The air was abuzz with excitement. Students and teachers had gathered in the assembly hall to hear the important announcement. After the recitation of the Holy Quran, there was complete silence as the principal came to the dais.

“Students, as you know there’s going to be an International Science Festival in Malaysia next month. I’m very proud to announce that our school will be representing Pakistan in this prestigious event,” the headmaster announced amidst a thunderous applause. “Saad, Umair and three other boys will be going with Sir Waqas. Saad will be the team leader. I hope you will wish our team the best of luck.”

Umair clapped along with everyone, but, in his heart, he was furious. He couldn’t believe that Saad had been made the leader. He thought he deserved this honour.

Saad and Umair were classmates. They were both very intelligent boys, but Saad was more hard-working and responsible. He was also very good-natured and helpful, whereas Umair could be rather selfish and moody.

The school team decided to present a model of a smart city, which would be energy-efficient and pollution-free. As the big event approached nearer, the boys worked tirelessly for long hours to perfect their model — but no one worked as hard as Saad. Only Umair seemed unwilling to give his best.

Nervous and excited, the team soon left for Malaysia. Saad and his other teammates wanted to bring honour and glory to Pakistan. Umair only thought of ways he could discredit Saad’s efforts.

Once in Malaysia, the children checked into a hotel. After some rest and refreshments, they went to the exhibition hall and were awe-struck. It was a huge place with halls and galleries. Representatives from almost 90 countries were there. Their team was shown the place where they were to set up their exhibit.

Team Pakistan set to work at once. In addition to the smart city model, they also wanted to create a stall which showed Pakistan’s history and culture. They had done a lot of research work. Now it was time to put all their planning into action.

For two days, the children set up the model city. They mingled with the other competitors and made many friends.

One day before the mega event, there was a final rehearsal. Saad flipped the switch and the lights on their stall lit up. There were sounds of “Oohs!” and “Aahs!” and some applause from the surrounding stalls. The project from Team Pakistan looked magnificent.

The other boys hugged and congratulated Saad. Though they were all part of the team, everyone knew it was Saad’s brainchild. This made Umair seethe with anger and jealousy.

Sir Waqas and Saad went to fill up some forms while Umair and other boys stayed behind to clean up. Two of them wandered away and only Umair was left. Suddenly he had an idea.

“What if I cut the wires,” he thought. “No one will find out. The project will fail and Saad will look like an idiot in front of the judges. He’ll be a laughing stock in school and everyone would be so disappointed with him. ”

Unable to suppress the feelings of jealousy, Umair saw his opportunity. He looked around. Everyone was busy in their own work. His heart was beating furiously as he walked casually towards the model.

He stretched his hands towards the control box. He glanced around once again and his eyes fell on the Pakistani flag that hung in the background. Pinned next to it, was a picture of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Umair read the words: “With faith, discipline and selfless devotion to duty, there is nothing worthwhile that you cannot achieve.”

He froze for a moment, unable to breathe.

“Have I gone mad?” he thought. “What was I about to do? To discredit Saad, would I bring shame and dishonour to my country?”

Shame and regret overwhelmed him. He thought how unhelpful and uncooperative he had been from the very beginning. He wished he could go back in time and start over.

Umair stayed awake the whole night going over his notes, making sure everything was perfect. He participated in the team meeting and did his best to keep everyone’s morale high.

The next day was the mega event. As Saad worked on the model, Umair answered every question the judges asked. The whole team worked like a well-oiled machine and the judges were very impressed by their team spirit.

The result was announced and Team Pakistan was the first runner-up. The boys felt immensely proud as they received their medals, trophy and certificates, with the national anthem playing in the background. The whole ceremony was telecast live to the whole world.

After the event, a reporter interviewed them. Umair said, “I’ve realised that each one of us is an ambassador of Pakistan. Our hard work, unity and team spirit reflect our national character. We must always put aside any differences for the sake of our country. Without unity, there can never be true success.”

Published in Dawn, Young World, December 23rd, 2017