Friendship Stories

Tissues

Why do I feel so lonely, even when I'm surrounded by so many people?

She looked around her, trying to find some sort of escape from her loneliness. Her eyes fell to the ground as she trudged along the hallway. Tears welled in her eyes; she was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

Her teacher greeted her when she walked into the classroom. Her friends smiled and said hi. She waved back, forcing a smile on her face.

Why does it hurt to smile, even though I used to do it all the time?

She sat in her assigned seat at the back of the room. She put her chin in her hand and rested her arms on the desk. It was the last period of the day, she should've been happy. But the only thing that was on her mind was, When will I ever be happy?

A tear escaped her eye, followed by another, then another. She tilted her head so that her hair covered her face. Why now? Why do I have to cry now?

Sitting beside her, he noticed something was wrong.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly so that no one else could hear.

She wanted to scream No, I'm not OK. I need help. I want to cry. I want to die. I can't do this. But all that came out of her mouth was, "I'm fine."

He didn't believe it, but he couldn't push her to tell him. Instead, he rustled through his backpack until he found it. He slid it onto her desk. She looked at it: it was a pack of tissues. She looked up at him, her tear-filled eyes met his honey brown ones. She held onto the pack of tissues; more tears traced her cheeks.

"Thank you," she murmured.

He smiled reassuringly. "It's going to be okay. Trust me."