With a Dash of Love

"ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴍᴀᴋᴇꜱ ᴀ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ꜰᴇᴇʟ ʟɪᴋᴇ ʜᴏᴍᴇ?"

This is what Jughead asks in the opening line of one of the episodes of Riverdale.

And this is exactly my question.

He continues with, "Is it warmth and familiarity? Some idealized, make-believe version of the American Dream? Is it love and acceptance? Or is it simple safety?"

For me, the answer would be none of this.

I am not familiar with this crowd that has suddenly bombarded my life.

I am no longer living in America.

I don't feel any ounce of acceptance, much less love, for these people.

And security... Well, the amount of security this place has probably rivals that of the White House.

So what exactly makes a home?

__________

Advika Singh Rathore was three when she moved to Waltham, Massachusetts, in the United States. Moved, or, to be blunt, abandoned, at such a young age with no one but her caretaker, she raised herself on her own and moved on with her life. Gaining friends that were equivalent to blood relations, she filled the family-shaped hole in her heart and was truly happy with her life.

One night, however, changes everything as the said family comes knocking at her door and soon knocks her entire life from underneath her.

For their arrival was the beginning of a cascade that was about to flow.

Plunged into an ocean of mysteries, secrets, and lies, she now has to navigate through the deep waters, testing each person who comes across her way, hopefully with a dash of love.

For change is the only constant in life.

Chaos ensues when someone literally comes out of her closet.