He Failed the Exam Twice, Then Registered Again — On the Bus

His hand was shaking. The results board came up — 3 points short of passing. Dung stood there for a while, then quietly turned away. Back home, whenever anyone asked, he just said, "haven't taken it yet this term."

He studied for three more months. Told no one he'd failed — just closed his door and opened the books again from scratch. Nobody knew he'd already lost once.

Second attempt — failed again, this time by just 1 point. On the bus home, Dung didn't cry, just looked out the window. Everyone around him went about their day like nothing happened; none of them knew he'd just failed a second time. He thought about his parents, about the exam fees, and stayed quiet.

The bus stopped at a red light. Dung opened his phone, went to the registration page, and signed up for his third attempt right then — still on the bus. Not because he wasn't sad. He knew that if he waited until he got home, he wouldn't have the courage left.

Afraid that going home would break his resolve. Register first, be sad about it later.

If it were you — would you register first, or wait until the sadness passed?