chapter 4- echoes in the dark

I ran up to my room, my heart pounding. I slammed the door shut behind me, sinking down against it, trying to catch my breath. The confrontation with my mother had been brutal, but it was also liberating. I knew it wasn't over, but for the first time, I wasn't backing down.

Sitting on the bed, I pulled my phone out, trembling as I typed a message into the forum where I'd been anonymously posting my music. I needed to hear something, anything, that would remind me why I was doing this.

I opened the app, found the latest post I had shared, and reread the comment from Echo—the stranger who had been my support, my sounding board, for weeks now. "Your voice is incredible. Don't ever stop singing."

I typed a quick reply: "I don't know if I can keep doing this. My family doesn't understand."

It wasn't long before the reply appeared.

"You don't need their approval. You don't need anyone's approval except your own. Believe in yourself, Amara. The world needs to hear you."

I closed my eyes as the weight of the message sank in. Echo had no idea how badly I needed to hear those words. They were my lifeline in this suffocating world, the only person who believed in me when even my family didn't.

I stood up, determination surging through me. I wasn't going to let this be the end of my dream. I wasn't going to let anyone define who I could be.