A shoulder to Your shadow

Under the same sky

Eram, coming from a preserved family is a lively, clumsy girl who always tends to make mistakes. Being the youngest kid, she never had to bore the weight of responsibilities. She has many personalities which she herself is unaware of. People would often find her as calm, quite, shy person, She is! Her friends would assume her as the naughtiest girl, her classmates side eye her cause she seems the topper who knows it all, her other batch mates would think of her as someone unapproachable. Her family? They would think her as a silly, irresponsible, and a spoiled kid who knows nothing.

But, who she really is? Maybe this story of her might reveal the world an another side hiding behind her clumsiness.

The story begins from as she opens her journal, where she writes,

"Dear Diary,
I promise to be consistent and I'll not buy another until I finish this. I'm done with my 12th, and am sitting idle, not sure of what to do with my life. Having a dream seems a luxury to me. My big sister says that I should've a goal in my life, but what if I don't have one? Will that make me odd? Or unacceptable? Well, I'll leave it upto my Lord. I'm sure He will chose the best for me. But this weight of nothingness weighs my heart to the point that it sinks deeper and deeper. My family has no clue of the sleepless nights I spend, of my pillow getting wet with my tears, they would probably think it's my drool. Well, that's completely understandable. Oh, Eram!! It's your first page in your new diary which you bought after making a fuss, and what? You are creating an another fuss by writing this sad rubbish, Introduce yourself! Ohkayyy!! Let's retake this—

《 Turns the page 》

"Dear Diary,

Wondering who your owner is? Haha, it's me, Eram! My name means paradise, heaven. So is my soul! It's like a dandelion in a garden with it's greens and yellows, with flowers and butterflies along with thorns and muddy weeds. I wish to live a peaceful and lead a purposeful life ahead. I like being in my comfort zone. Although I'm not sure how to achieve that. My plans? Unsure. My goals? None. My dreams? Many! My hobbies? Uhm... My studies? Done with 12th. My current life? It's still. My past? Like a thorny rose. Is that enough of the Introduction?? Oh wait!! I didn't introduce my family! My family is complete, and I'm the youngest kid in the house. Well, that's enough now, my hand already pains by writing this.

Let's meet you tomorrow!
Ba-byee^^

Oh waittt!! I created [nth] instagram account. And I'm planning to make it all yellow!

Okay now bye!"

She closes it with a book mark she made few days ago. For a moment, she paused, staring at the little piece of paper, wondering if anyone would ever really understand her. Would they see her as just the silly, clumsy girl who made a mess of everything? Or was there more to her than that? She gets up with a soft sigh and runs to her balcony. She stood there leaning on the wall, counting the stars, and trying to get a glance on the moon which hid behind the big building beside her cozy home.

She rushed in with heavy steps and annoyed face as the chirping insects disturbed her peace. She comes back and gently pats the door which she slammed a while ago and says sorry in her little voice. She tucks herself in the blanket excited to explore the world of dreams.

》Scene 2  》

"Why do people go beyond just to glance at the moon?" Aayan wondered aloud, his eyes fixed on the sparkling moon outside his window. He sat by his desk, a blank journal open before him, the pen resting idle in his hand.

The night felt thick and it's quietness  filled the room like a weight. He stares at his open journal trying a way to empty his blank mind. Words came easily to everyone else, it seemed, but for him, they often just…stuck.

He closes the book with failed attempts to fill it and sat there leaning his head on the desk. The desk vibrated as his phone flashed with a notification—another message. He glanced at it, barely registering the name. It could be family, a friend, maybe a reminder from work. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually replied to someone.

Aayan stared at the ceiling, the silence pressed in on him, heavy and suffocating. The time had slowed down around him, and he was stuck in the same moment, unable to move forward or backward.

He ran a hand through his hair, closing his eyes for a brief second, trying to push away the weight of his thoughts. But they only returned, swirling around him like a storm he couldn’t escape. The same thoughts, the same questions, the same emptiness.

He glanced back at his phone again. The notification that had popped up earlier was still there, but it no longer felt important.  It was probably just another useless message or another account he’d never care about.

Aayan tapped the screen absentmindedly, clearing the notification without even thinking. He didn’t even register what he was doing until after his finger had already swiped it away. A new account? It didn’t matter. He didn’t need more reminders of the world outside, of people reaching out when he couldn’t bring himself to reach back.

The stillness around him was a constant reminder that he was alone in this.

And maybe that’s how it would always be.

With a final glance at the window, Aayan turned and stepped away from the quiet, heading to his bed, where he sank into the covers. His phone rested on the nightstand, the notification about the new account forgotten.

He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, unaware of the small, quiet connection that had just been made.

The follow wasn’t a conscious choice, but it had been made nonetheless. And in the silence, a connection had begun, unnoticed but waiting for the right moment of stir.