pretty odd

i.

Eighteen-year-old Dan Howell was an ambitious guy, no doubt about that. He dreamed big, he thought big: he never limited himself to anything.

So the thought of settling down for a career was an insult. There was no way he would settle down in an office or in one place. Everything he's ever done through his life did not lead to this—it is not his purpose on life. For such a big dreamer like him, the purpose of life was something else, something he quite couldn't put his finger on, but settling with a job and then find a wife, build a family, and die—no offense to anyone, but it wasn't what Dan wanted.

Eighteen-year-old Dan Howell was ambitious, yes, but he was also naïve. Still not quite an adult and daydreaming a lot, Dan believed in so many things and he still believed in miracles. It's in one of these days of naivety and happiness that he meets what would change his life and (lowkey) ruin it at the same time.

It's a science fair, he's brought his younger brother with him because he always loved these things — Dan liked them, but not as much as his brother did. It's casual browsing, until one of the expositions in particular caught his attention. When he thinks back at this moment, Dan should've noticed the signs: he was victim of clickbait.

(Is it clickbait if you're experiencing it in real life?)

The man who had the microphone kept talking about how this was revolutionary, how this was changing the way humanity as a whole existed, and of course Dan was attracted by this. This was new, it was out of the ordinary. The banners were all in capital letters, inciting the viewer to get involved with this project and there was a place to sign up in a booth near the little scenario the men had put up.

He saw as people gathered around, all confused as to why this man was talking about changing how humanity is right now and what he meant by revolutionary. There's a moment of panic surging through Dan's body when he kept asking for volunteers, but luckily, he never chose him.

The man with the microphone had helped a woman in a wheelchair to get up on stage. He asked, "Do you wish to walk again?"

Of course she had answered yes.

"What would you do if I said that this syringe right here—" he showed everyone the object, filled with an orange liquid, "—could give you the ability to walk once again?"

She didn't believe him. There were murmurs along the public, Dan picked up the words "insane" and "liar". The man tried once again, and really, Dan should've known back then that a man who can't say no wasn't trustworthy. Again, he was naïve.

The woman said yes.

The man called his doctors, who also came up on the stage to help apply the syringe. There was quiet. No one spoke a word as they all watched the woman get injected. Dan held his breath, expecting the worst, but surprisingly it never came.

The woman, hesitant, looked up to the doctors, who were wearing kind smiles on their faces, encouraging her to get up.

Everyone gasped at the same time when she did.

She was helped to stand up, of course, her legs weren't used to that movement anymore. The man spoke about how this is the way they're changing the world and how they needed help from people to make a successful project. Almost everyone volunteered at the same time.

Dan saw this as the answer he was looking for: this is what he was born for. Seeing the positive impact, helping people, being useful, this was his purpose. So he told his younger brother to go home, and without thinking twice, he signed up in the booth as a volunteer.