Aria Solstice

Tethered Silence delves into the fragmented psyche of Raven, a young woman bound by roles she never chose. Raised by a mother who grooms her to be both wife to her stepfather and mother to her siblings, Raven’s existence has never been her own. As her body carries the visible marks of her compliance, her mind suffocates under the weight of expectations that seem inescapable.
Raven drifts through life, detached from her emotions and desires—if she ever had any. Her days blur in a numbing cycle of caregiving and survival, and her voice drowns in a silence she has never been allowed to break. On the cusp of adulthood, she finds herself attending college, an environment that promises freedom but only sharpens her awareness of the chains that bind her.
This is not a story of love, nor is it a tale of self-discovery. This is the slow unraveling of a life that was never lived for oneself. There is no salvation here—only the echoes of a mind slowly breaking under the weight of a life never meant to be hers.

Tethered Silence

As we drove through the streets, my thoughts lingered on the conversation in Mr. Farrow’s office. The air inside the car felt heavier than before, and I could tell Elias noticed it too. He hadn’t said much since we left, though his hand rested casually on the steering wheel, his fingers occasionally drumming against it. 


When the car finally slowed, I blinked and realized we weren’t near my dorm. In fact, we weren’t even close. Elias pulled into a quiet spot a few blocks away, killing the engine before turning to me. 


“Why are we stopping here?” I asked, glancing toward the campus that was still a short walk away. 


He tilted his head, a small smirk forming on his lips. “You still need to blow off some steam, don’t you?” 


I blinked, caught off guard, but after a moment, I nodded. I did. My chest still felt tight from everything I’d bottled up in Mr. Farrow’s office. The idea of heading straight back to my dorm and stewing in it alone made my stomach turn. 


The Power Of Choice