Overpaid writer

Mumbo sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the cracked ceiling of his one-room apartment. The place smelled faintly of damp concrete and cheap instant noodles—the aroma of his defeated existence. A crumpled rejection letter lay on the floor next to a pair of worn-out boots. He didn't bother picking it up. It wasn't the first, and it wouldn't be the last.

Four years ago, Mumbo had walked out of university with a sociology degree, brimming with dreams of making a difference in the world. He imagined himself working in NGOs, crafting policies, and helping communities thrive. Reality, however, had been cruel. Every job application ended in rejection. His degree, once a symbol of hope, seemed more like a joke now—a piece of paper with no worth in a world that valued experience over potential.

After years of trying and failing, Mumbo landed a job at a construction site, the only place willing to take him. The work was grueling, the pay was meager, and the hours were endless. He hauled cement bags, mixed concrete, and endured the harsh sun, all for a few shillings that barely covered his rent and meals.

His girlfriend, Aisha, had tried to be supportive at first. "Things will get better," she used to say, brushing off the sweat from his forehead after a long day. But as months turned into years, her patience wore thin.

One evening, Mumbo returned home to find her packing her things.

"I can't do this anymore," she said, her voice trembling with frustration. "I can't live like this. I need more."

"Aisha, I'm trying," Mumbo pleaded, his voice cracking.

"You've been trying for years, Mumbo. Look at us! We're stuck. And now…" She hesitated, avoiding his gaze. "I've been seeing someone else."

Mumbo's heart sank. "Who?" he asked, though he already feared the answer.

"It's Brian."

Brian. His former classmate. The one who had landed a high-paying job straight out of university. The one who always posted pictures of his new car, fancy dinners, and weekend getaways. The one who had everything Mumbo didn't.

Aisha left that night, leaving behind nothing but an ache in his chest that refused to fade.

The days that followed were a blur. Mumbo buried himself in his construction work, letting the physical pain distract him from the emotional one. But every now and then, he'd catch a glimpse of a couple laughing on the street or hear a love song playing on the radio, and the emptiness would return.

One night, after an especially grueling day, Mumbo sat on his rickety wooden chair, staring at the blank screen of his second-hand laptop. The idea came to him out of nowhere, like a whisper in the dark.

"What if I wrote about it?" he thought.

He had always been good with words, often scribbling poems and short stories in his notebook back in university. But he had never considered writing about his own life. The thought felt absurd at first, but the more he pondered it, the more it made sense.

He opened a blank document and began to type.

The words flowed out of him like a dam had burst. He wrote about his struggles to find a job, the relentless rejection, the humiliation of working a job far below his qualifications. He wrote about Aisha, her betrayal, and the unbearable loneliness that followed. He poured every ounce of pain, frustration, and despair into the story, not caring if anyone would ever read it.

By the time he finished the first chapter, the sun was beginning to rise. Exhausted but strangely satisfied, Mumbo uploaded the story to a free online platform and went to bed.

He woke up to dozens of notifications. Confused, he logged into the platform and saw that his story had been read hundreds of times overnight. People had left comments, praising his raw honesty and relatable struggles. Some shared their own experiences, while others begged for the next chapter.

For the first time in years, Mumbo felt a spark of hope.

Encouraged by the response, he wrote another chapter, then another. His story resonated with people from all walks of life—students struggling with unemployment, workers stuck in dead-end jobs, and even those who had been betrayed by loved ones. Each new installment brought more readers, more comments, and soon, offers from fans willing to pay to support his work.

Mumbo could hardly believe it. The life he had once considered a series of failures was now inspiring thousands of people. His story wasn't just about his pain anymore; it was about resilience, about finding hope in the darkest corners.

As he sat down to write the next chapter, a thought crossed his mind: What if this is just the beginning?

But fame and fortune weren't the only things looming on the horizon. Little did Mumbo know, his newfound success would soon attract the attention of people from his past—including Aisha and Brian.