The business continued quietly.
Every day, I prepared the snacks.
Every day, he took them to school.
The money wasn't huge, but it helped.
More importantly, it gave me something to wake up for.
I began experimenting with different snacks.
Sometimes I would make more than usual because the students had started asking for them.
He would come home and tell me stories about his students.
"Today, one of them asked me if you could make more tomorrow."
I smiled.
"Really?"
"Yes. He said your snacks are better than what they buy outside."
I laughed.
"Then I need to increase production."
He laughed too.
Those little moments made me happy.
I wasn't working in an office.
I didn't have a salary.
I didn't have a big business.
But I was doing something.
And he was working too.
For once, it felt like we were moving forward together.
Then everything changed.
One afternoon, he came home unusually quiet.
I noticed immediately.
"What happened?"
"Nothing."
I stared at him.
"You're not telling me the truth."
He sighed.
"There was a problem at school."
My heart sank.
"What kind of problem?"
He hesitated before answering.
"One of the teachers reported me to the principal."
I froze.
"Reported you for what?"
He explained that the teacher had complained about him selling the snacks to students.
Apparently, they believed it was inappropriate for him to sell food to students while working as a teacher.
I couldn't speak for a moment.
"But you weren't doing anything wrong," I said.
"I know."
"Then why would someone report you?"
He shrugged.
"I don't know."
I knew exactly how painful that must have felt.
He had finally found an opportunity.
He was working in the same school where we had once been students.
He was trying to build his life.
And now someone had decided to make it difficult.
I felt guilty.
"If I hadn't sent the snacks with you…"
He interrupted me.
"Don't say that."
"But—"
"No. You were only trying to help."
I looked down.
I couldn't stop thinking about it.
The snacks had been my way of contributing.
I had never imagined they would become a problem for him.
The next day, I told him not to take any snacks to school.
He looked at me.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"What about the business?"
"We'll figure something else out."
But deep down, I knew what I had to do.
I couldn't risk his job.
He had finally been given a chance, and I wasn't going to be the reason he lost it.
So I made a difficult decision.
I quit.
Just like that.
The little business that had given me hope came to an end.
There was no dramatic goodbye.
No celebration.
No final sale.
I simply stopped making the snacks.
And somehow, that hurt more than I expected.
Because I wasn't only giving up a small business.
I felt like I was giving up another piece of myself.
Still, I told myself it was necessary.
His future mattered.
And if protecting his opportunity meant sacrificing mine, I was willing to do it.
At least, that's what I told myself.
I didn't know whether I would later regret that decision.