Chapter 10: Unraveling Threads

Adarsh woke to the steady rhythm of rain against his window, the sound soft and constant. It was as if the world outside had become a blur, muted by the gentle drizzle. He sat up in bed, staring at the grey sky outside, the early morning light barely cutting through the clouds. There was no rush to get up, no urgency in the air. It was just another day, another quiet moment, another chance to forget about everything that lingered beneath the surface.

He'd had a long conversation with Naomi the night before. The kind that didn't have any conclusions, no promises or big answers, just a lot of understanding between the lines. It was the only kind of conversation he could bear lately—the kind where words didn't feel so heavy, and silences weren't awkward. But even after that, there was still a gnawing feeling inside him, a discomfort that hadn't eased.

He reached for his phone, unlocking it to check for messages. A few from friends, nothing unusual. A few random notifications from his social media. He flicked through them absentmindedly. But something caught his eye—an email from an old professor. It was an update about a hackathon opportunity in another city, one that was aligned with his major. His heart skipped a beat, but for all the wrong reasons. He wasn't sure if it was excitement, fear, or just another reminder of how little he cared about the things that used to matter to him.

Closing the email, he tossed the phone aside, trying to suppress the disquiet that had begun to stir within him. It was always there, creeping in the corners of his mind. The weight of expectations, the crushing weight of things he was supposed to care about. Things that felt so far away from what he was really struggling with.

He got up, dragging his feet across the room, and headed for the kitchen. The motions of making a cup of coffee were automatic, like everything else in his life. He didn't think about the steps; he just did them. The coffee brewed quietly, and he poured it into a mug, the steam curling up into the air.

As he sipped, his mind wandered back to Naomi's words from last night. One step at a time.

Could it really be that simple? Could taking it one step at a time be enough to push through whatever this was?

Adarsh had lived his life surrounded by expectations—his parents, his teachers, his friends, all of them wanting something from him. But none of them could see the space he was living in, the weight he was carrying. None of them could understand how everything felt distant, like the world was happening around him but not to him. He couldn't even explain it to Naomi, even though she had tried to understand.

Maybe he didn't need to. Maybe he didn't need to explain it to anyone. Maybe the only person who could understand was the version of himself he used to be, the one who had hopes and dreams, the one who hadn't been bogged down by the invisible weight that now pressed on his chest.

But that person was gone now. And the world kept moving forward without him.

His phone buzzed again, breaking his train of thought. He picked it up and saw Naomi's name flashing on the screen. She had sent him another message, simple but direct. "How are you today?"

Adarsh hesitated. It was a question that should have been easy to answer, but it wasn't. The truth was that he didn't know how he was. Was he better? Was he worse? Was there even a difference anymore? He thought for a moment before typing his reply.

"I'm getting through it."

The message sent, and he set the phone down again. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth either. It wasn't like he could tell her that he was stuck in a place where nothing seemed real. A place where everything felt like a distant memory.

His thoughts wandered to the hackathon opportunity he had seen in the email. Maybe a change of environment, a new challenge, something that could pull him out of this fog. But the idea of stepping into something new felt like it would be more than he could handle. What if he failed? What if he couldn't keep up, couldn't make the effort, couldn't care enough? It was easier to stay here, to stay in the quiet, to stay in this numb place where no one expected anything of him.

But then there was Naomi, her message still hanging in his mind. She was waiting for him to reply, waiting for him to be. To exist in the world again. She was reaching out, trying to pull him out of the silence.

For a moment, he felt a flicker of something inside, something like hope or maybe just the smallest hint of desire to break free. Maybe Naomi was right. Maybe he could take it one step at a time. Maybe that was enough.

He picked up his phone again and typed back.

"Maybe I'll try for it. The hackathon opportunity."

It felt like a small thing, but it was a step. A tiny step forward, into something new. Something unknown.

And for the first time in a long while, Adarsh felt like it might be worth it.