19/08/2026
"Everyone thought she was being proud because she never joined any group assignment."๐ฅน
It had become a normal thing in our department.
Whenever a lecturer said, "Form groups of five," everybody would quickly find their friends.
But this particular girl always stayed alone.
Some students started calling her proud.
Others said she thought she was better than everyone.
One afternoon, a lecturer gave us a group presentation.
As usual, everyone started forming groups.
One guy looked at her and said jokingly,
"Madam, you no dey group again?"
She smiled and said,
"I'm fine. Just leave me."๐ฅน
People laughed.
But that evening, something happened.
One of her classmates went to the library and saw her sitting alone with a notebook.
She wasn't reading.
She was waiting.
After a while, she brought out an old phone, called someone and said,
"Hello, Grandma... I have to stay here until 7 today. Please don't wait for me."
The classmate became curious.
Later, she asked her why she always avoided group work.
The girl finally explained.
She lived with her grandmother, who couldn't walk properly.
Every day after lectures, she had to get home early enough to help her bathe, prepare food and take her medication.
She couldn't attend group meetings that lasted till evening.
And she was too embarrassed to keep explaining it to people.
So she simply stopped joining groups.
The classmate told the others.
The next day, when the lecturer announced another group assignment, one of the students walked over to her.
"Come, join us."๐ฅน
She shook her head.
"I can't stay late."
The student smiled.
"No problem. We'll do the meeting online. You can contribute from home."
For the first time, she didn't have to choose between her assignment and the person waiting for her at home.
And that's when I realized something.
Sometimes people don't exclude themselves because they hate everyone.
Sometimes they're just trying to manage a life nobody knows about.
Before calling someone proud, lazy or antisocial...
maybe ask yourself what they might be dealing with quietly.