
Everyone said I was lucky. A principal for a wife, and such a devoted one at that.