Any loud bang unsettles Emmanuel Omala, a 21-year-old DusitD2 terrorist attack survivor.
And as the country marked the first anniversary of the January 15-16 attack, the young man was unsure of his future.
He was called to join Form One at St Paul's Amukura High School in Teso South, but the fifth-born in a family of seven has no money for school fees. The reporting deadline was January 17.
His father, Paul Omala, is a single parent, having lost his wife in 1999. He ekes a living toiling on his small piece of land at Onyonyur in Busia county.
Emmanuel had resolved to go back to school after the Dusit2 complex assault. His dream is to become a journalist.
He had earlier dropped out of school and got a job as a motorcycle delivery man with Zodwa, a Nairobi logistics company.
He used to make three deliveries a week to Secret Gardens Hotel, near Dusit2 hotel on 14 Riverside, Nairobi.
As he sat pensively, his father by his side, Emanuel recalled the Dusit2 attack as if it happened yesterday.
January 15, 2019, was a normal working day for him. He had a delivery for the Secret Gardens Hotel.
"I heard a huge explosion and thought that it was as a result of an electric fault. Little did I know that we had been attacked. I saw gunmen and tried to run away. I was not lucky," Omala told reporters early this week.
He was shot seven times. The terrorists only stopped shooting after he faked death. The motorcycle was set ablaze.
"One of the gunmen came close to me, lifted my leg and kicked me to confirm whether I was dead. I lay still, said a silent prayer and acted dead," he said.
Emmanuel was admitted to Kenyatta National Hospital for 21 days.
He said Nairobi Senator Johnsone Sakaja was a regular visitor to his hospital bed and that he had promised to cater to his school needs including paying the fees.
On being discharged from hospital, the Dusit2 terrorist attack survivor quit his job and returned to the village to resume studies.
His father added: "The unfortunate incident changed his life forever. Emmanuel, who was a jovial boy, has become unsociable and very dull. He is scared of loud bangs in spite of the counselling he underwent."
Meanwhile, days have turned into weeks and the Form One hopeful is still at home, hoping that a well-wisher comes by to take care of his school needs.
It may be a matter of time before his place at St Paul's Amukura is given to somebody else.
