It's A Miracle by Aarya Morgaonkar

If anyone was tasked with writing an autobiography for every human being on Earth, they would forget Nicholas Morello before the ink on the story of his life had even dried. He was a lanky fifteen year old, born only a few years before the twenty first century, and named by his parents after a childhood friend. And while he did grow from a chubby baby to a tall teenager, he did not grow into greatness as his parents had hoped. Despite having played a variety of sports in his life, he had never accomplished anything of note. He sat smack dab in the middle of most of his classes, and to date no teacher had ever remembered his name for either notorious or excellent deeds. As any high schooler would, he had started a club, though not even his mother or father could name it. And despite this lifetime of obscurity, and in some cases mediocrity, Nicholas Morello knew that anything he wanted in life would be granted to him, for he had been blessed with miracles.

At this point, it is a reasonable assumption to make that fairies or wizards or some other sort of nonsense is going to fill these next few pages. Nicholas himself had believed as much in his youth, and would have continued believing so if he had not been in the right place at the right time, and heard a conversation he was never meant to hear. The story began on a cold winter day when Nick (as he will be referred to, because Nicholas is a whopping eight letters) was nine years old, and accidentally stumbled onto a figurative gold mine.

When most high schoolers reminisce about elementary school, they remember a paradise free of stress and the happiest time of their life. When most elementary schoolers think about their experience, they feel that they are already in the thick of the rat race. Nick was no exception to this experience, and had tragically found himself at the extreme bottom of his school’s social hierarchy with a few select friends. While he could handle bullying, one day he was the victim of a particularly harsh joke about his mother. This slam was so brutal, and uttered so publically, it almost drove the poor boy to tears.

He had run home and locked himself in his room, despite his parents and others repeatedly trying to coax him out. And right before he went to sleep, he decided to write a letter and put it underneath his pillow case. If there was a tooth fairy to collect teeth from under one’s bed when they fell out, surely other fairies would check his note as well. He had explained what happened, and added frowny faces where he believed they were appropriate. And with all the subtlety of a ten year old, he had asked for Edward Summers to receive a due punishment for his unkind words. He slept peacefully that night, not knowing he had set events in motion that would be critical to the rest of his life.

In less than a week, both of Edward’s parents lost their jobs, and his family was forced to move to an area with a lower cost of living.

When he had heard the news, Nick had initially been elated, then confused. He had not expected his wish to come to fruition this quickly or effectively. Never one to let an opportunity go to waste, he wrote a similar note that day about how a large amount of his candy had gone missing, although the culprit was his stomach. When he awoke the next morning, he saw the note had been looked at, but no mountain of candy appeared for another month. He had tried again and again, with different problems and asking for varying levels of justice. Soon, a common pattern emerged; the fairies only fulfilled his wishes when Nick was hurt or threatened. While this initially made him suspect his parents, it was highly unlikely that they would be able to do half the things required.

Or so he believed, until he accidentally ended up listening in on one of their conversations. The reason he was even below his bed that day was because he got stuck trying to find an action figure, and did not have the will to get out. Before he could muster up that dedication, he heard footsteps coming into his room. His mother walked in and lifted his pillow, to read his note, he realized.

“Anything important? Or just some missing candy?” his father asked from the doorway.

“I don’t know, Frank. That poor boy whose parents lost his job is suffering right now, and I don’t want a repeat. Nick has to learn to fight his own battles.”

Even though he was under the bed with no visibility, Nick could see his father’s eyebrows rise at his mother’s statement. Even Nick was tempted to jump out and ask what was happening, but caution won out.

“What is it?”

“Nick wrote about his English teacher that he thinks is trying to fail him. The bald one.”

“It’s a teacher. They’re trying to fail everyone, not just him,” Dad snorted, and turned back. Mother soon followed, leaving a very confused Nick to bang his head on the bottom of his bed frame.

It didn’t take him long to piece together the long work trips and considerable luxury he lived in along with the fact that his parents were trying to make his wishes come through. Nick, for his part, never tried to interfere in anything he believed was not his business. He may have been exceptionally dull, but it also meant he was willing to remain ignorant for the system that was clearly benefiting him. Of course, as he grew older, Nick had to keep adapting to his age and making sure his parents knew what he wanted.

In middle school, he transitioned to keeping a diary filled with personal problems. In high school, he had frequent calls with a “therapist,” and these calls were loud enough for anybody in his house to hear them. At times, he had doubts about the questionable actions that would help him. He knew that people had gotten unfairly fired, but to the extent of his knowledge no person had ever died.

Of course, the longer he thought about it, the more clear it became to him that he did not want the answer to that question at all. He had no particular skills or hobbies or talents, and if not for his parents, he would have nothing in life. So when he opened a letter from MIT, congratulating him for being accepted, his mother shouted “It’s a miracle!” He had only grinned and nodded as she left the room, only to put a final note under his pillowcase.